AROUND THE NFL

AROUND THE NFL

Saturday’s other games

Texans 33, Cardinals 20

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Matt Schaub was 9-of-12 for 108 yards and ran 5 yards for a score and Houston went on to beat Arizona in Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt’s home debut. Matt Leinart, who coincidentally wears No. 7 for Arizona (0-2), went 7-for-7 for 70 yards, including a 5-yard touchdown pass to Edgerrin James. Texans rookie Jacoby Jones returned a punt 80 yards for a touchdown and backup Sage Rosenfels threw 40 yards to Charlie Smith for another score to help Houston (1-1) dominate the third quarter. Rosenfels was 8-for-13 for 125 yards.

Jaguars 31, Buccaneers 19

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Byron Leftwich was 6-of-12 for 81 yards for Jacksonville, but was sacked once and nearly half his yardage came after a missed tackle. Leftwich was 2-of-6 for 12 yards in three series against Tampa Bay’s first-team defense. He played long after most of the Buccaneers’ starters were lifted and took advantage of the mismatch. Jacksonville (1-1) scored on all four drives against Tampa Bay’s backups in the first half. Jeff Garcia gave Tampa Bay (1-1) an early lead when he scrambled right and found David Boston in the end zone. Garcia finished 6-of-6 for 43 yards, but he also was sacked once and fumbled a snap in three series.

Saints 27, Bengals 19

CINCINNATI — Drew Brees led New Orleans to a touchdown in his only series, completing all six throws he made. The NFL’s leading passer last season, Brees had his way with the league’s worst pass defense, one that Cincinnati (0-2) put a lot of moves and money into trying to upgrade in the offseason. The Saints (1-2) scored on their first three drives against Cincinnati’s starting unit. Sproles gets 81-yard punt return in Chargers’ 30-13 victory over Rams

Chargers 30, Rams 13

ST. LOUIS — If the San Diego Chargers can save LaDainian Tomlinson for the regular season, the St. Louis Rams figure they can preserve their star running back, too. Tomlinson, the NFL MVP, didn’t dress for the Chargers’ 30-13 preseason victory Saturday night and hasn’t been on the field in August since 2005. St. Louis’ Steven Jackson, who led the league with 2,334 yards rushing and receiving last year, might as well have not dressed, either. Jackson was on the field for the first play, a pass from Marc Bulger to Torry Holt, and then called it a night. In two games, Jackson has two receptions for 8 yards, but no carries. The Chargers (1-1) didn’t need Tomlinson, who gouged the Rams for 183 yards and two touchdowns in a 14-point victory last season. Darren Sproles returned a punt 81 yards for a touchdown in the final minute of the first half and Philip Rivers threw a 5-yard scoring pass to Vincent Jackson in the first quarter.

Cowboys 31, Broncos 20

IRVING, Texas — Even after two days of practicing against the Dallas Cowboys’ juiced-up defense, the Denver Broncos looked pretty helpless against them. The attacking, pressure-seeking front being implemented by new Dallas coach Wade Phillips locked up Denver’s starting offense for two quarters, paving the way for the Cowboys to beat the Broncos. Tony Romo had another strong outing guiding the Dallas offense, with Marion Barber III running for two touchdowns and Julius Jones also getting one. The Cowboys were up 24-6 at halftime when both teams turned things over to backups. Dallas (2-0) flustered Denver quarterback Jay Cutler into
going 7-of-13 for only 58 yards. He failed to convert all five third-down chances, leaving the Broncos (1-1) to settle for two short field goals after drives that started in Cowboys’ territory following turnovers. Even Cutler’s longest completion, a 21-yarder, was a fluke. Rookie linebacker Anthony Spencer, a defensive end in college, tipped it up and right to tight end Daniel Graham instead of swatting it down.

“We just have to learn from this experience and get back to work,” Cutler said. “We’re going to look at some of the pressure they brought us and see where we can beat it, and see what we can do protection-wise to stop them.”

Running back Travis Henry also had little success, gaining 25 yards on 10 carries and losing a fumble on the Broncos 7. He also lost a yard on second-and-5 from the Dallas 18, getting caught from behind by safety Roy Williams. Then Henry went out with a sprained left knee. Backup Mike Bell later strained his left hip. The Broncos also lost starting defensive end Ebenezer Ekuban to a strained right Achilles’ tendon and backup safety Curome Cox to a strained right shoulder. These teams practiced against each other twice Wednesday and twice again Thursday. The Cowboys either held back then or figured out the best way into the Broncos’ backfield. Dallas had Cutler dancing from the start. He was sacked to end Denver’s first drive in three plays, then had a pass deflected at the start of the second drive. After the Broncos were caught holding on the next snap, Henry fumbled. The Cowboys’ second touchdown soon followed.

The only points Dallas starters allowed came on drives that started at the Dallas 37 and 28. Considering the field position, Phillips had to be pleased his guys held Denver to field goals of 33 and 20 yards, both by Jason Elam. The first of those drives was snuffed by Williams’ terrific play on Henry. The second reached the Dallas 3 on the wacky completion to Graham, but fizzled with two stuffed runs and a goofy third-down play in which Cutler tried to run, saw Spencer bearing down on him and threw to a tackle eligible in the back of the end zone. Chad Mustard made a clumsy attempt at catching it.

Associated Press