After another painfully long offseason, the NFL is finally back and the first week of action didn’t disappoint. From the Jets beating the Bills in box office fashion after Aaron Rodgers went down only four plays in, to San Francisco dismantling Pittsburgh, there are no shortage of talking points after an electric week 1. I wasn’t able to watch every game, but here are a few topics that are top of mind from what I saw:

Jets v. Bills: What did I just witness?

The football world took a punch to the gut only four plays into this game as Aaron Rodgers was helped off the field following what has now been confirmed as a significant Achilles injury. In the worst possible scenario for Rodgers and the Jets, the 39 year old will now be out for the rest of the season to fully rehab and recover from the brutal injury. Questions will abound going forward I’m sure, but for now we all wish the best possible surgery and recovery for Rodgers.

In an incredible display of mental fortitude and compartmentalization, the Jets defense pulled out one of the best performances I’ve seen following such a crushing moment. Forcing four turnovers on the game, including three interceptions for Jordan Whitehead, the defensive unit willed the organization to victory. The front seven made sure to make their mark as well, tallying five sacks, eight tackles for loss, and nine hits on the quarterback during the game. In addition, the unit held Buffalo to only 97 total yards on the ground. Defensive tackle Quincy Williams was a force of nature in the trenches, C.J. Mosely was all over the field, and DB D.J. Reed led the team in tackles with 11. On a weekend that saw no shortage of stellar defensive performances, the Jets logged one of the best of the weekend.

Offensively, both teams struggled to build momentum throughout. Quarterback play on both sides wasn’t great, with Allen having one of the worst outings of his career. Four total turnovers, with two deep ball interceptions that were unnecessary and nowhere near on target, will be the defining stat of the night. Zach Wilson didn’t fair much better, but with the help of a stellar performance from Breece Hall (127 rushing yards, 12.7 avg. per carry, 83 yard run) the offense was able to score a game tying TD late in the fourth quarter that helped win the game (with Garrett Wilson submitting his catch of the year candidate on the tying TD on a bad throw from Wilson).

These two teams will have a ton of questions asked about them going forward. Josh Allen, although still mesmerizing at times, is a loose cannon that tries to be Superman far too often. This game is one the Bills arguably should have won, but terrible decision making by Allen was a significant factor. For the Jets, what will be their plan moving forward without Rodgers? Zach Wilson showed no signs of major improvement, although with the defense he has I think the team will find themselves in position to win more often than not barring a horror show on offense. At this moment, I don’t see the Jets making a deep playoff run with Wilson at QB.

Giants v. Cowboys: The Cowboys’ Defense/Special Teams Scored How Many Points??

Coming in right next to the Jets as the most dominant defensive performance of the week, the Cowboys defense blanked the Giants on Sunday Night Football 40-0.

Before the first quarter had ended, the Giants found themselves down 16-0 following a blocked field goal that was taken back for a touchdown, and an interception returned for a touchdown. The Cowboys offense only scored one touchdown in the first half, and the halftime score was 26-0. That just about sums it up.

Daniel Jones, similar to Josh Allen and Zach Wilson, was constantly under pressure with no time to run, pass, or think for that matter. In total, Jones was sacked a whopping seven times and hit 12 times. Two interceptions capped off a dismal performance where the Giants offense was rendered utterly incapacitated.

The Cowboys offense looked good in the first half, but were only able to settle for field goals until the end of the half. With that said, the two opening drives were nine plays, 72 yards and 11 plays, 60 yards respectively. As a team that many had slated to make a deep run in the playoffs, these drives are a good sign everything is clicking as it should. Fortunately for them, due to the defensive performance they were never really under the gun and were able to operate free and loose. Having this game to run through everything and get reps for starters that didn’t play a ton in the preseason will be invaluable going forward.

The question is, how close to reality is this performance for both teams? The Giants, in a division with the Eagles and Cowboys, look to be in for a rough season after this performance. Even with being put behind the eight ball early, they looked to be devoid of any firepower and lacked ideas on how to get back into the game.

For the ‘Boys, this performance vindicated pre-season analysis that they would be one of the best teams in the NFC and once again challenge for the division title. If Dak can just keep the offense at an average output level, the defense looks poised to have one of the best seasons in the league as a unit. Defense, after all, is what wins championships.

Patriots v. Eagles: Patriots on Track for the Playoffs?

