New York Jets vs New York Giants
Giants – Welcome to the NFL Daniel Jones! After an up and down Training Camp, Jones looked the part in last night’s game, while Eli Manning struggled in his only series. Jones went 5/5 for 67 yards and a touchdown to Bennie Fowler in his only series of the night. The RB2 job is Wayne Gallman’s to lose and that likely won’t happen. Paul Perkins fumbled away his chance to make it a true battle. Cody Latimer looked the part as he had 2 catches for 36 yards, both catches coming from Jones.
Jets – Sam Darnold definitely looks like he’s ready to take the second year leap. He orchestrated a beautiful, and easy, touchdown drive in his only series. Darnold and Jamison Crowder have been on the same page all camp and that continued last night. Crowder had 2 catches for 31 yards and a touchdown, all coming from Darnold in the first series. Chris Herndon also had a 32 yard reception in that first series. He will be a force when he comes back from his 4 game suspension.
Indianapolis Colts vs Buffalo Bills
Colts – Daurice Fountain had the most notable night for the Colts. He had 5 catches for 63 yards, which included one highlight grab down the sideline. Devin Funchess made a nice 15-yard catch on the first series and added a difficult catch of a ball Jacoby Brissett threw behind him on the second series, although he lost his balance and wasn’t able to pick up the first down.
Bills –Devin Singletary shouldered the load on the Bills first scoring drive, which came in the second quarter. He was involved in 7 of the 10 plays that took place during the TD drive. He finished the night with 9 carries for 27 yards and 3 catches for 21 yards. It was a solid debut for the rookie. The story of the night was Christian Wade. He’s an ex-Rugby star that took his first ever NFL carry 65 yards for a touchdown. Check out the highlight – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4V01Zrp0iGw – so much acceleration. He’s a long shot to make the team, but it’s a fun story. Zay Jones left the game early to be evaluated for a head injury but returned to the sidelines early in the second quarter and was cleared to return to the game. Robert Foster had a rough night. He almost came up with a terrific catch down the sidelines, but it hit the ground just before he could, but also dropped another over the middle. He was targeted four times and came away with one reception. He played 0 snaps while Josh Allen was in the game. TJ Yeldon also had a rough night. He received two carries in the Red Zone with one resulting in a fumble and a turnover.
Jacksonville Jaguars vs Baltimore Ravens
Jaguars – Gardner Minshew will be the backup quarterback. Other than that, there wasn’t much to note about the Jags’ performance. They had only 112 total yards. Ryquell Armstead got the most carries of the running backs (8 carries for 22 yards). He also added 1 catch for 6 yards. The majority of the starters didn’t play.
Ravens – The Lamar Jackson hype isn’t dying. Jackson wasn’t perfect on the night by any means but for it being the first preseason game, he did what he needed to. Jackson didn’t run with the football, kept it from the defense and threw a touchdown pass. Miles Boykin had an uneven night as he was given ample opportunity to show what he can do. He dropped a couple passes, but still ended up with 4 catches for 39 yards.
New England Patriots vs Detroit Lions
Patriots – Jakobi Meyers was the story of the night. A lot of people wanted to see if he could carry over his Training Camp success to an actual game and he exceeded expectations. He ended up with 6 catches for 69 yards (nice) and 2 touchdowns. Meyers also looked confidence in his routes and when catching footballs in traffic. The hype is real. Fellow rookie, N’Keal Harry also impressed with 2 catches for 36 yards before limping off the field. He should be fine. Braxton Berrios was also one of last night’s standouts. He had a good week of Training Camp and capped it off with 3 catches for 45 yards. He looked comfortable as a route runner. Jarrett Stidham also looked very capable as a backup quarterback. He was able to progress through his reads and make good decisions. The battle for the backup QB job between Stidham and Brian Hoyer should start to heat up.
Lions – There wasn’t anything that went right for the Lions offense.
Tennessee Titans vs Philadelphia Eagles
Titans – Marcus Mariota’s first 4 passes went to Adam Humphries and he caught all 4 of them. He then targeted Humphries twice more on the Titans opening drive, both falling incomplete. Humphries had 4 catches on 6 targets for 24 yards and Mariota went 4/8 for 24 yards. Ryan Tannehill looked like the better QB and it wasn’t all that close. Tannehill went 12/16 for 130 yards and 2 touchdowns. There isn’t a quarterback controversy… yet. Taywan Taylor had an awful night. Taylor dropped two passes and had another ruled incomplete when he failed to keep his feet in bounds. Jeremy McNichols has had an impressive Training Camp and carried it over to the game last night. He had 8 carries for 44 yards. He seems to have the 4th RB spot behind Derrick Henry, Dion Lewis, and David Fluellen locked down. Cody Hollister also had a good night. He was surprisingly listed with the second team group at receiver on the Titans first official depth chart. His performance last night showed why. He hauled in 4 of 5 targets for 58 yards and a touchdown. Alex Barnes looks unlikely to make the team after a poor performance. He had just 14 yards on 10 carries and he had a fumble. Anthony Firkser was another bright spot last night. The tight end is having a good camp and caught Tannehill’s second touchdown pass.
Eagles – Dallas Goedert was the best offensive weapon on the field for either team during the first few possessions. He was uncoverable, finishing with 3 catches for 50 yards. Marken Michel had a 75 yard touchdown catch, which was the highlight of the game. He’ll have a tough time seeing meaningful snaps during the regular season, but that touchdown showed his electricity. Josh Adams had a fumble and is trending towards not making the team. Jordan Howard and Miles Sanders split first quarter reps. JJ Arcega-Whiteside had 2 catches on 4 targets for 23 yards.
Washington Redskins vs Cleveland Browns
Redskins – Case Keenum received the start and was efficient during his brief appearance. Keenum went 6/11 for 60 yards, which included a 46-yard touchdown pass to Robert Davis midway through the first quarter. Dwayne Haskins showed promise mixed with rookie mistakes. He should get plenty of preseason reps. Darvin Kidsy was the leading receiver with 5 catches for 86 yards.
Browns –Baker Mayfield picked up right where he left off. He played one series and went 5/6 for 77 yards and a touchdown to Rashard Higgins. Nick Chubb received 1 carry for 12 yards and caught 1 pass for 14 yards. Higgins finshed the night with 5 catches for 98 yards and the touchdown. He’s in line to have a career season as the #3 receiving target. The feel good story of the night was Damon Sheehy-Guiseppi. He went from sleeping outside to convincing the browns to let him tryout to returning a punt to the house last night. Check it out – https://twitter.com/Browns/status/1159654556256444417?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet . Dontrell Hilliard, who steps into a big role after the Duke Johnson trade, had a solid night. He finished with 9 carries for 19 yards and 3 catches for 34 yards. He did fumble on a fourth and goal run