2025 NFL preseason, Week 3: What We Learned from Saturday's games

FULL BOX SCORE

Jeremy Bergman's takeaways:

1. Ali-Johnson goes another round. The Ravens' running back room is filling up, and Saturday's preseason finale served as a showcase for the two ball-carriers most likely to take one of Baltimore's remaining slots. Second-year RB Rasheen Ali and veteran D'Ernest Johnson squared off in D.C. on Saturday, going touch for touch with a roster spot on the line. Baltimore fed both the rock early, and each player displayed bounce and cutting ability en route to first-half touchdown runs. Their stat lines by day's end: comparable. Ali tallied 14 touches (five catches) for 52 yards, and Johnson finished with 20 touches (all rushes but three) for 63 yards; Johnson and Myles Gaskin, the odd man out, saw more second-half work. Ali's pass-catching ability may be the difference-maker … or neither player may make the roster. We'll know the players' fates by Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET.
2. Backup QB trouble in D.C.? Washington has some concerns behind Jayden Daniels under center. Marcus Mariota has been sidelined by Achilles tendinitis, and Sam Hartman is a turnover machine. In his second start of the season, Hartman had a hard time moving the ball against Baltimore backups. Save for a 52-yard catch and run from Colson Yankoff, Hartman was 11-of-16 passing for 62 yards with three turnovers (two picks, one fumble); those Baltimore takeaways turned into 13 points. Josh Johnson had the honors in the second half, finishing 7-of-13 passing for 50 yards and throwing a pick himself. Neither signal-caller moved the needle, but could Washington part ways with the second-year Hartman in favor of the more established and mobile Johnson come cutdown day?

FULL BOX SCORE

Kevin Patra's takeaways:

1. Bengals WR's future in flux. Jermaine Burton’s role to open the season remains to be seen -- if he’s even healthy. After dealing with a knee injury that kept him out last week, Burton played in Saturday’s preseason finale as the rest of the regulars sat out. It’s notable that preseason sensation Mitchell Tinsley sat out, confirming his roster spot is safe. Charlie Jones, the top returner and depth receiver, also sat out. Meanwhile, Burton started with the backup offense and took the return duties. Coming off a rough rookie season, the 2024 third-round pick caught one of four targets for 16 yards. He ran a nice route on his lone catch. But Burton also missed a would-be drive-extending third-down pass, appearing not to run through his route, and couldn’t corral it with one hand. Later, he limped off the field after a second-quarter punt return. He was briefly seen with trainers on the bench and didn’t re-enter the game. Bengals coach Zac Taylor said after the game that Burton was still dealing with a knee injury. Health is obviously a concern, but even if he’s good to go, outside of backup returner, there isn’t a clear role to be had in a deep Bengals offense.
2. Colts safety gets his moment. The final preseason game is for players like Daniel Scott. A fifth-round pick in 2023, Scott missed his rookie season after suffering an ACL tear during OTAs. In May 2024, Scott ruptured his Achilles tendon. Missing two entire seasons due to injury is a rough way to start a career, particularly for a later-round pick. On Saturday, the safety made a big play, stepping in front of a Desmond Ridder pass and prancing his way to the end zone for a pick-six. It was a good read by a player in his third career preseason game. The Colts need depth help at safety, and the play should help Scott lock down that role. The 26-year-old is one you can root for as he attempts to jumpstart a career that has been waylaid by unfortunate injuries.

FULL BOX SCORE

Eric Edholm's takeaways:

1. Browns TE of the future? Third-round pick Harold Fannin Jr. played only six snaps in the preseason opener and sat out the second game at Philadelphia Eagles. But the rookie tight end not only looks like a roster lock but also projects to be a key offensive contributor this season. He was on the field for 11 of the first 17 offensive snaps with the Browns’ starters and caught two passes, including a pretty seam shot for a 15-yard TD pass from Joe Flacco. David Njoku also played 12 snaps in that span and had a few nice connections from Flacco, so it appears the Browns will use a lot of multiple-TE formations this season. Cleveland’s offense was solid in three drives with the starters, but starting center Ethan Pocic left the game with a knee injury.
2. Rams rookie enjoys first NFL action. Second-round tight end Terrance Ferguson made his preseason debut, and it was an impressive one. He caught two passes for 48 yards on three targets, including an impressive 33-yard sideline catch. The Rams tried to hit Ferguson on a slot fade earlier, and quarterback Dresser Winn just missed the throw. So Sean McVay went back to the concept, and this time it worked for a long gain. Rams general manager Les Snead joined the Rams broadcast and praised Ferguson’s ball tracking and body control, and added that the Rams have talked about using more 12 personnel, with Ferguson and Tyler Higbee playing together. Ferguson played 21 snaps on offense and two on special teams and looked spry in his first game action. The Rams appear to have immediate plans for Ferguson, who showed he’s healthy against the Browns.

