Saturday provided two NFL reserve quarterbacks with Utah ties to leave one final impression before the regular season starts next month.

For former Utah quarterback Tyler Huntley, he had his best effort as a pro for Baltimore, leading the Ravens to a 37-3 preseason win over the Washington Football Team.

Former Utah State quarterback Jordan Love, meanwhile, had some strong play mixed with learning moments for Green Bay in the Packers’ 19-0 loss to the Buffalo Bills.

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How Huntley performed for Baltimore

Huntley accounted for five touchdowns — four passing and one rushing — while playing nearly the entire preseason finale and completing 24 of 33 passes for 285 yards. He also ran six times for 14 yards.

It was the kind of effort that greatly enhances the confidence in having Huntley back up starter Lamar Jackson, the 2019 NFL MVP. Huntley entered training camp in a battle with Trace McSorley to be the backup, but McSorley has missed time with back spasms, and Huntley has taken advantage of the chance to showcase his talents.

Huntley led the Ravens to scores on his first six possessions — including five touchdowns — and capped his opening drive — a nine-play, 89-yarder — with an impressive 10-yard touchdown run. 

His three scoring drives in the second quarter covered 60, 57 and 55 yards, with TD drives of 75 and 72 yards in the second half.

Huntley finished the game with a 138.3 QB rating.

“Glad I’m not playing against (Huntley),” Jackson told reporters after Huntley’s big night. “I was cheering like a cheerleader. I just didn’t have pom poms.”

How Love performed for Green Bay

Love played in his second preseason game after missing last week with a lingering shoulder injury. It was the second start for Love, who will back up reigning NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers.

The former Aggie showed some promise against the Bills in a bit of an uneven outing, as he completed 12 of 18 passes for 149 yards in just over a half and moved the Packers 50-plus yards on his first three possessions. Green Bay had 197 yards of total offense in the first half, averaging 6.15 yards per play.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) during the first half of a preseason NFL football game, Saturday, Aug. 28, 2021, in Orchard Park, N.Y. | Joshua Bessex, Associated Press

What hurt the bottom line for Love, though, was that the Packers couldn’t finish drives and he failed to lead them to any points before giving way to Kurt Benkert late in the third.

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On his opening possession, Green Bay drove inside the 5, but Love threw incomplete on a fourth-and-goal at the 1. 

On the Packers’ next drive, Love got Green Bay to the Buffalo 21 — that included a 23-yard pass on a fourth-and-1 in Bills territory — before lofting an ill-advised pass off his back foot that was intercepted in the end zone.

Love’s last possession of the first half ended with a missed field goal after he got Green Bay back inside the Buffalo 5.

“I think for the most part he’s done a nice job,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said Saturday, per ESPN’s Rob Demovsky. “Certainly these are teachable moments, and I think you have to experience those and go through those in a game setting to really learn from them, so I’m pretty certain that he will learn from those mistakes and hopefully he doesn’t repeat them.”

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