Rush makes bid for backup role with pair of TD passes
ARLINGTON, Texas — Cooper Rush’s days as the backup to Dak Prescott in Dallas might not be over.
Rush ended two long drives with touchdown passes while the star quarterback watched once again in the Cowboys’ 2014 preseason loss to the Houston Texans on Saturday night.
Prescott’s third consecutive exhibition absence means his first snap in a game since the severe ankle injury that ended his 2020 season will be in the opener Sept. 9 against Tom Brady and Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay.
Garrett Gilbert stumbled while dropping back on his first pass attempt — an incompletion — and lost a fumble to end the first Dallas possession when he had plenty of time to throw but was stripped from behind by Jacob Martin. Gilbert finished 3 of 5 for 30 yards over two scoreless possessions.
“Very poor start there offensively,” Coach Mike McCarthy said. “But I think we got into a rhythm there at the end of the first quarter.”
Houston’s Mark Ingram converted a fourth and 1 with a 2-yard run before scoring from the 2 for the game’s first points after Gilbert’s fumble. The 10year veteran, who signed as a free agent in the offseason, had 24 yards on seven carries.
“That’s why we brought Mark here,” Coach David Culley said. “He’s a guy that during his career has not had many minus-yard plays, and when you give it to him he’s going to give you positive yards and he did that for us today.”
Not much changed at quarterback on a mostly ineffective night for the Houston offense with Deshaun Watson still out of the picture.
The Texans turned the game with their defense, getting even at 14-14 in the third quarter on Lonnie Johnson’s 54-yard interception return for a touchdown on a tipped pass from fourth-stringer Ben DiNucci, who threw three picks. Ka’imi Fairbairn kicked the decisive 38-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter.
Tyrod Taylor led a short TD drive after a Dallas turnover in limited action for the presumed starter if Watson doesn’t play.
Rookie third-round pick Davis Mills struggled in the first half, when the Texans had just 77 yards and went 0 for 6 on third down. The Texans (2-0) failed on all nine thirddown attempts with Taylor and Mills.
Rush had a 25-yard completion to tight end Blake Jarwin on second and 14 on his first drive, a 75-yard march that
ended with an 8-yard scoring toss to running back Tony Pollard on a screen.
The undrafted fifth-year QB went 5 of 6 for 48 yards on a 13-play, 85-yard drive that ended with a perfect throw into the corner of the end zone for Cedrick Wilson’s 9-yard touchdown and a 14-7 Dallas lead. Rush was 10 of 12 for 97 yards.
DOLPHINS 37, FALCONS 17
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Tua Tagovailoa threw for 187 yards and a touchdown in one half as Miami beat Atlanta.
Miami’s first two drives ended in touchdowns by Myles Gaskin. The running back capped the first drive with a 1-yard score. Gaskin accounted for 57 of the Dolphins’ 75 yards during the drive.
Tagovailoa completed 16 of 23 passes.
STEELERS 26, LIONS 20
PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger enjoyed a perfect preseason debut.
Roethlisberger turned in a perfect passer rating of 158.3 and led the Steelers’ first-team offense to a pair of touchdowns as Pittsburgh defeated Detroit.
Roethlisberger had his initial opportunity to work with first-year offensive coordinator Matt Canada during an ingame setting.
The 39-year-old Roethlisberger finished 8 of 10 for 137 yards and 2 TDs, both to rookie tight end Pat Freiermuth.
RAVENS 20, PANTHERS 3
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Tyler Huntley threw for 187 yards, and Baltimore defeated Carolina to tie an NFL record with its 19th consecutive preseason win.
Nate McCrary and Ty’Son Williams rushed for touchdowns for the Ravens, who equaled the mark set by Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers, who had a 19-game winning streak in exhibitions from 1959 to 1962.
Lamar Jackson did not play for the Ravens.
McCrary ran for 64 yards and Williams 47 yards, including a grinding 20-yard score, as the Ravens outgained the Panthers 167-33 on the ground.
TITANS 34,BUCCANEERS 3
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Briean Boddy-Calhoun returned a fumble 42 yards for a touchdown and Tennessee beat Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay.
Tampa Bay’s Tanner Hudson (Southern Arkansas University) had a 26-yard catch on a pass from Kyle Trask, but fumbled when he was hit by Bradley
McDougald. Boddy-Calhoun scooped up the loose ball and went the distance to put the Titans up 20-3 in the third quarter.
After safety Clayton Geathers picked off a pass by Trask, Matt Barkley connected with Mason Kinsey on a 20-yard touchdown to make it 34-3 early in the fourth.
COLTS 12, VIKINGS 10
MINNEAPOLIS — Jacob Eason passed for 132 yards and directed two field goal drives, and Indianapolis beat Minnesota.
Troy Dye returned an interception 33 yards for a touchdown to highlight a sharper showing by Minnesota’s backups, one of two deflected-then-pickedoff passes thrown by Indianapolis rookie Sam Ehlinger. Ehlinger got the start and led two field goal drives in the first half.
Dye snagged the ball that was tipped at the line by Armon Watts (Arkansas Razorbacks) and glanced off Parris Campbell’s hands in the first quarter, running it in for the only touchdown the Vikings have in their two exhibition games.
JETS 23, PACKERS 14
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Zach Wilson directed three scoring drives and threw his first two touchdown passes of the preseason in New York’s victory over Green Bay.
Wilson went 9 of 11 for 128 yards, including a pair of 18-yard scores to Tyler Kroft, to continue an encouraging preseason for the No. 2 overall pick in this year’s draft.
Facing a Green Bay defense that rested most of its starters, Wilson led the Jets to two TDs and a field goal in his four series. The only Wilson-led drive that didn’t result in points came when the Jets opted to punt on fourth and 1 from the 49.
BILLS 41, BEARS 15
CHICAGO — Mitchell Trubisky led Buffalo on four touchdown drives on the Bills’ first four possessions against his former team in a preseason victory over Chicago.
Greeted by Chicago fans with a mix of boos and cheers, Trubisky finished 20 of 28 for 221 yards with a touchdown and played the entire first half. He led six scoring drives in all, and the Bills (2-0) went into the locker room leading 34-6.
Trubisky’s TD pass in the first half was a 4-yarder rolling right to Jake Kumerow. The Bills also had a 14-yard TD run by Devin Singletary and two 1-yard TD runs by fullback Reggie Gilliam in the first half and tacked on a 79-yard punt return for a TD by Marquez Stevenson in the third quarter.