Justin Fields starred to lead the Chicago Bears past the Miami Dolphins and Trey Lance caught the eye for the San Francisco 49ers as a host of the NFL's rookie quarterbacks made their debuts in preseason on Saturday night.
Sunday 15 August 2021 08:59, UK
Rookie Justin Fields rushed for a touchdown and threw for another to give the host Chicago Bears a 20-13 win over the Miami Dolphins on Saturday afternoon in the preseason opener for both teams.
The Bears traded up nine spots with the New York Giants to grab Fields with the 11th overall pick out of Ohio State in the 2021 NFL Draft, making him the fourth quarterback selected.
Fields, who rushed five times for 33 yards on Saturday, used his speed to escape pressure and scamper eight yards for a touchdown with 9:45 remaining in the third quarter.
He completed 14 of 20 passes for 142 yards, including a 30-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jesse James later in the third quarter to stake Chicago to a 17-13 lead.
Miami's Tua Tagovailoa completed eight of 11 passes for 99 yards with an interception. Jacoby Brissett tossed a 23-yard touchdown pass to Salvon Ahmed with 45 seconds left in the second quarter to give the Dolphins a 13-0 lead.
Chiefs 19-16 49ers
San Francisco rookie and No. 3 overall pick Trey Lance connected on an 80-yard touchdown pass and finished with 128 yards passing in his first action in a loss to visiting Kansas City. Jimmy Garoppolo played a series and went 3-for-3 with 26 yards passing in his return from an injury-riddled season.
Chiefs star Patrick Mahomes played briefly as the Chiefs used four QBs in the game.
Bengals 19-14 Buccaneers
Tom Brady played six snaps before giving way to the backups as the defending champs lost their preseason opener to visiting Cincinnati. Joe Burrow did not dress as the Bengals turned over quarterback duties to Kyle Shurmur (12-for-19, 108 yards, INT) and Brandon Allen (7-for-10, 77 yards, INT).
Chris Evans scored on a one-yard plunge and the Bengals kicked four field goals - from two kickers - for the win. There were seven turnovers in the game, four by the Bengals. Tampa linebacker Joe Jones ran back an interception for a score in the fourth quarter.
Texans 26-7 Packers
Tyrod Taylor played a series and Davis Mills threw for 112 yards to lead Houston to the win. Ka'imi Fairbairn connected on all four of his field-goal attempts for the Texans. Former first-round pick Jordan Love meanwhile saw his first action as a Packer, completing 12 of 17 passes for 122 yards and a touchdown.
Love, who was slated to play three quarters, only played two after getting dinged up in the first half. Houston running back Scottie Phillips rushed for 66 yards and a touchdown, and Darius Jackson ripped off a 25-yard scoring run for the Texans.
Broncos 33-6 Vikings
Drew Lock threw for 151 yards and two touchdowns in his first preseason action to lead Denver to an easy win at Minnesota. Teddy Bridgewater also threw for a score.
KJ Hamler had 105 yards receiving, including an 80-yard touchdown bomb from Lock while wide receiver Trinity Benson hauled in two scores for Denver.
Rookie running back A.J. Rose Jr. rushed 25 times for 100 yards to lead the Vikings, whose rookie quarterback Kellen Mond started and completed just six of 16 passes for 53 yards.
Jets 12-7 Giants
Rookie quarterback Zach Wilson completed six of nine passes for 63 yards in his first action as a pro as the Jets clipped their crosstown rivals. La'Mical Perine scored on a four-yard run and Mike White completed 13 of 19 passes for 127 yards for the Jets. Quarterback Clayton Thorson connected on a 21-yard touchdown pass to Damion Willis for the Giants. The Jets' defense racked up five sacks for the game.
Browns 23-13 Jaguars
No. 1 overall pick Trevor Lawrence completed six of nine passing attempts, including a 35-yarder to Marvin Jones Jr., in his preseason debut. But Kyle Lauletta threw for two touchdowns and 212 yards as Cleveland stopped Jacksonville.
Lauletta connected for scores with Davion Davis (four catches, 56 yards) and Ryan Switzer in relief of starter Case Keenum (12-17, 115 yards). CJ Beathard and Jake Luton came up with fourth-quarter touchdown passes for the Jaguars.
Ravens 17-14 Saints
Baltimore's rookie quarterback Tyler Huntley capped a 12-play, 79-yard fourth-quarter drive with a seven-yard run to lift the host Ravens past New Orleans.
The Saints saw plenty of their top three quarterbacks, as Jameis Winston (7-12, 96 yards), Taysom Hill (8-12, 81 yards) and rookie Ian Book (9-16, 126 yards) all saw action.
Each QB threw an interception and the Saints finished with six turnovers on the night. New Orleans' Tony Jones Jr. (seven rushes, 82 yards) had a touchdown and caught five passes for 38 yards.
Raiders 20-7 Seahawks
Las Vegas third-string quarterback Nathan Peterman played the entire game, throwing for 246 yards with an interception in the opening preseason win. Trey Ragas (62 yards rushing) and BJ Emmons (45 yards) both rushed for touchdowns for the Raiders.
The Seahawks kept Russell Wilson on the bench and gave looks to three quarterbacks. Alex McGough hooked up with wide receiver Deejay Dallas on a 43-yard touchdown pass for Seattle's only score.
Chargers 13-6 Rams
Rookie running back Larry Rountree III rushed for 63 yards and Chase Daniel threw for 104 yards for the Chargers at SoFi Stadium, home to both teams. Darius Bradwell scored a one-yard touchdown in the third quarter, breaking the tie and giving the Chargers the win.
Rams quarterbacks Devlin Hodges and Bryce Perkins saw all the action under center. Daniel completed 15 of 24 passes for the Chargers.
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