Play of the Game: Tua Tagovailoa was sacked at the Patriots 37-yard line on fourth-and-12 with 53 seconds left. That completed a day where, again, the theme was lost opportunity. On the previous possession, Tua threw a fourth-down interception over the middle that was returned 20 yards to the Dolphins 38 with 2:12 left. Bottom-line: The Dolphins needed winning plays from their quarterback.
It was a wild ride with Mac Jones debuting in place of an injured Brock Purdy, but Jones threw three touchdown passes, the final one being a 42-yard strike to Jauan Jennings on third down for the eventual winning points. A week after opening with a 17-13 win at Seattle, the 49ers defense had its ups and downs, but it never relinquished the lead, and like Week 1, a strip-sack fumble secured the victory.
Joseph completed 16 of 22 passes and also rushed for 63 yards and a score for the Monarchs (2-1), who registered the program's first road win over an ACC opponent. "We just couldn't get any momentum going," Pry said. "We turned the ball over in the red zone. We get a turnover and we can't cash in on it. There were flashes, in the game, of the ability to run the ball. There were flashes of the ability to throw the ball, but not near consistent enough."
USF is 2-0 with upset wins over No. 25 Boise State and No. 13 Florida, but the start looks better on paper than it really is. The Bulls have been living off big plays, turnovers and opponent mistakes more than consistent, sustainable football. Against Boise, USF won 34-7, but the box score tells a different story. Boise actually had more first downs and controlled time of possession. They moved the ball well but lost three fumbles that killed scoring chances.
The debut for No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward had its share of rough moments as the Tennessee Titans lost 20-12 to the Denver Broncos. Ward's frustration came to the surface when he spoke about only scoring six points off four turnovers caused by the Titans' defense. "We were a-- honestly," Ward said after the game. "When you get a defense that gets three or four turnovers and don't capitalize on it, that's on us."
According to Brad Gagnon from The Bleacher Report, it is fairly broad and fairly typical. The analyst cited the play of the Commanders' defense as the team's biggest roadblock to success. He admits there is a degree of nitpicking involved in this analysis. Washington played well across the board last season, far exceeding expectations on its way to a conference title game. The offense was exceptional, so perhaps defense will indeed be the key to equaling or surpassing last year's performance.
This wasn't close, no matter what the scoreboard said. This was a full-blown debacle. Given a chance to quickly right things after a season-opening blowout loss, UCLA instead doubled down on disappointment. The Bruins' 30-23 loss to Nevada Las Vegas on Saturday night at Allegiant Stadium showcased many of the same problems that had plagued them a week ago. The defense was slow and often out of position.
San Jose State had the ball on Central Michigan's 15-yard line trailing by two points with 1:13 left Friday night. Denis Lynch lined up for his first field-goal attempt of the season. His wobbly kick missed wide right. San Jose State went on to lose the season opener as Central Michigan held on for a 16-14 victory at CEFCU Stadium.
The biggest difference between a hand pie and a turnover is the dough that the filling is encased in. Hand pies are usually made with pie dough, while turnovers are traditionally made with puff pastry.