Jacksonville Jaguars Preseason Week 2 post-game

By: Noah Trombley

The second game for the Jaguars this preseason is in the books and it was an interesting time for Jaguars fans filled with moments of terror and some more downs unfortunately.

The moment of terror came when rookie phenom quarterback Trevor Lawrence took off out of the pocket on a 3rd and 8 play in the second quarter and lunged for the first down, getting smacked by three saints players in the process. Thankfully Lawrence would be able to get up after the play was over and continue the drive but the young QB is gonna have to learn that his value to the Jaguars is in his arm talent and he needs to learn to slide to protect himself when he does take off a few times. Besides that however there was a lot to like from the rookie quarterback. He went 14/23 for 113 yards and continued to show poise and awareness in the pocket. 

However there was one massive player injury this week that hurts one of the few bright spots coming into this season. Rookie running back, and teammate at Clemson with Lawrence, Travis Etienne will miss the entire 2021 season after being placed on IR with a left foot lisfranc injury, meaning the bones or ligaments in the middle of his foot have been torn or broken. This is a huge blow to what would’ve been a stacked running back duo of Etienne and James Robinson who last year went over 1000 rushing yards. Etienne’s power combined with Robinson’s speed would’ve made them a hard duo to contend with and could’ve taken some pressure off of Lawrence to do so much during games. Robinson will need to repeat what he did last year in order for the Jaguars to have a good running attack and account for Etienne’s absence. If he can then the Jaguars should still be a very dynamic team offensively and could put up some points throughout the season. 

The King Of New York

By Michael Rifkin

On Friday, Henrik Lundqvist announced his retirement from hockey at the age of 39. The New York Rangers selected Lundqvist in the seventh round of the 2000 NHL draft (205th overall). Before the 2020 season, the Rangers, the only franchise Lundqvist had played for, bought out his contract, and he signed a one-year contract with the Washington Capitals, and didn’t play for them due to heart issues and underwent open-heart surgery.

Lundqvist retires with 459 sixth all-time wins, 2.43 Goals Against Average, and .918 Save Percentage, and 64 shutouts. Lundqvist had 61 wins in the playoffs with a 2.30 Goals Against Average, a .921 save percentage, and ten shutouts. Lundqvist was at his best in win or go home game 7s. In his eight-game 7s, Lundqvist went 6-2 with a 1.11 Goals Against Average, and a .961 save percentage. The craziest part of these numbers is that Lundqvist never allowed more than two goals in game 7s. The Rangers went to three conference finals with Lundqvist and one Stanley Cup Final, where they lost to the Los Angeles Kings in 5 games. In what might have been the best stretch of Henrik’s career, the Rangers trailed the Pittsburgh Penguins 3 games to 1 in the 2014 Eastern Conference Semifinals. In games 5-7, Lundqvist stopped 102 of 105 shots en route to a comeback for the ages. Over those three games, the team was outshot 105-84. In 2011-12 Lundqvist went 39-18-5 with a 1.97 Goals Against Average, a .930 save percentage, and eight shutouts, which led him to win the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goalie and for ten consecutive seasons finished in the top 6 in voting.

Henrik embraced the fans as much as they embraced him. When he makes a big save, you can hear Madison Square Garden faithful chant his name. One day Henrik will go into the Hockey Hall of Fame. The Rangers organization announced quickly on Friday that during this upcoming season, they will retire the number 30 in honor of Lundqvist, the franchise’s all-time leader in wins, in a ceremony that no doubt will be fit for a KING.

Buccaneers Preseason Recap #2

By Robert Mills

ORLANDO, FL – Well, that was a result nobody expected. The Buccaneers looked outmatched and outmanned early on in a 34 to 3 blowout loss to the titans. This now sets the Bucs at 0-2 for preseason and, worse yet, 0-2 at home. I guess we should all tell ourselves, for now, this is still preseason, and making the assumption more starters would play this game was a false statement. Tom Brady did not make an appearance, Joe Tryon got more playtime, and the only O-Lineman to play for the Bucs that will even see playing time in the regular season was Alex Cappa. Let’s break down this game a bit and what we should see moving forward.

