
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.
Baker Mayfield and Saquon Barkley lived up to early expectations as the top two picks in the NFL draft in their first action as the Cleveland Browns beat the New York Giants 20-10 on Thursday night.
Replacing starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor late in the first quarter, Mayfield hit 11 of 20 passes for 212 yards, two touchdowns, and converted two fourth-down plays with his feet. The Heisman Trophy winner who was the No. 1 overall pick found tight end David Njoku on a 10-yard TD pass to cap a 14-play, 72-yard drive on his second series. He finished his debut with a completion on a 54-yard slant and run to fellow rookie Antonio Callaway.
Barkley, the No. 2 pick, electrified the fans at MetLife Stadium, taking a handoff from Eli Manning on the opening play from scrimmage and turning no apparent hole into a 39-yard run down the sideline in front of the Giants’ bench. It set up a 42-yard field goal by Aldrick Rosas.
The Penn State running back finished with 43 yards on five carries.
Colts 19, Seahawks 17
SEATTLE (AP) — Andrew Luck returned to game action for the first time since the final week of the 2016 season, leading Indianapolis on a pair of fieldgoal drives in just over a quarter.
Luck completed 6 of 9 passes for 64 yards, most of that coming on the opening drive when he hit 5 of 7. Luck completed passes to five receivers and threw from a clean pocket on most of his dropbacks, even with starting left tackle Anthony Castonzo not playing.
Steelers 31, Eagles 14
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Landry Jones and Josh Dobbs each tossed touchdown passes and the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles rested several starters, including quarterbacks Carson Wentz and Nick Foles. Nate Sudfeld threw a pair of touchdown passes and two interceptions.
Panthers 28, Bills 23
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Bills receiver Kelvin Benjamin’s feud with former teammate Panthers quarterback
Cam Newton continued before and during Carolina’s preseason-opening win.
Bengals 30, Bears 27
CINCINNATI (AP) — Andy Dalton made a solid debut in Cincinnati’s revamped offense, throwing for a pair of touchdowns.
Saints 24, Jaguars 20
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Blake Bortles completed 6 of 9 passes for 53 yards and scored on a short bootleg.
Saints star Drew Brees got the night off, allowing backup
Tom Savage to play the first half. Savage completed 10 of 14 passes for 70 yards. Brees only played in one preseason game in 2017.
Bucs 26, Dolphins 24
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Buccaneers kicker Chandler Catanzaro made a 26-yard field goal with 23 seconds left to cap a 67-yard drive and give them the win.
Ravens 33, Rams 7
BALTIMORE (AP) — Joe Flacco threw a touchdown pass on his only series of the game and rookie quarterback Lamar Jackson ran for a score.
Baltimore led 17-0 after the first period and cruised to the finish against the Rams, who rested offensive stars Jared Goff and Todd Gurley.
After sitting out the Hall of Fame Game last week, Flacco went 5 for 7 for 71 yards during a 10-play drive. The 11-year veteran overcame a second-and-25 with a 30-yard pass to newcomer Michael Crabtree and finished with a 6-yard TD throw to Patrick Ricard.
Jackson entered the next time Baltimore got the ball and coolly directed a 73-yard march in which he completed a 36-yard pass to Chris Moore and broke two tackles running for a 9-yard touchdown.
The Ravens and Rams held joint practices Monday and Tuesday, and Los Angeles coach Sean McVay indicated the work against outside opposition would enable him to rest a few of his starters in the preseason opener. He did.
Packers 31, Titans 17
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Marcus Mariota looked sharp orchestrating yet another new offensive system for the Tennessee Titans. Green Bay Packers receiver Davante Adams needed just one series to show he was in midseason form.
Mariota was 2 of 3 for 42 yards with a 4-yard scoring pass to Darius Jennings on the opening drive of Mike Vrabel’s first preseason game as Titans coach. Mariota also had one carry for 7 yards before leaving after the nine-play series.
It was a nice, if brief, start for Mariota. He’s picking up a new scheme under his third head coach in four seasons.
Backup Brett Hundley did his best impression of Aaron Rodgers by hitting Adams in stride down the left sideline for a 48-yard completion.
Texans 17, Chiefs 10
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes finished 5 of 7 for 33 yards on two drives for the Chiefs as the Texans sat many of their stars.
Houston’s Deshaun Watson, coming back from a torn ACL, was used sparingly. He threw one pass — a 4- yard completion to wide receiver Bruce Ellington — during a five-play drive to midfield that featured four handoffs to running back Lamar Miller.
Mahomes at No. 10 and Watson at No. 12 were taken in the first round of the 2017 draft.
The Texans also sat DE J.J. Watt, who is returning from a broken leg suffered last October against the Chiefs, LB Jadeveon Clowney (knee), offseason addition S Tyrann Mathieu, CB Johnathan Joseph, and starting WRs DeAndre Hopkins and Will Fuller.
49ers 24, Cowboys 21
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Dak Prescott made the most of his brief appearance in the preseason opener for Dallas by throwing a 30-yard touchdown pass to rookie Michael Gallup before the 49ers rallied with two late touchdowns.
Nick Mullens threw a 7- yard TD pass to Richie James Jr. with 18 seconds left to cap the comeback. Jeremy McNichols scored on a 1-yard run with 4:24 to go for San Francisco.
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