Free agent signee Russell Wilson completed 6 of 7 passes for 28 yards on the Giants’ opening drive that ended in a 53-yard field goal, and rookie first-rounder Jaxson Dart followed with a 12-for-19 performance that included 154 yards and a touchdown as the New York’ Giants recorded a 34-25 win over the Buffalo Bills on Saturday at Orchard Park, N.Y.
Another first-year Giant, Jameis Winston, entered in the second half and went 7-of-11 for 62 yards and a score in a game that featured four lead changes after the intermission.
Jude McAtamney drilled a 42-yard field goal with 7:13 left in the fourth quarter to give New York the lead for good. Later in the period, the Giants recovered a fumble deep in Buffalo territory and capitalized with an 8-yard touchdown pass from Tommy DeVito to Jonathan Ward to give the visitors a nine-point lead with 2:11 to play.
Buffalo’s Mitchell Trubisky, making the start while reigning MVP Josh Allen rested, completed 9 of 13 passes for 138 yards and a touchdown. Mike White then came on to throw for 112 yards and two scores on 8-for-13 passing.
Vikings 20, Texans 10
JJ McCarthy made his NFL return a year after missing the 2024 season with a right knee injury, completing 4 of 7 passes for 30 yards as Minnesota opened the preseason with a victory over Houston in Minneapolis.
Sam Howell was 11-for-13 for 105 yards for the Vikings, who won their fourth straight preseason game. Howell also had a rushing score for Minnesota, which outgained the Texans 261-194.
Houston led only once in the game, as Davis Mills connected with Braxton Berrios for a 14-yard touchdown to put the Texans up 7-3 with under four minutes to go in the first quarter. Mills completed 4 of 5 passes for 50 yards as the starter.
The Vikings lost wide receiver and punt returned Rondale Moore in the second quarter. After returning a punt two yards, Moore was tackled near the sideline and remained on the ground. He was carted off the field with a leg injury, a year after missing the 2024 season with a right knee injury.
Rams 31, Cowboys 21
Third-year quarterback Stetson Bennett threw for 188 yards and two touchdowns and second-year running back Blake Corum rushed for a pair of short scores to lead host Los Angeles past Dallas in new Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer’s debut.
Bennett completed 16 of 24 passes with one interception and linked up with Cody Schrader and Brennan Presley for scores in the second half, the second one pushing the Rams ahead 31-14 with 5:57 to go in the game. Bennett, a two-time national champion at Georgia, is attempting to lock down his job as the Rams’ third-string quarterback for another season. He was the lone Rams quarterback to play on Saturday.
Corum finished off Los Angeles’ first two drives of the game with touchdown scores from 2 and 4 yards, respectively. He finished with nine carries for 32 yards.
For the Cowboys, Joe Milton III passed for 143 yards, with one touchdown and one interception, in his Cowboys debut before suffering a bruised elbow in the fourth quarter. The second-year pro is vying to be Dak Prescott’s backup this season. Will Grier replaced him for the final series.
Both teams rested their key players, including Prescott and CeeDee Lamb on the Dallas side and quarterbacks Matthew Stafford and Jimmy Garoppolo for the Rams. Micah Parsons attended with his Dallas teammates after requesting a trade from the organization last week.
Lamb was in street clothes on the sideline when an official ran into him, earning the All-Pro receiver a 15-yard penalty for making contact with an official.
Steelers 31, Jaguars 25
Pittsburgh earned the victory but host Jacksonville received more of the attention with its top draft pick Travis Hunter playing both ways and kicker Cam Little booting a 70-yard field goal.
Little’s kick on the last play of the first half is not the NFL record because it was in a preseason game. The mark remains with Justin Tucker, whose 66-yarder came against the host Detroit Lions in September 2021. Little was 4-for-4 on field goals and 1-for-1 on extra points on Saturday.
Hunter, the 2024 Heisman Trophy winner from Colorado and the second overall pick, caught two passes for 9 yards as a wide receiver and did not record a tackle as a cornerback.
The Steelers started Mason Rudolph at quarterback with Aaron Rodgers held out and was 9-for-10 for 84 yards with a 19-yard scoring toss to Darnell Washington. Skylar Thompson was 20-for-28 for 233 yards and touchdown passes to Max Hurleman, Trey Sermon and Ke’Shawn Williams.
Jacksonville starter Trevor Lawrence played the opening series and was 6-for-7 for 43 yards in guiding the team to a 41-yard field goal. Nick Mullens (11 of 18, 89 yards, one TD), Seth Henigan (11 of 14, 78 yards) and John Wolford (3 of 5, 63 yards) played the rest of the game.