Backups reigned supreme yet again in this game, unfortunately not in a perfect way. We got to see fewer projected starters for the regular season in this game and more 3rd strings and potential cut players. This includes players like CB Dee Delaney, CB Chris Wilcox, and RB Ke’Shawn Vaughn, who could be said are “fighting for a spot” to remain from being on the cut list come time for the regular season. Dee Delaney specifically had a rather rough outing missing some key tackles, though that was just one tick in a long list of issues the Buccaneers had this game. Shawn Vaughn also struggled greatly, averaging 2 yards per carry on nine attempts for 18 yards overall. The silver lining to the backup struggles was getting to see a lot more Kyle Trask. I was pleased to say I was wrong about how they planned to use him for preseason, and he had an okay outing again for this game (13/26, 131 yards, two ints, one fumble). The stats don’t tell the whole story as both of his interceptions were off-tipped passes, and a brilliant pass to the tight end late in the 3rd quarter resulted in a fumble and returned for a TD for the Titans.

Finding the silver linings in this game would be getting to see more TE O.J Howard (24 yards, three rec.) as he is still limited coming back from his back injury that occurred back in early August. Good to see him coming back as he played an essential role in the 2020 super bowl run. And once again, LB Joe Tryon will be talked about in this game. He was able to take 22 snaps for this game, and one of those snaps, he put some impressive moves on the OLB Dillon Radunz of the Titans and sack Matt Barkley in the dying seconds of the first half pushed titans out of field goal range. However, that was a short-lived celebration as the Titans made the 58-yard field goal.

It’s safe to say nobody wants to remember this game. We will see how the Buccaneers plan to creatively use their backups and 3rd stringers for their 3rd and final preseason game against the Texans Saturday at 7 pm in Houston. I want to predict more starters will play, but I was wrong last week, and it’s hard to say what they plan to do.

Lions vs Steelers Preseason #2 Recap

By Mark Halpern

Saturday, the Lions faced off against the Steelers in Pennsylvania, and for the first three quarters, it was all Steelers, and the Lions looked like kittens. A surprise was the Big Ben, who was not originally going to played suited up and had a tremendous first quarter throwing for 110 yards and two touchdowns. A surprise from the Lion’s side was that Jared Goff, who started the first preseason game, did not take any reps in this game, neither did 90% of the Detroit starters. The game looked like the New England/Philly game, to be honest. However, the Lions put up 20 unanswered points in the fourth quarter and almost made an incredible comeback.

For the most part, the Lions couldn’t get anything done against the Steeler’s first-string defense, and the Offense for the Lions couldn’t move the ball against the Steeler’s first or second-string players. The good thing for the Lions is that they didn’t turn the ball over once during the game, and neither did the Steelers. The Lions Defense could only muster one sack during the game, which has to be a concern for the Lions Coaching Staff.
There were a couple of bright spots, however. Quarterback David Blough threw an impressive 12/17 competed passes for 140 yards and a touchdown. Rookie Running back Craig Reynolds had five carries for 2 yards and a touchdown in the fourth quarter. Defensive player A.J Parker had eight tackles, and Derrick Barnes had six tackles and a sack.

If they want to be taken seriously this season, the Lions have to step up their game and fast with opening week just two weeks away. Jared Goff needs time to build up a repour with his team, so I expect to see the first-stringers for the Lions play a full half next week, or we could see a Lions team set another record going 0-17. The Lions wrap up the preseason next weekend against the Colts, and I expect to see the Lions starters play close to a half of the game. With more roster cuts coming this week, the Lions have some decision-making to do.

Dallas Vs Houston Preseason Recap

By Mark Halpern

Saturday the Cowboys faced off against the Houston Texans, and the result was another loss with a score of 20-14. There were some pleasant upsides to this loss, especially in the Quarterback battle. Yet again, the Cowboys didn’t have many first-string offensive players play long but, that is no excuse.

