What We Learned from the First NFL Sunday of the Year

 It feels so good to be back. For the first time since 2020, we had an NFL Sunday filled with games from the morning to the night. It felt so good to be back and watching all day, and with fans back in the stands. Things feel normal again in the football world. After a super anticipated week 1 that proved to be worth the hype, we have a ton to get into, so we are going to share thoughts on each of Sunday's games.

Houston Texans 37, Jacksonville Jaguars 21

1. I was already very wrong on the Texans. After a horrendous off-season, I without hesitation, predicted the Texans to go 0-17. I thought this week 1 game would be a breeze for the Trevor Lawrence led Jaguars. Nope. Right out of the gate, the Texans were in control and won this game with relative ease. Tyrod Taylor actually looked pretty damn good throwing for 291 yards and 2 TDs with no picks and had so highlight reel worthy plays with his feet. The Texans shared the love on offense and got the ball to many different players including Brandin Cooks, Phillip Lindsay, Mark Ingram, David Johnson, Danny Amendola, and more. Who would have thought they would start out 1-0 and put up one of the highest point totals in the league. And their defense wasn't too shabby either, picking off Lawrence 3 times and shutting down James Robinson completely. A nice showing for Houston and their rookie HC David Culley.

2. This isn't college anymore, Urban. 
Urban Meyer has shown throughout his short time as the coach of the Jags that he will do things his own way, and a lot of those ways are similar to what he did as the head coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes for years. So far, these ways haven't worked out. Urban Meyer's team looked sloppy and unprepared for the quick game at times. They completely phased out one of their best offensive talents in James Robinson in this game and was a big reason why they lost this game. Trevor Lawrence had his ups and downs in his first career start but was promising overall. It was his first regular season loss of his life. Crazy. The Jags D looked lost all day and will need a serious turnaround if this team wants to be better than it was last year. A bright spot for the Jags was WR1 DJ Chark who had a nice game including a longggg TD reception from Lawrence.

3. I'm overall just interested to see how both of these teams fare against better teams than each other next week. How bad could the loss be for the Jags if this is how they performed vs Houston? Are the Texans somewhat for real? 

Seattle Seahawks 28, Indianapolis Colts 16

1. Shane Waldron is a wizard. The Seahawks new offensive coordinator was stellar in his debut in the position. The first time playcaller's offense looked like a match made in heaven for Russell Wilson and this offense. The mix of power and outside running with play action and players in motion was beautiful to watch. Tyler Lockett and Russell Wilson were huge beneficiaries as they starred vs a stout Colts defense. From the first drive on, this offense was locked in and rolling. We can't wait to see how this season progresses for the Seattle offense under Shane Waldron.

2. Same old Wentz? We don't want to get too ahead of ourselves here, but day 1 results from Wentz and the Colts offense were not super promising. While Carson Wentz managed to not turn the ball over, he looked rattled and shaky throughout the game. The offense was not able to create any big time plays as they were mostly checking the ball down and chewing clock. The Colts offensive line needs to be better for Wentz in the coming weeks as he was pressured and sacked often, but to be fair, the opening results were not the best for Carson Wentz in Indy. 

3. Are the Hawks finally balanced? After years of unbalanced football for Seattle since the crushing Super Bowl loss to the Patriots years ago, this team looks like the most balanced it's been under Pete Carroll and Russell Wilson. The run game looks elite with Chris Carson having a great day and the team's set of pass catchers gives them the ability to go deep on any given play. The real story is the well rounded defense that dominated today. The pass rush looks elite as it was all over Wentz today and looks like a majorly deep group. Second year rusher Darrell Taylor made his Seahawks debut today and looked right at home, getting a sack. This is going to be a fun defense to watch this season and with the balanced overall team, could the Hawks finally make it back to the big game? There's a different aura about this 2021 Seahawk team and it seems good.

Pittsburgh Steelers 23, Buffalo Bills 16

1. The Steelers D is still legit. The game was won with this defense. Coming into the road contest as HEAVY underdogs, the Steelers D dominated and almost singlehandedly won them this game. I had the Steelers winning around 5-6 games this season so them knocking off one of the AFC heavyweights in week 1 was a shock to me. TJ Watt was incredible like he always is but just this unit plays together and it's special. The blocked kick returned for a TD by LB Ulyesses Gilbert was the turning point in this game and the Steelers never looked back. It's a great day to be a Steelers fan. 

