LANDOVER, Md. — Andy Dalton and the Cincinnati Bengals’ starters shrugged off a rough start to the preseason to finish exactly the way they wanted.
Dalton was 8 of 13 for 70 yards and Cincinnati’s first-team offense and defense looked sharp against Washington on Sunday as the Redskins won 23-17 on the strength of their backups. A.J. Green had four catches for 43 yards, Jeremy Hill ran for 15 yards and the Bengals regulars’ first exhibition touchdown before his day was cut short with an ankle injury.
“We just executed,” Green said. “Once we’re clicking on all cylinders and everybody getting their touches, we can be a dangerous offense.”
And a dangerous defense, too.
Linebacker Vontaze Burfict intercepted Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins’ pass and returned it for a touchdown, stiff-arming the quarterback at the end zone and jumping into the stands, before leaving with a back injury. Chris Smith and rookies Jordan Willis and Carl Lawson each sacked Cousins as defensive coordinator Paul Guenther seems to have the edge rushers he was looking for.
It was the opposite for Cousins and the Redskins’ starters, who ended their preseason with nine three-and-outs on 15 possessions. Washington went three-and-out three times on Sunday as Cousins was 10 of 19 for 109 yards and an interception, which he called “entirely” his fault.
BEARS 19, TITANS 7
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Mike Glennon capped an opening 96-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown pass to Dion Sims as the Chicago Bears beat the Tennessee Titans.
Glennon completed 11 of 18 passes for 134 yards passing despite losing starting wide receiver Cameron Meredith late in the first quarter. Meredith was carted off with a suspected left ACL injury, which Bears Coach John Fox said must be checked by an MRI exam first.
Mitchell Trubisky, the second overall pick out of North Carolina, opened the third quarter with the Bears’ starters. But Trubisky threw two incompletions as the Bears (2-1) went three-and-out. The Titans (1-2) had issues on offense, defense and special teams. The Bears could have led 14-0 if Adam Shaheen controlled the ball before going out of bounds after Roy Robertson-Harris blocked a punt into the end zone early in the second quarter.
VIKINGS 32, 49ERS 31
MINNEAPOLIS — Brian Hoyer passed for 176 yards and two touchdowns in the first half before the Minnesota Vikings rallied for a victory over the 49ers on Sunday night.
Sam Bradford and the Minnesota starters failed to reach the end zone, though Bradford was sharp when given time to throw. Jerick McKinnon scored on a 108-yard kickoff return in the third quarter, boosting his bid to take over that role.
Hoyer found Marquise Goodwin wide open for a 46-yard touchdown score and Carlos Hyde out of the backfield for a 24-yard connection
Sports on 08/28/2017