NFL preseason roundup: Brady plays, Patriots rally past Saints

Brandin Cooks caught all four passes thrown his way for 117 yards, including a 45-yard touchdown from Drew Brees, and the host New Orleans Saints raced to a 21-0 lead before the New England Patriots rallied for a 26-24 NFL exhibition victory Saturday night.

Brees, a healthy scratch last week when New Orleans lost at Baltimore, was 8 of 10 for 159 yards and two TDs, the other going to veteran tight end Ben Watson.

After Tom Brady failed to move New England for a first down on three series, backup Jimmy Garoppolo led five scoring drives, starting with his scramble and 24-yard scoring pass to Chris Harper.

Eagles 40, Ravens 17: Sam Bradford and DeMarco Murray had successful debuts, Kenjon Barber returned another punt for a score, and host Philadelphia bested Baltimore.

Bradford went 3 of 5 for 35 yards and led the Eagles on an 84-yard drive in his only series.

Panthers 31, Dolphins 30: Ryan Tannehill completed 12 of 15 passes for 102 yards and a touchdown, Damien Williams scored twice for Miami in a loss to Carolina in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Williams scored on a 1-yard touchdown run and caught an 11-yard TD pass on a slant route from Tannehill.

Bears 23, Colts 11: Jay Cutler led Chicago to three first-half field goals and Jimmy Clausen got the Bears in the end zone twice in the second half, putting away a win at Indianapolis.

Andrew Luck was 5 of 9 for 71 yards and scored on a 5-yard run.

Broncos 14, Texans 10: Peyton Manning couldn’t score in more than a quarter of work in his preseason debut before Denver’s reserves rallied late to help the Broncos to a win over host Houston.

Manning led the team on four drives that all ended with punts before he was replaced by Brock Osweiler with 11 minutes left in the second quarter. Manning was 8 of 14 for 52 yards.

Vikings 20, Raiders 12: Charles Johnson and Chase Ford each caught touchdown passes in the second quarter for Minnesota, which came back from an hour-plus weather delay to defeat Oakland in Minneapolis.

Teddy Bridgewater finished 10 for 14 for 89 yards, including the crisp 10-yard throw into Johnson’s outstretched hands in close coverage to finish the third drive by Minnesota’s starters.

Giants 22, Jaguars 12: Blake Bortles had another impressive preseason outing for Jacksonville, leading the Jaguars to three field goals in his only drives in a loss to New York in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Eli Manning and the Giants struggled for the second straight week, with Manning finishing 4 of 14 for 46 yards.

Chargers 22, Cardinals 19: Arizona rookie David Johnson rushed for 66 yards in 13 carries, San Diego had six first-half sacks, and rookie Josh Lambo kicked a 42-yard field goal as the game ended to give San Diego a preseason victory over Arizona in Glendale, Arizona.