2. The Bills' offense has work to do. After making the AFC championship game last year and being dominant on offense all season, many expected more of the same right out of the gate for the Bills this year. Nope. Josh Allen played the worst he has in a year and the Bills offense was non-existent. Stefon Diggs even got his work in and still finished with a pedestrian stat-line. Maybe this was a fluke against one of the best defenses in this league, but there could be some cause for concern with the offense.

3. Steelers O is still a question mark as well. As good as the Steelers D played, their O was not on the same level. The Bills D came to play as well and it made life hard for the Steelers on offense. Big Ben does not have much left in the tank. His mobility is worse than ever and his arm strength does not look great. The WR trio the Steelers house is very good and Najee Harris had a promising debut, but with Big Ben at QB, they are limited. It was a great way to start the season, but I'm not sure it will last. 

Philadelphia Eagles 32, Atlanta Falcons 6

1. Jalen Hurts has ARRIVED. You love to see it. A guy who I was super high on going into this season, Hurts delivered in his first start of the season. Mostly touted as a rushing QB with not much of an arm, his arm led the way in this one. 264 yards with 3 TD passes and 0 picks and another 60 yards on the ground. Hurts was surgical in this game as the Eagles routed the sorry Falcons. This offense looks like it will be fun to watch with Hurts, Miles Sanders, DeVonta Smith (who had a nice debut), Jalen Reagor, and Dallas Goedert. Breakout season incoming for Hurts.

2. The Falcons are stuck. Keeping Matt Ryan and drafting TE/weapon Kyle Pitts signified that the Falcons thought they were a few pieces away from contending instead of going to a rebuild. That was not evident in the game today. The Falcons were demolished from the start against another team considered not to be that good. The Falcons didn't score a single TD and weren't good in any facet of the game. This is already looking like it will be a wash of a season for the Falcons which might set up for an awkward 2022 off-season of departures.

3. Could the Eagles contend in the East? Not saying anything I can't take back as it was a bad team they beat, but the Eagles looked great in the convincing win and are the only team who won this week in the division. With Hurts at the helm, does this team have a shot?

Cincinnati Bengals 27, Minnesota Vikings 24 (OT)

1. The Bengals offense is fun. The Bengals might be better than we expected faster than we expected. Joe Burrow returned from his ACL tear last season and looked really good. Joe Mixon is back too. He was a beast on the ground and kept the chains moving. And how about top 5 pick WR Ja'Marr Chase. After getting a ton of hate for a poor off-season filled with drops, Chase did nothing but show why he was a top 5 pick in this opening game. He had over 100 receiving yards and a TD and looked like the better LSU WR out on the field today (Justin Jefferson is an LSU alum as well). The Bengals might have something going for them on the offensive side of the ball and could be a fun team to watch this season. I don't know how many games this team could win this year, but it might be a good year of development for the forgotten team of Ohio.

2. Minnesota is not a contender. A lot of people believed the Vikings had a nice off-season that has them back in the playoff chase for 2021, but after this week 1 performance, I don't think they are quite there. Kirk Cousins simply is not a winning QB in the NFL right now. They have a nice trio in Dalvin Cook, Justin Jefferson, and Adam Thielen, but it just doesn't feel like that alone can get them any wins. Aside from dominant DT Michael Pierce today, this defense also did not look too special. A devastating win for the more experienced Vikings who had their fair share of chances to win the game and couldn't come through. Special shoutout to new kicker Greg Joseph who nailed the iced 53 yard field goal to send the Vikings to OT. He was a highlight today.

Arizona Cardinals 38, Tennessee Titans 13

1. Chandler Jones. What did this man do in the off-season?! I haven't seen such a dominant defensive performance from a single player in at least a year. Chandler Jones was a force and was the main reason this game was as lopsided as it was. He had 5 sacks and 2 forced fumbles. Are you kidding me. To put that into prospective, DPOY candidate DeForest Buckner from last season had 5.5 sacks on the year. Jones almost got that in one game. He flies out to an early DPOY favorite and we will have to see how he follows up this performance.

2. New look Titans offense looks lost. After a good off-season in which the Titans added Julio Jones to an already explosive offense, the expectations were high for this group in week 1. Especially going against a usually suspect Cardinals D. They disappointed big time. The offense just looked lost. Usually their offense is predicated around running it down your throat with big Derrick Henry but they didn't run early and it led to their offense being non-existent in this game. The offensive line was downright terrible and Julio Jones was a non-factor. The team does not have much time to do a 180 as they head to the daunting Lumen Field to face the Seahawks in week 2 in the 12's first home game in a year...gulp.

3. Arizona is a threat in the West. In the best division in football, the Cardinals are often an afterthought due to the greatness of the trio of other teams in the division. With this performance, they didn't just put the division on notice, but the entire NFC. Their defense shutdown one of the league's top offenses and their offense was electric. Kyler Murray is going to be an MVP candidate again this season. He is so hard to stop with his unique scrambling and massive arm combination. DeAndre Hopkins is still DeAndre Hopkins as well. The Cardinals have to be taken seriously in the race to win the best division in football.

San Fransisco 49ers 41, Detroit Lions 33

1. Niners look like Niners again. Despite almost blowing the game late, for most of this one, it looked like the 2019 49ers again. Jimmy Garopollo looked like the sharp game manager we expect him to be and the Niners run game was nice despite somehow already being down 2 guys. Deebo Samuel was amazing. 180+ receiving yards. That is exactly how they want him to be used. When he is eating, the whole offense eats. It's exciting to think that this is how the offense played without Raheem Mostert, Brandon Aiyuk, and rookie RB Trey Sermon out. 

2. Lions show life. In a year where this team is widely expected to be among the very worst in the league, the Lions put up a pretty good fight against this tough Niners team. With good play down the stretch, the team had a chance to go down the field and tie the game with a minute to go. It didn't work out but it was cool to see them in the game at that point after previously being down double digits. Jared Goff wasn't awful and TE TJ Hockenson and RBs D'Andre Swift and Jamaal Williams were actually really good. Little known WRs Quintez Cephus and Kalif Raymond made some nice plays down the stretch as well. And rookie top pick OT Penei Sewell actually had a really solid first outing going against top tier edge rusher Nick Bosa. A loss that the Lions should feel good about.

Los Angeles Chargers 20, Washington Football Team 16

1. Sloppy win for the Chargers. While the Chargers won this game and beat a good team from last season, it wasn't exactly convincing. The Chargers are a team I believe to be a major breakout in 2021 and be a dark horse super bowl contender, but they didn't look that way for much of this game. Justin Herbert was off the mark a fair amount but still contributed to helping Keenan Allen and Mike Williams have big games of their own. The Chargers D actually played really well but as a whole, this team has some work to do. The positive, they found a way to win.

2. QB drama again for Washington. After signing Ryan Fitzpatrick to be their guy this year in the off-season, he went down early on in the game, forcing the team to instantly pivot to Taylor Heinicke. While Heinicke is considered one of the better backups in the game and played somewhat well in this one, the team is going to be pretty sad to lose Fitz for some period of time. He is consistent and is a savvy vet that can help this team win the close games. The Football Team for now remains the NFC East favorite in my mind, but it's by a much slimmer margin now. The real question is how long will Fitzpatrick be out and can this team pivot quickly for their upcoming week 2 contest on Thursday night against the Giants.

Carolina Panthers 19, New York Jets 14

1. Darnold takes down former team. In Sam Darnold's Panthers debut which happened to be against his former team in the New York Jets, he and his squad came away with the win. A big confidence boost for the young signal caller and his team. The Panthers offense didn't score a ton but looked efficient. The return of Christian McCaffrey was huge and he was dominant in the passing game today. The rapport between Darnold and fellow former Jet Robby Anderson was in evidence as the pair connected on a nice deep TD pass to help Carolina win.

