RAIDERS OVERCOME FERNANDO MENDOZA’S PICK-SIX, RALLY PAST TEXANS
Las Vegas rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza threw a pick-six in his second preseason game, but the Raiders rallied for a 22-20 win over the host Houston Texans on Thursday.
Aidan O’Connell drove the Raiders 96 yards in eight plays in the last two minutes, capping the march with a 1-yard touchdown run with 14 seconds remaining.
Mendoza, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner and No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, completed 8 of 15 passes for 86 yards and the one interception. He played the entire first half, which ended with Las Vegas trailing 20-3.
O’Connell, a four-year veteran with Las Vegas, wound up 15 of 24 for 166 yards as the Raiders (1-1) outscored the Texans 19-0 after the break.NFL updates
Las Vegas’ presumptive starting quarterback, Kirk Cousins, did not play.
Houston (0-2) drove 69 yards on the game’s first possession and jumped on top with a 20-yard touchdown run from Woody Marks.
On the ensuing drive, Wade Woodaz picked off a Mendoza pass intended for Mike Washington Jr. over the middle and returned it 80 yards for a 14-0 lead. Woodaz is a rookie fourth-round pick from Clemson.
Texans starting quarterback C.J. Stroud got his first action of the preseason, leading the opening TD drive. He connected on 4 of 6 passes for 27 yards. Marks finished with 37 yards on four carries.
Washington ran nine times for 56 yards to lead the Las Vegas ground game.
The Raiders outgained the Texans, 400-219.
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COWING RETURNS PUNT FOR TD TO SPARK THE 49ERS IN 41-17 PRESEASON WIN OVER THE CHARGERS
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Jacob Cowing let out a season’s worth of frustration with one electric play.
He returned a punt for an 83-yard touchdown in the San Francisco 49ers’ 41-17 preseason victory over the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday night.
Cowing showed off his speed and agility after the Chargers went 3-and-out with three minutes left in the second quarter. Chargers punter JK Scott kicked 52 yards to the 49ers’ 17-yard line, where Cowing fielded the ball. He dashed to the left and ran in for the score, giving San Francisco a 17-3 lead.
“It was a special moment,” Cowing said. “Huge shoutout to the guys that were on that field blocking for me and gave great effort. If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t have been in the house.”
49ers coach Kyle Shanahan called it “a big-time play.”
“He’s always shown us his talent since he’s been here and he’s been able to string together a couple healthy weeks,” Shanahan said.
Cowing missed all of last season after injuring his hamstring during the preseason. Now he’s healthy and battling for a roster spot at wide receiver.
“It was a lot going on last year, and a lot of mental warfare going on, and you know things happening over and over and over again, injury-wise,” Cowing said. “I’m happy that I was able to come out of the game healthy and put my name out there again.”
Eddy Pineiro kicked a pair of field goals and 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy saw his first preseason action, going 4 of 6 for 29 yards in the first quarter.
“I thought it was good, just in terms of breaking the huddle, calling plays, feeling the pocket, getting hit, like throwing the ball,” Purdy said.
Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert played the opening series in his first appearance of the preseason. He was 1 of 2, hitting Charlie Kolar with a 9-yard pass as the team went 3-and-out.
The 49ers (1-1) got field goals of 48 and 45 yards from Pineiro in the second quarter and led 20-3 at halftime. Their other TDs came on a 7-yard run by Sincere McCormick and a 1-yard plunge by fourth-string running back Khalil Herbert.
49ers running back Christian McCaffrey didn’t play although he was on the field for pregame warmups. Shanahan has downplayed what he described as “tightness” for McCaffrey, saying the veteran would be practicing if it was the regular season.
The Chargers were stuck in neutral most of the game. They had eight punts, seven penalties and eight first downs. They scored late in the game on Jerand Bradley’s 28-yard TD catch from DJ Uiagalelei and Evan Svoboda’s 2-point conversion.
“We got outplayed and we beat ourselves in all three phases,” Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh said. “We have a lot of things to work on.”
