The NFL preseason is officially underway, and Week 1 of the 2022 exhibition season has been pretty intense so far. Atlanta Falcons rookie quarterback Desmond Ridder threw a game-winning touchdown against the Detroit Lions with less than two minutes left, Jordan Love and Trey Lance traded long touchdown passes at bay and Cincinnati Bengals star kicker Evan McPherson , went 3-for-3 on his field goals, incl. two of at least 56 yards.
There were also a couple of injuries, most notably New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson, who tore his meniscus. However, he is expected to be fine, and may not miss any time in the regular season.
This Saturday, we have a total of eight games to watch, starting with the Carolina Panthers vs. Washington Commanders and Kansas City Chiefs vs. Chicago Bears at 1:00 PM ET, and ending with a battle for LA between the Super Bowl champion Rams and Chargers. .
We’ll be tracking all the highlights from Saturday’s action below. Get ready for a full day of football.
Schedule
Thursday
Giants 23, Patriots 21 (Takeaways) Ravens 23, Titans 10 (Recap)
Friday
Falcons 27, Lions 23 (Recap) Browns 24, Jaguars 13 (Recap) Cardinals 36, Bengals 23 (Recap) Jets 24, Eagles 21 (Takeaways) 49ers 28, Packers 21 (Recap)
Saturday
Chiefs at Bears, 1 pm ET (Gametracker) Panthers at Commanders, 1 pm ET (Gametracker) Colts at Bills, 4 pm ET (Gametracker) Seahawks at Steelers, 7 pm ET (Gametracker) Dolphins at Buccaneers, 7:30 pm ET ( Gametracker) Saints at Texans, 8 p.m. ET (Gametracker) Cowboys at Broncos, 9 p.m. ET (Gametracker) Rams at Chargers, 10 p.m. ET (Gametracker)
sunday
Vikings at Raiders, 4:25 PM ET (Gametracker)
Sam Howell’s Late Manifestation
Carson Wentz and Taylor Heinicke didn’t do much at quarterback for the Commanders, but their third QB in rookie Sam Howell impressed. It only took him five passes to become Washington’s leading passer against the hometown Panthers, and then he recorded this impressive 17-yard touchdown.
Don’t be caught off guard by Howell’s legs. He ran in 11 scores for the Tar Heels last year.
After Carolina went three-and-out on the next possession, Howell came back down the field, looking to at least tie the game midway through the fourth quarter. Tower led a 13-play, 67-yard drive that ended with his second touchdown of the game. Howell then hit Alex Erickson for the two-point conversion to take the lead, and the fans at FedEx Field went wild.
Siemian splashes
Justin Fields’ new mentor is leading a return to Chicago. After trailing 14-0, the Bears scored 16 unanswered thanks to quarterback Trevor Siemian. Chicago isn’t acting like it’s a preseason game, as the offense went for it on fourth-and-2, and Siemian found a Dante Pettis on the field.
Three plays later, Siemian hit Dazz Newsome with a nice throw in the corner of the end zone to pull within a point of the Chiefs.
Safety Justin Reid throws XP for the Chiefs
Harrison Butker isn’t the only good kicker on the Chiefs roster, as one of their safeties also has a talented leg. Reid kicked a 65-yard field goal in training camp last week and had a kick for an extra point in Week 1 of the preseason. It was perfect.
Rookie RB Brian Robinson shines for Commanders
The Alabama rookie looks poised to get some touches from Antonio Gibson in 2022. Robinson rushed for 26 yards on his first six carries and also caught two passes for 15 yards earlier. Robinson also made a bit of Commander history as he scored Washington’s first touchdown of the new era.
Tajae Sharpe, a candidate for “catch of the preseason.”
Sharpe is fighting for playing time among the Bears’ wide receivers, and this catch will certainly help his case. He used athleticism, focus and wing awareness to roll him over. A new member of the Bears, Sharpe spent last year with the Falcons. He caught 25 passes for 230 yards in 15 games played.
Sam Darnold with an impressive TD throw
The Panthers went all-out early, and Antonio Gibson helped his opponent’s cause by finding his own 28-yard line. Darnold replaced Baker Mayfield at quarterback for Carolina’s second drive, and three plays into the drive, he connected with Rashard Higgins for an eight-yard touchdown.
This is a pretty impressive throw as Darnold had Montez Sweat in his face, but he led his pitch perfectly as he threw off his back foot.
The NFL world is a bit nervous for the second-year Fields, as he’s been tasked with finding success behind a questionable offensive line and a wide receiver corps that isn’t up to much. Fields still has Mooney, though, who is coming off a career campaign in which he caught 81 passes for 1,055 yards and four touchdowns.
Check out this throw and catch that went 26 yards:
The Chiefs waste no time scoring Saturday’s first TD
OK, that’s enough. We can take Patrick Mahomes out of the game. He is still good at football. The former NFL MVP led an 11-play, 72-yard drive that included a pair of highlight plays and was capped off with a five-yard touchdown pass to Blake Bell.
Watson is awaiting a potential increase in punishment from the NFL, which is expected to increase his six-game suspension to something more significant, but he took the field for the Browns’ first preseason game of the new year against the jaguars Watson certainly looked like someone who was playing in his first game in 568 days, as he finished with just seven yards on 1-for-5 passing.
In positive news for the Browns, backup quarterback Joshua Dobbs looked good, completing 10 of 13 passes for 108 yards and a touchdown.
From Friday: Ridder’s clutch game-winning pass
The Lions-Falcons preseason game was nowhere near as entertaining. New ATL QB Marcus Mariota looked great, and so did rookie Desmond Ridder. On fourth-and-9 for three points with less than two minutes left, Ridder found Jared Bernhardt for the game-tying score.
Not only was this play good to see from a rookie quarterback, but the player who received the touchdown deserves some credit as well. Bernhardt is a former Maryland lacrosse star and winner of the 2021 Tewaaraton Award, which is given to the top collegiate lacrosse player. Not only was Bernhardt a loose legend at an elite school, but he later transferred to Ferris State to play football, leading the program to an undefeated record and its first Division II national championship as at quarterback Now, he’s caught a game-winning touchdown in the NFL. what a story