FULL BOX SCORE

Kevin Patra's takeaways:

1. Lions rookie WR electric again. The Isaac TeSlaa hype train keeps on speeding down the track. For the third consecutive preseason tilt, the third-round pick found pay dirt. On Saturday, TeSlaa burned past Texans cornerback D'Angelo Ross and hauled in a perfect Kyle Allen parabola for a 33-yard score. Playing on the outside, the rookie made a solid move off the line, threw up late hands, and tapped his feet down the sideline without bobbling the ball as he went to the ground. Bonus points for a perfectly executed worm celebration. Each week, the rookie has displayed traits that will translate to the regular season. It’s notable that his TD came from the outside in the formation. That’s where he’ll find potential for more snaps. TeSlaa’s brand of size and speed made him an enticing prospect. His production in the preseason indicates he should have a role in 2025. How big a role, and whether he can push Tim Patrick for snaps, remains to be seen. Regardless, the Lions offense has yet another explosive piece.  
2. RB problem in Houston? With Joe Mixon’s lingering foot/ankle injury, the Texans' backfield is worth checking in on. Nick Chubb, the presumptive starter if Mixon misses time, didn’t play Sunday. Dameon Pierce, who’s been dealing with a calf injury for most of the offseason, knocked off the rust. He generated 17 yards on seven carries behind the backup offensive line. Given how much he’s been out, the reps are more important than the production. The once-preseason darling gets what’s blocked. The more intriguing back on Saturday was rookie Woody Marks. The USC product displayed excellent vision, an ability to hit the hole, and the patience to let the blocking develop. He finished with 19 yards on six carries and a 9-yard TD run. Making Marks more interesting is his pass-catching ability. The back snagged all three of his targets for 20 yards. Depending on Mixon’s status, the fourth-round pick should push for reps. He could eventually take Pierce’s spot on the depth chart.

FULL BOX SCORE

Eric Edholm's takeaways:

1. Nix-Sutton connection finally in form. Sean Payton sent his starting offense back onto the field for a third possession on Saturday, clearly underwhelmed by the first two. The Broncos went three-and-out on the first drive, followed by a field goal on the second, but they moved only 39 yards on 11 plays. After the first team’s struggles in the preseason opener, Payton couldn’t have been thrilled. But Bo Nix engineered the drive Payton needed to see on the third possession, leading the first-team offense to its first touchdown of the preseason. Nix hit Courtland Sutton on a 43-yard bootleg -- expect a lot of that this season -- and found his top receiver again for a 19-yard TD on a back-shoulder fade. The Nix-Sutton connection looks ready for Week 1, even if the Broncos offense took a few series to wake up.
2. New Orleans' secondary shaky. The Saints defense has earned some praise this August, and they started Saturday’s preseason finale in fine form, beginning with a three-and-out and before holding the Broncos to a field goal. But trouble started on the third drive with the Saints’ starters still on the field. Cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry was beaten three times by the Broncos’ Courtland Sutton for three catches and 64 yards. Then, Sutton beat safety Julian Blackmon for a touchdown. If there’s an area that’s a little shaky on defense heading into the regular season, it’s probably in the secondary. Saturday showed the Saints are still working out some kinks back there.

FULL BOX SCORE

Kevin Patra's takeaways:

