There aren’t many quarterback competitions left. The Las Vegas Raiders have settled theirs. The Denver Broncos probably have an answer, too. Perhaps the only team left trying to figure it out is the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The second week of the preseason saw some solid quarterback play, and some teams should be a little more nervous about the position as the regular season approaches. Here are 10 takeaways from the second week of the preseason:
Denver Broncos
Caleb Williams has probably been the most impressive rookie quarterback this preseason, but Bo Nix has a case. Nix was sharp for the second straight game on Sunday night. He had surprising velocity on some of his throws and looked very good throwing on the move. He completed 8 of 9 passes for 80 yards and a touchdown. Nix was a pick that many criticized when Denver selected him 12th overall in the NFL Draft, but he seems comfortable in Sean Payton’s offense. One of the benefits of drafting Nix was his 61 career college starts. He should have been ready to play right away.
Nix looked good in both preseason games and it seems inevitable that he will be named the starting quarterback for the season opener. That’s something Drake Maye and Michael Penix Jr., who was drafted higher than Nix, can’t say. (J.J. McCarthy also likely wouldn’t start Week 1, but his season-ending knee injury was the deciding factor for the Vikings.)
Payton did not announce a starter after Sunday night’s game, but did say he thought Nix played well.
“I thought he was sharp,” Payton said, according to the team transcript. “Obviously I think he was eight of nine [on completions]. He does a good job distributing the football, understanding the zones, man-to-man, what coverage concepts we’re going to get. Overall I was pleased.”
Las Vegas Raiders
You have to wonder if Aidan O’Connell’s last-gasp pass cost him the Raiders’ starting quarterback position.
O’Connell was having a decent night in relief of struggling Gardner Minshew II. Then O’Connell threw a pick-6 and his night was over. On Sunday, the Raiders announced that Minshew will be their starter for Week 1. Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said that what happened Saturday night wasn’t the deciding factor, although it’s fair to wonder.
“There was a lot behind it. It wasn’t based on last night,” Pierce said, via the team’s website. “There are a lot of factors. We feel Gardner gives us the best chance to get off to a quick start.”
Everyone knows the situation the Raiders are in is not ideal and probably not expected. They had to rush when six quarterbacks went in the first 12 picks of the NFL Draft and they kept the 13th pick. It would not be a surprise if there was a quarterback change during the season.
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers offense has been really bad in the preseason. Either Russell Wilson or Justin Fields have played 13 possessions, and the Steelers have a total of three points on those drives. Wilson didn’t look good in his first preseason appearance on Saturday night, rushing for 47 yards on five drives. Fields at least made a few plays with the ball, but he’s a poor passer and that hasn’t changed.
Still, Tomlin seems to favor Wilson based on his defense of his struggles after the game. One point Tomlin made was that the offensive line’s play wasn’t good enough.
“Again, it’s a little bit of an incomplete study because you just don’t get a chance to see him operate or see us operate or see us establish a rhythm and a personality if you’re not winning possession, and we weren’t winning possession,” Tomlin said. “The first three series of the game, it was three-and-out, and you don’t get a chance to establish a rhythm or play the way you want to as an individual or as a collective.”
We’ll see if the Steelers have any competition and if both quarterbacks play in the third preseason game. It looks like Wilson will be the starter, but his play on Saturday wasn’t all that exciting.
The Cowboys are still evaluating Trey Lance, the third overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft who was taken by the 49ers without playing much. He wasn’t great against the Rams in the season opener, but looked better in Game 2, completing 15 of 23 passes for 151 yards and a touchdown. Any positive performance from Lance is important, as he doesn’t have much NFL experience.
“I definitely felt more comfortable coming out, I just got to get started a little quicker — in the third quarter, for sure,” Lance said, via the team’s website. “I missed some plays, but I learned a lot from it, and it’s fun to compete with these guys.”
This was interesting: The Dolphins split running back De’Von Achane outside and threw him the ball for a gain of 26 yards. Achane is one of the most interesting players in the NFL after a monstrous rookie season, in terms of efficiency, and if the Dolphins get creative with him in the passing game, he could have a special season.
The second week of the preseason was another example of how little some coaches care about the games. The Browns had 39 players inactive for Saturday’s game. Considering that only 48 players are allowed to dress on Sundays during the regular season, the Browns really don’t have everyone which could be a factor at the start of the season.
It would be good for the Browns to see Deshaun Watson in action. Watson is coming off season-ending shoulder surgery and has had mixed reviews of his play in training camp. It appears Watson could play in the third preseason game, which should help calm some nerves.
It’s okay to have an honest discussion about Caleb Williams’ second preseason game. Yes, the highlights were exciting and Bears fans should be excited about them. It’s also okay to point out that the offense did very little for much of his time on the field.
In the first quarter, the Bears had three possessions, no first downs, and eight total net yards. Without a defensive pass interference penalty, the Bears had 17 yards on five plays on their fourth series. That was against the Bengals reserves on defense. The fifth series was good and it was the right move to keep Williams and the starters on the field to gain some momentum and confidence to end the day.
The slow start should be a reminder that things won’t always be easy for Williams. He’s an exciting rookie with a great skill set, but he’s still a rookie learning how to play quarterback in the NFL. He’ll do fine, but don’t expect perfection.
Daniel Jones’ interceptions in his first preseason action of the year weren’t ideal, but the Giants don’t appear to be worried. Coach Brian Daboll said the Giants wanted to emphasize play-action passing and deep throws downfield, and Jones executed those well at times, particularly in the second quarter. The interceptions won’t add to his record, and the Giants will have to live with them in games that don’t count.
“That’s what these games are for,” Daboll said, via the team’s transcript. “There’s a little bit of evaluation that goes into it, but obviously you have a plan going into it. It’s a little bit different than a regular-season game where you’re making plans and doing things like that. I wanted to make sure we had enough plays where we were throwing it down the field, giving us opportunities to throw it down the field. Again, there were some good things, good to have him here and then some things that we’re going to learn from and that’s what these things are for.”
The Saints needed a good performance from the starting offense after some struggles in the opener. It wasn’t great, but they did get a touchdown.
Derek Carr went 7-of-9 passing for 47 yards, displaying the same checkdown tendencies that frustrated Saints fans last season. Chris Olave caught three passes, running back Jamaal Williams had 32 yards on five carries and Taysom Hill spent a lot of time in the backfield and catching handoffs, including a touchdown run from fullback. If anything, the Saints’ starters looked sharper than they did in their first preseason game.
There’s been some curiosity about how the Texans will distribute snaps and targets at receiver, given that they have three good ones in Nico Collins, Stefon Diggs and Tank Dell. The answer seems to be that Collins will be the No. 1 option, Diggs will be in the two-receiver pairings and Dell will play a lot as the No. 3 option. In the two weeks that Stroud has been on the field, Collins has played 90% of the snaps, Diggs is at 81% and Dell is at 57%, per Dave Richard of CBS Sports. That seems like a reasonable prediction for how things will play out when the games count.
