Kerry Collins #5 of the Indianapolis Colts throws a pass in the first half of an NFL preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium on September 1, 2011 in Cincinnati, Ohio.
(August 31, 2011 – Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images North America)
CINCINNATI (AP) – Peyton Manning stood on the sideline with arms crossed and watched Kerry Collins struggle to move a Colts offense missing its top receivers.
Playing eight days after he agreed to a contract, the 38-year-old Collins failed to get the Colts’ offense moving Thursday night during a 17-13 preseason win over the Cincinnati Bengals that reiterated their big concern.
If Manning’s not ready, Indy has issues.
The Colts finished a 1-3 preseason — better than usual — with questions at quarterback, something they haven’t faced in years. Manning had neck surgery four months ago and was activated on Monday, allowed to have limited practices.
If Manning can’t extend his streak of 227 consecutive starts, the Colts will have to decide whether to use the newcomer Collins or Curtis Painter in the opener on Sept. 11 at Houston. Collins played most of the first half, went 5-of-10 for 45 yards and fumbled. The Colts managed only 36 total yards in the half, before the reserves took over.
“He did some things pretty well out there,” coach Jim Caldwell said. “He had some situations where he couldn’t get the ball out — a sack, fumble — and we had a drop out there. Other than that, in terms of our operation, I think he did OK.”
Dan Orlovsky’s 7-yard touchdown pass with 1:08 to go gave the Colts their first preseason win in two years.
Lions cap perfect preseason by beating Bills
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Running back Jerome Harrison isn’t making any predictions whether he did enough in the final preseason game to win a job with the Detroit Lions.
Craig Davis #85 of the Buffalo Bills makes a catch against Jerome Harrison #36 of the Detroit Lions at Ralph Wilson Stadium on September 1, 2011 in Orchard Park, New York. Detroit won 16-6.
(August 31, 2011 – Photo by Rick Stewart/Getty Images North America)
Jerome Harrison ran for 72 yards on seven carries and had long runs to set up the Lions’ two first-half scoring drives.
And Lions coach Jim Schwartz is not about to start celebrating over how the Lions capped a perfect preseason with a 16-6 win over the Buffalo Bills.
“You don’t get any points for that,” Schwartz said. “Why don’t we just wait and see once we get to the regular season before we start giving them too many pats on the back and start puffing our chests up at all.”
It’s a good reminder, given the last time the Lions went 4-0 at this time of year. It was 2008, and they proceeded to become the NFL’s first team to lose all 16 regular season games.
Harrison had the most notable performance in a final bid to secure a roster spot once final cuts are made by Saturday. The six-year NFL veteran ran for 72 yards and set up the Lions’ two first-half scoring drives.
His 47-yard run led to Maurice Stovall’s 16-yard touchdown catch from Shaun Hill. Harrison’s 17-yard run off right tackle set up Jason Hanson’s 44-yard field goal that put the Lions up 10-0 with 3:15 left in the half.
Signed on Aug. 9 after rookie second-round pick Mikel Leshoure tore his left Achilles tendon, Harrison is competing with Aaron Brown to make the roster behind Jahvid Best and Maurice Morris, who sat out with a hand injury. He’s not sure whether it was enough.
“In this business, you shouldn’t feel no way because you never know what’s going to happen,” Harrison said. “I just go out there and play hard and try to put myself in a good situation. … Whatever happens is going to happen.”
Young injured in Eagles’ win over Jets
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Vince Young led the Eagles on two scoring drives against New York Jets backups before leaving with a hamstring injury in a 24-14 preseason victory.
Young started for Michael Vick, who signed his big six-year deal that included about $40 million guaranteed on Tuesday, as both teams rested almost all of their starters in the preseason finale. Young was 15-of-23 for 193 yards and a touchdown pass to Chad Hall, but was hurt when he rolled out on a fourth-down play against the Jets (2-2) just before halftime.
Young was about to run for the first down when his right leg appeared to get stuck in the turf. He ended up throwing the ball incomplete as he crumpled to the turf. Young, signed as a free agent in the offseason after an up-and-down five seasons in Tennessee, got up and limped to the sideline where trainers looked at his right leg. He headed to the locker room with 18 seconds remaining in the half and didn’t come out with the rest of the team to start the second half.
