The NFL is officially back. I’m not wasting any time. Let’s get right to it.
Green Bay Packers 10 Chicago Bears 3
So the Bears offense disappeared last Thursday night. Mitch Trubisky had an awful start to the season with a QBR rating of 62.1. He went 26-45 for 228 yards, 0 touchdowns, and an interception. WR Allen Robinson was a bright spot in the loss with 7 catches for 102 yards and the Bears defense played well. They held the Packers to only 10 points on the night and sacked Rodgers 5 times. The only problem was, the Packers defense also sacked Trubisky 5 times. With new additions Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith both recording a sack, the Packers front seven looked rejuvenated and disciplined. Former Bears Safety Adrian Amos picked off his old teammate Mitch Trubisky as the Packers came in to Chicago and handled business.
Kansas City Chiefs 40 Jacksonville Jaguars 26
Despite the failed no-look pass, Patrick Mahomes is still pretty good at football. This game seemed to have a little bit of the Madden curse hidden in it though. Mahomes limped off the field with an injury, only to come back a little later. Unfortunately for Jaguars fans, they did not receive the same fortune as their quarterback Nick Foles broke his clavicle on his debut for the team. Rookie QB Gardner Minshew II filled in pretty well for Foles going 22-25 for 275 yards throwing 2 TDs and only 1 INT. Chiefs weren’t all lucky, Tyreek Hill also hurt his clavicle and is out for a few weeks. Sammy Watkins balled out for 198 yards and 2 TDs. Despite all the madness, it was just a normal day at the office for Mahomes and the Chiefs. Before I go, what in the hell was Myles Jack doing?
Minnesota Vikings 28 Atlanta Falcons 12
Kirk Cousins only completed 8 passes for 98 yards and the Vikings were still winning 28-0 in the 4th quarter. Vikings safety Anthony Harris picked off Falcons QB Matt Ryan twice and had a fumble recovery as the Vikings made the Falcons offense look invisible throughout the first three quarters. Dalvin Cook also put on a clinic with 21 rushes for 111 yards and 2 TDs as the Vikings showed that they are a force to be reckoned with in the NFC North.
Tennessee Titans 43 Cleveland Browns 13
A 43-13 loss at home on week 1 of the season is not good. When your fans have Super Bowl expectations, it’s even worse. The Titans embarrassed the Browns so bad that their fans are already burning their gear. Baker Mayfield threw 3 interceptions and was sacked 5 times on a forgettable day for the Dawg Pound. Somehow Marcus Mariota was the better quarterback throwing for 248 yards and 3 touchdowns with no turnovers. The key element in this game was that the Browns had 18 penalties called against them for 182 yards. Absolutely horrendous. I’m not panicking yet, I think they’ll bounce back against the Jets this upcoming Monday.
Buffalo Bills 17 New York Jets 16
Despite looking great in their new uniforms, the Jets gave up 17 unanswered points and lost their home opener to fellow AFC East opponent, The Buffalo Bills. The Jets started off great with touchdowns from C.J. Mosley on a pick-6 and a Le’Veon Bell reception. However, up 16-0 in the 3rd quarter, the Jets collapsed, letting Bills QB Josh Allen rally his team for the win at MetLife Stadium. The main problems I see for the Jets is their lack of communication on the offensive line and the lack of pressure from the defensive line, only recording one sack.
Baltimore Ravens 59 Miami Dolphins 10
The Miami Dolphins looked like a high school JV football team. Lamar Jackson didn’t throw an incompletion until the second half. His numbers were absolutely ridiculous, going 17-20 for 324 yards and 5 TDs, achieving a perfect QBR of 158.3. His performance this week earned him the title picture to this article. “Not bad for a running back” is right Lamar. Every single big addition to the team this offseason absolutely shined in their debut. Marquise Brown had 4 catches for 147 yards and 2 TDs, Mark Ingram ran the ball 14 times for 107 yards scoring 2 TDs, and Earl Thomas had an interception. Robert Griffin III threw a touchdown in this game. RG3. That has explain the ass-whooping that was handed to the Dolphins on Sunday afternoon. Josh Rosen came in the game shortly for Ryan Fitzpatrick and threw the ball only 3 times, and still got intercepted. This beating was so bad, players on the Dolphins are already requesting trades because they don’t want to be apart of a “tanking season”. I don’t know if this is just because the Dolphins are this bad, but the Ravens are looking legit right now. They’re definitely on my radar.
Philadelphia Eagles 32 Washington Redskins 27
It was a shaky start at Lincoln Financial Field, but the Eagles managed to pull through against their division rivals, the Washington Redskins. Fans were booing with 10:54 remaining in the first quarter, only to be cheering at the end of an Eagles comeback victory. Carson Wentz went 28-39 throwing for 313 yards and 3 TDs, including two 50+ yard touchdowns to newly acquired, former Redskin, DeSean Jackson. Jackson came alive at the end of the second quarter torching the Redskins secondary with 8 receptions for 154 yards and 2 TDs. However, the Redskins weren’t looking so bad offensively either. Newly signed QB Case Keenum threw for 380 yards and 3 TDs as rookie WR Terry McLaurin led the way with 5 catches for 125 yards and 1 TD. After being up 17-0 in the 2nd quarter, the Redskins fell apart and got held to only 7 points in the second half. The lack of pressure from the Washington front seven gave Carson Wentz time to pick apart the defense throughout the second half. And with RB Derrius Guice going for only 18 yards on 10 carries, the absence of a strong running game led to the Redskins loss. Now, Guice is dealing with more knee problems so the Redskins will once again have to call on their future Hall Of Fame RB, Adrian Peterson. And they’ll have to do this after questionably making him inactive last game.
Los Angeles Rams 30 Carolina Panthers 27
Basically all you need to know from this game is that Christian McCaffrey is a top five running back in the NFL. I’ll come out with a position ranking article one day, but he’s definitely in my top five. He led the Panthers in rushing with 128 yards on 19 carries and receiving with 10 catches for 81 yards. Super Cam did not play that well throwing an interception and a goose egg for TDs. Goff played decent going 23-39 for 186 yards, a TD, and an INT. The Panthers showed fight, but Cam needs to step it up if they want to be in contention for a playoff spot.
Los Angeles Chargers 30 Indianapolis Colts 24 F/OT
Melvin Gordon who? Now that might be an exaggeration, but Austin Ekeler balled out with 2 touchdowns including the game-winner. Some things to take away from this game. The Chargers need to work on their run defense after giving up 174 yards to Colts RB Marlon Mack, Jacoby Brissett is legit, and Keenan Allen is still a beast (when healthy). Brissett threw for 190 yards, 2 TDs, and no picks. He should composure in the pocket and showed leadership throughout the game. The Colts are not completely doomed, they just lost a hard fought game.
Seattle Seahawks 21 Cincinnati Bengals 20
If I’m Ken Norton Jr. (defensive coordinator for the Seahawks), I’m not happy with my defense’s performance. How in the world are you going to let Andy Dalton throw for 418 yards on you? How? And it could’ve been more if the Bengals didn’t fumble three times. John Ross III also exploded for 158 yards and 2 TDs. If I’m Brian Schottenheimer, I’m pretty satisfied with my teams performance. Besides the one fumble, the Seahawks offense put up a solid performance. Russell Wilson went to work as usual throwing for 196 yards, 2 TDs, and no picks. The surprise performance of the day was second-round pick WR D.K. Metcalf, who led the team in receiving on his debut with 89 yards on 4 catches (also forcing a PI call in the end zone). The Seahawks are still my pick to win the NFC West, so I believe in them.
Dallas Cowboys 35 New York Giants 17
If Dak Prescott played the Giants every single game, he’d be worth $40 Million a year. He went 25-32 for 405 yards and 4 TDs, giving him a perfect QBR of 158.3. The Cowboys made the Giants look silly Sunday afternoon, showing that they are a legit threat in the NFC East. After going down 7-0 after an Evan Engram touchdown on the Giants first possession, the Cowboys scored 21 unanswered points to make it 21-7 going in to halftime. Prescott had a field day with the Giants secondary, as both Michael Gallup (158) and Amari Cooper (106) went over 100 yards receiving on the day. The lone bright spots for the Giants were RB Saquon Barkley and TE Evan Engram. Barkley, last year’s rookie of the year, ran for 120 yards on 11 caries as Engram caught 11 passes for 116 yards and a TD. The Giants are going to need to step it up on defense if they want to have a somewhat decent season.
Arizona Cardinals 27 Detroit Lions 27 F/OT
I’m so disgusted by this game. You play five quarters and you just go home with nothing. I don’t even want to write about this. The NFL needs to fix the OT rules to eliminate ties. In conclusion, the #1 pick in the draft Kyler Murray showed why he was the #1 pick, rallying his team in the 4th quarter to force OT. Matthew Stafford looked good as well, too bad the Lions coaching staff cost them a win.
San Fransisco 49ers 31 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 17
This game was a game of two quarterbacks who are overrated and overpaid. Buccaneers QB Jameis Winston threw two pick-sixes and 49ers QB Jimmy Garropolo threw one as well. No one really stood out on the offensive side of the ball as both defenses made some big plays. The 49ers defense surprisingly held star WR Mike Evans to only 2 catches for 28 yards and picked off Winston 3 times. In this game it just came down to who had the most turnovers, and the Buccaneers threw 3 INTs and lost a fumble in Bruce Arians’ first game back coaching
New England Patriots 33 Pittsburgh Steelers 3
The Patriots fathered the Steelers once again as the defending champs cruised to a victory on Sunday night. Tom Brady went 24-36 for 341 yards and 3 TDs, as he dotted up the Steelers secondary the whole night. On his first game back from suspension, Josh Gordon caught 3 passes for 73 yards and a TD, showing that the chemistry between him and Brady was still there. Last years Super Bowl MVP Julian Edelman had 6 receptions for 83 yards, and Phillip Dorsett lead the team with 4 catches for 95 yards and 2 TDs. The Patriots defense held Ben Roethlisberger to no touchdowns and an interception by safety Devin McCourty. The Patriots are now going to add superstar wideout Antonio Brown to their offensive attack for the first time this Sunday against the Miami Dolphins. Brown, who is from Miami, will be going back home for his first game in a Patriots jersey. I’m excited to see how he fits into this elite offense.
New Orleans Saints 30 Houston Texans 28
This was an incredible game to start of Monday Night Football this year. The Saints found themselves down 14-3 going in to the second half, then came out firing on all cylinders. Latavius Murray ran for a 30 yard TD on his Saints debut to start off the second half, but the Texans immediately answered with a Deshaun Watson pass to DeAndre Hopkins. The Saints then went on to score 17 unanswered points as Drew Brees threw touchdowns to Taysom Hill (aka The White Kordell Stewart) and Trequan Smith. With the score tied up at 27 after a Will Lutz field goal with 55 seconds left, the Texans got the ball at their own 25 yard line. On the first play of that drive Watson threw a 38 yard pass to DeAndre Hopkins and then on the very next play he threw a 37 yard TD to newly acquired Kenny Stills to put them ahead 28-27. When everyone thought it was over, Drew Brees somehow led the offense down the field and with 0:02 left, Will Lutz kicked a career-high 58 yard field goal to win it.
Oakland Raiders 24 Denver Broncos 16
Now this one was a surprise. In their first game removed from all the Antonio Brown drama, the Raiders played an efficient game of football with a lot of ground and pound offense. At the front of this attack was rookie running back Josh Jacobs. Jacobs ran the ball 23 times for 85 yards and 2 TDs, becoming the first running back with over 100 yards from scrimmage and 2 rushing TDs in their debut since LaDanian Tomlinson. Derek Carr was efficient, going 22-26 for 259 yards and a TD. And without Brown, Tyrell Williams stepped up as WR1, with 6 catches for 105 yards and a TD. My prediction for the Raiders is not looking so good right now, but we’ll see how the season unfolds.
This is amazing information! I enjoy the analysis and predictions. Keep it coming Yanni!