NFL Preseason Blitz: Lions rookie RB Ameer Abdullah makes impression
It’s never a great idea to get too excited about what you see in a few snaps in the preseason opener, but the Detroit Lions have to be excited about rookie running back Ameer Abdullah.
Oh, and Matthew Stafford and Golden Tate looked pretty good too.
Stafford and Tate hooked up twice for 57 yards on the Lions’ first drive, including a touchdown on a crossing route in Detroit’s 23-3 win over the New York Jets. Tate looked explosive, especially on his first catch when he made two defenders miss. But we already knew what those players bring to the table.
Abdullah might add an entirely different dimension to the offense.
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Again, it’s a tiny sample in one preseason game. But there has been a great buzz about the rookie second-round pick out of Nebraska from the writers who cover the Lions all of camp, and we got a chance to see what they were talking about. Abdullah looked quick on his first two runs, which gained 11 yards. Then he looked electrifying on his third run.
Abdullah took a handoff to the right, and was cut off by Jets linebacker Demario Davis, a starter and 116-tackle player a year ago. So Abdullah juked Davis, cut hard inside and darted through the defense for a 45-yard gain before he was caught from behind by Darrelle Revis. It was a really nice highlight run.
The Lions didn’t have a lot of pop in their running game last year, but if Abdullah can run like he did on Thursday night, Detroit’s offense will be even better than it has been.
Josh McCown had a really bad preseason last year with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, then went on to have a bad season. At least he got off to a better start with the Cleveland Browns.
McCown played well on his drive to start the Browns’ preseason opener against the Redskins. He went 5-of-5 for 33 yards and hit Travis Benjamin for a 2-yard touchdown in the Browns’ 20-17 loss to the Washington Redskins. But there’s a lot more interest in his backup.
Johnny Manziel was classic Johnny Football on his 12-yard touchdown run. He dropped back, Washington’s interior linemen got out of their lanes, and the middle of the field opened up. Manziel ran through the hole and had a nice move to bounce outside for the score. And no, there was no money sign in celebration, just a clenched fist.
Manziel still looked like a work in progress — he seemed to fade back on too many throws instead of stepping into them, for example — but on many throws he at least appeared to be buying into playing within the offense. On most attempts he got the ball out quick and in the rhythm of the offense instead of holding too long and waiting for his legs to bail him out. Though, on some plays he did bail out of the pocket quickly, though that might have been a function of playing with backups. He finished 7-of-11 for 42 yards. He didn’t take many chances, but it wasn’t a bad preseason debut for the second-year quarterback.
Here’s a tip: No matter which New England Patriots running back you draft in fantasy football, you’ll be wrong.
Who can figure out that situation? They seem to have a half-dozen guys who may or may not carry the load on any particular week. But on Thursday night, Jonas Gray reminded the coaching staff not to forget about him.
We all know Gray’s crazy story. He went from AFC player of the week and Sports Illustrated cover boy to being late for a meeting and stuck in Bill Belichick’s dog house. He was inactive for the Super Bowl, which had to be quite a tough blow. But he still has that ability we saw in his 201-yard, four-touchdown game against the Colts last season, and he showed it off on one run in a 22-11 loss to the Green Bay Packers.
Gray took a run to his right behind a pulling guard, got to the outside and into the clear for a 55-yard touchdown. He got an assist from Packers safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, who allowed Gray to get to the outside, but it was a nice long score nonetheless. Gray got a chance to play a lot in the preseason opener, with injuries to LeGarrette Blount and Travaris Cadet, and he took advantage. He looked decisive and ran really hard. Gray finished with 74 yards on seven carries. He had to have gained some of the confidence of the Patriots’ staff.
Bears 27, Dolphins 10
The Dolphins’ starting offense had a nice opening drive to the preseason. Lamar Miller had 32 yards on three carries and Ryan Tannehill was 6-of-7 for 56 yards. They finished the 85-yard drive when Tannehill hit Jarvis Landry for a touchdown on fourth-and-goal at the 2-yard line. Of course that doesn’t reflect too well on the Bears’ defense, which didn’t look very good in its limited time.
Ravens 30, Saints 27
The Saints can’t be thrilled with how the defense played in the first preseason game. Baltimore’s starting offense had a slow and steady march downfield for a touchdown, and then backup quarterback Matt Schaub threw to a wide-open Michael Campanaro for a 45-yard touchdown. The Ravens were up 17-0 before the Saints got on the board. Schaub played pretty well, finishing 11-of-18 for 131 yards.
Chargers 17, Cowboys 7
Gus Johnson, an undrafted rookie from Stephen F. Austin, got the start at running back for the Cowboys because of injuries. He started slow, but warmed up and had a really nice 5-yard touchdown in the second quarter in which he ran hard up the middle and through some defenders over the goal line. Chargers first-round rookie Melvin Gordon, on the other hand, had a forgettable debut with 11 yards on six carries.
• Washington took on a really bad injury at a position that doesn’t have much depth.
Tight end Niles Paul, who had 507 yards last season, had his leg rolled up on by a defender and had to be carted off. Redskins coach Jay Gruden said after the game that Paul is done for the season with a dislocated and fractured ankle, and the Redskins are probably going to have to sign some veterans to fill in. Logan Paulsen has a toe injury that might require surgery, the Washington Post said, and oft-injured Jordan Reed was held out Thursday night with a hamstring injury.
• Cadet’s hamstring injury in New England was a bigger deal for second-year back James White than Gray. The Patriots are looking for a back to take the receiving back role that Shane Vereen handled so well, and with Cadet out White got a long look. White didn’t run very well, with just 12 yards on eight carries, but did catch a pair of 17-yard passes and finished with 52 yards on four receptions. He has a chance to carve out a role, or at least compete with Cadet for it.
• Not a lot went right for the Saints early on, but the play of a couple targets in the passing game was reason to be happy. Second-year receiver Brandin Cooks had a nice 28-yard touchdown on a screen play, working behind his blockers and then accelerating to the end zone. Cooks should get a ton of targets this season after a promising rookie season. Also, tight end Josh Hill caught three balls for 40 yards in the first half, including a 25-yard gain, as he tries to carve out a role as one of the players replacing Jimmy Graham.
• The blooper of the night belonged to Washington receiver Pierre Garcon. Quarterback Robert Griffin III got plenty of time, waited until Garcon got behind Browns cornerback Justin Gilbert and threw a nice pass that should have been a long and easy touchdown. And Garcon dropped it. It’s preseason, it happens.
It would have made Griffin’s night look better, however. Griffin made some nice plays, including a nice completion under pressure on a rollout to his left, and missed some others. He was 4-for-8 for 36 yards before Kirk Cousins came in.
• The Packers really tested Patriots second-year cornerback and Super Bowl hero Malcolm Butler, throwing at him four times on their first drive. Butler held up OK, and played a fade route into the end zone to Davante Adams well. The pass fell incomplete and the Patriots ended up holding on fourth and goal. It seems like teams will test Butler, who might be a household name because of his big Super Bowl-clinching interception but is still short on experience.
• Marcus Mariota and Jameis WInston didn’t play on Thursday, but other rookie quarterbacks made their debuts. Brett Hundley of the Packers threw a nice touchdown pass in the fourth quarter at New England. He was 4-of-6 for 60 yards. New Orleans Saints quarterback Garrett Grayson had a nice debut as well, going 8-of-12 for 87 yards. New York Jets quarterback Bryce Petty, who has a big transition from a spread offense at Baylor to the NFL, went 10-of-18 for 50 yards.
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Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab
