DETROIT (AP) — Dwayne Washington likely secured a spot on Detroit’s season-opening roster with a 58-yard touchdown run and Jake Rudock boosted his chances with three touchdown passes, helping the Lions close the preseason with a 31-0 win over Buffalo Bills on Thursday night.
Washington, a seventh-round pick from Washington, used a burst of speed to get around the left side and up the sideline on the third snap of the game. He had a 96-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and scored on a run earlier in the preseason, leading to the Lions cutting Stevan Ridley last week.
Like a vast majority of starters on both sides, Washington watched much of the game after he ran for 68 yards on seven carries.
Rudock lofted a 2-yard TD pass to Jay Lee to give Detroit a 17-0 lead late in the first half. He drove Detroit down the field late in the third quarter, converting third downs with his arms and leg, and scrambled to buy time on a 10-yard TD pass to Jace Billingsley, who snagged the ball with his left hand. Rudock connected with rookie tight end Adam Fuehne on another TD pass, putting the Lions up 31-0 midway through the fourth quarter.
Bills coach Rex Ryan seemed determined to get his team on and off the field as quickly as possible, trying to limit injuries and to avoid showing future opponents anything to help them game plan. It didn’t go as planned, though, because he had a handful of players go down with injuries.
Buffalo ran plays out of the wishbone early in the game, using a formation it likely wouldn’t in the regular season, and punt returner Greg Salas called for a fair catch once in the first half — even though a Lions player wasn’t within 15 yards of him.