    Over the first three preseason games, the Cowboys played Garrett Gilbert as the starter, and Ben DeNucci and Cooper Rush were second and third. Gilbert came out and looked like a rookie completing 3/5 for 3 yards and a fumble. Cooper Rush came in and performed brilliantly. We heard the crowd give a “COOOOOP” chant, but it wasn’t for Amri Cooper, but Cooper Rush came out and was fire. Rush completed 1/12 passes for yards and two touchdowns. He finally turned things over to Ben DeNucci, and he, in my opinion, will be cut when the next cut down happens. DeNucci came in and completed 14/19 passes for a 120 yard but three costly interceptions. As of now, the competition is between Gilbert and Rush. The offensive line also gave up five sacks, and the quarterbacks were heavily pressured, so that didn’t help much.

   As for the starters, Amari Cooper did play but only for about two drives and had one rush for -4 yards. Cee Dee Lamb caught his only target for 13 yards, and then there was an excellent showing from Tony Pollard, who caught one of the touchdowns by Rush for six yards and rushed for another 20 yards. Noah Brown had an excellent showing of 3 receptions for 35 yards in the second half.

   On the defensive side of the ball, the Cowboys seemed off. They only recorded one sack when they were getting 4-5 per game in the other games. There wasn’t one defensive player that stood out amongst the others. The Cowboy’s defense didn’t record a turnover for the first time this preseason while the offensive gave up 3. 

     Over the past week, the Cowboys have linked to trade rumors with the Chicago bears for Nick Foles. The Cowboys see that they are in trouble for the second QB position, with Justin Fields probably going to win the starter position that will leave the Bears with Dalton and Foles. Dalton was with the Cowboys last year and had a below mediocre season. You would think he would adjust well but, he has lost a step over the last few years, and the Cowboys could get Foles and possibly sign him to an extension to seal a weak part of their depth chart.

    Next week the Cowboys will face the Jaguars, and I expect most of the first-string players get a quarter or more except for Dak Prescott. The media was told by head coach McCarthy that Prescott won’t play in the preseason to work back to full strength. According to the Dallas coaching staff, Dak is on track to start week one against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sept 9th. Most of the first-stringers will play on the Defensive side except for Demarcus Lawrence and Malik Hooker as they are getting ready for Week 1.

     Even though the Cowboys Lost this week and there were some bright sides, the Coaches now must come together and make cuts this week. I expect DeNucci to be one of those and then possibly signed over to the practice squad.

Bengals at WFT Postgame

By Liam Sullivan

The Bengals were shocked by the Washington Football Team’s eight-point fourth quarter to lose their first preseason game at FedEx Field in Landover, MD. It was a victorious moment for WFT Head Coach Ron Rivera.

The Rookie out of Buffalo, Jaret Patterson, had a tremendous run into the end zone during the fourth quarter, followed by a successful two-point conversion scored by Antonio Gandy-Golden, the second-year player out of Liberty.

Patterson was the most productive running back for WFT with 16 carries for 71 yards, an average of 4.4 yards per carry.

Gandy-golden had three receptions for 38 yards, an average of 12.7 yards per reception.

Will Bradley-King, the Rookie out of Baylor, forced a fumble when he strip-sacked Kyle Shurmur.

Head Coach Zac Taylor described his team as “just not there.”

Joe Burrow sat out of the game, leaving most of the QB duties to Brandon Allen.

It was a showdown of the Allens as Kyle Allen was the QB for Washington.

Taylor Heinicke had the highest pass completion percentage at 84.6%, while Ryan Fitzpatrick averaged the most yards per completion, averaging 13.7 yards.

Jacques Patrick was the most productive Bengal in the ground game, running the rock with 42 yards on six carries, an average of seven yards per carry.

The wide receiving corps was very silent for Cincinnati. Trenton Irwin had two receptions for 24 yards, an average of 12 yards per carry.

One positive note for the defense was that Darius Phillips and Keandre Jones had five tackles each.

Overall, it was not a productive night for Cincinnati.

Next week the Washington Football Team (1-1) will close out the preseason when they host the Baltimore Ravens (2-0) at home, on Saturday, August 28th, at 6 PM.

