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Much of Week 2 of the preseason is in the books, with only the Jaguars and Saints left to go head to head on Monday night. With 15 more games completed, however, we’re going to dive into the week that has unfolded in the NFL and take the temperature of a number of situations that have developed over the course of this roster. Of course, the preseason is all about evaluation, so we’re going to highlight a handful of winners and losers who have emerged this week before heading to the final shows and getting much closer to the regular season. .
Are you ready? Here are the winners and losers of week 2 of the preseason.
While the results of that game didn’t mean much, Mitchell Trubisky managed to get the upper hand over his former club as the Bills strangled the Bears at Soldier Field on Saturday, 41-15. It was Trubisky’s first game against Chicago since signing with Buffalo this offseason and he was downright masterful in Brian Daboll’s offense. He started off when Josh Allen wasn’t playing and completed 20 of his 28 passes for 221 yards and a touchdown. Trubisky started the game extremely hot, leading Bills on four straight touchdowns. When he left the game at halftime, Buffalo was leading 34-6.
Again, winning the win here doesn’t have much weight in the grand scheme of things, but Trubisky certainly looked like the quarterback Chicago had always hoped to become during his tenure there. Meanwhile, the Bills have arguably one of the best quarterback situations in the league with an MVP-caliber player at Allen and a competent save at Trubisky.
Loser: bears attack each other
I think you could argue that a wet towel was stronger than the Chicago tackle efforts on Saturday. While the Trubisky revenge game was the main storyline in this contest, it was a poor performance by the Bears defense in all respects, but especially with the tackle. Bills ball carriers were able to accumulate pieces of yards after contact with the Chicago defense, sometimes showing little resistance. One of the most notable examples of this came on Buffalo’s first touchdown of the day when running back Devin Singletary broke several tackles for a touchdown on a fourth and attempt. Singletary took a throw from Trubisky and was greeted at the line of scrimmage by two Bears defensemen. Neither could bring him down.
This will have to improve before the regular season.
The battle for quarters continues in New England. However, Cam Newton may have solidified as a Week 1 starter with his game against the Eagles on Thursday. He was quick, completing eight of nine passes for 103 yards and a touchdown to start the game before leaving for the night with the rest of the Patriots’ starting offensive line. Newton looked balanced in the pocket and was able to climb the ranks to perform powerful throws as well. What was arguably the most impressive about his performance in Week 2 was his deep ball. He started the game with passes that covered 18, 23 and 10 yards. You could even argue that he was the best he has pitched throughout his time with the Patriots.
While Mac Jones has also played well this preseason, Newton gave Bill Belichick no reason to cede things to the rookie, giving him a solid grip on this job to start the year.
Drops, drops and more drops for Ja’Marr Chase. The Bengals first-round receiver battled Washington on Saturday as he was targeted three times by quarterback Brandon Allen and gave them all up. Not all of the passes were perfect balls, but they all hit the No.5 pick in the hands.
“We have to keep working on it every day. It is essential that our receivers do a great job focusing, catching the ball,” head coach Zac Taylor said of Chase’s falls, via ESPN’s Ben Baby. “There are a lot of other things that he’s improving every day that may go unnoticed. So we’ll keep looking for improvements there.”
All eyes will be on Tua Tagovailoa this season and whether or not he can bounce back from an average rookie season in 2020. If Miami’s last preseason game with the Falcons is any indication, the Dolphins will feel a lot better. on their quarterback situation by the end of this season. Tagovailoa looked really solid, completing 16 of 23 passes for 183 yards and a touchdown. Outside the gate, he managed to lead the Dolphins on back-to-back touchdowns to start the game and completed all eight shots in the first quarter. This is the kind of jump Miami is hoping for in 2021.
It was an outing to forget for Kyler Murray and the Cardinals starting the offense as they were bombarded by the Chiefs. Murray completed only one of his four passing attempts for two yards and had a rush for eight yards. He was sacked twice and had three three-and-outs while under center. In all, the Arizona offense ran nine plays for -1 yard when Murray was in the game.
“Not the release we were hoping for,” Murray told ESPN, via Cards Wire. “But that’s what it is. It doesn’t matter. Expect the regular season to start in a few weeks. I just think we need to clean up some stuff, get it right. They kicked us out. butt for all three records we were there. That’s what it is. We’ll be better when it counts. “
Ben Roethlisberger has shown he will do very well in the system of new offensive coordinator Matt Canada. In his preseason debut, the veteran was perfect, with a perfect passer rating of 158.3. He completed eight of his 10 throws for 137 yards and two touchdowns in the three series he played. Both Big Ben’s touchdown shots went to rookie second-round tight end Pat Freiermuth, which is another encouraging development heading into the regular season. The 39-year-old also showed a strong relationship with rookie Najee Harris in the passing game, with the two connecting on a 46-yard pass.
Fields continued to show flashes of his potential against the Bills on Saturday, but there were a few rookie bits mixed in as well. While he continues to impress with his legs (46 rushing yards on four attempts), he hasn’t been particularly effective in passing, completing nine of his 19 throws for 80 yards. The fields had a sensational throw to tight end Jesse James off his back foot, but he also exposed himself to a number of hits, including a vicious shot from Bills linebacker Andre Smith.
Even though the Chicago faithful are clamoring for Fields to clinch the starting spot against Andy Dalton, it’s probably those moments – right or wrong – that give head coach Matt Nagy a break before making the switch now.
It’s been a tough week for the New York Jets after losing star running back Carl Lawson for the season due to an Achilles breakage, but Zach Wilson’s performance on Saturday was a positive note on which the team can hang their hat. The No.2 overall pick looked like he was playing against the Packers, completing nine of his 11 passes of the day for 128 yards in the air and a pair of touchdowns. Arguably the game of the game came in the first quarter when Wilson pitched a run to Corey Davis for 27 yards.
Loser: Any team that faces the Ravens in preseason
Good luck playing the Ravens in the preseason. With the 20-3 win over the Carolina Panthers, Baltimore now has 19 straight preseason wins, equaling an NFL record set by Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers that spanned 1959 to 1962. .
“I believe everything in life has meaning,” Harbaugh said. “… It’s something only one other team has done, the Vince Lombardi Packers and I think it’s remarkable.”
Not only are the Ravens a virtual lock to win their preseason game lately, but they’re also almost guaranteed cover. In this historic race, Baltimore is 17-1-1 ATS. They will be aiming for the record 20-game winning streak in the preseason on Saturday when they visit the Washington football team.
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