Watson has good debut with Tampa Bay
Justin Watson had a strong debut for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The South Fayette High School graduate caught all three targets for 30 yards with a long of 16 yards during the Bucs’ 26-24 win over the Miami Dolphins in the NFL preseason Thursday evening.
One of Watson’s catches went for a first down. He also fumbled the ball after one catch.
Meanwhile, Kenny Stills and two other Miami Dolphins protested during the national anthem.
Receivers Stills and Albert Wilson kneeled behind teammates lined up standing along the sideline. Defensive end Robert Quinn stood and raised his right fist, as he did during the anthem last season with the Los Angeles Rams.
Cleveland 20, N.Y. Giants 10: Baker Mayfield and Saquon Barkley lived up to early expectations as the top two picks in the NFL draft in their first action as the Cleveland Browns beat the New York Giants 20-10 on Thursday night.
Replacing starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor late in the first quarter, Mayfield hit 11 of 20 passes for 212 yards, two touchdowns, and converted two fourth-down plays with his feet. The Heisman Trophy winner who was the No. 1 overall pick found tight end David Njoku on a 10-yard TD pass to cap a 14-play, 72-yard drive on his second series. He finished his debut with a completion on a 54-yard slant and run to fellow rookie Antonio Callaway.
Taylor, expected to be coach Hue Jackson’s starter as Mayfield learns this season, hit all five of his passes in two series, including a 36-yard touchdown pass to Njoku, a New Jersey native.
Barkley, the No. 2 pick, electrified the fans at MetLife Stadium, taking a handoff from Eli Manning on the opening play from scrimmage and turning no apparent hole into a 39-yard run down the sideline in front of the Giants’ bench. It set up a 42-yard field goal by Aldrick Rosas.
The Penn State running back finished with 43 yards on five carries.
Jalen Simmons scored on 5-yard third-quarter run for the Giants’ other score. It came three plays after C.J. Board fumbled a punt return and Zak DeOssie recovered at the Browns 16.
Manning played two series and hit 4 of 7 passes for 26 yards. Star receiver Odell Beckham Jr., returning from major ankle surgery, dressed but was held out by new coach Pat Shurmur, who is trying to rebuild the Giants after a 3-13 season.
The Browns went 0-16 last season after winning their four preseason games.
New Orleans 24, Jacksonville 20: Blake Bortles completed 6 of 9 passes for 53 yards and scored on a short bootleg in Jacksonville’s 24-20 loss to New Orleans in the exhibition opener for both teams.
Bortles was poised in the pocket and nearly perfect in his one series. It was a significant improvement from the way his preseason started a year ago.
Cincinnati 30, Chicago 27: Andy Dalton made a solid debut in Cincinnati’s revamped offense, throwing for a pair of touchdowns as the Bengals beat the Chicago Bears 30-27. Dalton went 6 of 8 for 103 yards, completing four passes of at least 20 yards.
Carolina 28, Buffalo 23: Bills receiver Kelvin Benjamin’s feud with former teammate Panthers quarterback Cam Newton continued before and during Carolina’s preseason-opening 28-23 win against Buffalo.
The two exchanged words on the field about 90 minutes before kickoff. Then they each played key roles in touchdowns drives in the first quarter.
Benjamin caught four passes for 59 yards, including a 28-yard touchdown reception from Nathan Peterman on Buffalo’s first possession. Benjamin scored by beating former Bills cornerback Kevon Seymour off the line, and was open when catching the pass at the 2 up the left sideline.
Newton responded on the next possession, completing 4 of 5 attempts for 67 yards as part of an 85-yard drive capped by Christian McCaffrey’s 2-yard run.