The NFL preseason got underway on Thursday evening with the Chicago Bears claiming a 21-17 victory over the Houston Texans in the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio.
An entertaining match had to be cut short when lightning flashed across the sky amid thunderstorms in the area, with officials calling time on the contest with 3:31 left to go in the third quarter.
Here's a look at the winners and losers from the 42 minutes of football that was played.
Winners
Brett Rypien
While something has to go very wrong in Chicago for Caleb Williams not to be the starting quarterback in Week 1, Thursday night hinted at a decent battle for the backup job. Tyson Bagent is the presumptive number two behind Williams and was pulled from this game early, giving ten-year veteran Brett Rypien a chance to impress.
The journeyman QB, who has just four NFL starts to his name, did just that, completing 11 of 15 passes for 166 yards and three touchdowns. He did this by being happy to take risks and air the ball out and in the process has some game tape that is likely to ensure his place in the league for another season or two, whether that's in Chicago or elsewhere.
Davis Mills
Houston also chose to rest their starters, meaning Davis Mills was under centre in place of C.J. Stroud and he put in a very professional performance, completing 10 of 13 passes for 102 yards and a touchdown.
While you shouldn’t read too much into preseason performances, especially right at the start of August, it’s a promising sign for the Texans that their offense appears to be singing from the same hymn sheet and that’s a testament to offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik’s coaching ability.
Caleb Williams
While the Bears' number one draft pick didn’t suit up for this clash, he will have noted that one of the game’s standout performers was wide receiver Collin Johnson who overcame an early drop to haul in two touchdown passes, as he ended the game with three catches for 56 yards.
Johnson will be fighting for a place in the final 53-man roster this preseason and entered the game sitting fifth or sixth on the depth chart, but this performance shows just how healthy the Bears’ wide receiver corps is.
The Bears have done all they can to surround Williams with weapons this offseason and the rookie has every chance to make an immediate impact in the NFL.
Losers
The fans
For the third time in nine years, we did not see a completed contest in the Hall of Fame Game, as the game was called off for safety reasons as lightning flashed across the Ohio sky during the third quarter.
The game was called with 3:31 to go in the third, as the Bears were awarded a 21-17 victory. Despite the match not going the distance, it was an improvement on the 2016 and 2020 contests, which were called off due to poor field conditions and the COVID-19 pandemic respectively.
It was clearly the right call to end the game early as the safety of the fans, players, coaches and officials is paramount, but it was a shame that the weather gods denied us what was gearing up to be an exciting climax to the first game of NFL football since February’s Super Bowl.
Those wanting kickoff fireworks from day one
The match began with our very first sighting of the NFL’s new ‘Dynamic Kickoff’ in action, a change to the rules that everyone hopes will inject some much-needed excitement into the kickoff play, which has grown stale in recent seasons.
But it was all a bit meh, as the eight kickoffs failed to generate a return that went past the 31-yard line, with the average starting position being just past the 25-yard line.
But don’t go writing it off after one outing, as the wet conditions in Canton were not conducive to big plays, while teams’ response to the change will be something of a work in progress over the coming weeks and months.
Live on DAZN: Terence Crawford vs. Israil Madrimov on August 3. Click here for details .