Obscure players shine
Michael Koenen, barely known outside of Atlanta despite being a regular punter and kickoff specialist last season, grabbed the spotlight on the first busy night of the NFL preseason.
Koenen booted four long field goals, including a 40-yarder as time ran out to beat New England 26-23 Friday night. His performance overshadowed the return of quarterback Chad Pennington to the Jets, Steve McNair's first appearance with Baltimore, and Rod Marinelli's debut as Lions coach.
Koenen connected from 44, 45 and 50 yards.
The Falcons also have Tony Yelk, who booted an extra point and handled three kickoffs, but Koenen did the rest. He averaged 44 yards on four punts and kicked off three times.
So could he handle all of Atlanta's kicking chores this season?
"It's a very fine line. You've got to condition your body just right," Koenen said. "You've got to lay back a little bit, not overdo it, so you can come into the games fresh."
His coach, Jim Mora, isn't so sure he wants one guy doing all the kicking, even if it would save salary-cap space and a roster spot.
"I have reservations about it," Mora said. "I can't say he won the job. I liked what I saw tonight, but I'm concerned about having a guy do all three jobs. I'll take another week or so to see how he is, see how he feels. The last thing I want to do is wear him out. But with his ability to affect the game, like he did tonight, it's something we have to think long and hard about."
Falcons rookie quarterback D.J. Shockley, who grew up in suburban Atlanta and played for Georgia, led the drive to the winning kick. The biggest play was a 14-yard pass to Kevin Youngblood, who made a leaping catch over the middle.
Pennington played in a game for the first time since undergoing a second major operation on his right shoulder and looked ready to reclaim his job.The oft-injured seventh-year pro worked two sharp series, completing 9 of 14 passes for 54 yards, and lost a fumble when he was sacked early in the second quarter. More importantly for him and the Jets, his surgically repaired shoulder withstood the first hits he's taken since Week 3 of last season.Rookie Bruce Gradkowski threw second-half touchdown passes of 11 yards to Paris Warren and 2 yards to third-round draft pick Maurice Stovall for Tampa Bay.
McNair produced a touchdown on his first series with the Ravens, then sat. McNair went 4-for-5 for 45 yards and ran for a 6-yard touchdown.The Giants scored 10 points in the final 9 minutes and Jay Feely kicked a 29-yard field goal as time expired.
Each of host Detroit's quarterbacks — Jon Kitna, Josh McCown and Dan Orlovsky — led scoring drives and the Lions' defense caused three turnovers.Third-string quarterback Bradlee Van Pelt drove Denver deep into Detroit territory in the final minute and on a fourth-and-goal at the 9, his pass behind David Kircus was dropped.
Alex Smith looked sharp, passing for 137 yards and leading host San Francisco to a big early lead.The 49ers had the league's worst offense and defense last season, but they were up 17-0 when Smith left after going 16-for-21 with no interceptions in perhaps the most confident performance of his short NFL career.
