NFL Player News

Jets quarterback Geno Smith played the entire first half of Saturday's preseason game against the Bengals.

Smith showed some struggles early on and was picked off by Terence Newman on his third series of work. He bounced back with a 1-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. Smith compiled 98 yards through the air while completing 10 of 13 passes. He was unable to throw for a touchdown and had an interception, finishing with a 65.5 quarterback rating.

Through two preseason games, Smith has completed 14 of 19 pass attempts for 131 yards through the air.

Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill had a hard time connecting with his top target Saturday night against the Buccaneers in preseason action.

Mike Wallace did not appear to be on the same page with Tannehill. Wallace failed to come down with a deep pass on the opening drive. He also dropped a bubble screen pass late in the first quarter.

Tannehill worked three series with the first-team offense and saw his night come to an end when he was strip-sacked by Gerald McCoy on the first play of the second quarter. He completed 9 of 14 pass attempts for 110 yards through the air, registering a 88.4 passer rating.

Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton put together a flawless performance during Saturday’s preseason game against the Jets.

Dalton found an open Mohamed Sanu for a 42-yard touchdown strike on the opening series of the night. He went 4 for 4 for 74 yards on the first drive. He worked three series with the first-team and compiled 144 yards through the air while completing all eight of his pass attempts. He added a touchdown and no interceptions, registering a 158.3 passer rating.

Through two preseason games, Dalton has completed 11 of 13 pass attempts for 215 yards and a touchdown.

After sitting out exactly 300 days while recovering from a torn ACL, Rams quarterback Sam Bradford finally returned to action in Saturday’s preseason game at home against the Packers.

Bradford was used exclusively out of the shotgun and completed his first four passes of the game. He missed Kenny Britt on a deep pass down the right sidelines. He bounced back with a 51-yard completion to Brian Quick on his second series, which ended on an 11-yard touchdown pass to Lance Hendricks.

He was limited to two series with the first-team and compiled 101 yards through the air while completing 9 of 12 passes with one touchdown and no interception. He finished with a 127.4 passer rating.

Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers made his preseason debut and was in mid-season form Saturday afternoon against the Rams in St. Louis.

Rodgers went 6 for 6 on the opening drive, which ended on a 3-yard pass to Randall Cobb in the end zone. He nearly scored again on the second drive, but but an illegal hands to the face penalty negated the play.

Rodgers was limited to two series with the first-team offense and compiled 128 yards through the air while completing 11 of 13 passes with one touchdown and no interceptions. He finished with a 133.3 passer rating.

Saints backup quarterback Luke McCown got the start in Friday's preseason game against the Titans, and did a good job piloting the offense in a 31-24 win.

McCown led the offense through the first half compiling 117 yards through the air while completing 12 of 20 passes successfully. He tossed  a pair of touchdowns to Jimmy Graham as well. 

McCown is expected to open the season as the Saints' No. 2 quarterback.  

Lions stud wideout Calvin Johnson has yet to play a down in the preseason - and quarterback Matthew Stafford claims he doesn't care if he remains nothing more than an interested viewer in the last two exhibition games.

"We've been practicing quite a bit," Stafford explained to the Detroit Free Press. "There's obviously a difference between practice and the game, there's no question. But Calvin and the decision makers need to do what's best for him and make sure that he's feeling as good as he can possibly feel come Game 1. ... We can talk and get a lot of things done verbally and on the practice field."

The Lions are wary of Johnson overworking in the preseason after injuries cost him two regular season games in 2013.

Dennis Allen has announced that a concussion knocked Raiders rookie quarterback Derek Carr out of the Friday night preseason game against Detroit.

Allen, however, praised Carr for his performance before going down. "I thought he was better in this game," Allen told NFL.com in comparing his performance to that in the exhibition opener.

Carr finished 9 of 16 for 109 yards, one touchdown and no picks.

Raiders rookie quarterback Derek Carr was forced out of Friday's preseason game against the Lions with an apparent rib injury.

Carr entered the game in the second quarter for Matt Schaub and sustained the injury late in the fourth quarter. He was taken back to the locker room for further tests. While walking back to the locker room, Carr told team doctors he "heard a crunch," according to Sports Illustrated.

Carr threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Jake Murphy in the third quarter. He completed 9 of 16 pass attempts for 109 yards, with one touchdown and no interceptions. He was replaced by Matt McGloin in the final minutes of the game.

Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford was nearly perfect as he struck paydirt twice in Friday's preseason game against the Raiders in Oakland.

Stafford hooked up with Golden Tate for a 28-yard strike on the opening drive of the game. On the ensuing series, he found Kris Durham for a 4-yard pass in the end zone. He was limited to three series with the first team and completed 9 of 10 pass attempts for 88 yards, with two touchdowns and no interceptions.