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On the eve of Week 1 of the preseason games, Wednesday brought more clarity to quarterback battles across the league and bold expectations from a second-year head coach. The Atlanta Falcons and Cleveland Browns made official announcements regarding their preseason starting quarterbacks. In the NFC North, Chicago Bears coach Ben Johnson outlined lofty offensive goals, while Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy reacted to losing out on the starting job to Kyler Murray. Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, meanwhile, suffered a minor injury during joint practice. Catch up with all the updates across the NFL: Cleveland Browns head coach Todd Monken announced that Deshaun Watson will start the preseason opener on August 15 against the Chicago Bears. Shedeur Sanders is scheduled to start the team’s second preseason contest on August 22 against the Buffalo Bills. “I’m super excited,” Watson said in comments to reporters. “All the hard work that I put in with the training staff, with my team, my personal team, to get to this stage has been tremendous for me. So, I’m super excited for those opportunities and can’t wait for it.” Monken explained that both quarterbacks are expected to play a half in the opener so each caller can manage a two-minute drill. “I have my reasons for how it’s going to go, and it’s still a competition,” Monken said. “We’re excited to watch guys practice today, let alone on Saturday, and then next week against Buffalo, and we’ll get a chance to see them both.” Watson and Sanders have alternated first-team reps throughout training camp. The Atlanta Falcons have named Tua Tagovailoa as their starting quarterback for Friday’s preseason opener against the Denver Broncos, head coach Kevin Stefanski announced Wednesday. Stefanski clarified that the designation applies strictly to the preseason opener and does not confirm Tagovailoa as the regular season starter. “We’re just now entering Week 1 of the preseason with this game on Friday night. Obviously, Tua is going to play in that game, and I think that’s great to get game action with our guys,” Stefanski told NFL Network. Most Falcons starters will play approximately one series before Cooper Rush and Jack Strand take over under center, Stefanski added in comments to reporters. Michael Penix Jr. remains unavailable for full team drills while continuing his rehabilitation from an ACL tear. “From a preparation standpoint, these guys are on top of it, learning the new system, understanding what’s important on each given play,” Stefanski said. “So I’m very pleased with where we are. I just know in the calendar where we are. We’re not there yet in terms of naming somebody a starter.” Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson is setting goals beyond a championship heading into his second season with the franchise. Johnson outlined his vision for the Bears to field the highest-scoring offense in NFL history, surpassing the 2013 Denver Broncos team that averaged 37.9 points per game. “I want to have the highest-scoring offense ever, which happens to be the 2013 Denver Broncos. I know how many points per game they scored, and I want to surpass them. I want shutouts. I want blowouts,” Johnson told The Athletic. Johnson also referenced the 2003 and 2004 New England Patriots teams that won 21 consecutive games between the regular season and postseason. “Why can’t we do that?” Johnson said. Nick Wright isn’t surprised by the comments, given the confidence Johnson has exuded in his coaching career. ‘It’s hubris to the highest degree,” Wright said on Wednesday’s edition of First Things First. “This is who he’s always been. He has always, at every opportunity, wanted to be, if not the lead actor, the co-star of his team’s offensive movies.” Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy addressed reporters following head coach Kevin O’Connell’s decision to name Kyler Murray as the team’s starting quarterback. “A decision was made that was out of my control, and obviously every competitor wants to play,” McCarthy said. “But moving forward, it’s just about continuing to work hard and just staying ready for when my number’s called.” When asked what he needed to do to win the job, McCarthy deferred to the coaching staff while keeping his focus on personal growth. “That’s a question for Kevin and the staff,” McCarthy said. “I feel like just me continuing to develop and improve in many different aspects is the only thing I’m worried about.” McCarthy added that Minnesota is still the place he wants to be.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

