untung99.biz: 2023 NFL Preseason Debrief Week 1 Everything to know about rookie debuts position battles and more

32) Garrett Wilson returning to practice for the Jets was even better news than New York’s 27-0 win over Carolina.

33) Former No. 11 overall pick Mekhi Becton was able to play 27 healthy snaps in the second preseason game. His teammates and coaches were excited for Becton to be making progress, although Pro Football Focus gave him a 42 pass-blocking grade for the game. Basically, all Jets tackles have struggled throughout training camp, which led to some frustration last week from an otherwise-zen Aaron Rodgers.

34) There’s no need to get carried away with Justin Fields hitting two short throws that turned into long touchdowns for the Chicago Bears. But at least Fields has teammates like DJ Moore, running back Khalil Herbert and a healthy Darnell Mooney who can make long plays for him.

35) It appears telling that Herbert took all the snaps with the starters, while rookie fourth-round running back Roschon Johnson was still playing with the third-teamers deep into the second half. Johnson did a nice job breaking tackles, but he probably has to worry about passing D’Onta Foreman on the depth chart before sharing the ball with Herbert.

36) The Kansas City Chiefs’ pass rush looks ugly on paper without Chris Jones, and it looked ugly on Sunday in the Superdome, where starters did suit up. It’s too early to worry about a preseason game, but this is so clearly the weakest spot on K.C.’s roster.

37) The Play of the Preseason race is already over. I am keeping my eye on Jacksonville Jaguars QB Nathan Rourke for the Preseason MVP award, which will have its much-anticipated first rankings in next week’s column.

38) Jags WR Calvin Ridley played in his first live action in nearly two years. He looked the part, catching two passes from Trevor Lawrence. Ridley was also involved in Lawrence’s interception on a scramble drill where they didn’t seem to read the field the same way.

39) According to the Birds With Friends podcast, Philadelphia linebacker Nicholas Morrow is unlikely to make the team now that the Eagles signed Myles Jack and Zach Cunningham. Nakobe Dean is a presumed starter, and Christian Elliss is also in the mix.

40) Jalen Carter only played two snaps for the Eagles on Saturday; one of them was an absolutely ferocious pressure. I’m going to overreact.

41) Don’t overreact too much to D’Andre Swift starting and Rashaad Penny getting plenty of work in Philly’s preseason opener. Coach Nick Sirianni said veteran holdovers Kenneth Gainwell and Boston Scott will get work in this Thursday’s game against the Browns.

42) I was among the clowns on Twitter making a joke about Ravens coach John Harbaugh saving Pro Bowler Snoop Huntley for the second half of Saturday’s game against the Eagles in a bid to keep the team’s preseason winning streak going. Huntley played well before leaving the game, and Baltimore did indeed earn its 24th (!) straight preseason win.

43) Jokes aside, ever since the Ravens lowballed Huntley as a restricted free agent, the quarterback hasn’t seemed guaranteed to make the team despite his consistent play over the last few years. Baltimore reportedly attempted (and failed) to sign Baker Mayfield and Jacoby Brissett in the offseason. Josh Johnson has a legitimate chance to win the team’s backup job, according to Harbaugh, and Huntley appeared to tweak his hamstring in the game, even if he stayed in to engineer an impressive scoring drive before sitting. It wouldn’t shock me if the Ravens picked up another veteran quarterback just before the season.

44) The Los Angeles Rams signed Joseph Noteboom to a three-year deal worth $40 million before last season as Andrew Whitworth’s replacement on the blind side. Noteboom tore his ACL last October and is now getting snaps at right guard, with Alaric Jackson apparently in the lead of the team’s left tackle competition. This is a sign of the Rams’ improved depth — they also have a battle at center — but not exactly what the Rams had in mind when they paid Noteboom like a core franchise piece.

45) Kyren Williams could be earning a timeshare with Cam Akers in the Rams’ backfield. Listening to the always-excellent Jourdan Rodrigue on her 11 Personnel podcast, Williams has played well enough to have a big role on passing downs. He may be seen as a steadier down-to-down option than Akers, who is more of a home-run hitter.

46) The most misleading headline I saw all weekend came on the front page of ESPN.com: “SoFi sequel: Bennett shines in battle of CFP QBs.”

Rams rookie QB Stetson Bennett had one of the most bizarre touchdown drives I’ve ever seen, throwing two ghastly near-interceptions that the Chargers flat-out dropped and then throwing two more possible picks in a penalty-aided march. Bennett recovered to make a handful of nice plays, but it wasn’t surprising to see his PFF grade was dead last among 48 quarterbacks who had at least 10 dropbacks last week. Brett Rypien played ahead of Bennett and could be the Week 1 backup to Matthew Stafford.

47) Rams rookie receiver Puka Nacua built on his camp hype with a tough touchdown grab among his three catches. He’s battling Tutu Atwell for the team’s third receiver spot.

48) Curious who the Rams’ starting edge rushers are? Michael Hoecht and rookie Byron Young got the nod on Saturday. Hoecht made some noise late last season. Young is one of roughly 74 rookies on L.A.’s roster.

49) Chargers rookie Derius Davis was probably the best punt returner in the 2023 NFL Draft, and his 81-yard return for a score against the Rams showed patience, vision and crazy burst. Like KaVontae Turpin for the Cowboys in last year’s preseason, this could be a sign of things to come.

50) On a weekend where the local preseason coverage was almost uniformly positive, it was telling to hear Chargers analyst Dan Fouts note that first-round pick Quentin Johnston was having a rough training camp because of his penchant for drops. Johnston also dropped two passes early against the Rams, gaining a total of 10 yards on six targets. That’s the bad news. The good news is that the Chargers may feature Johnston in the red zone, where he ran a great route for a score. The first-round pick could be the team’s fourth receiver, behind Mike Williams, Keenan Allen and Joshua Palmer.

51) Chargers rookie CJ Okoye recorded a sack in his first game. Not his first game as a pro — his first game as a football player. The Nigerian product of the league’s International Player Pathway Program had literally never played an organized football game before suiting up in SoFi Stadium.

52) It’s hard to know what to think about rushing games in training camp. That’s why it was nice to see all the positive buzz about the Chargers’ more north-south attack under Kellen Moore deliver with 214 yards on 31 carries against the Rams. I will keep saying it: This Bolts offensive line looks great on paper.

53) Overzealous draftniks and fans tend to slot recent top picks into the Week 1 starting lineups in May, but the reality often isn’t that smooth. That’s why the Giants must be encouraged that second-round center John Michael Schmitz looks the part and has wrapped up a starting gig, according to Dan Duggan of The Athletic. The Giants only have to look at the Jets, whose own second-round center (Joe Tippmann) appears to be taking longer to develop.

54) At times this month, the Giants have worked veteran Adoree’ Jackson in at slot cornerback, with rookie first-round pick Deonte Banks and rookie sixth-rounder Tre Hawkins III manning the outside-corner spots. No matter how coordinator Wink Martindale lines his CBs up, it’s safe to say opposing quarterbacks are going to test this group.

55) It’s hard to sort out the Giants’ wideouts, but based on practice reports and New York’s depth chart, all signs point to former Colt Parris Campbell emerging as the team’s starting slot receiver and a consistent target for Daniel Jones.

56) Packers QB Jordan Love showed more good than bad in his start against the Bengals. At this point, I’m expecting him to have some groan-worthy wide-open misses (like he did on an attempt to rookie tight end Luke Musgrave) and some eye-opening dimes. That’s the Jordan Love experience.