The Bengals (1-1) will finish out their preseason when they head home to Paul Brown Stadium to host the Miami Dolphins (1-1) on Sunday, August 29th, at 4 PM.

Preseason Week #2 Titans vs Bucs

By Bill Murphy

Tampa Bay: Well, another week, another Titans win. Last night the Titans beat the defending Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers 34-3. For the second week in a row, The Titans did not play any of their starters, Such as Ryan Tannehill, AJ Brown, and Derrick Henry. The Titans now have a preseason record of 2-0, while the Bucs have a record of 0-2 this preseason.

The battle for the position of backup quarterback between Logan Woodside and Matt Barkley continues. Last night, Barkley threw 12 completions out of 16 attempts, 115 yards, and two touchdowns, while Woodside threw seven completions out of 8 attempts, 64 yards, and one touchdown. Last week was Woodside’s week, and this week was Barkley’s week. As we come down to the last preseason game, we will soon find out who will be Tannehill’s backup.

The Titans have 266 yards from receiving and rushing when it comes to the rest of the offense. Touchdowns were scored by Mason Kinsey, Dez Fitzpatrick, and Mehki Sergeant. Sam Fricken also kicked two field goals. 

Like against the Falcons last week, the once struggling Titans defense held its ground against a Brady-less Bucs offense. The Titans defense pulled off three sacks, two interceptions and held the Bucs to 217 yards. They once again did not have their first draft pick, Cornerback Caleb Farley. The defense once again is improving and delivering throughout the season than it was last season.

The Titans are now 2-0 heading into their last preseason game of the year. Now some questions are hopefully going to be answered, such as is Tannehill going to play, Is either Woodside or Barkley going to be his number two? Is Julio Jones, AJ Brown, and Caleb Farley finally going to be on the field? Is the defense going to be as strong in the regular as they were in the preseason? Next week, we will find out when the Titans will play the Chicago Bears Saturday at 7:30 at home. 

Revenge of Bisky

By Lawrence Lang

CHICAGO- In his return to Chicago, Mitchell Trubisky was in a different state of mind when playing his former team. Trubisky would go 20/28 221 passing yards and one touchdown down in a double statement, one showing what a mistake the Bears made in letting him go and making his case for the back-up position in Buffalo as well. Another star for the Billis was Running Back Reggie Gilliam, the undrafted free agent signed with the Bills in April of 2020 would make the Bills 53 man roster that year and get his first career touchdown on September 20th, a one-yard pass from Josh Allen.

In yesterday’s 41- 15 beatdown of the Bears, Gilliam would get eight carries for 24yds and two touchdowns. As for the other two quarterbacks fighting for the number 2 slot, Jake Fromm and Davis Webb combined went 7/13 and 50 yds. Both of them look very inconsistent with their passing and look like they were not compatible being the center when it came to playmaking. In this case, it looks like Trubisky is now the frontrunner to be the back-up to Allen.

The Battle for #1 quarterback for the Bears heated up as well. Andy Dalton went 11/17 146yds and one touchdown, and Justin Fields went 9/19 80yds and zero touchdowns along with having 46yds rushing. Two respectable outings for two quarterbacks who are hungry to get the starting job in Chicago, and this battle might continue through the rest of the season as each believes they are the rightful starter for the Bears. A couple of other quick notes for the Bears Rookie Running Back Khalil Herbert had a touchdown for a 13yrd run. On the receiving end, another player trying to make a 53 man roster is Rodney Adams, who had a decent outing going for three receptions, 89yds, and a touchdown which might make a good case for him to make the roster after the next set of roster cuts.

Next week for the final preseason game, the Bills head home to face the Green Bay Packers on Saturday, August 28th at 1 PM while the Bears head to DC to take on the Washington Football Team Saturday at 1 PM.

Rams Comeback Falls Short

By Zakary Haines

LOS ANGELES- When it is football season, expect there to be comebacks. The Rams almost managed to come back against the Las Vegas Raiders but fell short on the two-point conversion. The Rams take their second preseason loss with a close score of 17-16. The offense improved massively while the defense continues to perform at an elite level. However, it was not enough to overcome the Raiders last night. 

