There aren’t many quarter-finals. The Las Vegas Raiders settled them. The Denver Broncos may have an answer, too. The Pittsburgh Steelers may be the only team still trying to figure it out.
The second preseason week saw some good quarterback play, and some teams should be a little nervous about the position as the regular season approaches. Here are 10 takeaways from the second preseason week:
Denver Broncos
Caleb Williams has been the most impressive rookie quarterback this preseason, but Bo Nix has a case. The Knicks were sharp for the second straight game Sunday night. He had surprising speed on some of his throws, and the throw was excellent on the move. He completed 8-of-9 passes for 80 yards and a touchdown. Knicks was criticized by many when Denver took him 12th overall in the NFL draft, but he looks comfortable in Sean Payton’s offense. One of Knicks’ strengths in the draft is his 61 career college starts. He should have been ready to play right away.
Knicks has been good in both preseason games, and it seems inevitable that he will be named the starting quarterback for the regular season opener. Drake Maye and Michael Benix Jr. can’t be said to draft higher than the Knicks. (JJ McCarthy is unlikely to start Week 1 either, but his season-ending knee injury made that decision for the Vikings.)
Payton didn’t name a starter after Sunday night’s game, but said he thought the Knicks played well.
“I thought he was sharp,” Peyton said, according to the team’s transcript. “Frankly, I think he’s eight out of nine [on completions]. He does a good job of distributing the football, understanding zones, man-to-man, understanding what coverage ideas we’re getting. Overall, I was pleased.”
Las Vegas Raiders
You have to wonder if Aidan O’Connell’s last pass cost him the Raiders’ starting quarterback job.
O’Connell had a good night in relief of the struggling Gardner Minshew II. Then O’Connell threw a pick-6 and his night was over. On Sunday, the Raiders announced Minshew as their Week 1 starter. Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said what happened Saturday night wasn’t the deciding factor, but it was surprising nonetheless.
“A lot of things went into this. It’s not about last night,” Pierce said. Via the team’s site. “There are a lot of factors. We feel like Gardner gives us the best opportunity to get off to a fast start.”
Everyone knew the situation the Raiders found themselves in was not ideal and perhaps not as expected. They had to contend when six quarterbacks went in the first 12 picks of the NFL draft, and they held the 13th pick. It wouldn’t be surprising if there was a quarter change in the season.
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers offense was pretty bad during the season. Russell Wilson or Justin Fields have played 13 possessions and the Steelers have scored three total points on those drives. Wilson didn’t look good in his first postseason appearance Saturday night, throwing for 47 yards on five carries. Fields at least made some plays running the ball, but he’s a flawed passer and that hasn’t changed.
However, Tomlin seemed to favor Wilson in terms of defending his struggles after the game. One point Tomlin made was that the play of the offensive line was not good enough.
“Again, it’s an incomplete study because you don’t get a chance to see him perform or us perform or we establish rhythm and personality when you don’t win possessions and we don’t,” Tomlin said. “The first three or so series of the game, it’s three-and-out and you’re not going to get a chance to establish rhythm or play the way you want as an individual or as a team.”
Let’s see if the Steelers still have competition and if both quarterbacks play in the third preseason game. It looks like Wilson will be the starter, but his play on Saturday wasn’t very exciting.
The Cowboys are still evaluating Trae Lance, the third pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, who left with the 49ers after not playing much. He wasn’t great against the Rams in the preseason opener, but looked better in the second game. He completed 15-of-23 passes for 151 yards and a touchdown. Every positive outing is important for Lance because he doesn’t have much of an NFL record.
“I definitely felt more comfortable coming out and had to start a little faster — in the third quarter, for sure,” Lance said. Via the team’s site. “I left some plays out there, but I learned a lot from it again and it’s fun to compete with these guys.”
It was interesting: The Dolphins split Devon Achen wide out and threw the ball to him for a 26-yard gain. After a monster rookie season, Achen is one of the most intriguing players in the NFL talent-wise, and if the Dolphins get creative with him in the passing game, he could have a special season.
The second preseason week is another example of how little some coaches care about games. 39 players were inactive for Saturday’s game. Considering only 48 players could dress on Sundays during the regular season, the Browns didn’t really use one Anyone Who could be a factor early this season.
The Browns will be good to see Deshaun Watson in game action. Watson is coming off an offseason shoulder surgery and reviews of his play in training camp have been mixed. Watson could get some action in the third preseason game, which should calm some nerves.
It’s good to have an honest discussion about Caleb Williams’ second season of competition. Yes, the highlights were thrilling, and Bears fans should be excited about that. It’s also worth pointing out that he spent a lot of time on the field and very little offense.
In the first quarter, the Bears had three possessions, no first downs and eight total net yards. Not counting the defensive pass interference penalty, the Bears had 17 yards on five plays on their fourth drive. That goes against the Bengals’ defense. Series five was a good one, and it was the right move to keep Williams and the starters in the field, giving them some momentum and confidence to finish the day.
The slow start should serve as a reminder that things don’t always come easy for Williams. He’s an exciting rookie with great potential, but he’s still a rookie learning how to play quarterback in the NFL. He will be good but don’t expect perfection.
Daniel Jones’ interceptions in his first season of action this year weren’t great, but the Giants weren’t worried. Coach Brian Daboll said the Giants wanted to emphasize play-action passes and deep throws downfield, and Jones executed that well at times, especially in the second quarter. The interceptions won’t go on his record, and the Giants will live with them in countless games.
“That’s what these games are for,” Dabol said. Via the team’s transcript. “There’s some evaluation part of it, but obviously you have a plan. It’s a little different than say, a regular season game, where you’re maneuvering and doing things like that. I wanted to make sure we had enough. Giving chances, there were some good things, it’s good to get him out here and then we’ll learn a couple of things.”
After some struggles in the opening game, the Saints needed a good performance from the opening game. It wasn’t great, but they got a touchdown.
Derek Carr showed the same checkdown tendencies that frustrated Saints fans last season, completing 7-of-9 passes for 47 yards. Chris Olave caught three passes, Jamaal Williams had 32 yards on five carries, and Daysum Hill marched a lot in the backfield, picking off handoffs, including a touchdown run from the fullback position. At least the Saints’ starters looked sharper than they did in their first season.
With three good ones in Nico Collins, Stefon Diggs and Tank Tell, there is some interest in how the Texans will split the snaps and targets at receiver. The answer seems to be that Collins will play a lot as the No. 1, Diggs as a two-receiver set and Dell as the No. 3 option. In the two weeks CJ Strode has been on the field, Collins has played 90% of the snaps, Diggs at 81% and Dell at 57%. Via Dave Richard on CBS Sports. That seems like a fair prediction of how the games will play out as they count.
