This is going to be my new series of articles where I’ll be recapping what happened in the previous week in the NFL game by game & pointing out the most important aspects of each game while also discussing what to look forward to in the next week.
Carolina Panthers 20 at Denver Broncos 21
Offensively: Both QBs struggled in this game to get anything going. A big reason Broncos won was the fact that C.J Anderson rushed for 92 yards & a TD while also adding a receiving TD. It was also nice to see a healthy Kelvin Benjamin who had 6 catches for 91 yards & a TD.
Defensively: Both defenses are elite defenses in the NFL but it was the Broncos defense that came out on top sacking Cam Newton 3 times & Chris Harris Jr. making an amazing tip-ball interception in the 4th quarter to help win the game.
Biggest Takeaway: This Broncos defense is no joke & if they can get average QB play they might be back in the playoffs despite me saying they could be the 3rd best team in the AFC West.
Green Bay Packers 27 at Jacksonville Jaguars 23
Offensively: This was a great QB matchup in week 1 with both QBs playing pretty well. Aaron Rodgers had 199 yards & 2 TDs while Blake Bortles had 310 yards, 1 TD & 1 INT. Rodgers made a throw that proves he’s not human in the 2nd quarter to Davante Adams for a TD while being pulled backwards by the jersey by Jalen Ramsey.
Defensively: Both defenses did a good job stopping the run while the biggest play on defense was made by Joe Thomas of the Packers who intercepted Bortles in the 1st quarter to set the Packers up for their 1st touchdown.
Biggest takeaway: We knew Packers were good & I know everyone says “there’s no such thing as a good loss” but for a team like the Jaguars a close game with a contender can boost their confidence knowing they can play with these types of teams even though of course Jags wanted the W.
Buffalo Bills 7 at Baltimore Ravens 13
Offensively: Joe Flacco played pretty well in his 1st week back from his injury in 2015 with 258 yards & 1 TD. The 1 TD was to the newly acquired deep threat WR Mike Wallace for a 66 yard TD. I don’t even want to talk about Tyrod Taylor because of the fact he was on my fantasy team & he gave me the L.
Defensively: Both defenses were very successful stopping the run. The one big play that Bills allowed to Mike Wallace cost them the game (also the fact their offense got nothing going). The Ravens defense did a great job containing Tyrod Taylor who only rushed for 11 yards on 5 rushes.
Biggest Takeaway: Although it’s early the Ravens defense looked much improved especially against a dynamic offense with Tyrod Taylor, Lesean McCoy & Sammy Watkins.
Chicago Bears 14 at Houston Texans 23
Offensively: Neither QB was great in this game with Cutler throwing for 216 yards, 1 TD & 1 INT while Osweiler threw for 231 yards, 2 TDs & 1 INT which came off his 3rd attempt. The difference between Cutler & Osweiler was Osweiler made plays when he needed to by throwing TDs to Deandre Hopkins & Will Fuller. Lamar Miller also looked great rushing for 106 yards in his Texans debut.
Defensively: The Texans defense looked great like they did last year. Whitney Mercilus is already continuing from his impressive 2015 season with 12 sacks by starting the 2016 season with 2 sacks.
Biggest Takeaway: Will Fuller looked great in his debut & if Osweiler can be consistent this team can make some noise.
Cleveland Browns 10 at Philadelphia Eagles 29
Offensively: RGIII struggled in his Browns debut & unfortunately got injured yet again & is likely out a majority of the season if not the whole season while Carson Wentz looked impressive in his debut with 278 yards & 2 TDs. I’m not going to make a judgment on how good Wentz career will be on one game especially when it’s against the Browns.
Defensively: Eagles pass defense looked improved even though they were playing a poor Browns offense that doesn’t have Josh Gordon back yet. Rodney McCleod got an interception in the 2nd quarter that was intended for Corey Coleman but was thrown behind him & McCleod caught it off a tip.
Biggest Takeaway: Again Wentz looked very impressive in his debut & if he plays like this Eagles fans might actually have their starting QB they’ve been wanting.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31 at Atlanta Falcons 24
Offensively: Both QBs played well in this game but Jameis Winston’s performance really impressed me. Winston threw for 281 yards & 4 TDs & a W to start his sophomore season with a bang. Mike Evans played good with a solid 5 catches for 99 yards & a TD.
