2024 NFL preseason, Week 3: What We Learned from Sunday's tripleheader

Tennessee Titans

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New Orleans Saints

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Michael Baca’s takeaways:

1. Levis and Co. showcase Brian Callahan’s offense. After sitting last week’s exhibition, Will Levis and the Titans’ first-team offense were rolling against the Saints’ second-team defense. Levis came out firing, completing passes for 8, 22, 22 and 13 yards to begin the game and led Tennessee to an opening-drive touchdown after nine plays and 82 yards. The second-year QB went right back to work on the next possession, finding Calvin Ridley on the first play for 33 yards and driving the Titans toward the red zone once again (field goal) before his day was done. It was an exciting showing from Levis (7-of-8 passing for 118 yards), albeit against Saints backups, but it should provide confidence going into the season opener for the 25-year-old. That said, the Titans offense as a whole continued to hum with backup Mason Rudolph (11-of-15 passing, 114 yards) under center. So much so that punter Ryan Stonehouse‘s long-awaited return to the field didn’t come until the third quarter. He boomed a 53-yarder in his first game back since suffering a season-ending knee injury last December, signifying his return to health. By all accounts, the Titans are grasping rookie head coach Brian Callahan’s offensive system, but the real games begin two weeks from today.
2. Rattler states his case; Nacua nearly scores wild TD. The Saints’ backup quarterback battle might have been decided by Spencer Rattler‘s performance in the preseason finale. The rookie fifth-rounder jump-started the Saints offense upon entering the game in the second quarter, punctuating his first drive with a perfectly lofted ball to Equanimeous St. Brown for a 21-yard touchdown, which came on a third-and-12. Remarkably, that was the first and only TD pass thrown by a Saints QB all preseason, and Rattler proceeded to make a good case for himself as he and Jake Haener, who started the game, were interchangeably put in the game every two series. While Saints wideouts didn’t help either’s cause with multiple drops throughout, Rattler-led drives resulted in points on all four occasions (three TDs, field goal) and his final throw on the day — a 43-yarder to A.T. Perry, which was stopped at the 1-yard line — might have sealed the deal. Elsewhere, wide receiver Samson Nacua nearly scored on what would’ve been one of the wildest TDs in recent preseason memory after returning a short FG for 106 yards to end the first half. The undrafted rookie was tackled three yards short thanks to the hustle of Titans tight end Thomas Odukoya, but Nacua might have earned himself a spot on the roster with one wild play.

Arizona Cardinals

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Denver Broncos

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Christian Gonzales’ takeaways:

1. Zach Wilson puts his best preseason performance together. It wasn’t the best start for Wilson, but the 2021 No. 2 overall pick eventually had some of his better moments from the past few weeks. Wilson, who played three quarters after relieving Jarrett Stidham, statistically outperformed his previous two preseason outings. The quarterback launched his best throw of the afternoon in the fourth quarter when, with no pressure around him, he delivered an absolute dime to Brandon Johnson for a 46-yard touchdown. Wilson completed 16 of 25 passes for 251 yards and two touchdowns, plus two carries for 22 yards and another score. Head coach Sean Payton will have to decide if his squad will roster three QBs to begin the season, and it appears Wilson might have made Denver’s decision a bit harder heading into Tuesday’s 53-man roster deadline.
2. Cardinals show depth on defense in preseason finale. Against the backdrop of 2024 first-round defensive lineman Darius Robinson dealing with a calf injury and possibly going on injured reserve to start the season, Sunday’s game was highlighted by the Cardinals defense smothering Denver’s quarterbacks early on. Defensive tackle Phil Hoskins set the tone for Arizona’s D, but the linebackers were the brightest spots at Mile High. Jesse Luketa logged two tackles, two QB hits, one sack and a forced fumble during his stint on the field. Meanwhile, fellow LB Cameron Thomas recorded three tackles, two QB hits, one tackle for loss and one sack. Robinson’s availability being in question in the coming weeks put a damper on this weekend, but Arizona can still be happy with the depth and flashes it saw from its young defensive core.

New England Patriots

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Washington Commanders

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Christian Gonzales’ takeaways:

1. Trace McSorley provides spark to Washington’s offense. With Jayden Daniels and Marcus Mariota sitting, Jeff Driskel initially took the reins and struggled against New England’s defensive starters. Washington punted the ball four times in the first half, and its only other possession during that span ended with a Driskel interception. In the second half, McSorley entered and keyed the Commanders to four scoring opportunities (two field goals and two touchdowns) in five drives. The veteran journeyman QB not only showcased his accuracy on a number of plays, but extended several others with his legs. McSorley’s best moment came in the fourth quarter, when he lowered his shoulder on defensive back Azizi Hearn and knocked him over near Washington’s sideline with a staredown that had Commanders players going crazy. McSorley finished the game 12 of 21 for 125 yards and one touchdown, and also added four carries for 40 rushing yards. A big question mark to make the 53-man roster, McSorley gave everything he had in the final preseason game of 2024.
2. Patriots’ QB1 competition gets interesting. New England’s preseason finale featured Jacoby Brissett and Drake Maye taking snaps at Commanders Field on Sunday night. Brissett kicked off the first drive for New England by completing a few dink-and-dunk passes. However, things took a turn after a sack by KJ Henry, after which Brissett was seen grimacing and grabbing his right shoulder. He did take two more snaps to finish 2 of 4 for 19 yards before an eventual punt, but his night ended after that opening drive. Fortunately, head coach Jerod Mayo noted postgame that Brissett could have stayed in had it been a regular-season contest. Maye took over and had some rookie moments on the next Patriots possession when he bobbled two snaps from his center, but the No. 3 overall pick quickly recovered and responded like a seasoned vet by completing the 11-play drive with an 18-yard TD pass to Kevin Harris. Maye finished 13 of 20 for 126 yards, the one score and a 99.2 rating. Mayo has a tough quarterback decision to make before New England is on to Cincinnati for its Week 1 game.