INDIANAPOLIS — The preseason opener swung the pendulum a bit in the Colts secondary.

For most of the first three weeks of training camp, the battle for the starting job at free safety was in the spotlight, intensified by the ongoing availability of former Broncos star Justin Simmons.

The team’s lack of certainty at the cornerback position slipped into the shadows.

A 34-30 loss to Denver in Sunday’s preseason opener has pushed the cornerback depth -- or lack thereof -- back into the light.

Third-year cornerback Dallis Flowers was flagged twice for pass interference and gave up at least three completions in 38 defensive snaps, struggling in his return to the field since suffering a torn Achilles last October that ended his first season as a starter before he could establish himself.

As long as everybody is healthy, Flowers was trailing in the race for one of the two starting spots next to Kenny Moore II — second-year cornerbacks JuJu Brents and Jaylon Jones have held those roles — but he’s frequently been mentioned as part of that position battle, making Flowers the next man on the field if Brents or Jones is dealing with an injury.

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The preseason opener revealed Flowers is not back to full strength yet.

“That last 5% or that last 10% is what he needs work on,” defensive coordinator Gus Bradley said. “He didn’t play as good as he wanted to, but we kind of anticipated there might be some different looks he might have to get accustomed to, coming back off this injury.”

Achilles tendon recoveries are notoriously tricky. A player who tears his Achilles is typically able to play again the next season, but he often finds that he needs another full year before he gets his explosiveness back to where it was.

Flowers is trying to buck that trend.

“We kind of anticipated there would be some spots where he was just getting acclimated to the speed of the game again,” Bradley said. “We know where he’s at; he knows where he’s at, and the progress he has to make.”

But an incomplete Flowers could put the Colts in a precarious position at cornerback. Indianapolis has been encouraged by the play of Brents and Jones in training camp, although Jones has been through bouts of inconsistency against Colts receivers, but Flowers’s struggles leave plenty of uncertainty.

The next two players on the depth chart, third-year cornerback Darrell Baker Jr. and rookie Jaylin Simpson, have not been a part of the battle for the starting lineup. Baker struggled in his time as a starter last season, and although Simpson’s play has been encouraging, he still has a long way to go.

Bradley acknowledged that the fifth-round pick out of Auburn isn’t ready to start yet.

“From where he was at in OTAs to where he is now, marked progress,” Bradley said. “I do think the consistency in the strength of the game, that play strength, we still need to take a look at. But you can tell (he’s) getting better. He’s done that part of it.”

The double red flags flying on the outside of the secondary were mitigated in part by encouraging signs in the middle of the field.

Moore, who ended the first two Denver drives with a tackle and an interception, remains the only proven player the Colts have at cornerback.

In the past, an injury to Moore has left the Indianapolis secondary playing with one hand behind its back, because there are so few players with the versatility to replicate Moore’s playmaking ability.

For the first time in a while, though, the Colts might have an option in Micah Abraham, the sixth-round pick who starred in Sunday’s preseason opener with six tackles, a tackle-for-loss and an eye-opening strip-and-score on a 45-yard touchdown.

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Indianapolis drafted Abraham for his ball skills.

“To see that actually happen, it’s not surprising, and it’s almost like it confirmed what our thoughts were,” Bradley said. “For him, now it’s just consistency. He missed an open-field tackle. He missed a coverage here. But he plays fast, and even if he makes a mistake, he plays fast. We’ve just got to speed up the reps that he gets and make sure he takes advantage of it so he can play more consistently.”

The Colts have been looking for consistency at free safety, prompting calls for the Indianapolis front office to go get Simmons, the Pro Bowl-caliber veteran who has reportedly visited the Saints and Falcons.

What did the Colts say about Nick Cross vs. Broncos

But the Colts felt like third-year safety Nick Cross gave them what they wanted to see against the Broncos, particularly from the free safety spot.

“His angles were better, he had a couple of eraser tackles, his leverage was better, his vision to the quarterback, his plant-and-break was better,” Bradley said. “That part was cool to see.”

Cross now seems like the front-runner to start at free safety, although Indianapolis has likewise been encouraged by improvements from Rodney Thomas II over the last 10 days, a development that means the race is far from over heading into joint practices against Arizona and Cincinnati, the team’s next two preseason opponents.

For a while, Indianapolis tinkered with the possibility of playing returning star Julian Blackmon at free safety with either Cross or veteran Ronnie Harrison at strong safety, but Sunday’s game might have put those possibilities on the backburner.

Cross’s play was encouraging at free safety, but he made more mistakes at strong safety, including a mistake on Denver’s first touchdown of the day, a third-down Bo Nix throw on the goal line that Cross was responsible for taking away.

“There was no switch of coverage,” Bradley said. “It’s just that there was motion, and he’s got to get out a little bit wider and put himself in position to cover that.”

The Colts secondary has little time to go through growing pains once the regular season begins.

Indianapolis opens the season against Houston and Green Bay, two teams with young quarterbacks on the rise, deep receiving corps and a penchant for throwing the ball downfield. By the time the Colts take on C.J. Stroud and Jordan Love, they need to have answers at every position.

And the preseason opener revealed there’s still plenty of questions.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Colts: What coaches said about Nick Cross, Dallis Flowers vs. Broncos