Los Angeles (1-1) closed to 20-9 in the third. 49ers’ fourth-string QB Adrian Martinez’s pass for Cowing was intercepted by Junior Colson, who ran 16 yards for the score. Cameron Dicker’s extra point attempt went wide left. Dicker hit a 21-yard field goal for the Chargers’ first points of the game.
Martinez scored on a 9-yard keeper and then hit Jordan Watkins for a 17-yard TD in the fourth.
49ers backup QB Mac Jones took over on their second drive of the game. He was 6 of 13 for 89 yards.
Rookie De’Zhaun Stribling and KhaDarel Hodge led the 49ers’ receivers with four catches for 46 yards apiece. McCormick was their top rusher with 53 yards on six carries.
Chargers backup QB Trey Lance, a former top pick of the 49ers, was 10 of 16 for 73 yards.
Chargers left tackle Branson Taylor was hurt on a play in the second quarter and did not return.
Up next
49ers: At Las Vegas next Thursday in final preseason game.
Chargers: Host the Rams next Thursday to close preseason.
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GIANTS PASS RUSH DOMINATES DOLPHINS AS TEMPERS FLARE THROUGHOUT JOINT PRACTICE
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Tempers flared several times throughout the joint practice between the Miami Dolphins and New York Giants on Thursday.
It started during the one-on-one drills and went all the way through the final team period.
“It’s a violent game. In this sort of an environment, you have rules of engagement that aren’t really the rules of the game,” Giants coach John Harbaugh said. “If somebody perceives that another person goes over the line, somebody needs to protect them.”
It didn’t take long for those rules to be tested.
The first altercation that required players to be separated came during offensive line-defensive line one-on-ones, when Giants edge rusher Abdul Carter threw a punch at Dolphins offensive tackle Patrick Paul after the two became tangled following a rep.
The hostility followed into 11-on-11 work, when Dolphins right tackle Austin Jackson took a swipe at Kayvon Thibodeaux before the Giants pass rusher responded with a shove that promptly sent Jackson to the ground.
New York’s offense and Miami’s defense got into another scuffle that took nearly a minute to completely break apart. Giants backup quarterback Jameis Winston repeatedly inserted himself into the pile as players and coaches attempted to separate the two sides.
Giants pass rush overwhelms Miami
Much of Thursday’s extracurricular activity occurred in the trenches, where New York can be dominant.
Brian Burns was at the forefront, helping a Giants defense that had at least six would-be sacks during team periods.
On one rep, he powered through Dolphins offensive lineman Caedan Wallace for a sack. On another, Burns attacked Jackson inside before spinning back around him and getting to running back De’von Achane, knocking the ball free.
“Dominant,” Burns said when describing the unit. “We don’t wait to get punched in the mouth. … I don’t know how many sacks we had, but it was definitely more than six.”
Chauncey Golston, who appeared in 10 games for the Giants last season, had perhaps the most productive individual day of the group with three would-be sacks.
Two came when Golston tracked down Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis after play-action fakes, while another came after beating Dolphins guard Jonah Savaiinaea.
Willis was swarmed almost immediately after carrying out several play actions, including one rep in which Thibodeaux was waiting for him in the backfield before the quarterback could even reset.
ookie update
Giants rookie receiver Malachi Fields continues to develop encouraging chemistry with quarterback Jaxson Dart.
Fields, a third-round pick out of Notre Dame, hauled in a deep ball from Dart down the left sideline during a team period before being stopped near the goal line.
The connection resurfaced in the final hurry-up period, when Fields made another catch to help move New York into field-goal range.
Miami second-round pick Jacob Rodriguez broke up an intermediate pass intended for Giants receiver Calvin Austin III and also had a would-be sack earlier in practice.
“We’re coming out here and working with serious competition, and getting full-speed reps with a different look,” Rodriguez said. “Some of the issues that our offense presents every day is different for what the Giants present.”
The Dolphins and Giants will get another look at each other Saturday, when they meet at Hard Rock Stadium for a preseason matchup.
