After Thursday's
preseason palooza of 12 games, Friday's slate a games offered a more selective
docket of contests. The early matchup featured the first chapter in the Jets' starting quarterback search and the
late game featured Jon Gruden's return to Oakland and Matt Patricia's head
coaching debut with the Detroit Lions.
HERE'S WHAT WE LEARNED FROM
FRIDAY'S WEEK 1 PRESEASON GAMES:
Nothing is official until the regular season starts, and
Gruden and Patricia have to be glad about that.
Gruden's Oakland homecoming and Patricia's Lions debut
was a rather sloppy, penalty-laden affair for both teams -- the sort of
preseason game that coaches can't feel fantastic about but can take solace in
knowing its ramifications are limited.
For the Lions,
the three-way running back duel between Ameer
Abdullah, LeGarrette
Blount and Kerryon
Johnson was on vivid display. Based on his performance against
the Raiders,
it appears Abdullah is acutely aware he needs to have a good preseason to
increase his odds of staying in Detroit this season.
Abdullah rushed for 16 yards and a touchdown on four carries
and also made a 7-yard catch. While the performance might have unearthed
memories of his rookie season, it might be too late for anything but memories
when it comes to Abdullah and the Lions.
Both Blount (5-21) and Johnson (7-34) got more carries, and it's very possible
Abdullah is only being used to bolster his potential trade value.
Connor Cook more
or less was the Raiders'
star of the night. It's clear that Gruden is giving Cook the opportunity to
secure the backup quarterback role in his in-house duel with EJ Manuel,
and Cook responded with a solid performance. He completed 11 of 19 passes for
141 yards and a touchdown.
Another standout? Kicker Eddy Pineiro.
The rookie is the favorite out of camp to win the starting job, and the Raiders signaled
their faith in him by cutting Giorgio
Tavecchio last week. Pineiro was 3 for 3 on field-goal
attempts, nailing distances of 21, 48 and 45 yards.
Marshawn
Lynch could have been another player in the spotlight if his
60-yard touchdown carry at the beginning of the game wasn't nullified by a
holding call on first-round draft pick Kolton Miller,
but that's how it goes in the preseason.
Based on how he played in his New York Jets debut,
it'd be a shame to see Teddy
Bridgewater stuck on a sideline this season. Bridgewater
efficiently managed the Jets'
offense over the parts of two quarters he played, showing good pocket presence
and mobility in a solid showing that strengthened his credentials as a
potential NFL starter in 2018.
Upon entering the game after Josh McCown went
three-and-out in his only series, Bridgewater completed 7 of 8 passes for 85
yards and a touchdown. Most of his passes were of the so-called dink-and-dunk
variety, but his pass over the middle to running back Isaiah
Crowell, who worked hard to score a 16-yard TD, was exactly on
target. A 21-yard completion to Neal Sterling toward
the end of his stint was probably his best pass -- a quick, surgical strike
that went up the gut on the Falcons'
secondary and helped set up a field goal a short time later.
The Jets'
crowded QB room is a problem of the good variety for Jets coach
Todd Bowles and general manager Mike Maccagnan, but it's difficult to fathom
the Jets not
finding a juicy trade market for Bridgewater's services as the regular season
quickly approaches. With third overall pick Sam Darnold
living up to his promise, so far, there's really no good reason to keep
Bridgewater on the roster.
As for Darnold, he put in an effort that showcased his potential to win the starting job this season.
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