Rookie Quinn Ewers threw two touchdown passes to fuel the visiting Miami Dolphins to a 24-17 preseason victory over the Detroit Lions on Saturday.
Ewers, a seventh-round pick out of Texas, completed 11 of 17 passes for 116 yards and tossed 15- and 8-yard scoring strikes to Theo Wease Jr. in the third and fourth quarter, respectively. Wease finished with six catches for 80 yards for the Dolphins (1-0-1).
Zach Wilson went 15 for 23 yards for 151 yards, including an 11-yard touchdown pass to Dee Eskridge.
Kyle Allen completed 14 of 17 passes for124 yards and two touchdowns for the Lions (1-2).
Browns 22, Eagles 13
KJ Henry had a 45-yard interception return for a touchdown early in the third quarter to pace the visiting Browns to a victory over the Eagles.
Rookie Dillon Gabriel completed 13 of 18 passes for 143 yards. He also threw an interception early in the second quarter that was returned 75 yards for a touchdown by Andrew Mukuba.
Tyler Huntley went 10-for-13 for 71 yards in the second half and Pierre Strong finished with 89 yards rushing for the Browns (2-0).
Kyle McCord completed 8 of 16 attempts for 47 yards — including a 9-yard touchdown pass to Ainias Smith — for the Eagles (1-1).
Packers 23, Colts 19
Quarterback Sean Clifford scored on an 11-yard touchdown carry with 1:31 remaining as Green Bay (1-1) rallied to defeat Indianapolis (0-2) in the second preseason contest for both squads.
The Colts jumped out to a 13-0 lead, highlighted by a Tyler Goodson 3-yard touchdown rush at the 5-minute mark of the first quarter. The Packers responded with second-half rushing touchdowns from Israel Abanikanda and Amar Johnson to knot the score at 16-16 at the 12:07 mark of the fourth quarter.
After Indy’s Spencer Shrader converted his fourth field goal of the game, Green Bay went on a 13-play, 68-yard drive, capped by Clifford’s scramble around the left end.
Daniel Jones got the start at quarterback for the Colts and completed 7 of 11 passes for 101 yards. Anthony Richardson relieved him and hit on 6 of 11 throws for 73 yards.
Taylor Elgersma started for the Packers and converted 7 of 11 throws for 109 yards. Abanikanda was the game’s leading rusher with 43 yards on 12 carries.
Patriots 20, Vikings 12
Veteran quarterback Joshua Dobbs completed 11 of 16 passes for 106 yards and a touchdown as New England (2-0) defeated host Minnesota (1-1).
Second-year signal-caller Drake Maye got the start for the Patriots and led a touchdown drive on the visitors’ second possession of the game. TreVeyon Henderson capped the nine-play, 52-yard drive with an eight-yard scamper around the left end.
Dobbs increased the lead to 14-0 after capping a 13-play drive with an 11-yard touchdown strike to wide receiver Efton Chism. Chism caught six passes for 71 yards in the game.
Will Reichard accounted for all of Minnesota’s points with four field goals. Quarterback Max Brosmer completed 15 of 27 throws for 156 yards but threw an interception and was sacked four times. Tim Jones caught five passes for 68 yards.
Texans 20, Panthers 3
Quarterback C.J. Stroud had a touchdown pass in his brief start to lead Houston (1-1) to a win over visiting Carolina.
Stroud, who did not play in the team’s preseason opener, capped off his two-drive appearance with a five-yard touchdown pass to Nico Collins after his first series ended with a punt. The Texans starter completed 6 of 8 passes for 44 yards.
Tight end Irv Smith Jr. led Houston with five catches on as many targets for 46 yards. Running back British Brooks capped off the scoring with a one-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter on his only carry of the game.
The Panthers also used their starting QB, Bryce Young, for two series. Both of his pass attempts fell incomplete; he was sacked once and recorded two rushing yards. Rookie wideout Brycen Tremayne led Carolina with 46 receiving yards.
49ers 22, Raiders 19
Kicker Jake Moody made three of his five field goals in the fourth quarter to complete San Francisco’s (1-1) comeback victory over host Las Vegas (0-1-1).
Moody and Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson accounted for 29 of the 41 points scored in the game as each team scored just one touchdown. Moody made 5 of his 6 kicks, including a career-best 59-yarder, while Carlson was a perfect 4-for-4 with a 54-yarder.
San Francisco starting quarterback Brock Purdy played one series, completing 5 of 7 passes for 66 yards while leading a field-goal drive. Wideout Robbie Chosen recorded five catches for 92 yards.
New Raiders QB Geno Smith played two series, with 6 of his 8 passes caught for 55 yards. Rookie running back Ashton Jeanty carried the ball seven times for 33 yards and a touchdown.
Giants 31, Jets 12
Jaxson Dart proved once again that he may be the Giants’ quarterback of the future, as the rookie completed 14 of 16 passes for 137 yards and a touchdown then added a rushing score in the Giants’ win over the Jets in East Rutherford, N.J.
Russell Wilson got the start for the Giants (2-0), leading a touchdown drive on the team’s first possession of the game that was capped by Devin Singletary’s 1-yard scoring run. Playing four series, Wilson went 4-of-7 for 108 yards and an interception.
