Friday, August 29, 2008
Giants 19, Patriots 14
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — No Tom Brady. No Eli Manning. The New England Patriots and New York Giants took no chances with their quarterbacks in a preseason finale night that matched February’s Super Bowl opponents. This time there was nothing at stake, except a few jobs before the final roster cutdown on Saturday. David Carr took advantage of Manning’s rare night off and threw touchdown passes to Darcy Johnson and Sinorice Moss to lead the Giants (2-2).
Falcons 10, Ravens 9
BALTIMORE — The top two quarterbacks selected in this year’s draft started their team’s final preseason game — for vastly different reasons. Matt Ryan played two series Thursday night to get a feel for being Atlanta’s starting quarterback. Joe Flacco started out of necessity for Baltimore because of illness and injury to the other quarterbacks, and his so-so performance did little to bring any clarity to the Ravens’ messy situation at the position.
Jets 27, Eagles 20
PHILADELPHIA — Brett Favre slung a few passes during pregame drills and called it a night. He put a green cap on and stood on the sideline, arms folded, jersey slightly untucked and safe from harm. With Favre sitting out, fourth-string quarterback Erik Ainge led the Jets. Donovan McNabb also had a nice view from the bench, far away from potential danger. Kevin Kolb played the first half, guiding the Eagles to 13 points on their first three possessions.
Bengals 27, Colts 7
INDIANAPOLIS — The Bengals scored touchdowns on their first two series and never gave the Colts a chance to rally, running away with a victory in the preseason finale. Backup quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick was 5-for-8 for 35 yards with one TD pass to lead the Bengals (2-2), and Chris Perry, trying to supplant Rudi Johnson at running back, ran nine times for 20 yards and one TD. Two-time league MVP Peyton Manning dressed for the first time in five games but did not take a snap for the Colts (1-4).
Jaguars 24, Redskins 3
LANDOVER, Md. — Gregg Williams showed up the team that let him go, his Jacksonville defense stopping cold a Redskins first-string attack that again looked far from ready for the regular season. The Jaguars held the Redskins’ starters to 14 total yards in three first-quarter drives, and David Garrard, Cleo Lemon and Todd Bouman all threw a touchdown pass in Jacksonville’s victory.
Lions 14, Bills 6
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Turned out the Detroit Lions’ second- and third-stringers were better than the Bills, winning a game in which both teams were only interested in resting their starters for the regular season. The Bills (2-2) played one starter, safety Ko Simpson, and the Lions seven, including Jerome Felton, the starting fullback, who scored on a 9-yard reception from Dan Orlovsky, the backup quarterback, in what proved to be a glorified scrimmage even by preseason standards.
Titans 23, Packers 21
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers took the rest of the night off after throwing a touchdown pass on his first snap, but the Titans held on. The Titans’ victory came despite continued inconsistent play by quarterback Vince Young, who made a few big plays but failed to capitalize on several scoring chances despite playing with good field position against the Packers’ defensive reserves.
Associated Press