Defensively: The run defense by the Buccaneers looked very impressive shutting the Falcons running game to 52 yards on 22 carries for an abysmal 2.4 YPC. Kwon Alexander for the Bucs had a great game with 17 tackles & 1 sack.
Biggest Takeaway: Jameis Winston played very well, he’s one of the best young QBs in the NFL & if the Bucs can put together games like this especially on the road they could make the NFC South a very interesting division to watch.
Minnesota Vikings 25 at Tennessee Titans 16
Offensively: Shaun Hill didn’t do anything special at QB for the Vikings but the good thing was he didn’t turn the ball over. The same thing couldn’t be said for Mariota who threw a pick six & also fumbled for a TD. Adrian Peterson had a disappointing day (likely cause of Hill starting at QB) with 31 yards on 19 carries.
Defensively: The Vikings defense made plays that won them the game. Eric Hendricks intercepted Mariota in the 3rd quarter for a 77 yard TD while Danielle Hunter recovered a fumble from Mariota in the 4th quarter & returned it for a TD. The Titans defense did a great job slowing down Adrian Peterson.
Biggest Takeaway: Vikings defense looked like an elite defense scoring 2 TDs (they already have 2/3 of the TDs they had last year) & if they continue this type of play they can be right there with the Packers in the NFC North.
Cincinnati Bengals 23 at New York Jets 22
Offensively: Andy Dalton played great this game throwing for 366 yards & 1 TD. A.J Green also stood out catching 12 passes for 180 yards & 1 TD. Matt Forte looked good rushing for 96 yards & also having 59 receiving yards in his Jets debut.
Defensively: The Jets defense did a great job stopping the run & getting to the QB. The Jets defense had 7 sacks on Andy Dalton but just couldn’t stop A.J Green. Marcus Williams had an interception for the Jets while Josh Shaw had one for the Bengals.
Biggest Takeaway: The Bengals usually find ways to lose close games but this time Andy Dalton looked confident & poised late in the 4th quarter & led the game winning drive. Bengals in week 2 will face the Steelers & we’ll see where the Bengals stand.
Oakland Raiders 35 at New Orleans Saints 34
Offensively: The QB play in this game was great with Derek Carr throwing for 319 yards & 1 TD while Drew Brees threw for 423 yards & 4 TDs. Amari Cooper looked good with 137 yards while Brandin Cooks had 143 yards & 2 TDs. Willie Snead also had a good game with 172 yards & a TD.
Defensively: There wasn’t really any defense played in this game but that doesn’t come as a surprise in a game that features Drew Brees in it. The Raiders defense did do a solid job stopping the Saints running game to 88 yards on 22 carries.
Biggest Takeaway: The Raiders looked much improved especially in the clutch. Late in the 4th quarter Derek Carr led a game winning drive making it 34-33 Saints but Jack Del Rio made a very ballsy call going for 2 & Carr threw a fade to Michael Crabtree who made a wonderful catch to win it.
San Diego Chargers 27 at Kansas City Chiefs 33
Offensively: I never thought I would see the day where Alex Smith comes from behind a double-digit deficit & he throws for 350+ yards but he did against the Chargers. Spencer Ware looked good stepping in for Jamaal Charles rushing for 70 yards & getting 129 receiving yards. It was also sad seeing Keenan Allen get injured yet again & I hope he comes back even better in 2017.
Defensively: There wasn’t much defense played in this game either. The only turnover came when Alex Smith threw an interception to Jason Verrett in the 4th quarter.
Biggest Takeaway: It felt like the Chargers had this game after the Chargers were up 24-3 in the 3rd quarter but Alex Smith did a great job coming back & winning it so maybe we will see a different Alex Smith now (probably not).
Miami Dolphins 10 at Seattle Seahawks 12
Offensively: This game was probably the hardest to watch because after Steven Hauschka hit a 38 yard FG to end the 2nd quarter there wasn’t another point scored until Ryan Tannehill ran a TD with 4 minutes left in the 4th quarter. Russell Wilson threw the game winning TD with 31 seconds left to Doug Baldwin.
Defensively: Both defenses did a great job stopping the other (or were the offenses that bad?). The Dolphins had 3 sacks on Russell Wilson while Seahawks had 5 sacks on Tannehill. The only turnovers came when Russell Wilson threw an interception in the 2nd quarter to Abdul-Quddus & Wilson also fumbled the ball in the 3rd quarter with Kiko Alonso recovering it.
