The first week of the 2025 NFL Preseason is officially in the books, and there is plenty to talk about in the aftermath of the league’s first 16 games. From impressive rookie debuts to devastating injury news, and everything in between, let’s run down the list of the most interesting storylines to come out of Week One of the NFL Preseason.
Sensational Shedeur Sanders
In three quarters of gameplay, rookie quarterback and fifth-round draft pick Shedeur Sanders looked like he belonged in the NFL, completing 14 of 23 passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns. He also tacked on another 19 yards on the ground.
After two punts and a turnover on downs, Sanders got on the board by connecting with wide receiver Kaden Davis over three defenders for a seven-yard touchdown pass. Two drives later, Sanders found Davis again in the back of the end zone for a 12-yard TD.
“Pleased with Shedeur, pleased with the offense,” said Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski after the game. “Again, not perfect, plenty that we can work on. But I thought the guys did a really nice job with Shedeur and operating, the guys making plays, so, again, a ton to teach off of.”
Anthony Richardson’s injury
The Indianapolis Colts are already dealing with an injury to their former number-four overall draft pick and quarterback, Anthony Richardson. On the second drive of the game, Richardson took a big hit from an unblocked defender and was forced to leave the contest due to an injury. It was later revealed that he suffered a dislocated pinky during the hit, ending his day early.
“It was weird,” Richardson told ESPN. “He hit me, then I was trying to make sure I had the ball, and I just looked down. I saw my finger in a different direction. I’m like, ‘Maybe I’m tripping.’ And I looked at it again. It was definitely like that.”
The good news for Colts fans is that Richardson returned to practice two days after suffering the injury. He was able to resume organized team activities as normal.
Joe Burrow and Tanner McKee get into a shootout
There was some very good quarterback play between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Philadelphia Eagles. In just two series as the starter, Joe Burrow went nine for ten passing with 123 yards and two touchdowns, including a 36-yard TD to wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase.
However, it was the Eagles’ starter, Tanner McKee, who really lit up the scoreboard. The former sixth-round pick completed 20 of his 25 pass attempts for 252 yards and two passing touchdowns as well as a one-yard rushing touchdown.
“It felt good. I felt like we were moving the ball, which is always fun,” McKee said following the win. “Obviously, we’ll watch the film, you never really know until you watch film. You never really know until you watch film and you’re like, ‘Oh crap, I missed that,’ or whatever. But overall, moved the ball well. Had a lot of guys that made great plays. So, the feeling is good.”
TreVeyon Henderson Does It All
Though I was admittedly skeptical when the Patriots used the 38th pick in the 2025 NFL Draft on running back TreVeyon Henderson, the former Ohio State Buckeye was electric in his first NFL game. He took the opening kickoff 100 yards to the end zone on his first NFL touch to put the Pats ahead 7-0 after just 12 seconds of gameplay.
Though he wouldn’t find the end zone again, Henderson still managed to rush for 18 yards while catching three passes for another 12 yards, to bring his scrimmage total for the game to 130 yards on just five touches (26 yards per touch).
“Being in the NFL, being a young guy, second-round draft pick, it’s a lot of pressure, and sometimes it’s hard with all that pressure being on you, but the biggest thing is, I try to keep my eyes on the Lord,” Henderson told reporters after the 48-18 win. “I know, no matter what happens, I can come out here and give it everything that I got, and whether I have a good practice, bad practice, good game, bad game, I know God loves me and He’s always here with me. And so, that just motivates me to keep going every day. I have my ups and downs as well. Some practices are good, some practices are bad, but I just try to keep learning and getting better.”
Russell Wilson and Jaxson Dart both look impressive
The New York Giants were able to beat the Buffalo Bills 34-25 thanks to consistent quarterback play from Russell Wilson and rookie Jaxson Dart. Though he didn’t score a touchdown, Wilson completed six of his seven opening-drive pass attempts for 28 yards, which got the Giants close enough to score a field goal.
