Preseason Week 1...Yawn (Mostly)

Not that Week 1 of the NFL preseason is usually chock full of interesting storylines, but this one was a yawner even by those ground-scraping standards. After the Brett Favre saga of the preceding month, I guess a return to some semblance of normality (I hate the word normalcy) was inevitable. And yes, I know the potentially most interesting game is to come, the Packers/Bengals tilt at Lambeau Field on Monday.

But until then...

The most notable injury of the week came to Steelers backup QB Charlie Batch, who will be out an estimated 4-6 weeks with a broken collarbone. Pittsburgh signed Byron Leftwich to take his place on Sunday, and if Leftwich plays well and picks up the offense, don't count on Batch being a Steeler much longer. Otherwise, not a lot of headline-grabbing stuff. Here are some one-line synopses.

Lions 13, Giants 10 - Giants QB David Carr (10-of-13, 104 yards, 1 TD) looked decent, for a change.

Jets 24, Browns 20 - Fourth-round Jets draft pick Dwight Lowery helped his case for a roster spot by intercepting a pass and also returning a punt 62 yards for the game-winning touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Ravens 16, Patriots 15 - Kyle Boller (11-of-15, 102 yards) passed it better than Troy Smith (5-of-12, 74 yards) and Joe Flacco (0-for-3, 0 yards), but Boller also committed two turnovers.

Cardinals 24, Saints 10 - Matt Leinart (7-of-8, 91 yards) and Drew Brees (6-of-7, 40 yards, 1 TD) both looked sharp, but Kurt Warner didn't play for some reason.

Chiefs 24, Bears 20 - Neither Kyle Orton (7-of-10, 56 yards) nor Rex Grossman (4-of-8, 44 yards, 1 TD) was horrible for the Bears.

Steelers 16, Eagles 10 - Rashard Mendenhall (7 carries, 34 yards) and Willie Parker (3 carries, 20 yards) both ran it a little for Pittsburgh.

Seahawks 34, Vikings 17 - The Vikings defense looked sort of clueless, giving up 17 points in the first quarter before the Seahawks went to backups.

Raiders 18, 49ers 6 - None of the 49ers quarterbacks - J.T. O'Sullivan (5-of-8, 73 yards), Alex Smith (5-of-9, 51 yards), or Shaun Hill (10-of-20, 83 yards, 1 INT) - led a touchdown drive.

Redskins 17, Bills 14 - Rookie wideout James Hardy (Indiana) made immediate headlines (the good kind) for Buffalo, catching a 16-yard touchdown pass from J.P. Losman.

Panthers 23, Colts 20 (OT) - Carolina fans must be groaning after Jake Delhomme was just 0-for-1 passing on a pair of series.

Jaguars 20, Falcons 17 - Matt Ryan was a solid 9-of-15 for 113 yards and a 25-yard touchdown pass to Roddy White in his first appearance as a Falcon.

Buccaneers 17, Dolphins 6 - Ricky Williams (5 carries, 31 yards) and Ronnie Brown (3 carries, 4 yards) both played for Miami.

Texans 19, Broncos 16 - Denver's two most notable running backs - Selvin Young (4 carries, 3 yards) and Michael Pittman (5 carries, 13 yards) - had forgettable nights.

Titans 34, Rams 13 - Titans 1st-round rookie Chris Johnson scored on an electrifying 66-yard touchdown run.

Chargers 31, Cowboys 17 - With LaDainian Tomlinson again sitting out the preseason, Chargers rookie Jacob Hester (LSU) carried 13 times for 49 yards and scored two touchdowns.