NFL Player News

Garoppolo completed 11 of 18 passes for 168 yards in Thursday's preseason opener against New Orleans

Garoppolo played the entire first half to prepare for his upcoming stint as the starter while Tom Brady serves a four-game suspension. The third-year quarterback put up impressive numbers without the help of Dion Lewis (knee), Rob Gronkowski, Julian Edelman (foot) and Danny Amendola (knee), but Garoppolo did spend much of his time facing the Saints' second-team defense. He should have more of his supporting cast available for the second and third preseason games.

Lynch completed six of seven passes for 74 yards in Thursday's preseason opener against the Bears, adding three carries for five yards.

As planned, Lynch played the entire second half in his first NFL appearance, but he spent most of his time handing the ball off to RB Kapri Bibbs. Although the stat line doesn't look bad at first glance, Lynch took a trio of sacks and didn't lead his team to any points. While technically considered to be a part of the QB competition, the rookie is still a long shot to beat out both Mark Sanchez and Trevor Siemian before Week 1.

Siemian completed seven of 12 passes for 88 yards in Thursday's preseason opener against the Bears.

Siemian played the second quarter, with his four drives leading to two field goals, a blocked field goal and a punt. Granted, the scoring opportunities were largely provided by Denver's defense and special teams, as none of Siemian's drives spanned more than 31 yards. Mark Sanchez, who played the first quarter, turned in a more up-and-down performance, completing 10 of 13 passes for 99 yards, with a touchdown and an interception. The two essentially played to a draw, which would seem to work in favor of the more-experienced Sanchez.

Cousins completed all five of his pass attempts for 39 yards in Thursday's preseason opener against the Falcons.

Cousins failed to produce any points on his lone drive, but he avoided negative plays and escaped without any injuries. He should see more playing time in the second and third preseason games, though he probably hopes not to see too much of the field, as he'll play out this season under the franchise tag.

Bradford completed his only pass attempt for a three-yard gain in Thursday's preseason opener against the Buccaneers.

Bradford should get more playing time in the second and third preseason games, but his performance may be irrelevant. The Eagles' pecking order for 2016 seems to already be determined, with Bradford as the starter, Chase Daniel as the backup and rookie Carson Wentz serving as the No. 3. Daniel and Wentz both struggled in Thursday's game.

Winston completed seven of nine passes for 97 yards and a touchdown in Thursday's preseason opener against the Eagles.

Winston did lose a fumble on a sack, but he then bounced back to lead the Bucs on a seven-play, 79-yard scoring drive, capped off by a 26-yard touchdown strike to WR Russell Shepard. Although the second-year quarterback didn't have any rush attempts in Thursday's game, he should be a bit quicker on his feet this season, after losing approximately 20 pounds since last year.

Garoppolo is expected to start Thursday's preseason contest against the Saints, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports.

In anticipation of Tom Brady's four-game suspension to start the season, Garoppolo will handle snaps with the first-teamers, but the likely absences of Rob Gronkowski, Julian Edelman (foot), Danny Amendola (knee), and Dion Lewis (knee), among others, won't really mimic the reality of Weeks 1-4. No matter, the grooming of Garoppolo will begin in earnest Thursday.

Rodgers isn't expected to suit up for Friday's preseason game against the Browns, Jason Wilde of ESPN.com reports.

During the final practice open to the media prior to Friday, Rodgers directed the scout-team offense, which is the clearest indication that the Packers won't risk any hits for at least another week. If he follows his preseason reps from the past three seasons, he'll take the field two times and total about 5-to-6 series in advance of the regular season. With Brett Hundley (ankle) still tending to an ankle injury, Joe Callahan and Marquise Williams will be under center for the exhibition.

Prescott has another strong day in team drills Wednesday, The Ft. Worth Star-Telegram reports.

He completed 8-of-13 passes with the Cowboys' first team offense, with only one of those incompletions being the result of a poorly-thrown pass. Prescott is getting valuable reps when Tony Romo is rested, but Dallas is still looking to add a veteran backup QB before the preseason is through. It remains highly unlikely that Prescott will see meaningful regular season snaps in 2016.

Gradkowski will likely see action in Friday's preseason opener since, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Ben Roethlisberger is expected to sit out against the Lions.

With Roethlisberger joining several key offensive players including Le'Veon Bell, Antonio Brown, and DeAngelo Williams on the sidelines, Gradkowski will have an opportunity to show why he deserves the backup quarterback spot over Landry Jones and Dustin Vaughan, despite missing all of last season.