One of the consistent bright spots is the defense. Even without Jalen Ramsey and Aaron Donald, this team continues to punish opposing teams. Two interceptions and three sacks, with 7th round pick Chris Garrett making a name for himself. Garrett had two tipped passes in the second quarter alone (one of those led to an interception), one strip-sack that blew up on Twitter, one shared sack, one hit on the quarterback, and one tackle for a loss. Garrett set a division two record with a career 15 forced fumbles and third all-time in division two history with 1.30 sacks per game.

On the offense, there were some significant improvements seen. The Rams had 129 rushing yards, 208 yards passing, and two passing touchdowns. This offense seemed to click more than last week, especially Bryce Perkins and JJ Koski. Perkins got all the reps at quarterback this week, and it allowed him to go all out, completing 26 passes out of 39 attempts, rushing for 46 yards, and ending with a QB rating of 86.3. However, Perkins did take a sack and threw one interception, which led to a Raiders field goal. Overall, Perkins is looking to be the number two quarterback on the team regarding the final 53 man roster. JJ Koski had himself a night with eight catches out of ten targets, 61 receiving yards, including a 19-yard play. However, Koski did not get any touchdowns on the night. Kendall Blanton and Jacob Harris both ended the night with one receiving touchdown each. 

Special teams made headlines as both punters are in COVID protocols. So the Rams went into this game with no punters listed. Matt Gay pulled double duty with kicking and punting for the team. For kicking, Gay hit one out of two field goals, nailing one from 36 yards out. He also completed the only extra point for the evening. Gay has not punted since high school, but that did not stop him from accumulating 168 punting yards, with his longest being 50 yards. 

In his post-game press conference, head coach Sean McVay liked what he saw on the field tonight. McVay said, “I thought our guys showed toughness tonight. I thought they continued to fight, a lot of adversity. Probably too many flags to our liking but all things we can learn from.” McVay also gave many props to Bryce Perkins, who made a critical 1st down late in the fourth quarter to help the Rams score. There are still some improvements the Rams need as they head to the final preseason game this Saturday against the Denver Broncos. 

Jacksonville Jaguars Preseason Week 2 Pre-Game

By: Noah Trombley

The Jaguars will continue preseason play with a matchup on Monday night (August 23rd, 2021) against the New Orleans Saints in the Superdome. There was a lot of change already for this Jaguars team as there already have been some significant cuts from the team.The biggest, of course, being former Quarterback turned Tight end, Tim Tebow. The former Florida Gator played in 16 snaps last week and didn’t see many targets or memorable plays. The most memorable moments came when first, Tebow was wide open in the middle of the field, and receiver Tavon Austin undercut the route and caught the ball instead.

Tebow then attempted a block on the run to his side but completely whiffed and ended up blocking nobody. The Tebow experiment then ended on Tuesday when the Jaguars officially released him. This release felt inevitable after that game on Monday. The only reason I thought maybe the Jaguars would keep Tebow on the roster would be to use him as a pr person and keep some fans interested in the Jaguars during the season, but it doesn’t even make it that far.

Now onto the game coming up. The biggest reason to watch this game on Monday night is to see rookie QB Trevor Lawrence play for the first time in the Superdome. This is one of the most challenging places to play for any NFL player, even during the preseason, as the dome sound can become deafening. Lawrence will have to work on the chemistry with his team for the few snaps he has to call audibles and changes to certain plays. This will be a massive test for the young rookie as the noise has gotten even the best of Quarterbacks over the years.

The last thing to watch is who gets the majority of snaps at the running back position. There is a battle brewing between last year’s breakout star James Robinson and rookie Travis Etienne. Robinson had over 1000 yards rushing last season, but that somehow has not secured his spot as the number one running back in Jacksonville, as most believe Etienne will get the nod. Robinson may look to make a statement in this game to try and keep his spot as the Jaguars number one rushing option in the backfield.