The NFL Preseason is officially open, with a not too impressive performance from Jimmy Garoppolo despite the New England Patriots winning. Cam Newton looked good when he wasn’t getting penalized for celebrating on the field as the Carolina Panthers lost to the Baltimore Ravens, and the post Manning-era began for the Denver Broncos, shutting out the Chicago Bears, and getting a touchdown pass from Mark Sanchez.
Washington Redskins 17 (0-1) Atlanta Falcons 23 (1-0): Matt Ryan played for the Falcons but did nothing (0-for-4), while Matt Schaub looked good, completing 10-of-15 passes for 179 yards. The Falcons scored two touchdowns, one on a 101 yard kickoff return by J.D. McKissic, and the other on a one-yard run by Brandon Wilds. Kirk Cousins was 5-for-5 with 39 yards before sitting down.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 9 (0-1) Philadelphia Eagles 17 (1-0): The Eagles scored two quick touchdowns by Ryan Mathews and quarterback Chase Daniel, and managed to hang on. Sam Bradford threw one pass for three yards, Caron Wentz had plenty of time, with 12-for-24, 89 yards and one interception. Jameis Winston looked good for the Bucs, completing 7-of-9 passes, throwing one touchdown pass.
New Orleans Saints 22 (0-1) New England Patriots 34 (1-0): Jimmy Garoppolo didn’t do anything special, completing 11-of-18 passes for 168 yards, as the Patriots scored two touchdowns on defensive plays: An interception return by Jamie Collins, and a fumble return by Trey Flowers. Drew Brees threw one pass for 37 yards and was done for the day. Mark Ingram had two touchdown runs.
Carolina Panthers 19 (0-1) Baltimore Ravens 22 (1-0): Two things stood out in this game. Play stopping so Michael Phelps winning the gold medal in the 200 IM could be watched in his hometown, and Cam Newton, who had a good appearance, ruining a 95-yard interception return by A.J. Klein. He got on the field, which resulted in a penalty, and the TD nullified. He was 5-for-6 for 36 yards in his only drive, while Joe Flacco didn’t play for the Ravens, keeping him confined for now, still recovering from his knee injury last season.
Jacksonville Jaguars 13 (0-1) New York Jets 17 (1-0): Blake Bortles and the Jags had a fast start, going 10-0 up before the Jets took over in the second half. Bortles completed 6-of-7 passes for 105 yards. Geno Smith was the best one among the Jets quarterbacks, throwing a touchdown pass to Charone Peake, while Ryan Fitzpatrick completed 3-for-4 with 72 yards.
Denver Broncos 22 (1-0) Chicago Bears 0 (0-1): The only road win of the day, the Broncos held the Bears to only 130 yards of offense, showing their defense is going to be scary again. Mark Sanchez threw one touchdown pass and one interception, completing 10-for-13 and 99 yards. Paxton Lynch misfired on just one of 7 passing attempts, throwing for 74 yards. Jay Cutler had one series, going for 18 yards, completing 3-for-4. Besides Demaryius Thomas scoring a touchdown off Sanchez, the Broncos had two field goals, Zaire Anderson scoring on a blocked punt, and a Dekoda Watson safety in the third quarter.