NFL preseason: Trevor Lawrence dazzles in Dallas, other top moments
The NFL preseason ended with a bang, as five games took center stage throughout Sunday.
First, the Dallas Cowboys hosted Trevor Lawrence, who was sensational in his final tune-up as the Jacksonville Jaguars rolled to a 34-14 victory.
Then, Joe Burrow made his return, however brief, as the Cincinnati Bengals fell 29-26 to the Miami Dolphins. At the same time, the Las Vegas Raiders visited the San Francisco 49ers and were dealt a 34-10 loss.
Later, all eyes turned toward the quarterback battle between Cam Newton and Mac Jones as the New England Patriots went toe-to-toe with the New York Giants.
The day's action wrapped up with the Atlanta Falcons hosting the Cleveland Browns.
Which players made an impression in the final dress rehearsals ahead of the 2021 regular season? Here are the top moments from Sunday's preseason action:
Jacksonville Jaguars 34, Dallas Cowboys 14
Strong opening
Lawrence settled in early against the Cowboys, completing his first three passes for 62 yards and a touchdown.
The No. 1 overall pick set the tone with a pretty pass to Phillip Dorsett on second-and-4.
Later, on third-and-4, Lawrence found Pharoh Cooper for an easy, 18-yard pitch-and-catch up the sideline.
A pump fake from the 21-year-old QB set the table for the score, giving the Jags an early lead.
Along for the ride
Lawrence continued to roll against Dallas' inviting defense, hooking up with Laviska Shenault Jr. on a quick pass that the 22-year-old wideout muscled ahead for a 20-yard gain.
Shenault's efforts were rewarded a few plays later, when Lawrence found him on the left edge of the end zone for a TD that put the Jags up 14-0.
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With that, Lawrence's day ended on a high note. He finished 11-for-12 for 139 yards and a pair of TDs with a 154.5 passer rating — and one epic hair flip.
Putting up points
The hosts got on the board midway through the second quarter.
Garrett Gilbert entered the game at quarterback for the Cowboys after Cooper Rush got the start, and Gilbert didn't take long to make an impact.
On his second drive, Gilbert found Aaron Parker for a 19-yard touchdown to cut into Jacksonville's lead.
Snag alert
C.J. Beathard came in to relieve Lawrence at QB, but that didn't mean the end of highlight-reel plays for the Jaguars.
With the score 14-7, Beathard tossed a deep ball to Devin Smith, who made a spectacular grab to put the Jaguars in Dallas' territory.
The Jaguars went on to kick a field goal on the play, pushing the tally to 17-7, which was the score as the teams headed in for halftime.
Cruise control
Jacksonville's dominance continued through the second half. The Jaguars scored a pair of touchdowns and a field goal to run the score to 34-7 in the fourth quarter.
The Cowboys added a late consolation touchdown from Johnnie Dixon, but it was too little, too late.
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Either way, Lawrence's performance stole the show. He even caught the attention of NBA royalty in LeBron James.
Miami Dolphins 29, Cincinnati Bengals 26
He's back!
Joe Burrow made his highly anticipated return to action in Cincy's clash with the Dolphins — even though Bengals coach Zac Taylor said his QB would play only three snaps.
Naturally, the home fans were more than welcoming as the 24-year-old QB took the field.
Sunday marked Burrow's first game action since the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 draft tore his ACL 10 games into his rookie season.
Cincinnati went three-and-out on Burrow's only series, but the Bengals got on the board when rookie running back Chris Evans hauled in a 29-yard TD catch on a perfect pass from Brandon Allen to tie the score 7-7.
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Punch it in
Miami opened the scoring on a short TD run by Gerrid Doaks that capped a 13-play, 74-yard drive.
Doaks did it again toward the close of the first half, powering in for his second score of the day.
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Big boot
The Bengals battled to keep it close heading into halftime, thanks to a 57-yard field goal from Evan McPherson to make the score 14-13 in favor of the Dolphins.
Not bad for a rookie!
Heads up
It wouldn't be preseason without a bit of zaniness. Bengals wideout Trent Taylor had his awareness dialed up after a pass from Kyle Shurmur bounced off the hands of his intended target, Stanley Morgan Jr., and fluttered in the air.
Taylor made the grab and dashed for the end zone, nearly muscling his way to a score on fourth-and-4. He was dragged down just shy of the goal line, but the Bengals punched it in to take a 20-14 lead.
