The Buffalo Bills and Washington Redskins enjoyed pre-season victories on Thursday as the quarterbacks took centre stage.

Bills quarterback Tyrod Taylor did his best with a banged-up Buffalo roster to lead them past the Cleveland Browns 11-10.

The Bills entered the match-up without their top five running backs and three starting receivers.

To make matters even worse, receiver Chris Hogan was carted off during the game leaving the Bills with even fewer options.

Taylor finished completing seven of 10 passes for 65 yards. He had a nice opening drive that resulted in a missed field goal. He also used his legs four times and finished with 44 rushing yards, which was the best on the team.

The Bills are still trying find their answer at quarterback.

Matt Cassel sat out Thursday's game as Taylor and E.J. Manuel started each half, respectively.

Manuel finished nine of 14 for 111 yards and had a late game-winning touchdown (and two-point conversion) drive.

For Cleveland, Johnny Manziel came out strong.

He finished 10 of 18 for 118 yards and completed a 21-yard touchdown pass to Shane Wynn. The touchdown capped off an 11-play, 96-yard drive.

Josh McCown, who has been named the starter, went seven of 10 for 57 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions.

In the other game, Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III had a tough day at the office as his team beat the Detroit Lions 21-17.

Griffin was getting abused by the Lions' defense as the Redskins' offensive line struggled to block.

Eventually he took enough hits and was knocked out of the game. After the game concluded, the Redskins announced Griffin suffered a concussion.

There was not a lot of attention on any of the Lions' players.

Calvin Johnson sat out, Matthew Stafford played a limited amount, and nothing major happened. Quarterback Dan Orlovsky did finish with two touchdown passes on the night.

IMPACT ROOKIES
Bills cornerback Ronald Darby was perhaps the most impressive rookie. He came away with not one, but two interceptions for Buffalo. The second-round pick has been impressive in camp and is continuing his dominance into the pre-season.

Lions running back Zach Zenner finished with four carries for 22 yards on the ground, leading the team, but his main impact was as a receiver. He caught five passes for 59 yards (both led the team), including a five-yard touchdown.