The severity of the injury wasn’t immediately known.
The play came after the Eagles (3-1) faked a field-goal attempt on fourth-and-6 from the Jets 14 that was intercepted by Jamaal Westerman, but New York was called offsides making it fourth-and-1 for Philadelphia. As it turned out, the Eagles probably wished the play had stood.
Mike Kafka replaced Young to start the third quarter for the Eagles and went 7-of-11 for 76 yards and an interception.
The Jets also saw their backup quarterback go down as rookie Greg McElroy, starting for Mark Sanchez, left after injuring his right thumb in the second quarter. Drew Willy, an undrafted free agent, came in and connected with Scotty McKnight— a seventh-round pick and Sanchez’s childhood friend — on his first play of the game for a 14-yard touchdown for the Jets.
Beck inconsistent as Redskins top Buccaneers
LANDOVER, Md. (AP) — If John Beck and Rex Grossman were truly just about even, then Grossman might have won the Washington Redskins starting quarterback job just by standing on the sideline.
Given a chance to make a closing argument in his case to be No. 1, Beck turned in a spotty performance, completing 10-of-21 passes for 108 yards with an interception in a 29-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the teams’ final preseason game.
Beck played the entire first half with the starting offensive line and backup running backs and receivers, while the Buccaneers gave all of their first-stringers the night off. The Redskins’ offense produced 10 points in Beck’s eight series, but the touchdown and the field goal both came on short fields after the defense forced a turnover.
The Redskins pulled out the win on Kellen Clemens’ 41-yard touchdown pass to Donte’ Stallworth with 1:07 remaining. The score came exactly one minute after the Buccaneers had taken the lead on Jonathan Crompton’s 20-yard pass to rookie free agent Armando Allen Jr., followed by Crompton’s completion to Ed Gant for the 2-point conversion.
Beck and Grossman have been in a tit-for-tat battle since the opening of training camp. Both played well through the first three preseason games, prompting coach Mike Shanahan to call the competition “very close” in the final days before he decides on a starter for the Sept. 11 opener against the New York Giants.
Shanahan sat Grossman and most of his first-teamers Thursday, a mild surprise after hinting earlier in the week that many of his starters would play. Beck missed a game earlier in the preseason with a groin injury.
Bradford sharp, Garrard smacked around in finale
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Sam Bradford and the St. Louis Rams look ready for the regular season. David Garrard and the Jacksonville Jaguars still have work to do.
Bradford completed 7-of-11 passes for 133 yards and a touchdown, a perfectly thrown fade route to Lance Kendricks, and the Rams beat the Jaguars 24-17 in the preseason finale. St. Louis finished the preseason with a perfect 4-0 record for the first time since 1979.
Quarterback Sam Bradford #8 of the St. Louis Rams attempts a pass during a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at EverBank Field on September 1, 2011 in Jacksonville, Florida.
(August 31, 2011 – Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images North America)
Sam Bradford went 7-of-11 for 133 yards and a first-quarter touchdown as the Rams completed their first perfect preseason in 32 years.
Garrard and the Jaguars (1-3) had less success. He was hit repeatedly in two series and appeared to be pleading with his offensive linemen for protection on the sideline. Garrard completed 1-of-5 passes for 11 yards before turning things over to Luke McCown.
Yes, McCown. He passed rookie Blaine Gabbert on the depth chart this week. It appears that Gabbert, the 10th overall pick, will start the season as the third-stringer.
McCown completed 4-of-9 passes for 47 yards, including a 17-yard TD pass to rookie Cecil Shorts in the third quarter.
That was one of the few bright spots for Jacksonville. Another was the preseason debut of running back Maurice Jones-Drew and defensive end Aaron Kampman.
Both played about 10 snaps. Jones-Drew, coming off offseason knee surgery, had a 14-yard run off the left edge. But he finished with 14 yards on five carries.
