Big Ben returns in win

Ben Roethlisberger played a nearly flawless first half in his first game since injuring his right foot and Buffalo’s starting offense struggled yet again as Pittsburgh beat the visiting Bills 17-0 in NFL preseason play on Saturday night.

Roethlisberger led two scoring drives while going 15 of 19 for 168 yards before sitting out the second half, showing why coach Mike Tomlin didn’t seem worried when his quarterback bruised his foot during the final training camp practice on Aug 20.

In three games, the Steelers’ top-ranked defense from a season ago has yet to allow a touchdown.

Lions 18, Colts 17: Drew Stanton threw a 21-yard pass to rookie Dan Gronkowski and a two-point conversion to John Standeford with 4:13 left to give Detroit a win over Indianapolis at Detroit.

The third-string quarterback followed Daunte Culpepper and Matthew Stafford, both of whom seemed to make enough plays to keep their competition open going into Detroit’s final preseason game next week.

Culpepper completed seven of 12 passes for 67 yards and a TD. Stafford was 13 of 19 for 160 yards and an interception.

Peyton Manning looked sharp, connecting on 12 of 15 passes for 123 yards in two-plus quarters for the Colts.

Saints 45, Raiders 7: Drew Brees completed 14 of 17 passes for 179 yards and drove New Orleans to touchdowns on all three drives he played, leading the Saints to a victory over Oakland at Oakland, Calif.

Coaches put heavy emphasis on the third exhibition game, calling it a dress rehearsal for the season. If that’s the case, the Saints offense is more than ready and the Raiders again need plenty of work on both sides of the ball.

Browns 23, Titans 17: Brady Quinn threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Braylon Edwards and outplayed Derek Anderson in perhaps their final auditions for coach Eric Mangini to be Cleveland’s starting quarterback, and the Browns beat visiting Tennessee.

Quinn and Anderson entered the third preseason game in a virtual dead heat. Earlier this week, Mangini described their summer-long competition as “very close” and it remains that way.

Ravens 17, Panthers 13: Joe Flacco threw for 247 yards and a touchdown, the Ravens’ defense shut down Carolina’s first unit, and Baltimore beat the Panthers at Charlotte.

In this third exhibition game, where both teams played their starters into the third quarter, proved one-sided when the regulars were on the field. The Panthers, playing without their top two running backs and three starters on defense, were overwhelmed early by Flacco, who completed 23 of 28 passes.

49ers 20, Cowboys 13: Dallas rode Felix Jones and Marion Barber for most of a 94-yard touchdown drive, the highlight series for the Cowboys during the first-half battle between the first teams in a loss to San Francisco at Arlington, Texas. The 49ers won the battle of the backups in the second half and wound up winning on a 9-yard touchdown run by Kory Sheets with 33 seconds left.

Jets 27, Giants 25: Mark Sanchez lived up to all the hype in his first game since being selected as the New York Jets’ starting quarterback.

Sanchez completed a spectacular 31-yard touchdown pass play to Chansi Stuckey and put 20 points on the board in 2 1/2 quarters as the Jets took the annual New York braggin’ rights game with a decision over the Giants in East Rutherford, N.J., giving new coach Rex Ryan his first win.

Falcons 27, Chargers 24: Philip Rivers led San Diego to touchdown drives in two of his three possessions in his first game since signing a contract extension, before the Atlanta backups rallied to beat the Chargers in Atlanta.

The Chargers led 21-10 as the first-team offense ran smoothly even with LaDainian Tomlinson and Antonio Gates watching from the sideline.