The Jets (1-1) went into halftime down 7-6 after Nick Folk booted a 31-yard field goal. Dart, though, guided back-to-back touchdown drives to open the second half. After hitting Greg Dulcich for a 20-yard TD to cap the first drive, Dart plunged ahead for a 1-yard rushing score on the next possession to put the Giants on top 21-6.
In two preseason games so far, Dart is 26-for-35 (74.3 percent) passing for 291 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions.
Justin Fields started at QB for the Jets, connecting on 1 of 5 passes for four yards. Adrian Martinez replaced him and was 12-for-21 for 114 yards and an interception.
Buccaneers 17, Steelers 14
Less than two weeks after joining Tampa Bay, Teddy Bridgewater completed six of 11 passes for 85 yards and two touchdowns as the visiting Buccaneers beat Pittsburgh to remain undefeated in the preseason.
Bridgewater, who sat in last week’s preseason opener to get more acquainted with the team’s playbook, hit running back Bucky Irving for a 15-yard touchdown that put the Bucs (2-0) in front after their second drive. Later in the first quarter, Bridgewater connected with Emeka Egbuka for a 5-yard score to give Tampa a 14-0 lead.
The Steelers (1-1) climbed back with a 2-yard TD pass from Mason Rudolph to Brandon Johnson in the opening quarter, then evened the score in the third on Trey Sermon’s 1-yard scoring rush.
Playing without Aaron Rodgers for the second straight week, the Steelers outgained Tampa Bay 316-240 but committed three turnovers, including an interception with just under three minutes that set up a game-winning, 42-yard field goal by Chase McLaughlin with no time left on the clock.
Rams 23, Chargers 22
Stetson Bennett went the distance for the Rams and guided a 10-play, 75-yard drive that ended with an 8-yard touchdown pass to Tru Edwards with 5 seconds remaining to lift the hosts to a victory over the Chargers.
The game-winning drive took just 1 minute, 23 seconds, and came on the heels of the Rams’ defense forcing a punt after the Chargers took over with 1:50 remaining.
The Rams (2-0) racked up 458 yards of offense compared with the Chargers’ 291, but fell behind 22-17 after Luke Grimm returned a punt 66 yards for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter. It was only the second touchdown of the game for the Chargers (2-1), who also scored on a Raheim Sanders 1-yard run in the third.
Bennett was 28-of-40 for 324 yards and three touchdowns with one interception. Brennan Presley was his top target, finishing with 102 yards on six receptions.
After Justin Herbert went 2-for-5 for 46 yards for the Chargers, Taylor Heinicke and Trey Lance came on in relief, combining to go 13-of-26 for 177 yards but no scores. Tre Harris had six catches for 85 yards.
The Chargers lost starting wide receiver Quentin Johnston on the team’s opening series when he was hit by Rams safety Tanner Ingle on an incomplete deep sideline pass. Johnston exited on medical cart. Coach Jim Harbaugh said Johnston suffered a concussion and was taken to a local hospital for X-rays and further evaluation.
Ravens 31, Cowboys 13
Baltimore quarterback Cooper Rush passed for 198 yards and a touchdown against his former team, but also threw two interceptions, including a pick-6, as the Ravens downed host Dallas.
Rush, a former undrafted free agent out of Central Michigan, appeared in 38 regular-season games for the Cowboys (2017-19, 2021-24) and posted a 9-5 record as a starter. He became a free agent in March and signed with the Ravens to back up star quarterback Lamar Jackson, who didn’t play Saturday.
While Rush was 20 of 30, including a 1-yard score to Keith Kirkwood, he also tossed a pick to Andrew Booth, who returned it 40 yards for the Cowboys’ first score in the first quarter.
Dallas didn’t play starting quarterback Dak Prescott, with Joe Milton III going 9 of 18 for 122 yards and one interception by cornerback Reuben Lowery. Will Grier also got snaps, going 1-for-5 for 33 yards.
Baltimore rookie Tyler Loop, a sixth-round draft selection, made field goals of 29, 51, 42, 36 and 53 yards. Dallas veteran Brandon Aubrey kicked field goals of 36 and 47 yards.
Broncos 27, Cardinals 7
Jarrett Stidham threw for 240 yards and two touchdowns — both to wide receiver Troy Franklin — as host Denver scored early in defeating Arizona in a game both squads sat most of their starters.
Stidham, a backup to Bo Nix, completed 16 of 23 passes, including for scores of 27 and 17 yards to Franklin in the first half. Quarterback Sam Ehlinger played the second half for the Broncos and was 15 of 16 for 162 yards and, like Stidham, did not throw an interception.
The Cardinals sat starting QB Kyler Murray and opened with veteran Jacoby Brissett, who was 6 of 8 for 57 yards and a 16-yard TD toss to Simi Fehoko. Clayton Tune was 13 of 20 for 56 yards in relief of Brissett, and neither threw an interception.
Denver guard Nick Gargiulo left the game in the third quarter with a right knee injury, and linebacker Garret Wallow (ankle) exited in the fourth. Cardinals offensive lineman Hayden Conner (knee) was injured on the first drive of the game.
–Field Level Media
