Saints’ defense shines in shutout win over Texans
NEW ORLEANS » Texans starting quarterback Tom Savage struggled to move Houston’s offense. His popular backup, first-round draft choice Deshaun Watson, didn’t do much to distinguish himself, either.
Perhaps a New Orleans Saints defense that has languished near the bottom of the NFL for three seasons is improving after all.
An interception by Damian Swann, and sacks by Darryl Tapp, Al-Quadin Muhammad, Rafael Bush and Adam Bighill highlighted a defensive performance that lifted New Orleans to a 13-0 preseason victory on Saturday night.
Two of the Saints’ sacks and Swann’s interception came against Watson.
Darius Victor ran for a 3-yard touchdown and Wil Lutz kicked field goals of 26 and 48 yards for New Orleans (2-1), which had won two straight exhibition games after ending a 10-game preseason skid in Los Angeles last week.
Adrian Peterson made his Saints preseason debut, albeit in unspectacular fashion. Each of his six carries went for either 2 or 3 yards, totaling 15. He also had one catch for a 1-yard loss.
Peterson’s carries were his first in the preseason since 2011. He had only appeared in one preseason game since then, back in 2013.
Drew Brees played for much of the first half in his first action this preseason. He completed 11 of 15 passes for 76 yards, but New Orleans was unable to move the ball consistently. It managed only one scoring drive with Brees under center, capped by Lutz’s 26-yard field goal that made it 3-0.
Backup QB Chase Daniel took over for New Orleans’ final possession of the first half and led its only touchdown drive in the third quarter, completing passes of 24 yards to Tommylee Lewis, 14 yards to Josh Hill and 31 yards to Brandon Coleman.
Savage, of Cardinal O’Hara, was 10 of 16 for 79 yards in the first half for Houston (1-2). Watson was 11 of 21 for 116 yards and also scrambled twice for 10 yards. Watson’s potential to extend plays showed when he stepped up to avoid Swann’s blitz, then delivered an accurate off-balance pass to RaShaun Allen as he was being hit by lineman Tony McDaniel. The play gained 22 yards, but the drive stalled a couple plays later with Swann’s interception.
The Texans were heading back to Dallas after the game because of the storm that hit the Houston area. BROWNS 13, BUCS 9 » Rookie quarterback DeShone Kizer made his first start in Cleveland’s win over Tampa Bay.
Playing the entire first half after a pregame downpour, Kizer completed 6 of 18 passes for 93 yards and an interception. Browns coach Hue Jackson named Kizer as the starter earlier in the week after watching him develop over the past month.
Kevin Hogan’s 5-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Leslie with 1:53 left gave the Browns (3-0) the win. The 87-yard touchdown drive was aided by two unnecessary roughness penalties against Bucs rookie Justin Evans. GIANTS 32, JETS 31. » If only the New York Giants could play the Jets every week.
Landon Collins and Donte Deayon scored on interception returns, Jason Pierre-Paul recorded a safety and Eli Manning and the offense showed a little life for the first time this preseason as the Giants turned the annual game for the braggin’ rights of New York into an early laugher and late thriller.
After failing to score a touchdown in their first two preseason games, the Giants (1-2) got three in the first half against the Jets (12) in opening a 29-3 lead against the franchise with whom they are the co-owners of MetLife Stadium.
The Jets actually had a chance to win after Christian Hackenberg took over for an injured Bryce Petty with 2:00 to play and finished off a 75-yard touchdown drive with a 17-yard pass to Frankie Hammond with 1:26 to play. Todd Bowles went for the win, but the Giants stopped a 2-point run by rookie Elijah McGuire. RAVENS 13, BILLS 9 » Winless Buffalo sent home defensive tackle Marcell Dareus, lost quarterback Tyrod Taylor to injury and made far too many mistakes against Baltimore, which remained undefeated in the preseason.
Though starting quarterback Joe Flacco has yet to take a snap at camp this summer, the Ravens (3-0) have relied heavily on their retooled defense to win.
Baltimore has allowed only two touchdowns in three games — none by the starting unit — and now stands one victory short of completing a second straight unbeaten preseason.
Buffalo (0-3) is still looking for its first win under rookie coach Sean McDermott, who’s got far more important issues to address, such as the behavior of Dareus and the health of Taylor.
Dareus was exiled by the Bills before the kickoff for violating a team rule. Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane called the transgression “disappointing” and did not rule out the possibility of further discipline beyond the onegame suspension.
Taylor sustained a concussion at the end of Buffalo’s second possession when sacked by Matthew Judon. After being assessed on the sideline, Taylor was removed from the game. CARDINALS 24, FALCONS 14 » John Brown made a strong statement his lingering quadriceps injury is no concern as he caught two touchdown passes to lead Arizona over Atlanta.
Brown showed off his speed when he caught a 28-yard scoring pass from Carson Palmer and a 21-yarder from Drew Stanton, each in the second quarter.
The game was the first event held at the new $1.5 billion MercedesBenz Stadium. There are ongoing issues with the stadium’s complicated retractable roof, which is expected to remain closed indefinitely. There were no glitches in the stadium’s other bragging points, including a big halo video board.
Brown’s explosive showing confirmed his status as the Cardinals’ top downfield threat after he had been slowed by the injury. Last week, coach Bruce Arians said if Brown “can’t run long enough, we’ve got to replace him.”