2. Zach Wilson has an up and down debut in a sloppy overall Jets game. For the Jets, the Zach Wilson era begun as well today and it was an up and down mixed bag. He wasn't incredibly efficient but made some nice plays and throws. Something that was good to see for Jets fans was his connection with big ticket FA signing Corey Davis. Davis had 2 TDs and over 80 yards receiving in his first game as a Jet. Aside from that, not great stuff for the Jets. Rising star young tackle Mekhi Becton was injured and it didn't look good and this Jets defense clearly is going to need some work before this team can compete in any form. 

3. Panthers D needs to improve. The Panthers D only allowed 14 points which is good in today's NFL, but it was against the Jets. In order for this team to be a real contender, we will need to see this D step up in the coming weeks. If they can, this team could have a chance to sneak into the 7 seed of the NFC playoffs.

Kansas City Chiefs 33, Cleveland Browns 29

1. New year, same Chiefs. The Chiefs look like they are in mid-season form. In classic Chiefs fashion, they started out slow on offense and took a decent deficit into the third quarter before lighting it up and storming their way back. Pat Mahomes has yet to lose a game in the month of September and not even this tough Browns squad being up 12 at one point was enough to break the streak. Mahomes looks like he might be even better than last year. He had some erratic plays and moments but overall was that good. He is obviously right into the MVP conversation from the get go. Tyreek Hill was the star out of the skill position group as well with 197 yards and a TD on 11 grabs. I seriously don't know how you go about stopping this offense. Todd Bowles is going to get a lot of phone calls from Chiefs opponents this season...

2. The Browns are for real. They had a great playoff run last year and an even better off-season. With lofty projections for this season, it remained to be seen if the Browns would actually be THAT good. They looked to be for the most part in the heartbreaking loss to the Chiefs. The defense was honestly better than advertised for most of the contest and this run game was humming. Nick Chubb is going to have a lot of yards this season. Kareem Hunt had one of his better games serving as the RB2 of his career. The real question mark is still Baker Mayfield. While he played well at times, he also threw the game losing pick with a minute to go. The Browns had a shot of winning this game and Mayfield threw the pick. He has work to do but these Browns look legit.

3. Garrett and Clowney could EAT. A final quick note is the Myles Garrett/Jadeveon Clowney pass rushing duo looked like it worked in the game. The two fed off of each other and made some highlight plays. This is exactly the situation Jadeveon Clowney needed to thrive in and it's looking like the Browns might own one of the most feared edge rushing duos in football this season. 

New Orleans Saints 38, Green Bay Packers 3

1. Things are not good in Green Bay. After seemingly settling their differences on a one year rental for Aaron Rodgers in the off-season, things are possibly going backwards now. What did we just witness from Green Bay? They looked awful. That's the worst football game I've seen that team play in maybe 5 years. Aaron Rodgers was off the mark the entire day which was especially shocking as he was the MVP of the league last season throwing one of the most efficient statlines we've ever seen from a QB. The defense couldn't stop a JV football team. The offense was turning the ball over and punting from plus territory. Aaron Rodgers didn't look right out there. Davante Adams wasn't even working. This loss puts a massive spotlight on what the Packers do in the coming weeks and the possibility of them starting out with a multi-loss record could be the end to the Rodgers/Packers storied era.

2. Jameis Winston. He's back. What a job by the Saints. They found him after getting ousted from Tampa last off-season, had him learn a year behind an all-time great, and then got him back on an affordable one year pact that locked him in as the team's starter for this season. It's looking like he might be able to finally live up to that top pick pedigree in NOLA. Winston threw for a wildly efficient 5 TD passes with just under 200 yards. He looked so poised in the pocket and was on the money with all of his throws. He connected with many different targets, most notably, Deonte Harris and Juwan Johnson for big plays. The Saints might be back and better than ever this year with Winston at the helm. The team might have just found it's QB of the future.

3. Saints D is underrated. What a performance by the Saints D. We talked about it earlier but they shut down the league's top offense from a year ago. The moves they made in the off-season appear to already be paying off and we are excited to see how they carry this momentum into the coming weeks.

Miami Dolphins 17, New England Patriots 16

1. Both ex-Alabama QBs have a long way to go. In the match between AFC East young QBs who were the last two Alabama starters at the position, the edge went to Tua Tagovailoa's team, but not mostly because of what he did. Tua wasn't impressive in his sophomore debut, looking shaky and lost at times. The Dolphins offense has a lot of work to do if they want to win more close games. Mac Jones had his rookie struggles in his first career start but overall still looked better than Tua. Jones' connection with Nelson Agholor, James White, and Jonnu Smith was promising to see. Both of these teams hope to contend in the AFC and AFC East this season but will need development out of their young QBs if they hope to be serious threats.

2. Both defenses came to play. While both offenses have much work to do, the same can't really be said for the defenses. Both were great. They forced turnovers and both teams held each other under 20 points which is elite. There is a lot of talent on either defensive unit and they really maximize it. If either of these teams win the division or even do well in the playoffs, it will be the defense leading the way. The Dolphins barely took this one, but it could be very different by the next time we see these two squad's go at it. 

3. The Dolphins should go after Watson. Not much to say here but if the team could pull off a deal for Deshaun Watson, they would be squarely among the Super Bowl favorites in the NFL. Tua is really looking like a career backup as of now and the Dolphins easily have the draft compensation at their disposal to pay a king's ransom and still have picks left for the future.

Denver Broncos 27, New York Giants 13

1. Denver D is back. After a few years of injury and inconsistency following their dominant Super Bowl 50 winning defense, this defense appears to be BACK! This is off the heels of an outstanding defensive performance in which the team allowed just 7 points through 59:58 of a 60 minute game. Von Miller was outstanding. Many thought he had reached the end of his career after a disappointing injury riddled 2020, but he came to play for week 1 recording multiple sacks in big moments in the game. This is a super deep and well rounded D that looks like it could be capable of carrying this team like it did on the way to winning Super Bowl 50. 

2. The Giants are not contenders. The Giants had an up and down 2020 season that had fans wanting more in 2021. After a decent off-season, some thought that with their additions and the return of Saquon Barkley, this team could contend this year. Wrong. Daniel Jones is a bust. He turned it over a 40th time in his very young career and looked the same as he has. Saquon Barkley looked like a shell of his former self and we have to hope as football fans that he does not turn into the next Todd Gurley whose career was over way too fast. The defense which was considered the strong point of this team was not impressive and let up everything to a mid-tier offense. The Giants will be looking forward to the off-season very soon. 

3. Denver offense has promise. Led by vet Teddy Bridgewater, the Broncos offense looked better than expected on Sunday. A brutal blow to lose stud second year wideout Jerry Jeudy for extended time but this offense still has playmakers. Noah Fant the TE was a consistent big target throughout the game. The RB duo of Melvin Gordon and Javonte Williams looked sharp as well. Denver might be more balanced than we thought and they could have a playoff run up their sleeves if Sunday was any indication. 

Los Angeles Rams 34, Chicago Bears 14

1. Stafford well worth the price. In his Rams debut, Matthew Stafford couldn't have been better. On his very first drive, he slung a 60 yard bomb to second year pro Van Jefferson for a TD. After that, he and this offense never looked back. Stafford looked unbelievably poised in the new offense and it is evident that this group is going to be amazing. It was already hard to stop this offense with Jared Goff under center, I don't know what DCs will have for this offense with Stafford there. This team is going to be so hard to beat.

2. Dalton done for. Just like many predicted, it only took one game for us to determine if Andy Dalton was worth starting again. The answer is an astounding no. Aside from a good start, Dalton didn't show us anything we didn't already know about him. He simply doesn't have the arm anymore nor the athleticism to be the QB1 on a winning team. Justin Fields got a few offensive snaps and even rushed for a 3 yard TD himself. If the Bears staff wants to keep its jobs and start winning games, they will put in Justin Fields much sooner rather than later. I would say week 3 is probably the latest we have to wait. 

3. Rams D still top notch. While it was Andy Dalton and the Bears, this defense was still dominant. It made it a rough night from the get go for the Bears offense including a pick in the redzone from the very first drive. Aaron Donald only had one sack but was all over the place all night long. Jalen Ramsey was still Jalen Ramsey as well. With the offense ascending and the defense elite, I seriously don't know how to stop this football team right now. Can't wait for the Rams to go up against Seattle, Tampa Bay, and San Fransisco in the coming weeks.