What's next for the biggest stories of NFL preseason opening week, including Browns QB battle and Ty Simpson

Frank SchwabMon, August 17, 2026 at 1:58 PM UTC

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We now have at least one preseason game from each of the 32 teams to talk about, which also means we have one game worth of information to overreact to.

The preseason is in full swing, and there were some interesting headlines to come out of the first week. Here's what comes next for some of the most important players from the first week of the preseason:

Ty Simpson's encore

While nobody who liked Simpson before the draft should be taking victory laps off of one good preseason outing, the 13th overall draft pick did look good. The Rams' rookie completed 21 of 25 passes for 190 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. He made quick decisions, threw in rhythm and showed off his arm strength on a couple of intermediate routes.

"He took what the defense gave him," Rams head coach Sean McVay said. "You know, I thought he read the plays out, read with his feet. I thought he did a really good job overall."

What's next: The Rams don't play starters in the preseason, so Simpson should continue to play a lot. He'll make his home preseason debut Saturday against the Saints. The next progression is for Simpson to get more aggressive pushing the ball downfield, but if he continues to replicate what he did in the preseason opener that will resonate as the Rams decide if Simpson or Stetson Bennett IV will be their No. 2 quarterback to begin the season.

Rams rookie quarterback Ty Simpson had an impressive preseason debut. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)Browns QB battle

Deshaun Watson got the start against the Bears and was fine, completing 11 of 15 passes for 126 yards. He mostly played a safe game, not throwing downfield often, and he lost a fumble on a sack. Most of Watson's yards came on a 43-yard screen pass to Dylan Sampson, which was a fantastic play by Sampson. It was probably enough to Watson to lead the race to start the regular season, with Browns head coach Todd Monken saying he thought Watson "really functioned at a high level."

Working in Watson's favor is Shedeur Sanders wasn't great as he played through the third quarter. He went 6-of-11 for 79 yards and threw an interception.

What's next: The Browns' plan has been to start Sanders in the second preseason game, which is Saturday against the Bills. Theoretically Sanders could play so well he wins the QB1 job for the regular season, but there have been few signs that Watson won't be the pick. Sanders can at least make the decision tougher.

Anthony Richardson's progress

Richardson is trying to get some positive vibes going and he did so in the Colts' preseason opener. He completed 11-of-14 passes for 145 yards and also rushed for 63 yards. The bad news was an interception (it was not completely his fault) and a lost fumble at the end of a long run. Still, he outplayed Riley Leonard has he tries to win the QB2 job.

What's next: Colts coach Shane Steichen has said his starters won't play in the second preseason game, as they'll get their work in joint practices against the Falcons. That means Richardson should get another extended opportunity in Saturday's preseason game to show he's improving. He has to cut out the turnovers, but if he continues to show progress in other facets of his game it could lead to opportunities for him on the Colts or maybe another interested team.

Jeremiyah Love's injury

One of the most perplexing stories from the first week of the preseason was why the Cardinals decided to give Love 14 touches in the first half of his first preseason game. The No. 3 overall pick stayed in the game with the second team long after the starters departed. Then Love suffered a high ankle sprain. Love did look good, but it surely didn't seem worth it to have him suffer and injury that could linger a while. The Cardinals also lost rookie guard Chase Bisontis, a second-round pick, to a season-ending knee injury.

What's next: It would be very surprising to see Love play again this preseason, and due to the nature of high ankle sprains, his status for the regular season opener could be in question too. It will be interesting to see if Love's injury causes Cardinals coach Mike LaFleur to limit his starters at all over the rest of the preseason.

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49ers WR De'Zhaun Stribling shines

In about 20 minutes of game action, Stribling had seven catches. That's an impressive performance for the rookie, who the 49ers were criticized for drafting at the top of the second round. Stribling made some strong, contested catches and generally looked like he can be a factor right away.

What's next: The amount of volume going Stribling's way was impressive, but he turned that into just 63 yards. You'd like to see him break more plays, and the 49ers know the rookie still has improvement to make even if he looked good in his first preseason game.

"He's a very, very strong player, but there's things he needs to keep working on," 49ers offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak said. "The route running, the detail with alignment. It's going to get better with time."

Can Fernando Mendoza push Kirk Cousins?

It seems very unlikely that Mendoza begins the season as the QB2 behind Cousins. Even after Mendoza played well in his preseason debut, Raiders coach Klint Kubiak made it clear that Cousins has the lead.

"Kirk's been getting the reps with the ones," Kubiak said, via Raiders Wire. "I think he's had a solid training camp and it's his job to lose."

But Mendoza can make things interesting. He had a strong debut, making passes that reminded everyone why he was the first overall pick of the draft. However, Cousins was nearly perfect in his one drive on the night, which ended with a touchdown.

What's next: The Raiders play Thursday at Houston, and Mendoza should get plenty of playing time again. Even if he has little chance of beating out Cousins before Week 1, how well he plays could speed up the timeline for when he does get a shot to start in the regular season. As long as Mendoza continues to show good command of the offense and make plays, he'll be on track to get on the field at some point this season.

Can the Bengals' offensive line protect Joe Burrow?

The Bengals have changed their preseason philosophy after getting off to some slow starts during the season, so we saw their starters in the preseason opener. And one issue that persists in the offensive line. Burrow played 13 snaps, dropped back seven times and was sacked once and pressured on another play. That's not great news, considering Burrow's injury history behind what has been a below average line.

What's next: The Bengals starters might not play against the Bears on Saturday, but they will be tested in joint practices this week. The Bengals should be further along on the line, considering all five starters return, but perhaps they need a little more time to come together. The reports from joint practices and then the game, if the starters play, will be important for a unit that is under close scrutiny due to Burrow's durability issues.

Cam Ward bombs in opener

It was just one preseason game, but Ward might have looked the worst of any projected starting quarterback who played in the first preseason week. The Titans' second-year quarterback was 5 of 12 for 57 yards and generally looked uncomfortable in a new scheme. Afterward, Titans coach Robert Saleh didn't sound worried but added that Ward needed more "time on task" and to trust himself and his teammates.

What's next: Ward is going to play on Sunday night against the Seahawks, and play a lot.

"We may end up going the whole first half this next game," Saleh said about his starters.

While nobody should be making sweeping conclusions off of one preseason game, it would ease some concerns if Ward looked better in the second preseason game. If not, the Titans would be going into the third preseason game looking at perhaps pushing the playing time for starters again to have positive momentum going into the regular season.

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Source: “AOL Sports”