After that first drive, Russell Wilson was replaced by Jaxson Dart, who picked up 19 yards on his first possession. On the Giants’ next series, Dart threw a 28-yard pass to wide receiver Lil’Jordan Humphrey for his lone touchdown of the afternoon. Dart ended up going 12 for 19 passing with 154 yards and a touchdown.
“It’s about what I thought he would do,” said head coach Brian Daboll. “Efficient, effective, aggressive, confident in the pocket.”
Cam Ward leads a scoring drive in limited action
It was an ugly loss for the Titans. However, the number-one overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft and Tennessee quarterback Cam Ward looked very promising as he led the Titans on a scoring drive despite only playing two possessions.
In his first series, Ward missed on his first two pass attempts, resulting in a three-and-out. On Tennessee’s next drive, Ward played much better, completing five of six passes for 67 yards, which eventually led to a one-yard touchdown run from running back Tony Pollard.
“Cam played well in the two series he got. Kind of a weird first half, with only three possessions. Had one three-and-out and led a touchdown drive. I thought he looked good, started to feel a little bit comfortable, was begging to go back in, but that wasn’t in the cards for tonight, said head coach Brian Callahan after the game. “I thought he did some good things, and it was encouraging.”
Justin Fields gets on the board
He was only given one drive to prove he has what it takes to lead this team, and Justin Fields passed that test with flying colors. He completed three of four passes for 42 yards and also juked his way into the end zone for a 13-yard touchdown run in what would end up being a beatdown of the Green Bay Packers as the Jets prevailed 30-10.
“There were a couple of shot plays that we called, and he did a really good job just taking what the defense gave him,” said New York head coach Aaron Glenn. “We love where he’s at right now. Does he have a ways to go? Absolutely, he does. Is he going to continue to work? Absolutely, he will because that’s just who he is. But we know exactly where he’s at, we know exactly where we’re going, and we’re going to continue to work our ass off until we get there.”
Has Tyler Shough pulled ahead in New Orleans?
The Saints played all three of their quarterbacks, who are currently vying for New Orleans’ starting job. Jake Haener was underwhelming, completing just five of eight passes while throwing an interception.
Spencer Rattler stood out in the game, though. Not only was he the starting quarterback on the team’s first drive, but he also completed seven of 11 passes for 53 yards while picking up another 22 yards on the ground. Unfortunately for him, he took three sacks.
Lastly, there was second-round draft pick Tyler Shough, who connected on 16 of his 22 passes for 165 yards and a touchdown. However, he threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown and was also sacked twice.
“I think for all three, there’s going to be some good moments, there’s going to be some moments we want to have back. We get to learn from those, get better this week. I thought Spencer did some good stuff coming out of there, using his feet in some situations where he had some avoided zone areas,” said head coach Kellen Moore after the loss. “Tyler played a little bit more just between the second and third quarter. A great two-minute drive right before the half. He did some really good things there. He felt under control if I managed the situations really, really well. You throw a pick, you got to respond. Obviously, no one wants to throw an interception. The way he responded was really, really good for him to come back and handle that from an emotional standpoint really well. I thought that was awesome, and then he made a big play at the tip there.”
Cam Little with (what would have been) a record-breaking kick
I don’t believe those attending the Steelers-Jaguars game knew that they would see an all-time kicking moment. Placekicker Cam Little hit a 70-yard field goal to end the first half, shattering the previous record of 66 yards set by Justin Tucker in 2021.
There was only one problem: the kick was made during the preseason, which means it won’t officially go into the NFL record books, so Justin Tucker’s 66-yarder still stands as the current benchmark for kickers. The sad part is that if it had been a 71-yarder, Little still would have made it. That’s how powerful his kick was.
“He wanted it, so we gave it to him,” Jaguars head coach Liam Coen said at halftime. “That was pretty cool for Cam, you wish that one would’ve gone in the record books.”
Maybe, if Little is lucky, he will get to attempt a 67-yard field goal during the regular season, which would break the current record. Although nothing will ever compare to that 70-yard bomb Cam Little made on August 9th, 2025, which is unofficially the longest successful field goal in NFL history.
