{"id":300065,"date":"2025-08-19T07:55:13","date_gmt":"2025-08-19T07:55:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/300065\/"},"modified":"2025-08-19T07:55:13","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T07:55:13","slug":"caleb-williams-jaxson-dart-shine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/300065\/","title":{"rendered":"Caleb Williams, Jaxson Dart shine"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"play\"<\/p>\n

Johnny Manziel talks all things NFL, Cleveland Browns and life after football<\/p>\n

Johnny Manziel chats with Mackenzie Salmon about all things football and his partnership with Sling TV.<\/p>\n

Sports Seriously<\/p>\n

Giants’ rookie first-rounder continues to look like he could be ready to play sooner than later.Sitting sophomore passers seems a perplexing decision in Atlanta, Minnesota.Did Shedeur Sanders win while sitting out Browns’ game?<\/p>\n

The NFL\u2019s 2025 preseason is nearly complete, 32 of its 49 games in the books \u2212 Week 2<\/a> set to conclude Monday night when the Washington Commanders<\/a> host the Cincinnati Bengals<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s typically tempting to draw premature conclusions from the exhibition slate \u2212 and make no mistake, some of these games hardly approximate bona fide professional football, starters and other front-liners often completely spared. That doesn\u2019t mean there aren\u2019t some key takeaways to glean as the league\u2019s 32 teams finalize their preparations for the 18-week regular-season marathon that awaits, with more games to follow for those which run the best race.<\/p>\n

While acknowledging the football caveats inherent to August, your winners and losers from the weekend:<\/p>\n

NFL preseason Week 2 winnersCaleb Williams<\/p>\n

Take two drives and a grain of salt for what they\u2019re worth, but his (relatively) long-awaited debut in new Chicago Bears<\/a> head coach Ben Johnson\u2019s offense went swimmingly in Sunday night\u2019s 38-0 whitewash of the Buffalo Bills<\/a>. Williams was pinpoint accurate, made good decisions and practiced self-preservation \u2212 all things he struggled to do as a rookie after getting drafted first overall in 2024 and apparently throughout this summer’s training camp. Again, two drives \u2212 yet sufficiently positive for the Bears and their fans<\/a> to hang their hat on. For now.<\/p>\n

Jaxson Dart<\/p>\n

The Giants<\/a>\u2019 first-round quarterback made his debut in front of the home fans Saturday and passed for one touchdown while running for another in a 31-12 drubbing of New Jersey\u2019s other team, the Jets. Dart also threw for 137 yards while connecting on all but two of his 16 throws. Russell Wilson will start the season behind center for the Giants, but Dart has consistently displayed the production, swagger and maturity this month that suggest he could be ready to play sooner than later \u2212 especially if the Giants struggle to pile up wins<\/a> against the league\u2019s hardest schedule.<\/p>\n

TreVeyon Henderson<\/p>\n

After taking a kickoff 100 yards to the house last week, the New England Patriots<\/a>‘ rookie running back ran for an 8-yard score Saturday. Fantasy owners take note \u2212 this guy and his big-play abilty are going to earn a significant workload this season, quite possibly to the tune of an RB1 role eventually.<\/p>\n

Seahawks\u2019 run game<\/p>\n

Despite a 10-7 debut in 2024, second-year Seattle coach Mike Macdonald wanted a more physical team in 2025 \u2212 and that means running the ball. With first-round G Grey Zabel opening holes, the Seahawks<\/a> racked up 268 yards on the ground and 5.6 a clip during Friday night\u2019s defeat of the Chiefs, who rested most of their key players. Regardless, 268 yards amassed in chunks is still 268 yards amassed in chunks and such output foreshadows what could be a much more bruising offense.<\/p>\n

Eagles rookies<\/p>\n

And the rich just get obscenely richer. After the reigning Super Bowl champions took some defensive hits during free agency, EVP\/GM Howie Roseman invested his first two 2025 draft picks in LB Jihaad Campbell and S Andrew Mukuba, who are both competing for significant snaps. Campbell had a sack among his four tackles against the Cleveland Browns<\/a>, and Mukuba had a 75-yard pick-six. Roseman may have successfully reloaded his D more quickly than anyone could have imagined \u2212 especially if these rooks are only asked to come off the bench.<\/p>\n

Tyler Loop<\/p>\n

The Baltimore Ravens<\/a>‘ rookie kicker officially won the job as the replacement for departed and disgraced predecessor Justin Tucker<\/a>. Loop continued his sterling August by drilling five field goals Saturday in a 31-13 defeat of the Dallas Cowboys<\/a>.<\/p>\n

