NFL Preseason Games 2012: Studs and Duds from Thursday's Action

Joe Flacco looked silky smooth for the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday, while Andy Dalton pretended he didn't know how to throw a football for the Cincinnati Bengals. 

Week 3 in the preseason is when teams usually leave their starters in well into the third quarter to work on conditioning and to develop much-needed chemistry. As is the case every week in the NFL, some players looked fabulous, while others stunk up the joint. 

With that in mind, here are your Thursday night studs and duds. 

Studs: Aaron Rodgers and Cedric Benson

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers wasn't all that sharp in the passing game, completing just over half his passes and tossing a pick. He was stellar on the ground, however, and was joined in that pursuit by newly-acquired running back Cedric Benson. 

Rodgers ran for 52 yards on five carries, scoring two touchdowns. Benson ran the ball six times for 38 yards, with an exceptional average of 6.3 yards per carry. 

It's hard to say which of these performances should scare teams more. If Benson can produce like this during the regular season, the Packers will be unstoppable on offense. 

Dud: Andy Dalton

"Red Rocket" had a hell of a game—and not the good kind. 

Andy Dalton almost equaled his passing yardage with his rushing numbers, if that tells you anything. He was awful in the passing game. 

Dalton's stat line: 5-of-17 passing for 40 yards and three carries for 36 yards. 

Hey, at least he didn't throw any picks. That's something. 

Going forward, though, Dalton needs to be more decisive when his offensive line breaks down like it did on Thursday night against the Green Bay Packers. Otherwise, we might see him regress a bit in a sophomore slump. 

Stud: Torrey Smith

Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Torrey Smith played lights out against a talented Jacksonville Jaguars secondary. What he and Joe Flacco did on Thursday night should make teams around the NFL nervous. 

Smith didn't play the whole game, but he put up numbers that would make most receivers envious: eight catches for 103 yards, the longest of which was 32 yards. 

His big-play abilities and burgeoning route-running skills are going to make defending the Ravens a nightmare for opposing defensive coordinators. Ray Rice will be happily waiting behind center to take advantage of the deep safeties teams will be forced to commit, and the offense of the Ravens is set to take off in 2012. 

Dud: Maurice Jones-Drew

Rashad Jennings is making Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan look smart.

Jennings carried the ball 13 times for 57 yards against the stout defensive front of the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday night, earning 4.4 yards per carry.

With production like that, why in the world would Khan acquiesce to Maurice Jones-Drew's contract demands?

He won't. 

MJD needs to get to camp soon, or he'll end up like Chris Johnson did last year.

Studs: Jake Locker/Kendall Wright

The Tennessee Titans look like they have an elite offense brewing in the next couple of seasons with Jake Locker at the helm. Rookie receiver Kendall Wright figures to be a huge part of that equation, too, and he made his presence known on Thursday night. 

Locker and Wright hooked up four times for 44 yards and one touchdown. Locker's night wasn't finished, though, as he threw another touchdown to Nate Washington. On the night, Locker went 11-for-20 for 134 yards and two touchdowns. He also added 11 yards on the ground. 

Sorry, Mr. Hasselbeck, your time is over, sir. 

Dud: Chris Johnson

If the Tennessee Titans are going to have success, they can't rely solely on Jake Locker's arm. Chris Johnson needs to have a big year.

He didn't fare well against the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday night, rushing for only 27 yards on 13 carries with zero touchdowns.

He was solid in the team's second preseason game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but his performance on Thursday proves he and his offensive line need to get things going consistently before the season begins.

Stud: Joe Flacco

The Baltimore Ravens destroyed the Jacksonville Jaguars on Thursday night, and Joe Flacco was incredible leading the charge. We all know that this is preseason, and we all know that Flacco can be like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde sometimes...but damn was he good.

Flacco played into the third quarter, leaving the game after his team built a 20-3 lead on the Jaguars. For the night, he completed 27 of his 36 passes for 266 yards with two touchdowns and one interception—good enough for a 102.3 passer rating. 

Flacco and Torrey Smith teamed up for eight of those passes and 103 yards. His two touchdowns went to Anquan Boldin and Vonta Leach, and he spread his passes to his receiving corps beautifully throughout the night. 

Combined with the deadly running game of Ray Rice, the Ravens are going to be a very tough team to beat in 2012 if Flacco can play like this more often than not. 

Dud: Any Quarterback Wearing an Arizona Cardinals Uniform

As much as I hate the Arizona Cardinals (49ers fan since four years old), I actually feel really sorry for Ken Whisenhunt. 

He doesn't have a single NFL-caliber quarterback on his roster. 

John Skelton got the start on Thursday after Kevin Kolb stunk things up the first two preseason games, but he only muddled up the picture with a horrid performance. He went 4-for-10 on the night with one interception, earning a 12.9 passer rating. 

Then, Kevin Kolb did everything he could to make things worse. He threw two nauseating interceptions—one was just a terrible throw, the other a terrible read—and did nothing to separate himself from Skelton's putrescence. 

The third-string quarterback, Ryan Lindley, didn't fare much better than Kolb or Skelton, though it's worth noting that he did manage to maintain possession of the football while he was in the game. 

Whisenhunt is a good coach. The Cardinals have a phenomenal defense. If the team could only manage to find a decent quarterback and a few offensive linemen, they'd challenge the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC West. 

As it is right now, however, they might challenge the Indianapolis Colts and Minnesota Vikings for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 NFL draft. 

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