Ok sure, that could come back to bite me very quickly. Who cares, that’s showbusiness baby.

Mac Jones, although he made a poor decision that turned into a pick six, looked like he’s beginning to turn a corner as an NFL QB. Deep balls were an issue, especially down the sideline, but he did have a 20+ yard throw go for a touchdown and a couple ~15 yard throws for the other two. Three hundred yards passing is never a bad thing to have, and knowing Jones has volume like that in his back pocket as a “break glass in case of emergency option” shows he can be more than a dink-and-dunk QB. With that said, I don’t think the Patriots winning formula is having him throw the ball 55 times every week.

The run game wasn’t a factor, as RB1 Rhamondre Stevenson was laboring through an illness and Ezekiel Elliott looked like a shell of his former shelf. Even with all that said, they had the ball last and were driving to win the game. The last 4th down wasn’t converted after the receiver wasn’t able to get two feet in bounds on a tight sideline catch, but against the defending NFC champs it was a solid showing.

Defensively, the Pats held a very good Eagles offense to just 25 points, which included the aforementioned defensive touchdown. So, the New England defense only allowed 18 points, which is notable. For a team that barely missed out on the playoffs last year, these are positive signs as they work toward breaking back into the post-season. Watch out for the Pats as dark horse playoff contenders.

For the Eagles, a win is a win. I don’t think this performance will age poorly either due to the pervious points just made. Across the league offenses suffered for a variety of reasons in week 1, but for the team that went to the Super Bowl last year I have no doubt they’ll continue to get better and be a contender once again in the NFC. To me, this game said more about the Patriots trending up than the Eagles trending down.

Falcons v. Panthers: Tyler Allgeier Steals the Spotlight, and the NFC South is Wide Open Again

This is more of a personal selection, as I’m a lifelong Falcons fan. I had no idea what to expect of this season, and if I’m being honest, I’m not sure I have any clarity on where the Falcons will end up after the opening game.

In a surprise twist, after Atlanta drafted Bijan Robinson with the 5th pick in the draft back in April, last year’s RB revelation Tyler Allgeier was the biggest story for me on the offensive side of the ball. Sure, Robinson looked explosive and basically was everything we expected he’d be, but Allgeier got the majority of the work with 15 touches to Robinson’s 10. No one expected that, and if they say they did I’m skeptical. Every time Allgeier touched the ball he looked like a man who was by no means going quietly into that dark night, and in doing so made the two headed monster Atlanta backfield look devastatingly dynamic. This is a welcome sign given the performance of Desmond Ridder.

Ridder didn’t perform horribly, going 15/18 passing, but the 115 yards that came with the efficiency didn’t do much to calm my nerves about this season. Ridder made a few good throws, with most of them coming in the third and fourth quarter touchdown drives to ice the game, but for the entire game to that point he was kept in check by Carolina. This is evidenced by the seven punts forced on the day by Carolina, including every drive in the first half other than the one where Atlanta literally started inside the red zone following an interception.

Carolina did not look good offensively, and this time I don’t think it was due to the week 1 rustiness. Bryce Young looked very much like a rookie quarterback, and made two identical mistakes that led to two identical interceptions during the game. There seemed to be no offensive juice to squeeze, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Carolina finished last in the division this year.

The Falcons defense, specifically new safety Jesse Bates III, looked decent. Carolina was able to move the ball here and there, but the defense was always able to step up to prevent major points being scored. Bates had two interceptions and a forced fumble on his own, and was by far the best player on defense. Atlanta could have enough to press the likes of Tampa Bay and New Orleans in a battle for the NFC South crown if the defense keeps up this level of play, and the offense comes into more consistent form.

When looking at the NFC South, it looks like New Orleans and Tampa will be competing for the division title, with Atlanta having the largest wild card potential and Carolina lagging behind. Atlanta could win the division, and it could also finish last due to how bad the NFC South is. For now, the offense is the biggest question mark. If Ridder can get into a rhythm throwing the ball and open up the field for running and play action, Atlanta could be a dark horse playoff contender. If not, we may be in for a long season.

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Obviously there were other big stories around the league, like the 49er’s eviscerating the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Chiefs starting the season by losing to the Lions, but my thoughts were focused on the games I was able to watch in detail. As the season goes on, my writing will continue to focus on games that I’m able to watch start to finish in order to give the best possible information I can. Hope you enjoy!