2025 NFL record projections: Who wins Super Bowl 60? (Hint: not the Eagles)<\/a><\/p>\n

Tua Tagovailoa’s backups<\/p>\n

Reclamation project Zach Wilson and rookie Quinn Ewers combined to complete 26 of 40 passes for 259 yards and three TDs during a 24-17 triump in Detroit on Saturday. No, Wilson and Ewers didn’t face the Lions’ top defenders and probably aren’t players HC Mike McDaniel wants to see in his lineup for any extended period. Still, it’s nice for the Fins to have multiple fallback plans at quarterback given Tagovailoa’s extensive injury history.<\/p>\n

Ashton Jeanty<\/p>\n

The Las Vegas Raiders<\/a>\u2019 ballyhooed rookie back rushed for 33 yards on seven carries and his first (unofficial) touchdown Saturday a week after being held to negative yardage in his (unofficial) debut. But the real highlight occurred when Jeanty trucked San Francisco 49ers<\/a> DB Deommodore Lenoir in the open field.<\/p>\n

Jonas Sanker<\/p>\n

The New Orleans Saints<\/a>\u2019 rookie safety made five tackles and picked off a pass Sunday, helping to salvage a tie with the Jacksonville Jaguars and possibly cementing his own role.<\/p>\n

Stetson Bennett IV<\/p>\n

The former University of Georgia star, competing for a job with the Los Angeles Rams<\/a> behind QBs Matthew Stafford and Jimmy Garoppolo, passed for 324 yards and three TDs, including the game-winner with 5 seconds left in a 23-22 defeat of the crosstown Chargers<\/a> on Saturday.<\/p>\n

NFL preseason Week 2 losersStetson Bennett IV<\/p>\n

The former University of Georgia star, competing for a job with the Los Angeles Rams behind QBs Matthew Stafford and Jimmy Garoppolo \u2026 was intercepted and subsequently steamrolled by 6-2, 305-pound rookie lineman TeRah Edwards in perhaps the weekend\u2019s most viral moment.<\/p>\n

Jonas Sanker<\/p>\n

Had he not returned his INT 40 yards and ducked out of bounds sooner, Sanker could have potentially set the Saints up for a game-winning field-goal try. But rookies gonna rookie \u2013 especially in August.<\/p>\n

Ashton Jeanty<\/p>\n

After his, um, best (?) NFL game, the former Boise State star proclaimed, “I’ve arrived, and it’s time to keep going and make plays for this team.\u201d Can\u2019t wait to watch you this season, Ashton \u2212 you might even anchor my fantasy team. But, dude, you have most definitely not arrived yet nor made a play that counts for anything. Just keeping it a buck here … but no doubt your arrival is pending.<\/p>\n

J.J. McCarthy and Michael Penix Jr.<\/p>\n

Drafted in the first round a year ago, the sophomore quarterbacks have combined for three regular-season starts \u2212 all by Penix \u2212 yet were relegated to bubble wrap over the weekend. Penix hasn\u2019t played for the Atlanta Falcons<\/a> this preseason and barely did so last year. McCarthy is a year removed from a season-ending August knee injury and a week removed from limited snaps in his 2025 return for the Minnesota Vikings<\/a>. We\u2019ll have to trust that Vikes coach Kevin O\u2019Connell and Atlanta counterpart Raheem Morris are practicing appropriate load management. But given the expectations heaped on a pair of glorified rookies, their approach will invite questions if their teams \u2212 and their young signal-callers in particular \u2212 get off to slow starts next month.<\/p>\n

Panthers offense<\/p>\n

No points generated by Carolina’s starers in Saturday\u2019s loss to the Houston Texans<\/a>, and they apparently won\u2019t play again until the regular-season opener. Really?<\/p>\n

Colts quarterbacks<\/p>\n

Indianapolis coach Shane Steichen says he\u2019s close to choosing between Anthony Richardson and Daniel Jones as his QB1 for 2025. But as the old saying goes, “If you have two quarterbacks, you have none.\u201d Through two preseason games, Richardson and Jones have collectively produced one touchdown drive \u2212 the former predictably alternating flashes of greatness and inconsistency, the latter \u2026 is Daniel Jones. Could be a QB carousel in Indy this year. Stay loose, Riley Leonard.<\/p>\n

Dillon Gabriel<\/p>\n

The Browns rookie quarterback picked 50 spots ahead of Shedeur Sanders, who was down with an oblique injury, didn\u2019t look nearly as good as his draftmate during his own preseason debut, Gabriel serving up an interception returned for a touchdown and losing a fumble while leading just one TD drive in a half of work. To make matters worse, Gabriel made a remark about \u201centertainers\u201d<\/a> during an in-game interview that some interpreted as a shot at Sanders, forcing him to subsequently clarify he was not referring to his teammate. Still, all kinds of rookie mistakes.<\/p>\n

