As a football fan, one of the best decisions made by the league was to shorten the preseason from four games to three. It reduces the potential for your star player to get injured and spares your eyes from watching backups who will likely not make the cut and play on Sundays. Over the past weekend, the 32 franchises completed their preseason slate which means real football is around the corner. The final cuts to a 53-man roster are being finalized with week one preparation soon to begin. However, before we get ahead of ourselves, we want to discuss the top 5 storylines from the last week of preseason.
5. Patriots Offensive Struggles- Analysts were concerned when Bill Belichick elected not to bring an Offensive Coordinator to mentor Mac Jones following the departure of Josh McDaniels. Instead, the legendary head coach has chosen to cast the offensive coordinating duties to his former defensive wizard Matt Patricia and special teams coach Joe Judge. Jones struggled in his final preseason game against the Raiders, looked visibly upset, and threw a bad pick in a 23-6 loss. What makes it worse is that the Raiders’ defense featured mostly bac-up players. Jones and the Patriots offense head into the new season low on confidence.
4. Tua and Tyreek combo look ominous-the Dolphins wanted to prove a point in their week three matchup against the Eagles, and they made it clear on their first snap on offense. Tua dropped back in the pocket and threw it deep for a 51-yard gain to Tyreek Hill leaving two Eagles defenders trailing in the dust. According to one tracker, Hill hit a league preseason-high 21.72 mph on the route forcing him to adjust to make the catch inches from the ground. On the next play, Tua went back to Hill hitting the receiver for a 13-yard gain. Tua ended the drive with a touchdown pass to River Cracraft on a corner route. Tyreek was removed from the game after three snaps, and Tua remained in the game for two more scoring drives. The combo gave his first warning shot to the league and week one opponents, the New England Patriots.
3. Justin enjoys his best field day- Justin Fields saved his best performance for the last week of preseason. The Bears’ young quarterback played nearly the entire first half and led the team to three touchdown drives in five attempts against several Browns defensive starters. Fields distributed his passes to 10 pass-catchers, completing 14 of 16 attempts for 156 yards. The cry in the Windy city is for the lack of depth at skill positions during the Bears’ offseason. However, Field’s performance gives the fanbase hope as he thrived, in and out of the pocket, and made full use of the weapons at his disposal. Analysts predicted gloom for the Bears this season, but this performance may give the critics a cause to rethink their evaluations.
2. Denzel Mims backs up the talk-Denzel Washington is probably the most famous black actor in Hollywood, but most casual NFL fans would not be able to identify Denzel Mims of the New York Jets. Mims made headlines recently when the overlooked former second-rounder requested a trade before the team made final cuts. Mims backed up his request against the Giants by hauling in eight catches 102 yards, and a touchdown. It remains to be seen whether management keeps him on the roster or grants his wishes to trade him. However, Denzel proved that he belongs on a roster in the league.
1. Veteran Quarterbacks Round-up- The Panthers selected Baker Mayfield as their starting quarterback but they feel even better about the decision after his week three performance. Mayfield showed he is getting back to his best with accurate throws, zip on the ball, and guiding a few scoring drives. Sadly, Darnold hurt his chances of pushing to be the starter after suffering a high-ankle sprain on his touchdown run. Meanwhile, in Seattle, Geno Smith was solid while not being spectacular, and appears to have won the Seahawks starting job. Smith almost won by default after Drew Lock threw three interceptions, two of them were head-scratchers. In Pittsburgh, Mitch Trubisky is the likely starter with a steady performance behind a suspect offensive line against the Lions. Kenny Pickett did not play badly but Tomlin should not risk the rookie to start the season. Finally, Jimmy Garoppolo agreed to a restructured deal worth $6.5 million with the 49ers that is fully guaranteed and includes incentives that will push his money close to $16 million. It will make Jimmy the highest-paid backup in the league and allow him to be a free agent next season. It is an interesting decision because it will put pressure on Trey Lance to perform with a proven starter on the bench.