Orchard Park, NY (Sports Network) - Robert Griffin III made his debut on
Thursday and didn't disappoint as he helped the Washington Redskins take a
7-6 win over the Buffalo Bills in the preseason opener for both teams. The
second overall pick of the 2012 draft, Griffin won the Heisman Trophy last
season and Washington traded up to get the Baylor product. Named the starter
of the team immediately, he played three series on Thursday and went 4-for-6
with 70 yards and a touchdown, but also lost a fumble. Washington is coming
off a 5-11 campaign that saw the team finish dead last in the NFC East.
Washington hasn't had a winning season since a 9-7 mark in 2007. The Bills,
who finished 6-10 last season after starting 3-0, did a lot to improve
their defense in the offseason as they landed All-Pro defensive end Mario
Williams and pass-rushing specialist Mark Anderson. Also, the team
drafted cornerback Stephon Gilmore with the 10th overall pick in this year's
draft. Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for 61 yards on 6-of-14 passing and led Buffalo
to one of its two field goals in the game, but that was thanks to a recovered
fumble by the defense.
Final Score: Baltimore 31, Atlanta 17
Atlanta, GA (Sports Network) - Joe Flacco threw for 88 yards and a touchdown
and backup Curtis Painter tossed three second-half scores as the Baltimore
Ravens downed the Atlanta Falcons, 31-17, in preseason action. Flacco
completed 9-of-12 passes and fired a nine-yard touchdown strike to Ed Dickson
midway through the second quarter. Fresh off his new five-year deal, Ray
Rice carried the ball just three times for four yards for Baltimore, which
went 12-4 a year ago and lost to the New England Patriots in the AFC
Championship Game. Matt Ryan passed for 155 yards with a touchdown and
interception on 9-of-13 efficiency. All nine of his completions went to Julio
Jones and Roddy White. Jones caught six passes for 109 yards and a
touchdown, while White hauled in three balls for 46 yards for the Falcons,
who lost to the New York Giants in last year's wild-card round.
Final Score: New England 7, New Orleans 6
Foxboro, MA (Sports Network) - Backup Brian Hoyer threw for a touchdown and
the Patriots won their preseason opener, 7-6, over the New Orleans Saints. Tom
Brady played the first two offensive series for the Patriots and completed 4-
of-7 passes for 30 yards, but he was also flattened on a sack and fumbled the
ball away. Drew Brees threw just four passes and played the first two
series for the Saints, who were coming off a 17-10 win over Arizona at
the Hall of Fame Game Sunday night. Chase Daniel backed up Brees and went 4-
of-6 through the air for 62 yards with an interception. Luke McCown went 9-
of-16 for 86 yards passing. Hoyer connected on 8-of-15 throws for 45 yards,
including his three-yard TD pass to Britt Davis in the third quarter to cap a
14-play, 97-yard drive. Patriots star tight end Rob Gronkowski played
despite having ankle surgery shortly after the team's loss to the New York
Giants in Super Bowl XLVI. He caught a pair of passes for 20 yards.
Final Score: Philadelphia 24, Pittsburgh 23
Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Just two days after burying his oldest
son, Andy Reid was on the sideline Thursday night coaching his Philadelphia
Eagles against the Pittsburgh Steelers in preseason action. Alex Henery's 51-
yard field goal with 12 seconds remaining lifted the Eagles over the
Steelers, 24-23. Tragedy struck the Eagles family this past weekend when
Reid's son, Garrett, was found dead in his dormitory room Sunday morning
at the club's training camp facility at Lehigh University. Reid and his
family laid their eldest son to rest on Tuesday, and the coach returned to the
practice field the next day. The Eagles received a scare early in the
second quarter when Michael Vick banged his left thumb off the helmet of
center Jason Kelce. X-rays taken at halftime came back negative. He completed
3-of-4 passes before exiting. Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger,
who's been bothered by a minor rotator cuff tear in his throwing
shoulder, completed 7-of-8 passes for 49 yards during his lone series of
the game. Byron Leftwich and Jerrod Johnson each threw a touchdown pass.
Final Score: Denver 31, Chicago 3
Chicago, IL (Sports Network) - Peyton Manning played in a football game
for the first time in 19 months, but in a different uniform than fans are used
to seeing. After spending the entire 2011 season on the sidelines
recovering from multiple neck surgeries, Manning saw his 14-year run with
the Indianapolis Colts come to an end and he signed with the Denver Broncos.
He wasn't very sharp in his one and only drive, which ended with an
interception, but the rest of his squad carried the load as Denver took a 31-3
win over Chicago in the preseason opener for both teams. Xavier Omon and
Lance Ball each had a score on the ground while Jason Hill and Cornelius
Ingram each caught one for the Broncos, who went 8-8 last season to win the
AFC West and lost to New England in the playoffs after beating Pittsburgh.
Chicago starting quarterback Jay Cutler did not appear in the game. He missed
the final six games of last season after fracturing his right thumb. That sent
the Bears into a spiral, as they lost their next five games before winning the
season finale to finish the season 8-8. Jason Campbell started the game
under center for Chicago and played three series, going just 4-for-5 for 13
yards.
Final Score: San Diego 21, Green Bay 13
San Diego, CA (Sports Network) - Shannon Eastin became the first woman to
officiate an NFL game Thursday in the San Diego Chargers' 21-13 preseason win
over the Green Bay Packers. Serving as the line judge, Eastin will have her
hat and whistle put into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Chargers starting
running back Ryan Mathews suffered a broken clavicle in the opening quarter
following his only carry of the contest, a five-yard run. He will have
surgery Friday and is expected to miss 4-to-6 weeks. The third-year Fresno
State product rushed for 1,091 yards and six touchdowns a year ago.
Philip Rivers, who saw limited action, completed 3-of-5 passes for 37 yards
with a touchdown and interception for San Diego, which has missed out on the
postseason in each of the last two years. Also playing three series, Aaron
Rodgers was just 2-for-8 for 16 yards and an interception for Green Bay,
which went 15-1 last season but lost to the New York Giants in the NFL
Divisional playoffs. The Packers entered the contest with 18 players not in
uniform, including wide receiver Greg Jennings.
The Sports Network