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We begin every Monday by checking in on how players, coaches and teams are trending across the NFL. It’s usually bad for Browns fans. Today is no exception.
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NFL Preseason Week 2 Risers
📈 Optimism in New York. Geno Smith led the Jets on a 69-yard touchdown drive in his one series against most of the Steelers’ starting defense. He completed all seven throws for 65 yards and a 144.9 QB rating, all without running back Breece Hall. This offense could be … fun?
📈 These backup quarterbacks. Joe Milton, the Cowboys uber-athletic third-stringer, carved up the Cardinals. His preseason stat line is now 21-for-28 with 298 yards and four total touchdowns. Few can deliver a 53-yard dime this effortlessly:
He wasn’t the only quarterback who impressed while battling for a backup role.
Buccaneers undrafted free agent Jalon Daniels of Kansas led three scoring drives while completing 9 of 14 passes for 71 yards. Former Bengals QB Jake Browning was expected to be Baker Mayfield’s No. 2. Keep an eye here.
Falcons UDFA Jack Strand is a lab-built, 6-foot-5, 240-pounder. The Division II alum completed 8 of his first 9 passes and finished 12-of-17 for 212 yards with two total touchdowns. Reminder: Atlanta’s quarterback room is as uncertain as it gets.
📈 MarShawn Lloyd. “His shiftiness, speed and explosiveness are unlike anything else the Packers have in their running back room,” Matt Schneidman wrote about Green Bay’s No. 2 back in his roster projections. Lloyd could see a lot of snaps if Josh Jacobs misses time (he faces a potential suspension relating to alleged domestic abuse).
📈 Broncos offense. Bo Nix played just two drives but scored on both, with the first against mostly Packers starters. Nix completed 6 of 9 for 76 yards and a score. “I felt like exactly where I left off,” he said after his first game back from a broken ankle. One difference: Jaylen Waddle. Here’s the pair on a 30-plus-yard gain:
NFL Preseason Week 2 Fallers
📉 QB2 competition. Steelers quarterback Drew Allar came back to earth in Pittsburgh’s 17-0 loss to the Jets, completing just 11 of 23 passes for 110 yards. Mason Rudolph is likely backing up Aaron Rodgers in Week 1. Another rookie quarterback, the Rams’ Ty Simpson, had a fine performance (8-of-12 for 73 yards and an 83.0 rating), but is behind in L.A.’s QB2 battle.
📉 Star QB protection. The Chiefs need to find Patrick Mahomes a starting right tackle. Undrafted rookie Kahlil Benson was challenging veteran Jaylon Moore for the job, but Benson’s poor showing (he allowed a pressure and strip sack) should give Kansas City pause. There are similar questions in Washington, where Jayden Daniels was either pressured or sacked on his two passing snaps.
📉 J.J. McCarthy. Almost every clip from the Vikings’ 13-3 loss was rough for the 23-year-old (5-for-10, 81 yards), who missed two open receivers for touchdowns. “Those are just throws I’ve got to make,” McCarthy said afterward. He was easily outplayed by Carson Wentz (9-of-11, 92 yards).
📉 Scare in Las Vegas. Running back Ashton Jeanty was unable to put any weight on his right leg as he limped off during yesterday’s practice. Good news? His absence isn’t expected to be long term. It’s believed to be an ankle sprain.
Nothing fell more than the vibes in Cleveland.
Browns name Deshaun Watson starter
Humans are in perpetual competition with one another. Survival of the fittest, after all.
Cleveland’s quarterback competition is over. The Browns did not select the fittest. Deshaun Watson entered Saturday’s preseason game favored to be the Week 1 starter. Markets had him around 80 percent. Beat reporter Zac Jackson suggested it was Watson’s job to lose.
All the nearly 31-year-old had to do was be serviceable. He wasn’t.
Shedeur Sanders started and played the entire first half, leading the Browns’ only scoring drive before Watson played all but one drive in the second half. These were their stats against Buffalo, with Sanders outplaying Watson by any metric:
Each also threw an interception, though there were differences there.
- Sanders’ came on a throw slightly behind his receiver, who tipped the ball into the waiting arms of Damar Hamlin. Watch that here.
- Watson’s was worse. An ill-advised throw near two defenders, it sailed above the receiver’s arms and right to the defense. That one’s here.
The home crowd was also working against Watson. Zac counted Cleveland booing Watson four times during the third quarter alone, and again (loudly) after this fourth-down flop:
“It has nothing to do about the performance. It’s a little bit more personal than that,” Watson complained afterward. “I think that’s a disrespectful thing.”
That’s certainly a take from a quarterback — especially one with his personal history — after an awful performance that gave fans nothing to celebrate.
And now he’s their starter, an announcement made Monday. “What a sick joke,” wrote one commenter. “No owner group hates their fanbase as much as the Browns,” said another.
Watson will now feel as if he’s playing on the road all season. (“We must boo this man for all eight home games,” is the third-most-upvoted Watson comment. Home debut: Week 3 against Carolina.)
It’s a head scratcher, one that coach Todd Monken likely made because of Watson’s experience and mobility. Certainly not because of his performance in games like this weekend’s.
How long will Watson last? Since Cleveland traded for him in 2022, his EPA per pass ranks 59th among 60 qualifying quarterbacks, Zac found. Since 2020, Watson’s only played 17 non-preseason games, most of them mediocre at best.
Now, for both him and Sanders, it’s again about what comes most natural to all of us: survival.
Extra Points
👀 What we learned. Takeaways from all 32 teams after Week 2 of the preseason are here. Miami could be really, really bad.
🗣 Justin Jefferson opens up. Michael Silver profiled the Vikings star receiver, who is projected to catch passes from his ninth starting quarterback since 2023. He’s excited to play with Kyler Murray.
⭐ Potential star. Is Tyler Shough the NFL’s best-kept secret? Jeff Howe spoke with the Saints’ second-year QB, who turns 27 next month, about the chip on his shoulder. “Shough’s leadership has been undeniable, according to those around the Saints.” Playoffs?!
🎙 Gruden back in booth. Jon Gruden was nervous before joining Ronde Barber to call Saturday’s preseason game for the Buccaneers. “Having a chance to come back in the stadium as a broadcaster, with my Hall of Fame man, I mean, I really was a basket case.”
▶️ Most-clicked: Not Jeremiyah Love’s spin move, which ended its six-day streak, tying that one Colts play as this newsletter’s most popular link ever. Instead, it was NFL insiders ranking the game’s best young players.
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