the associated press
CLEVELAND — Buffalo quarterback AJ McCarron sustained a potentially serious shoulder injury, throwing the Bills’ quarterback situation into total disarray, during a 19-17 win over the Cleveland Browns on Friday night.
McCarron, who signed with Buffalo as a free agent for a chance to start after four years as a backup in Cincinnati, completed just 3 of 6 for 12 yards during four series.
The 27-year-old didn’t show any obvious signs of being hurt — he was hit hard from behind by Myles Garrett and sacked by Larry Ogunjobi — and the Bills didn’t disclose his injury until the fourth quarter.
McCarron is competing with Nathan Peterman and rookie Josh Allen for Buffalo’s starting job.
Allen, the No. 7 overall pick, out-performed McCarron and Peterman rallied the Bills (2-0) with a late touchdown pass to tight end Nick O’Leary.
Rookie Nick Chubb and Carlos Hyde had touchdown runs for the Browns (1-1).
PANTHERS 27, DOLPHINS 20
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Christian McCaffrey had 120 yards from scrimmage in the first half, including a 71-yard touchdown run and Carolina defeated Miami.
McCaffrey had 92 yards rushing on five carries and caught four passes for 28 yards for Carolina (2-0).
Cam Newton overcame an early interception and two sacks by Robert Quinn to finish 9 of 12 for 89 yards, including a 27-yard touchdown pass to speedy rookie tight end Ian Thomas to give Carolina a 13-9 lead before exiting near the end of the first half.
Ryan Tannehill was an effective 14 of 17 for 100 yards despite playing without wide receivers DeVante Parker and Kenny Stills, but Miami (0-2) struggled to finish drives and settled for three field goals in the first half. Kenyan Drake had 54 yards rushing on eight carries.
CHIEFS 28,
FALCONS 14
ATLANTA — After a dismal showing in the first preseason game, Matt Ryan and Atlanta found their offensive rhythm.
Ryan guided the Falcons right down the field for a touchdown on their first possession, hooking up with Austin Hooper on a 4-yard scoring pass , and led another impressive drive before calling it a night in a loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Ryan finished 5 of 7 for 90 yards, looking very much like the quarterback who won the MVP during the 2016 season even though two of his top weapons, receiver Julio Jones and running back Devonta Freeman, were held out for the second week in a row.
It was certainly an encouraging contrast to the preseason opener, when the Falcons (0-2) were blanked 17-0 by the New York Jets and Ryan played only one brief series.
Kansas City’s new starting quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, had an up-and-down game. The second-year player was intercepted on a deep throw by Falcons safety Damontae Kazee, who drifted over from the middle of the field to pick a ball intended for Sammy Watkins.
Mahomes caught a break when another ill-advised throw into the end zone was dropped by Falcons cornerback Blidi Wren-Wilson, allowing the Chiefs to salvage a field goal.
But, with just 17 seconds left in the first half, Mahomes made the most of his final pass. Three Atlanta defensive backs inexplicably allowed Tyreek Hill to get behind them, and Mahomes delivered the pass in stride for a 69-yard touchdown.
Mahomes was 8 of 12 for 138 yards.
GIANTS 30, LIONS 17
DETROIT — Davis Webb took advantage of his opportunity to play for Eli Manning, throwing a go-ahead touchdown in the second quarter to help New York beat Detroit.
Webb was 14 of 20 for 140 yards with an 8-yard TD pass to Wayne Gallman Jr., who scored for a second time later in the game. Webb showed poise in the pocket and touch down the field, connecting on a perfectly lofted 40-yard pass to Russell Shepard to set up Aldrick Rosas’ 55-yard field goal in the second quarter.
Webb, a 2017 third-round pick, bounced back from a poor performance last week. He was 9 of 22 for 70 yards, sailing passes over open receivers in the preseason opener against Cleveland to raise some concerns about whether he’s ready to be the team’s No. 2 quarterback.
The Lions started Matthew Stafford after sitting him in last week’s game at Oakland and he had a shaky game behind a porous offensive line. Stafford was 2 of 5 for 51 yards and was sacked twice and hit once as he threw.
Jake Rudock replaced Stafford in the second quarter and finished 23 of 30 for 171 yards with a TD. Rudock came back in the fourth, reliving veteran Matt Cassel, who threw an interception.
CARDINALS 20,
SAINTS 15
NEW ORLEANS — Free-agent acquisition Sam Bradford and 10th overall draft choice Josh Rosen combined to provide a promising outlook for Arizona’s quarterback situation.
After Bradford completed all six of his passes for 61 yards, Rosen went 10 of 16 for 107 yards, including a 13-yard touchdown to rookie Christian Kirk in a preseason victory over New Orleans.
David Johnson bowled his way into the end zone for a 9-yard touchdown to give the Cardinals the game’s opening score, capping a six-play, 61-yard drive led by Bradford.
Kirk finished with four receptions for 49 yards, and Chad Williams caught three passes for 44 yards for Arizona.
Saints quarterback Drew Brees sat out the entire game, as he also did when the Saints won their preseason opener in Jacksonville last week.
The two reserves competing to back up Brees were able to move the team in spurts but were inconsistent and had issues with ball security, combining for four fumbles, two of which resulted in turnovers by Taysom Hill.
Hill, a second-year pro who got the start, also was intercepted twice and finished 11 of 15 for 68 yards to go with 43 yards rushing, all of it coming on one long scramble that led to New Orleans’ first field goal.
Savage, who played most of the second half, was 6 of 7 for 53 yards, but was sacked three times.