Injury report
Giants Pro Bowl receiver Malik Nabers did not participate in Thursday’s joint practice as he continues working his way back from the torn ACL he suffered last season.
Nabers had returned to full-speed team work while wearing a non-contact jersey, but New York kept him out against Miami.
Giants first-round pick Francis Mauigoa left practice after experiencing what Harbaugh described as a stinger.
Harbaugh said the issue was not believed to be serious.
Dolphins receiver A.J. Henning went down during special teams work while covering a punt. Henning attempted to split two blockers before being knocked to the ground and was attended to by members of Miami’s training staff.
Linebacker Tyrel Dodson also left practice and later returned to the field carrying his shoulder pads and without a helmet.
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COMMANDERS TO PLAY STARTERS IN PRESEASON GAME VS. DETROIT, UNSURE ABOUT JAYDEN DANIELS
ASHBURN, Va. (AP) — Washington Commanders coach Dan Quinn revealed that “a good amount of starters” will play during Saturday’s preseason game against the Detroit Lions.
“A lot of the guys who sat out for Miami will get an opportunity to get some work for this week,” Quinn said. “All obviously different amounts.”
Almost all of Washington’s starters did not play during last week’s preseason victory over the Miami Dolphins. Rookie linebacker Sonny Styles was one of the few exceptions.
However, Quinn did not commit to playing starting quarterback Jayden Daniels. The Commanders are dealing with numerous injuries, particularly on the offensive line, which the head coach said will factor into his decision to play the quarterback.
The Commanders’ quarterback room is already without Marcus Mariota, who is expected to miss the remainder of the preseason after suffering an MCL strain in his right knee against the Dolphins.
Washington has not brought in another quarterback since Mariota’s injury. Daniels has been taking reps with both the first- and second-team offenses in practice this week. If Daniels is held out, the Commanders will split time between Sam Hartman and rookie Athan Kaliakmanis under center.
Center Nick Allegretti, who’s missed most of training camp with a calf injury, will not travel with the team. Allegretti briefly returned to practice on Wednesday but left early with calf tightness.
Quinn said the imaging came back clean, though, and the team will evaluate his status on Sunday before determining if he can play during next week’s joint practice with Baltimore.
“There is some (concern),” Quinn said on Allegretti. “Any time you are not getting a lot of reps for a whole training camp, that’s a big deal. Even for a player for as experienced as Nick is, you want time on task to go.”
Mariota and Allegretti are just two of several Commanders players sidelined. Cornerback Trey Amos (ankle), running backs Rachaad White (hamstring) and Jeremy McNichols (quad), linebackers Jordan Magee (shoulder), Odafe Oweh (calf) and K’Lavon Chaisson (knee) all missed Thursday’s practice.
That list doesn’t include left tackle Laremy Tunsil, who will miss significant time after undergoing surgery on a torn triceps, and defensive tackle Johnny Newton, whom Quinn confirmed will be out indefinitely after undergoing surgery on a torn pectoral muscle.
Perhaps the healthiest position group on the Commanders roster is the wide receivers. It’s also the unit with the most internal competition — and what Quinn is specifically looking forward to watching on Saturday.
“I liked what I saw with some of the receivers from the opening game,” he said. “(Jaylin) Lane was somebody that in the first game I thought had some nice catches, some nice movements. Same with Van (Jefferson).”
Fun return to Detroit
Saturday’s preseason game will mark the first time the Commanders return to Detroit since knocking off the top-seeded Lions 45-31 in the divisional round of the 2024 playoffs.
It’s a memory many Washington players look back on fondly as they make their first trip to Ford Field since that game.
“I just remember that game was back and forth,” tight end John Bates said. “Our offense was hot; their offense was hot. It was one of those things where we felt like they couldn’t stop us. … Just a great memory (as we go) back to Detroit.”
Cornerback Mike Sainristil, who had two of Washington’s four interceptions in that game, believes that game showcased the Commanders’ potential to the rest of the league.
“We knew what the stakes were going in there,” Sainristil said. “The way we were able to come out and perform showed the type of team (we are), that we belong to be there.”
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