PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Indianapolis rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson displayed flashes of promise but also showed that there’s much work to do, helping the Colts beat the Philadelphia Eagles 27-13 on Thursday night in the preseason finale for each team.
Named the starter after the preseason opener at Buffalo, Richardson completed 6 of 17 passes for 78 yards and ran five times for 38 yards in the first half. The 6-foot-4 passer was the No. 4 overall pick out of Florida.
On the fourth drive for the Colts (2-1), Richardson showed flashes of greatness, hitting Kylen Granson in traffic for 17 yards and twice avoiding sacks. He also was off target on several throws, most of which sailed high.
Neither Jalen Hurts nor any starters on offense or defense saw action for defending NFC champion Philadelphia (1-2). Backup quarterback Marcus Mariota completed 1 of 2 passes for 21 yards in one series.
Rookie sixth-round pick Tanner McKee, the likely No. 3 quarterback for Philadelphia, was 19 for 34 for 158 yards.
STEELERS 24, FALCONS 0
ATLANTA (AP) — Kenny Pickett led two touchdown drives and showed he and the Pittsburgh starters are ready for real games in a win over Atlanta.
Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren ran for touchdowns to cap the only drives led by Pickett, who completed 4 of 4 passes for 86 yards in his short but productive playing time. The Steelers (3-0) scored touchdowns on each of their five preseason possessions led by Pickett.
Falcons coach Arthur Smith held out his starters, and his backups were overwhelmed on both sides of the ball when matched with Pittsburgh’s first-team units.
With quarterback Desmond Ridder watching from the sideline, backup Taylor Heinicke was sacked by T.J. Watt for a loss of 7 yards on Atlanta’s first possession.
The Falcons (1-1-1) wasted a scoring opportunity in the third quarter when running back Carlos Washington Jr. lost a fumble recovered by Steelers free safety Kenny Robinson at Pittsburgh’s 8-yard line.
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