For some teams, winning a Super Bowl takes an extraordinary set of circumstances. However, the Seattle Seahawks’ run to a Super Bowl title in 2025 shouldn’t be viewed as them catching lightning in a bottle. After the Los Angeles Rams dominated headlines this offseason, Colin Cowherd argued that the Seahawks are being overlooked ahead of the 2026 season. “Vegas has the Baltimore Ravens, an 8-9 team last year, with better Super Bowl odds than the Seahawks. Nobody thinks they can repeat. It was a one-off. No way will [Sam] Darnold play mistake-free playoff football again. Things went in their favor,” Cowherd said on Wednesday’s “The Herd.” “No, actually, they did not go in their favor at all. The opposite is true. Sam Darnold goes to arguably the best division in football, has a new coach, a new coordinator, a new O-line, a bad O-line, and a new receiving core, JSN (Jaxon Smith-Njigba).” Seattle enters the season with the fourth-best Super Bowl odds (via DraftKings Sportsbook), trailing Los Angeles, Baltimore and the Buffalo Bills. But Cowherd thinks even that’s too low, pointing to the rare continuity Darnold will have this season as a key reason why the Seahawks should be viewed as a contender. “Darnold — four teams, four years — for the first time in years, [he has the] same head coach, same locker room, same culture, same city, same house,” Cowherd said. “That kind of continuity to me seems like a huge benefit.” Darnold had a strong opening season with the Seahawks. He was fifth in the league in passing yards (4,048) to go with 25 passing touchdowns as he helped Smith-Njigba win Offensive Player of the Year. But Darnold wasn’t the key reason for Seattle’s success. The Seahawks’ defense was arguably the best in the league. They finished with the best scoring defense in the regular season before putting up a dominant performance in the playoffs, including in their Super Bowl win over the New England Patriots. Cowherd added that head coach Mike Macdonald has established a strong identity in Seattle, comparing him to another Super Bowl-winning coach in the same division. “Boy, Mike Macdonald is really impressive. The head coach, he’s Sean McVay [on the] defensive side.” Cowherd said. “They’re not aging out of this. Their older players don’t get hurt much. Leonard Williams, DeMarcus Lawrence, Charles Cross, and their best players are all young and getting better.” And beyond that, Cowherd likes the Seahawks’ infrastructure heading into the new year. “Their old guys are healthy. Darnold’s a young 29, never had a lot of injuries,” Cowherd said. “They have the best GM, arguably, defensive coach, arguably, the best receiver, arguably. And over the last two years, they’ve been 15-2 on the road. They’re the best home team without an argument, and yet they’re kind of considered, and they’re not really mentioned.”​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

ASHBURN, Va. — The Washington Commanders didn’t spend a lot of money on big stars during the offseason, choosing to strengthen their team with quantity and depth. But maybe that’s all they need to turn their team back into the Super Bowl contender that they were two years ago, because their most important offseason addition was a healthy Jayden Daniels. And so far this summer, it sure does look like Daniels is back. The 25-year-old showed that on Wednesday with a spectacular performance in a joint practice against the Miami Dolphins. Granted, the Dolphins are likely going to be terrible this season, but Daniels still looked a lot like his old self. Almost every pass he threw was on target and perfectly timed, especially when he was looking 20 to 30 yards downfield. And he showed off his mobility too, escaping for a few runs and even turning one broken play into a successful shovel pass. It’s too soon to say if he can recapture the magic of 2024, when Daniels had one of the most remarkable rookie seasons for a quarterback ever and took the Commanders all the way to the NFC Championship Game. But if he’s even close to that player after injuries held him to just seven games last season, it would be foolish to count the Commanders out. “It’s huge,” said linebacker Leo Chenal, who left Kansas City to sign with the Commanders in March. “He’s one of the greatest playmakers in the league. We’ve all seen what he’s capable of. When I wasn’t here, I was like, ‘Dang, this dude’s a playmaker.’ You can just see it. You’ve got to respect that and what he’s able to do with the ball in his hands.” The Commanders need Daniels to be that playmaker too, because they didn’t exactly overload their offense with others who can make plays. They did just sign receiver Stefon Diggs, but he’s 32, and their only other reliable receiver is 31-year-old Terry McLaurin, who’s coming off his own injury-filled season. Gone from last season are tight end Zach Ertz and receiver Deebo Samuel, who were the Commanders’ top two pass catchers. Daniels, though, is the type of quarterback who can elevate those around him when he’s healthy and playing at his best — something he rarely did last season thanks to a sprained knee in Week 2 and a dislocated elbow in Week 9, before his season ended prematurely. He sure looked like the best version of himself against the Dolphins. And those who have seen him at camp insist he’s looked that good all summer long. “I felt like this last year, too,” Daniels said at the podium on Wednesday. “I wasn’t hurt at this time last year. But it’s a new year. I don’t want to compare what I did my first two years.” It’ll