Newton named starter after Panthers’ loss
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Cam Newton was treated like a starter during his preseason finale. He led one efficient drive, threw a touchdown pass and exited.
Then, after the game, his coach made it official: Newton will start for the Carolina Panthers in their opener.
Newton threw his first TD as a pro in Carolina’s 33-17 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
“Even with this position given, it doesn’t stop here,” Newton said. “I can’t just sit back and say, ‘I’ve arrived,’ because we’ve got a long way to go. … The record begins now.”
The Heisman Trophy winner and No. 1 draft pick out of Auburn played only the first series. He was 3-of-5 for 25 yards with the 10-yard touchdown pass to Jeremy Shockey against a Steelers defense that rested Troy Polamalu and several other key players. Rivera later anointed Newton as their starter Sept. 11 at Arizona.
“We didn’t draft Cam to be the savior,” Rivera said. “We drafted him to help lead this football team.”
Starters watch as Dolphins beat Cowboys
MIAMI (AP) — Larry Johnson scored on a 22-yard touchdown run and Matt Moore threw for another score to help the Miami Dolphins win a battle of backups by beating the Dallas Cowboys 17-3 in the final exhibition game for both teams.
Reluctant to risk injuries so close to the start of the regular season, the Cowboys designated 31 of their 80 players as inactive, while the Dolphins had 21 inactive players. Three starters were active for each team.
Johnson, a two-time Pro Bowl selection who signed with the Dolphins last week after sitting out most of last season, rushed for 39 yards on 10 carries and scored the game’s first points.
Moore, another Miami newcomer, went 9-for-11 for 142 yards, including an 18-yard touchdown pass to third-string tight end Jeron Mastrud.
Dallas third-string quarterback Stephen McGee went 21-for-25 for 233 yards but couldn’t get his team into the end zone. The Cowboys’ only points came on a 20-yard field goal by David Buehler, who is battling to keep his job.
Ponder, Vikings beat Texans in preseason finale
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Christian Ponder made more plays with his legs than his arm to direct two touchdown drives and make a push for the backup quarterback job as the Minnesota Vikings beat the Houston Texans 28-0.
Ponder completed 10-of-17 passes for 83 yards and one touchdown in the preseason finale for both teams. He rushed eight times for 61 yards and didn’t turn the ball over while playing just over two quarters.
Ponder is competing with Joe Webb to be the primary backup to Donovan McNabb. Webb went 5-for-6 for 43 yards.
Matt Leinart was 13-for-16 for 145 yards for the Texans, looking efficient as he prepares to back up Matt Schaub this season. Newly signed receiver Bryant Johnson had three catches for 64 yards.
Adrian Awasom had two sacks and a forced fumble and Caleb King rushed for 62 yards and two touchdowns for the Vikings, who open the regular season at San Diego on Sept. 11.
Both teams rested almost their entire starting lineups with the regular season opener just 10 days away. That made for some ugly play throughout the game, with down-the-roster names trying to make one more good impression before final cuts are made Saturday.
Locker steps up for Titans in battle of backups
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Tennessee’s rookie quarterback Jake Locker added a bit of sparkle to an otherwise lackluster game, leading the Titans to a 32-9 victory over the New Orleans Saints.
The Titans’ first-round pick, who is expected to press Matt Hasselbeck for the starting job at some point this season, completed 15-of-17 for 132 yards and a touchdown. He had a 118.6 quarterback rating, playing just over three quarters. Locker also ran 22 yards to score.
Saints backup QB Chase Daniel was not as impressive, completing 29-of-39 for 249 yards. He was sacked twice. His only TD drive came in the fourth quarter when Montez Billings capped a 66-yard drive with a 2-yard reception.
The final preseason game for both teams was a battle of the backups. The Titans briefly played 10 of their regular starters, including Hasselbeck, who took nine snaps, and five defensive starters.
Tennessee agreed to a $56 million, six-year deal with starting running back Chris Johnson earlier Thursday. He will be a welcome addition for the regular season. Six Titans runners churned out 118 yards against the Saints, and the only TD rushing was Locker’s.
New Orleans had one offensive starter in early and seven defensive starters played for a short time.