1. Matthew Golden is legit. The Packers’ first-round wide receiver made a gorgeous adjustment on a 39-yard catch in a limited appearance in the final preseason game. The Texas product came back to the Malik Willis heave, showing excellent body control to get around Seahawks cornerback Nehemiah Pritchett. Golden, who beat off coverage on the play, made Willis right with the crafty hands catch, otherwise, preventing a potential interception. It’s the type of play that will help build unquestionable trust with his quarterbacks. Golden ran just six routes on the day, but showed the ability to create separation at the top of his route. He was open several times when the ball went elsewhere. On his second target, Golden dashed through the middle of the Seahawks' defense. Had Willis not sailed the ball a tad high, Golden, who was running away from two defenders, was open enough that he might have scored on the play. Golden showed the natural traits that can make him a WR1 as a rookie.
2. Jalen Milroe needs reps. The rookie quarterback got them Saturday, playing wire to wire versus Green Bay. Early, it was a rocky outing, with Milroe fumbling twice in the first half. He ended the game with a botched shotgun snap fumble. A third-round pick, Milroe is a developmental quarterback with dual-threat potential. It’s still a work in progress. On six first-half possessions, Seattle turned it over on downs twice, fumbled twice, had a three-and-out, and generated just three first downs. The ball security is a concern, but playing behind a struggling backup offensive line did him no favors, including a strip sack in which the QB was swarmed by four Packers defenders. At times, particularly in the early stages, his passes were a tick off target. He finished 13 of 24 passing for 148 yards and a touchdown. There were brief flashes where you could see the Alabama product’s potential. On one first-half drive, Milroe stood tall in the pocket and zipped a dart over the middle to Marquez Valdes-Scantling for a 27-yard strike. The sparks were just too few. While bottled up early, he found positives in the fourth quarter, making good throws on the move, finally finding space on the ground and throwing a good touchdown ball to Cody White. Part of the improvement was facing defenders who will be on practice squads next week. Part of the improved play was simply Milroe stacking reps and getting more comfortable as the game unfolded. The final fumble stings. Unless things go sideways in Seattle, he’ll have to wait until next offseason to get more snaps needed for development.

FULL BOX SCORE

Bobby Kownack's takeaways:

1. Tale of two phases for Miami. A starting pass-rushing group comprised of Bradley Chubb, Chop Robinson and Jaelan Phillips could flip the defense’s softer reputation in a hurry. Miami threw all three against a collection of Jacksonville backups on Saturday, and things went exactly as expected. Robinson screamed into the backfield unblocked on the game’s very first play for a sack, and Chubb, who missed all of 2024 due to injury, delivered a stonewalling tackle for loss a few snaps later. Chubb and Phillips split a drive-ending sack on their final play of the game, and most of Miami’s starters then called it a night after forcing three punts in three chances. As for the Fins’ offense? A touchdown march on the starters’ third try and Malik Washington breaking ankles left and right can’t erase the stench of starting off with two three-and-outs. Tua Tagovailoa was under far too much duress behind his starting offensive line and took two sacks on his first six snaps. The obvious asterisk is De'Von Achane and Tyreek Hill’s absences, but such an excuse doesn’t pass muster considering Jacksonville slowed Miami’s roll using reserves.
2. Pair of UDFAs make impactful final roster case. Jacksonville was happy to use the third preseason game for depth evaluation. Miami trotted out its starters for three possessions on both sides of the ball, meaning the Jags second- and third-stringers had some very meaningful opponents to impress against. Undrafted free-agent pass rushers Danny Striggow and BJ Green II did just that. It was Striggow’s turn first, putting right tackle Larry Borom in a blender to reach Tagovailoa and close out Miami’s first drive. The play marked his second sack of the preseason -- he forced a fumble on his first two weeks ago versus the Steelers. Green struck the next time out, beating Pharaoh Brown around the edge and sneaking past James Daniels for his sack of Tagovailoa. Both have garnered attention in camp, but if either one is able to crack the final roster spot at DE, it’ll likely come at the other’s expense. Who has done enough to land on the initial 53?

FULL BOX SCORE

Bobby Kownack's takeaways:

1. Shavers’ snag highlights Bills’ preseason finale. Tyrell Shavers has one career regular-season catch, a screen pass he took 69 yards to the end zone for Buffalo last year. He had two against the Buccaneers on Saturday, and one of those was another score made to be replayed again and again. On first-and-10 in the second quarter, quarterback Shane Buechele trusted him with an end zone lob against Bryce Hall -- faith Shavers rewarded with an impossible one-handed catch. Shavers faced a high degree of difficulty keeping his feet in bounds while pinned against the sideline, using his other hand to fight off Hall. He’s staring down a similarly tricky path to making the cut in Buffalo. Could he leapfrog someone like Curtis Samuel, who would cost $8.6 million in dead cap to release but has missed most of camp with a hamstring injury and was out due to illness Saturday? He already has a leg up on other wideouts such as KJ Hamler, who played two special teams snaps compared to Shavers’ 12. Time will tell, but Shavers certainly put an exclamation point on his preseason.
2. Rookie wideout likely cements spot on Tampa Bay’s 53. Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht said during the broadcast that 2025 seventh-rounder Tez Johnson was one of the best players on the field any time he watched Oregon during draft evaluations. That was very much the case again on Saturday. Johnson simply looked faster than those tasked with stopping him, something he showcased when taking a late first-quarter pass caught behind the line of scrimmage for 16 yards despite a herd of Bills initially having an angle on him. He wasn’t just burning past people, though. He showed crisp route running and sure hands, collecting all eight of his first-half targets for 58 yards. Johnson also nabbed a touchdown, after which he celebrated with a gold medal-worthy backflip. Tampa Bay’s WR room is incredibly deep, but the group is also dealing with injuries to Chris Godwin and Jalen McMillan right now. Johnson deserves a spot to help out, and it’d be a might risky proposition trying to sneak him onto the practice squad.