Down to the wire
Staring at a 26-21 deficit and fourth-and-15 with 1:32 left in the game, a victory seemed quite unlikely for the Dolphins.
However, QB Reid Sinnett and TE Chris Myarick had other ideas. Miami's reserve QB, who started and played the whole game, fired a prayer into the end zone to give the Dolphins a late lead.
On the following possession for Cincy, the Dolphins managed to force a turnover on downs with 15 seconds left to play. Sinnett, who was shaken up after the successful Hail Mary, came in for a kneel down to take the clock down to zero.
San Francisco 49ers 34, Las Vegas Raiders 10
Guessing game
The Niners kept fans — and the Las Vegas defense — guessing on their first offensive series.
Jimmy Garoppolo started the game at QB for the Niners, but rookie Trey Lance also got in on the action on their opening drive. When all was said and done, Garoppolo lowered his shoulder on third-and-goal to punch it in for an early TD.
The two QBs continued to switch off throughout the first quarter, with both moving the offense well.
Wide receiver Trent Sherfield continued his strong preseason with an impressive catch along the sideline.
San Francisco scored its second touchdown early in the second quarter, again on a quarterback keeper, but this time with Lance running it in to give the Niners a 14-0 lead.
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Niners coach Kyle Shanahan is definitely going to keep opponents guessing heading into San Francisco's season opener at Detroit. Jimmy G appeared to go to the bench for good midway through the second quarter, having taken 17 of the Niners' first 24 offensive snaps.
On the money
There were some dazzling plays to be had in the third quarter.
Raiders reserve QB Nathan Peterman met that criteria with this throw on the run for a 32-yard gain on third-and-15.
Las Vegas continued the drive after making that conversion, finishing with the team's first TD of the game to trim San Francisco's lead to 20-10.
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Quick reply
The Niners answered back in rapid fashion. Running back Jamycal Hasty scampered 35 yards to the end zone on San Francisco's ensuing possession to make it 27-10.
Then Ha Ha Clinton-Dix picked off Peterman and returned the ball to the 11-yard line, setting up another touchdown for the Niners.
Hasty got the call on second-and-2 and delivered again, running the score up to 34-10.
New England Patriots 22, New York Giants 20
Rumble ahead
Pats running back Damien Harris burned New York's defense early for an 18-yard run on a first-and-10 at the Giants' 44-yard line.
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New England's drive stalled shortly thereafter, though Nick Folk knocked in a 41-yard field goal to open the scoring.
Blake-away
Giants linebacker Blake Martinez epitomized battling until the whistle on this play, wrestling the ball from Jakobi Meyers on the way to the ground to secure a huge interception.
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Return the favor
New York couldn't convert the turnover into points. In fact, the Giants turned the ball back over on the doorstep of New England's end zone.
Daniel Jones thought he had a window to throw a touchdown, but his pass was behind Evan Engram, and D'Angelo Ross was there to receive the errant throw for a diving pick.
With Newton out and Jones in at QB for New England, the Pats took the ball and marched into Giants territory to kick a field goal. Quinn Nordin got the kick this time, hitting his 48-yarder to make it 6-0.
Putting up points
The Giants registered the game's first touchdown late in the first half.
Jones found Kaden Smith in the seam with less than 30 seconds to go in the second quarter, setting the Giants up to take a 7-6 lead into the break.
Patriot Way
The Patriots roared out of the gate in the second half, marching 75 yards in 2:49 to reclaim the lead.
Jones orchestrated the drive for New England, capping the possession with a gorgeous pass to Isaiah Zuber for a 17-yard touchdown and a 12-7 lead.
The Pats went for two after the touchdown, but they were stuffed on the attempt. No matter. After forcing a three-and-out on defense, they went 50 yards in 1:37 to put another touchdown on the board.
Rhamondre Stevenson put the finishing touches on the drive, bursting to the left for a 9-yard run to the end zone.
Cleveland Browns 19, Atlanta Falcons 10
OBJ in the house
Odell Beckham Jr. was ready to kick off the night cap.
Cooking with gas
Baker Mayfield looked fully in regular-season mode on the opening drive …
… which culminated with this touchdown.
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Kickers rejoice
Each team added a field goal to make it 10-3 at the half.
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Out there wildin'
After another Browns field goal, things got a little … interesting? sloppy? both? … in the third quarter.
Falcons stepping up
In the fourth, Josh Rosen, who got into the game early in the second half, added some points for Atlanta via this touchdown.
Finally, Davion Davis wrapped up the 2021 preseason with a big play in the end zone.
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