AROUND THE NFL | Saturday’s preseason games

Titans 34, Panthers 27

NASHVILLE, TENN.

Marcus Mariota threw a touchdown pass and the Tennessee Titans earned a preseason win over the Carolina Panthers. The Titans (1-1), who were held to just three points last week against the New York Jets, scored on their first three possessions against Carolina, with help from one long drive and two Panthers turnovers. Mariota, who finished 6 of 8 for 61 yards and one touchdown, completed a 20-yard pass to rookie receiver Taywan Taylor and then added a 9-yard run on the first two plays of the game. The Titans had auctioned the first two play calls to a fan for charity.

Packers 21, Redskins 17

LANDOVER, MD.

Aaron Rodgers made a surprise start and looked to be in midseason form, going 6 for 8 for 37 yards and a TD pass — plus one of his trademark quick snaps to draw a penalty — on his lone drive for Green Bay, while Kirk Cousins and the rest of Washington’s first-team offense sputtered in the Packers’ exhibition victory. The Redskins did not manage to collect a single first down until the final play of the opening quarter, during their fourth possession of the evening. Their initial three resulted in an embarrassing total of 13 yards. Cousins was 2 for 6 for 9 yards in that span, while running back Rob Kelley gained 4 yards on three carries behind a starting offensive line that provided little push. Washington’s fourth possession stalled when Kelley was stopped for no gain on fourth-and-1 at Green Bay’s 27. After the fifth, Cousins had steered Washington to only three first downs — one via a defensive penalty — while completing 8 of 15 passes for 67 yards against a Packers secondary missing two of its top three cornerbacks.

Chiefs 30, Bengals 12

CINCINNATI

Rookie Patrick Mahomes threw a pair of touchdown passes, solidifying his spot as the Chiefs’ primary backup, and three Kansas City quarterbacks threw for a score on Saturday night during a 30-12 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. Kansas City (1-1) got a lot to like out of its offense overall and its top pick in particular. Mahomes moved into the role of Alex Smith’s backup a week ago and was smooth against the Bengals (1-1), who chased him from the pocket but couldn’t stop his accurate on-the-move throws. Mahomes, the 10th overall pick from Texas Tech, was 10 of 14 for 88 yards with touchdowns of 1 and 7 yards. The Chiefs scored on each of their first five possessions for a 30-9 lead. Smith was 8 of 9 for 83 yards with a TD , and Tyler Bray threw an 18-yard touchdown on his first play. Kansas City piled up 410 yards, including 228 rushing. Charcandrick West ran for 113 yards on only seven carries. The Bengals had to settle for a pair of field goals during Andy Dalton’s three possessions. He was 7 of 13 for 98 yards with one sack. Cincinnati’s kicking competition remained all even. Randy Bullock and Jake Elliott have made all of their attempts in two games. Bullock connected from 47 and 26 yards on Saturday, while Elliott was good from 32 and 39 yards.

Cowboys 24, Colts 19

ARLINGTON, TEXAS

Dak Prescott and Dez Bryant offered a glimpse of how the Dallas Cowboys’ offense could look without Ezekiel Elliott: the second-year star quarterback frequently finding his top receiver. The Indianapolis Colts are still struggling to see what life without Andrew Luck might be like. Prescott connected with Bryant for a 32-yard touchdown on their first series of the preseason, 2016 NFL rushing champion Elliott sat again with his six-game suspension looming, and rookie Cooper Rush threw two scoring passes in the Cowboys’ exhibition win.

Lions 16, Jets 6

DETROIT

Matthew Stafford threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Marvin Jones in the second quarter, and the Detroit Lions shut down Christian Hackenberg and the New York Jets 16-6 in a preseason game Saturday night. After losing defensive lineman Kerry Hyder to an Achilles tendon injury in their preseason opener at Indianapolis, the Lions were still able to pressure Hackenberg early on.

Associated Press