FULL BOX SCORE

Michael Baca's takeaways:

1. Niners tinker with newest wide receiver. Acquired via trade just three days ago, Skyy Moore saw plenty of action in his preseason debut with San Francisco, starting and playing late into the third quarter. The former second-round pick struggled to find his footing early on in the new offense, mishandling a catchable ball in the opening quarter on his second target of the game. The Niners would draw up a couple of plays to see what they got in Moore, who gained 12 yards on his first reception and another 6 yards on a jet sweep pass for his final touch. He’d finish with three receptions for 19 yards on six targets, but the Niners also kicked the tires on his return capabilities. Moore fielded three punts cleanly and generated 16 return yards, and nearly broke free for a big kickoff return. San Francisco faces plenty of questions at receiver entering Week 1 and beyond with multiple injuries and Demarcus Robinson’s expected suspension limiting Brock Purdy’s targets. Moore’s outing on Saturday signals that the 49ers are speeding up his acclimation process in order to be ready for action.  
2. Undrafted Chargers rookie makes final case for roster spot. Marlowe Wax's intense play in the preseason finale will most certainly endear head coach Jim Harbaugh's passionate heart, and that might just land him a job in Los Angeles. The Syracuse product was everywhere for the Bolts defense, collecting six tackles, one sack, two QB hits, a pass break-up, one tackle for loss and a forced fumble. Wax's biggest impact came on three consecutive plays in the second frame, slamming Isaac Guerendo twice for little to no gains before sacking Carter Bradley hard to force a fumble turnover on the third play. He'd later nearly have a pick in coverage. The Chargers' starting LB corps is settled, but Wax's impact on Saturday will be remember when the club cuts down to 53 players. He finishes preseason play with 18 tackles, two sacks, three QB hits, two TFLs, one pass break-up and a forced fumble in three appearances.

FULL BOX SCORE

Michael Baca's takeaways:

1. Cardinals defense heeds Jonathan Gannon's call. The head coach challenged his defensive unit after a rough outing last week, but he ought to be pleased after Saturday's performance in the preseason finale. While sitting its starters, Arizona's pass rush collected four sacks and the secondary batted down five balls to bottle up the Raiders outside of an opening drive against a starting offense. Rookie linebacker Jordan Burch had a strip-sack in addition to his two tackles for loss while second-year LB Xavier Thomas recovered his caused fumble in addition to collecting two sacks and four QB hits. With the pass rush harassing, cornerbacks Jaylon Jones and Elijah Jones made plays in the secondary to help hold the Raiders to just 241 yards of total offense. Gannon will certainly be pleased with the defensive effort, but they also gave him tough decisions to make with cutdown day approaching.
2. Geno finds rookie WR for first TD throw this preseason. In his lone series, Geno Smith led the Raiders on a nine-play, 50-yard scoring drive that ended with his first touchdown pass in three appearances this August, but who was at the receiving end of that throw might be huge for how the wide receiver depth chart shakes out going into the 2025 season. Rookie Dont'e Thornton Jr. secured that 17-yard strike from Smith, but the nature of that back-shoulder catch was evidence of the rapport they've built over training camp. Thornton, who finished with two catches for 26 yards and a TD on three targets, figures to have a sizable role behind Jakobi Meyers and Tre Tucker. He's been battling for that spot against veteran Collin Johnson and rookie Jack Bech this summer, who each had one reception on Saturday night. Thornton's grab was perhaps the biggest of the preseason for the Raiders' first-team offense and it might've just put him over the top.