Biggest Takeaway: Although Seattle won I am weary of them struggling at home against a team like the Dolphins & it doesn’t help when Russell Wilson gets hurt & has to play the Rams defensive line in week 2.
Detroit Lions 39 at Indianapolis Colts 35
Offensively: This was another game where the QB play was phenomenal. Matt Stafford threw for 340 yards & 3 TDs while Andrew Luck threw for 385 yards & 4 TDs. Stafford came out on top though with him leading yet another one of his game winning drives by driving 50 yards in 33 seconds to kick the game winning FG.
Defensively: There wasn’t any defense played in this game. There’s not much to talk about defensively especially with no turnovers being forced.
Biggest Takeaway: This was a very disappointing loss for a Colts team that was supposed to take back the reins of the AFC South with Andrew Luck coming back healthy but the AFC South looks much improved with the Jaguars & Texans.
New York Giants 20 at Dallas Cowboys 19
Offensively: The QB play in this game was pretty solid with Eli Manning throwing for 207 yards, 3 TD, & 1 INT while Dak Prescott threw for 227 yards. Prescott led a game winning type drive before Terrance Williams forgot how to play football.
Defensively: There isn’t much to talk about defensively in this game besides the interception Brandon Carr had on Manning in the 3rd quarter.
Biggest Takeaway: Ezekiel Elliott looked disappointing in his debut with 20 rushes for 51 yards & 1 TD. I still see Elliott being a star RB in the NFL despite having a below average debut.
New England Patriots 23 at Arizona Cardinals 21
Offensively: Both QBs played well in this game with Jimmy Garoppolo throwing for 264 yards & 1 TD while Carson Palmer had 271 yards & 2 TDs. Larry Fitzgerald showed again why he’s still an elite WR by catching 8 passes for 81 yards & 2 TDs.
Defensively: Both defenses were solid with the Cardinals defense forcing 2 turnovers with fumbles forced on Garoppolo & LeGarrette Blount.
Biggest Takeaway: This was a huge win for the Patriots because if they were going to lose a game during Brady’s suspension I thought it’d be this one but now Patriots very well might go 4-0 without Brady especially with the next 3 games being at home.
Pittsburgh Steelers 38 at Washington Redskins 16
Offensively: The Steelers offense picked up right where they left off last year with Big Ben throwing for 300 yards & 3 TDs while Antonio Brown had 126 yards & 2 TDs. Deangelo Williams rushed for 143 yards & 2 TDs as well. Kirk Cousins looked very disappointing in this game throwing for 329 yards, no TDs & 2 INTs.
Defensively: The defense of the Steelers was also more impressive in this game allowing only 55 rushing yards. The Steelers also intercepted Cousins twice, one being by Ryan Shazier & the other one to end the game by James Harrison. Josh Norman wasn’t covering Antonio Brown pretty much all game which is mind blowing to me.
Biggest Takeaway: The Steelers offense looked like one of the best again without LeVeon Bell & Martavis Bryant in their offense (will get Bell in week 4) & if they their defense can hold teams like they did the Redskins they could be right there with the Patriots in the AFC.
Los Angeles Rams 0 at San Francisco 49ers 28
Offensively: There isn’t much to talk about offensively in this game especially for the Rams. Case Keenum had 130 yards, no TDs & 2 INTs while Gabbert did enough to win with 170 yards & 1 TD. Carlos Hyde was impressive with 88 yards & 2 TDs.
Defensively: The 49ers looked more impressive than the Rams defense in this game. The 49ers did a great job stopping Todd Gurley to 47 yards on 17 carries. The 49ers also had 2 interceptions with NaVorro Bowman & Ray Ray Armstrong.
Biggest Takeaway: As a Rams fan it was hard to watch this game. The Los Angeles Rams offense looked awful punting 10 times out of 14 drives (the other 4 were 2 interceptions, turnover on downs, & the end of game).
Things to look forward to in week 2:
- Steelers vs Bengals in an AFC North showdown
- Redskins vs Cowboys in a NFC East matchup
- Packers vs Vikings in a divisional game
- Can all the young QBs repeat what they did in week 1