be hard for Daniels to do anything that compares to what he did as a rookie when he threw for 3,568 yards, 25 touchdowns and just nine interceptions, while running for 891 yards and six touchdowns. He also provided Washington with more magic moments than they had had in the previous decade, not to mention their first trip to the NFC Championship Game in 33 years. But the Commanders are still counting on at least some of that magic resuming, to make their team better than the sum of its otherwise underwhelming parts — even if Daniels won’t publicly count on that yet. “We’re just putting in the work to get there,” Daniels said. “I wouldn’t say we’re in midseason form. We’re just going day by day.” Diggs showed last season in New England that he could still be a No. 1 receiver in this league, though he’s getting to an age where he needs to prove it every year. He sure looked the part on Wednesday, when he dominated the Dolphins’ defensive backs in one-on-one drills. He beat them with speed, with moves, and caught plenty of balls in traffic, too. Diggs is going to have to prove his durability at age 32, but his skills and reliability seem as good as ever. It also looks like he could be a high-volume receiver for the Commanders. Yes, they still have Terry McLaurin, too. But Diggs could be a Daniels favorite, running a lot of underneath routes that he could potentially turn into big plays. Robinson was probably the best player on the field for the Dolphins on Wednesday. Granted, the bar for that was low, but he was still pretty good. He gave Commanders right tackle Josh Conerly fits and was regularly breaking through to the Commanders’ backfield in team drills. The Dolphins lost their best pass rusher (Bradley Chubb) in free agency, so they really need someone to be a difference-maker on defense. Robinson, their first-round pick in 2024, took a step back last year after a somewhat promising rookie season. He should be a lock for more than the four sacks he had in 2025. For the Dolphins’ sake, there’ll hopefully be a lot more. “It’s awesome. You finally get to hit someone who is not your own team. You bring them in from the South, show them how it’s done a little bit.” — Commanders linebacker Leo Chenal on the joint practice with the Dolphins. Commanders: All Hopes Rest On Jayden Daniels Last season was so bad for Washington that it’s almost easy to forget that the Commanders went to the NFC Championship Game the year before. That’s when Jayden Daniels was an all-time great rookie QB before his injury-riddled second year. On paper, the Commanders look more like last year’s version than the juggernaut from 2024. They have big defensive issues and didn’t do a great job of surrounding Daniels with weapons. But if Daniels is the player he was as a rookie, and he can stay healthy, he can elevate this team like he did then. At least that’s the hope in Washington. If Daniels is as good as everyone thought he was two years ago, the Commanders could make some noise in the NFC. But he really needs to be that good. Otherwise, they’re looking at a disappointing year. Dolphins: No Hope At All Meanwhile, as for the Dolphins, the Jeff Hafley era is not likely to get off to a rousing start. The new coach refuses to admit the Dolphins are rebuilding, even though all the evidence points that way. They have some hope that they catch lightning in a bottle with new quarterback Malik Willis after he impressed in very limited duty last year in Green Bay. But other than running back De’Von Achane, the Dolphins really don’t have any weapons around him at all. And a defense that ranked 22nd last season lost its best pass rusher when Bradley Chubb left. Hafley could be a very good coach, and maybe he’ll squeeze something out of his young defense. But unless Willis, in his fifth NFL season, suddenly blossoms into a star, the Dolphins will almost certainly end up as one of the worst teams in the entire league. The drive south to this area from Jersey is a great way to see the East Coast, one redundant rest stop at a time. But the roughly 90-minute drive from the Commanders’ practice facility in Ashburn, Virginia, to their neighbors, the Baltimore Ravens, can be a slow procession through farm country. Seriously, the drive to my hotel in Frederick, Maryland, looked like I was driving through Iowa. I’m pretty sure I saw every corn stand in the Northeast. My reward for that — other than a night in this Civil War town and a possible secret excursion to nearby Camp David — will be a visit with the new-look Ravens, who are adjusting to life without John Harbaugh for the first time in 18 years. I hear the practices run by Harbaugh’s 42-year-old replacement, Jesse Minter, are about half as long as they used to be. If that’s true, then his players already love him. Minter inherited a loaded team which I think could be a Super Bowl contender. If they end up winning, I can only assume the parade will be in Baltimore and not down Maryland Route 15, unless they want their floats peppered with corn instead of confetti.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports