We deliberately held back on our Sunday musing because if you follow sports slightly more than some of us, you’re probably already supersaturated with NFL season previews and predictions. I, for one, had tapped out just before the third DraftKings special podcast of last week where the over/under season wins totals for the Carolina Panthers resulted in a 45-minute debate and whether or not the line might move on some reports going into this week’s game. I’m sorry, when presented with minutiae like this, I’ve sorta happy I can’t afford to start an account on that sort of site these days. I kinda like still having a roof over my head.
And since I do have such a roof at the moment and, thank G-d, a working air conditioner, I took full advantage of both and multitasked my way through the first full Sunday of pro football. Two unbeaten fantasy teams at the ready, with my undivided attention thanks to my elimination from my baseball post-season thanks to a tiebreaker and the loss of a desperately needed Jose Quintana win a week before, and at the hands of my competitor’s upstart Jurkison Profar’s game-tying home run no less.
So like some real-life reporters and wider-reach bloggers do, I took some notes and made some observations, and then compared them to those who seemed to have been doing the same thing today. The most active sites for such instant reaction are CBSSPORTS.com, where John Breech rides gain, and, of course, NFL.com, where a whole staff supplies in-the-moment observations.
And now, here are some of mine, subdivided as warranted:
THEY’RE NOT AS BAD AS WE MIGHT HAVE THOUGHT:
New England 16, Cincinnati 10
Yes, Jerod Mayo has a higher winning percentage as Bill Belichick. Kevin Petra of NFL.com noted that the Patriots played to the blueprint they’ll need to in order to come out on top in 2024. New England’s defense flew around the field, dominating the line of scrimmage for long stretches, with Keion White netting 2.5 sacks. It’s a group that remains stellar after the coaching changeover. Breech added that we should have seen this coming: The slow start for the Bengals has become an annual problem in Cincinnati: The Bengals are now 1-10 over the first two weeks of the season under coach Zac Taylor.
Los Angeles Chargers 22, Las Vegas 10
Another defense-first win for a coach making a debut, this one for Jim Harbaugh. Eric Edholm of NFL.com pointed out that Harbaugh’s first game back in the NFL in nearly a decade looked like many of his victories over the years: tough, stubborn and persistent. The Chargers could not get anything going offensively in the first half, running into brick walls in the ground game and Justin Herbert and the passing game were stuck in neutral. They had seven first-half possessions — none longer than 15 net yards. But Harbaugh and Greg Roman didn’t veer from their approach, the Chargers defense did its job in the interim and the process started to pay off in the second half.
THEY ARE WORSE THAN WE THOUGHT:
New Orleans 47, Carolina 10
The Saints were statistically tops on the afternoon slate, but please don’t confuse them with world-beaters. Rather, note just how lousy the Panthers continue to be. NFL.com’s Bobby Kownack revealed that Bryce Young began the Dave Canales era with an interception on his very first pass attempt, an overthrow that carried into no man’s land between Diontae Johnson and Adam Thielen. His day would get worse from there before it got minimally better. He had trouble identifying blitzers and continued the inaccuracy with which he started the contest. Carolina didn’t even cross midfield until Young and Co. put together a 45-yard two-minute drill for a field goal, almost doubling their 25 net offensive yards to that point. He escaped the pocket well on a few occasions and scored Carolina’s lone TD on a gutsy scramble, but there’s little positive to take away for Young — or most other Panthers, for that matter. They lost by 37, and Young finished sporting an ugly stat line with 161 yards, two interceptions and a 32.8 passer rating on 13-of-30 passing.
Minnesota 28, New York Giants 6
Everything one could have feared go wrong in the Jersey Meadowlands today for the G-Men, clad in special “Century Red” uniforms celebrating their centennial season, did. NFL.com’s Nick Shook: (T)he same issues that have plagued the Giants over the last year resurfaced. Daniel Jones struggled under pressure, threw two awful interceptions (including one that went for a pick-six in the blink of an eye), came up empty-handed on two second-half trips to the red zone, tried his best in the ground game but ultimately didn’t make nearly enough of a difference to keep the Giants in this game.
THEY WERE JUST GOOD ENOUGH TO GET THE W:
Pittsburgh 18, Atlanta 10
Breech: Apparently, it doesn’t matter who plays quarterback for the Steelers: All they need is their kicker and their defense. The Steelers defense terrorized Kirk Cousins and a big reason for that was because the Falcons couldn’t block T.J. Watt, who had one sack and a lot of pressures (He also had two big plays called back due penalties). Offensively, Justin Fields wasn’t flashy, but he did just enough to get the job done with 213 total yards (156 passing and 57 rushing). The offense spent most of the day setting up Chris Boswell, who tied a franchise record with six field goals, including three that came from beyond 50 yards.
Miami 20, Jacksonville 17
Just another typical football day on the cursed turf in South Florida. Edholm: Tyreek Hill started the day with a pre-game incident that had him in handcuffs outside the stadium. He ended it as one of the Dolphins’ heroes in a shaky-but-dramatic comeback victory over the Jaguars. It took Hill a little while to get going, and he had a costly holding penalty in the red zone in the fourth quarter, but he torched the Jaguars for an 80-yard TD catch late in the third that completely flipped momentum in the game. It came immediately after Travis Etienne’s fumble near the goal line — essentially a 14-point swing. Instead of being up 24-7, the Jaguars found themselves leading only 17-14 after Hill’s TD. The Dolphins were their own worst enemies early, turning the ball over twice on downs in their first four possessions. Tua Tagovailoa overthrew a few open receivers, and the run game stalled. But Tua started finding Hill, Jaylen Waddle and got De’Von Achane involved in the pass game.Jason Sanders (after missing one) hit two fourth-quarter field goals to capture the hard-earned win.
Chicago 24, Tennessee 17
Breech: This might go down as the ugliest win of the season by any team, but ugly wins count the same as any other win. Caleb Williams only threw for 93 yards in his debut, but he got the win thanks to some stellar play from Chicago’s special teams and defense. Jonathan Owens made a huge play with a touchdown off a blocked punt in the second half. Deandre Coleman also had a 66-yard kickoff return that set up a field goal in the first half. Tyrique Stevenson then came up with the play of the game with a pick six that provided the game-winning points in the fourth quarter. With the victory, Williams became the first No. 1 overall pick to win his first start since 2002.
THEY MAY BE A LOT BETTER THAN WE THOUGHT:
Houston 29, Indianapolis 27
Saquon Barkley wasn’t the only running back to make his old team experience seller’s remorse. NFL.com’s Michael Baca hopes that the Bengals didn’t have anything sharp near them when he observed that (t)he Texans might not have earned a Week 1 victory without their new running back. Joe Mixon was the Texans offense’s most consistent feature, producing 159 rushing yards on 30 carries (5.3 yards per carry) and a touchdown in his debut. It was a welcomed effort considering C.J. Stroud and the Texans’ passing attack were throttled midway through the game. Carrying the ball with his bare hands, Mixon’s old-school look matched his throwback style, generating powerful runs that bowled over Colts defenders while also utilizing his shiftiness in-between blocks to gain yards in chunks.
Dallas 33, Cleveland 17
Dax Prescott’s signed at least, along with Cee Dee Lamb, and even though they opened on the road the Cowboys once again dominated their opponent, this one a tad better than last year’s Giants. Prescott was adequate, but the Cowboys’ defense was spectacular, sacking DeShaun Watson six times and intercepting him twice, once for a Pick Six.
And as for my fantasy teams: provided both Garrett Wilson and George Kittle don’t go nuts tomorrow night in Santa Clara, my Yahoo team should emerge with a win, one that I’ll need because one of my two QBs is Jordan Love, injured in the waning moments of the Packers’ Brazilian takedown by the Iggles. (My backup is Jared Goff, and I’m crossing my fingers he looks at least as proficient against the Rams tonight). My ESPN team is still only a 64% projection to win, mostly due to Christian McCaffrey on my competitor’s lineup, but I’ve got G. Wilson for myself in this case. Thank you, DIRECTV, I’ll be listening intensely to Jets radio tomorrow night as a result.
So how’d your teams do?
Courage…