NFL Player News

Watson completed five of eight passes for 73 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions in the Texans' 16-13 preseason win over the 49ers on Saturday.

Although head coach Bill O'Brien had stated that Watson's workload would be similar to that of the preseason opener, the second-year quarterback ended up logging more snaps due to the success of the one drive he led. Watson spearheaded a crisp 11-play, 79-yard scoring march that answered the 49ers' similarly successful opening possession. He was impressive while connecting with Bruce Ellington for 44 yards over three completions, including the one-yard touchdown that capped off the series. Watson also found starting tight end Ryan Griffin for a 22-yard strike that put the ball in the red zone, making it a highly successful encore to last week's cameo appearance. Watson appears to have eliminated any lingering doubts about his regular-season readiness over the first pair of exhibitions, although he figures to further corroborate his health in next Saturday's "dress rehearsal" showdown against the Rams.

Cousins was just 3-of-8 for 12 yards passing in Saturday's preseason loss to Jacksonville while playing four series on offense.

Cousins didn't look as sharp as in his first preseason game, but the Jaguars have a top defense, his offensive line was missing several starters and Latavius Murray lost a fumble. We wouldn't read too much into his performance as has time to work out the kinks before the regular season.

Carr will not play in Saturday's preseason tilt against the Rams in order to rest, Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports.

The Raiders are scheduled to open the season against the Rams, so it perplexed coach Jon Gruden when they also showed up on their preseason schedule. As a result, he has opted to rest Carr and several other starters in an execution of gamesmanship. The quarterback will likely see some action in the team's third exhibition game next week versus the Packers.

Bradford completed each of his six pass attempts for 61 yards in Friday's preseason game against the Saints.

After leading a run-heavy touchdown drive on his only series in the preseason opener, Bradford got a bit more playing time Friday, producing seven points on three drives. Josh Rosen also got some work with the first-team offense, completing 10 of 16 passes for 107 yards and a touchdown, all in the second quarter. There may not be any competition for the Week 1 starting job, but the calls for Rosen will heat up if the Cardinals don't stay in the playoff hunt. There's also the issue of Bradford's left knee, which Vikings coach Mike Zimmer once referred to as "degenerative".

Mayfield completed seven of 13 passes for 75 yards and took four carries for nine yards in Friday's 19-17 preseason loss to the Bills.

Neither Mayfield nor Tyrod Taylor was able to match last week's performance, with the latter getting the start and completing just four of seven passes for 22 yards. The Browns did get 144 rushing yards and two touchdowns from the trio of Carlos Hyde, Nick Chubb and Duke Johnson, so it wasn't exactly a setback for the offense as a whole. Mayfield wasn't too far from a two-score performance, with one short touchdown pass wiped out by a penalty and another overturned on review. The overall impression has been strongly positive through two preseason games, but coach Hue Jackson has been adamant about his intention to start Taylor in Week 1. If nothing else, Mayfield's strong preseason will make it easier for Jackson to pull the plug if he gets frustrated with Taylor during the regular season.

With AJ McCarron dealing with a hairline fracture to his right collarbone, Mike Rodak of ESPN.com expects Allen and Nathan Peterman to see work with the Bills' first-team offense in next Sunday's preseason dress rehearsal against the Bengals.

With McCarron presumably looking at a multi-week absence, the team's Week 1 starting QB assignment is now up for grabs. Though it was previously thought that the Bills would proceed deliberately in their development of Allen, the solid play of the No. 7 overall pick in April's draft in Friday's preseason win over the Browns suggest that he does have a shot to overtake Peterman, who was a fifth-round draft pick last year. From a fantasy perspective, Allen brings more upside to the table due to his outstanding arm strength, though regardless of who is the team's starter out of the gate, we'd expect the Bills to profile as a run-heavy team, with LeSean McCoy, Chris Ivory and perhaps Marcus Murphy set to lead the way on that front.

Peterman and Josh Allen are expected to see time with the Bills' top offense in next Sunday's preseason dress rehearsal against the Bengals after AJ McCarron suffered a hairline fracture in his collarbone, Mike Rodak of ESPN.com.

With McCarron looking at a multi-week absence, Peterman or Allen is in line to get the Week 1 start at QB. Whereas it was once assumed that the Bills would proceed deliberately in their development of Allen, the 2018 first-rounder's solid play in Friday's preseason win over the Browns suggests he does have a shot to overtake Peterman, who was a fifth-round draft pick last year. Regardless of who earns the starting nod early on, the Bills seem destined to run the ball plenty, with LeSean McCoy set to reprise his role as the team's top back, and the capable Chris Ivory on hand to spell him.

Peterman completed eight of 10 passes for 113 yards and a touchdown in Friday's 19-17 preseason win over the Browns.

Peterson has completed 17 of 20 passes for 232 yards with two touchdowns and an interception in two preseason games, after playing most of the second half on a surprisingly eventful night. AJ McCarron was ineffective then injured, and Josh Allen made a case for the starting job by leading the Bills to 13 points on three drives. With McCarron's injury believed to be a collarbone fracture, Peterman may be left to battle with just the rookie for a starting job. Another job battle update should be available once the Bills provide details on McCarron.

Allen completed nine of 13 passes for 60 yards and a touchdown and gained 18 yards on three carries in Friday's preseason win over the Browns.

Allen comfortably outplayed Friday's starter, AJ McCarron, who suffered an injury that's believed to be a fractured collarbone, per Vic Carucci of The Buffalo News. If the injury is confirmed, the competition for the Week 1 starting job will come down to Allen and Nathan Peterman. As good as Peterman has been through the first two weeks of the preseason -- 11.6 yards per pass attempt -- he reportedly hasn't looked so sharp at training camp, and nobody can forget the five-interception meltdown in Los Angeles last season. Even if Allen doesn't win the Week 1 job, he's at least moving in the right direction toward making NFL starts. He led the Bills to 13 points on three drives in Friday's win.

Stafford completed two of five passes for 51 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions during Friday's preseason game against the Giants.

Making his 2018 preseason debut, Stafford did what he could, but the quarterback was pulled from the game rather quickly after taking two sacks -- plus another that was wiped out be a defensive penalty -- behind an offensive line that seemed out of sync. However, there's optimism this trend won't continue into the regular season once offensive guard T.J. Lang (undisclosed) is back in action, especially if first-round rookie Frank Ragnow can acclimate to the professional stage sooner than later. Look for Stafford to make one more appearance this preseason when the Lions take on the Buccaneers next Friday.