Joe Milton III<\/p>\n

Acquired in an offseason trade in order to compete for the backup job behind Dak Prescott, the Dallas Cowboys\u2019 newest quarterback once again didn\u2019t look ready<\/a> for the role Saturday while playing the majority of that decisive loss to the Ravens. Milton completed half of his 18 passes for 122 yards and was picked off once while being outplayed by Baltimore backup Cooper Rush, Prescott\u2019s reliable understudy in recent years.<\/p>\n

Jim Harbaugh<\/p>\n

So about those sanctions handed down<\/a> to your alma mater and former employer in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Coach? Seriously, feel free to, ahem, “engage” any time.<\/p>\n

NFL fans<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re attending a preseason game between teams that just conducted joint practices (think Broncos-Cardinals or Buccaneers-Steelers), don\u2019t expect to see many players you recognize on the field once kickoff actually rolls around. Preseason football \u2212 it\u2019s fantastic \u2026 unless you\u2019re a paying fan.<\/p>\n

Contributing: Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz<\/p>\n

All NFL news on and off the field.\u00a0Sign up<\/a>\u00a0for USA TODAY’s 4th and Monday newsletter.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Johnny Manziel talks all things NFL, Cleveland Browns and life after football Johnny Manziel chats with Mackenzie Salmon…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":300066,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[220,247,265,90,240,223,254,184,117,374,228,215,86,214,53,235,260,241,692,391,227,256,85,54,2005,427,230,1365,1370,229,257,4143,2772,25,207,224,7,219,519,221,253,1633,1641,20842,2004,392,1702,1066,1084,523,393,239,262,58,233,259,248,267,246,206,249,55,56,88,6,35196,676,245,264,236,208,242,109,1366,525,424,169,1634,2942,572,397,218,252,140,238,237,261,139,17,9,266,222,1067,524,234,855,111,1434,225,8968,1733],"class_list":{"0":"post-300065","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nfl","8":"tag-49ers","9":"tag-american","10":"tag-american-football","11":"tag-analysis","12":"tag-angeles","13":"tag-atlanta","14":"tag-atlanta-falcons","15":"tag-baltimore","16":"tag-baltimore-ravens","17":"tag-bears","18":"tag-bengals","19":"tag-bills","20":"tag-browns","21":"tag-buffalo","22":"tag-buffalo-bills","23":"tag-carolina","24":"tag-carolina-panthers","25":"tag-chargers","26":"tag-chicago","27":"tag-chicago-bears","28":"tag-cincinnati","29":"tag-cincinnati-bengals","30":"tag-cleveland","31":"tag-cleveland-browns","32":"tag-colts","33":"tag-commanders","34":"tag-cowboys","35":"tag-dak","36":"tag-dak-prescott","37":"tag-dallas","38":"tag-dallas-cowboys","39":"tag-daniel","40":"tag-daniel-jones","41":"tag-eagles","42":"tag-england","43":"tag-falcons","44":"tag-football","45":"tag-francisco","46":"tag-giants","47":"tag-houston","48":"tag-houston-texans","49":"tag-howie","50":"tag-howie-roseman","51":"tag-hub","52":"tag-indianapolis","53":"tag-indianapolis-colts","54":"tag-jones","55":"tag-justin","56":"tag-justin-tucker","57":"tag-las","58":"tag-las-vegas-raiders","59":"tag-los","60":"tag-los-angeles-chargers","61":"tag-los-angeles-rams","62":"tag-minnesota","63":"tag-minnesota-vikings","64":"tag-national","65":"tag-national-sports","66":"tag-neutral","67":"tag-new","68":"tag-new-england-patriots","69":"tag-new-orleans-saints","70":"tag-new-york-giants","71":"tag-news","72":"tag-nfl","73":"tag-nfl-hub","74":"tag-orleans","75":"tag-overall","76":"tag-overall-neutral","77":"tag-panthers","78":"tag-patriots","79":"tag-philadelphia","80":"tag-philadelphia-eagles","81":"tag-prescott","82":"tag-raiders","83":"tag-rams","84":"tag-ravens","85":"tag-roseman","86":"tag-russell","87":"tag-russell-wilson","88":"tag-saints","89":"tag-san","90":"tag-san-francisco-49ers","91":"tag-sanders","92":"tag-seahawks","93":"tag-seattle","94":"tag-seattle-seahawks","95":"tag-shedeur","96":"tag-shedeur-sanders","97":"tag-sports","98":"tag-sports-news","99":"tag-texans","100":"tag-tucker","101":"tag-vegas","102":"tag-vikings","103":"tag-washington","104":"tag-washington-commanders","105":"tag-wilson","106":"tag-york","107":"tag-zach","108":"tag-zach-wilson"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation failed: Text character limit of 500 exceeded"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/300065","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=300065"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/300065\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/300066"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=300065"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=300065"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=300065"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}