Buccaneers 29, Titans 7
Host Tampa Bay dominated the game, with the exception of Tennessee’s lone scoring drive led by rookie quarterback Cam Ward, the top overall draft pick.
Ward played in the Titans’ first two offensive possessions, a three-and-out and then an 11-play, 65-yard drive culminating with Tony Pollard’s 1-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. Ward was 5-for-8 in his NFL preseason debut for 67 yards and no turnovers.
The Buccaneers held out quarterback Baker Mayfield and other starters, going with Kyle Trask at QB for most of the game. Trask, competing with recently signed veteran Teddy Bridgewater as a backup, was 12-for-16 for 129 yards. Connor Bazelak was 6-for-9 for 48 yards.
Tampa Bay ran 22 of the first 25 plays from scrimmage and built a 10-0 lead before Tennessee got on the board. The Bucs’ Sean Tucker and Owen Wright rushed for touchdowns in the game, Chase McLaughlin made field goals of 45 and 23 yards, Ryan Coe made a 36-yard kick and Roman Parodie returned an interception 39 yards for a score.
Bucs running back Rachaad White and wide receiver Dennis Houston sustained groin injuries in the first quarter and did not play the rest of the game.
Jets 30, Packers 10
Quarterback Justin Fields, who was signed in the offseason, scampered for a 13-yard touchdown run in his lone drive as New York topped host Green Bay in Aaron Glenn’s debut as the Jets’ head coach.
Fields finished off a 10-play, 79-yard drive by escaping the pocket on a third-and-5 play and evading a would-be tackler on his way to the right corner of the end zone to put the Jets ahead early. He was 3-of-4 passing for 42 yards.
With a knee injury sidelining expected backup QB Tyrod Taylor, rookie Brady Cook and third-year passer Adrian Martinez got snaps after Fields’ departure. Martinez was 11 of 16 for 152 yards, including a 24-yard touchdown to Stone Smartt. Fifteen Jets players caught at least one pass as New York rolled to a 27-3 lead late in the third quarter.
Packers quarterback Jordan Lone completed just one of his five passes for 7 yards, and the Packers failed to score on either of his two drives against an opportunistic New York defense that had four sacks and two takeaways. Green Bay’s lone touchdown came in the fourth quarter on a 39-yard run from undrafted free agent Amar Johnson from South Dakota State.
Packers safety Zayne Anderson (knee) and cornerback Corey Ballentine (unspecified injury), and Jets safety Tony Adams (thigh) and wide receiver Allen Lazard(shoulder) sustained injuries.
Cardinals 20, Chiefs 17
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes made a brief but effective return to action since Kansas City’s loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl.
He played all of 48 seconds, completing his only pass for a 1-yard touchdown to Jason Brownlee in the Chiefs’ preseason opener against the host Cardinals in Glendale, Ariz.
Arizona, which fumbled away the opening kickoff, rallied later for the victory after Mahomes appeared for his designated one series by head coach Andy Reid. Gardner Minshew came on in relief and was 6-for-9 for 54 yards and also ran for a 2-yard score, and Bailey Zappe was 8-for-17 for 70 yards and two interceptions.
Cardinals starter Kyler Murray, who hadn’t played in a preseason game since 2021, was 7-for-8 for 96 yards and one interception. Jacoby Brissett was 5-for-8 for 81 yards and TDs to Emari Demercado and Xavier Weaver. Clayton Tune was 5-for-9 for 47 yards and a pick.
Kansas City cornerback Jaylen Watson (concussion protocol) and safety Deon Bush (Achilles tendon) were injured in the first half, and Arizona offensive lineman Christian Jones sustained a knee injury during the game.
Broncos 30, 49ers 9
Backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham took advantage of his opportunity by completing 14 of 15 passes for 136 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions as Denver downed host San Francisco in Santa Clara, Calif.
The Broncos’ offensive starters were not as sharp, with second-year quarterback Bo Nix going 6 of 11 for 31 yards in three possessions. Denver punted, gave up a safety for intentionally grounding in the end zone and made a 42-yard field goal on a short field.
Stidham connected with Lucas Krull on an 8-yard score and Trent Sherfield on a 36-yard TD. Will Lutz kicked field goals of 42, 32 and 45 yards.
The 49ers rested most of their starters, and reserve quarterback Mac Jones was 4 of 7 for 74 yards – most on a 50-yard pass to Jordan Watkins — and one interception. Carter Bradley and Tanner Mordecai also were picked off.
San Francisco running back Ameer Abdullah (ribs) and safety Marques Sigle (knee) sustained injuries during the game.
–Field Level Media
