Honestly, a pretty underwhelming week one. A few matchups lived up to expectations, but overall the fireworks were few in far between. Maybe the year of the defense? Or more likely, the lack of preseason action for so many first string guys. Whatever the culprit, hoping it starting passing the eye test with a little more flair.
Last year we broke down each game, it was a lot more structured, a lot of stats, and work in general. So we're shooting for a little more informal this year, almost conversational. Let's see how it goes!
Lions 21- Chiefs 20 (Thursday Night)
-Patrick Mahomes is super human, but he can't get things done if the guys are dropping what he's putting into their buckets
-Kadarius Toney singlehandedly lost them this game. He had like four drops-- one that was tipped and ran back for a touchdown and another that would've gained at least twenty yards on their last drive of the game, really stifling their comeback attempt. To make matters more sad, he was on Instagram trolling Giants fans for their team's, admittedly, horrendous performance. Like he didn't literally just blow the game for his team. Clown shit
-Travis Kelce is the best tight end ever, because he's doing what he does with receivers like that around him
-I really liked Trent McDuffie coming out of Washington and am all in on him now. Dude's a dog, tackles and covers really well for a corner of smaller stature
-David Montgomery looked better than expected, really explosive overall. Jah'Myr Gibbs underwhelmed from a fantasy perspective, but looked fast
-Amon Ra St. Brown is incredible. I'm curious how he'd look with a viable WR2 opposite of him. Sam LaPorta looked like he'll be a busy piece in this offense too
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| Photo: SBnation.com |
-Aidan Hutchinson is as good as advertised. While he didn't get his sack first sack, he was disrupting the pocket all evening, racking up six total pressures
Ravens 25- Texans 9
-Pour one out for JK Dobbins, this might be the last time we see him in the league. He's awesome when he's on the field, but he just can't seem to avoid these devastating injuries
-Zay Flowers looks like the best receiver the Ravens have ever had. The first rounder was sudden, showed great hands and rapport with LJ8. Very confident in him moving forward
-The offensive line looked really bad in pass protection, and that was before Tyler Linderbaum and Ronnie Stanley got hurt. With both set to miss at least a month, I'm a bit pessimistic for their trenches
-Jadaveon Clowney looked awesome, eating the Texans backup lineman as he shut down running lanes all afternoon
-Odafe Oweh and David Ojabo showed a little more burst than last year, hopefully they can build on that. Patrick Queen's probably our best pass rusher as of now
-Baltimore's cornerback room was subpar with Marlon Humphrey healthy. It's in shambles currently
-CJ Stroud looked pretty shaky early, but really composed himself as the game progressed. He connected well with Nico Collins and Robert Woods despite a running game that couldn't get going. Not a bad debut in a tough road environment
-Fellow rookie Will Anderson also looked very, very good off the edge, notching his first career sack on Lamar Jackson. He seemed thrilled on the sideline talking about it, bright future ahead of him
-I've hyped up Houston's defense over the last month or so, and they didn't make me look stupid. Derek Stingley Jr. is outstanding at cornerback, Jonathan Greenard was a solid complement to Anderson on the line, and Jalen Pitre was looking good until suffering a lung bruise. Demeco Ryans has to love this group
Browns 24- Bengals 3
-Wow Joe Burrow. 14/31 for 82 yards, probably his worst game since Pop Warner. Bengals started slow last year, and the Browns own them for some reason, so maybe not worth looking too far into. But makes you wonder if he's more hurt then they're leading on
-Joe Mixon got 76% of the carries, affirming his grip on the RB1 spot
-Loved Ja'Marr Chase's postgame comments about, "losing to some fucking elves." I bet that does suck
-Cincy's defense held early, but they were on the field ten minutes longer than the offense, wearing out late accordingly
-Deshaun Watson wasn't quite back to Texans form, but he was better then many of his games in 2022, especially given the crappy weather
-Nick Chubb is a monster, pacing the game with 18 carries for 106 yards
-Despite Chubb's ownership of Cincinnati, Myles Garrett was the best player on the field for both teams, notching one sack and four QB hits
Buccaneers 20- Vikings 17
-That was not the Kirk Cousins I was expecting during the one o'clock block. He was incredibly sloppy with the ball, losing two fumbles and throwing and interception. It limited the offense, frustrated Justin Jefferson visibly and blew two of my parlays that bet on the over. Oh Captain, my Captain...
-Jordan Addison looks like a tailor made fit for this offense, going 4/61/1 in his first Vikings action
-Alexander Mattinson was a long time backup for a reason
-Rachaad White doesn't look a whole lot better for the Bucs
-Baker Mayfield was adequate, at least not doing anything to lose his team the game
-Mike Evans and Chris Godwin are still who they are, really elevating their quarterback. Evans paced the way with six catches, including a 28 yard TD, while Chris Godwin caught a first down on third and 10 with two minutes left to salt the game away
-Devin White's a baller
Saints 16- Titans 15
-This game sucked, which was semi-expected
-Ryan Tannehill was atrocious, like unwatchable. He completed less than 50% of his passes with three terrible interceptions. With two young quarterbacks behind him, I always assumed he was on somewhat of a leash, but it just got extremely short
-Derrick Henry ran pretty well given the struggles in the passing game
-Deandre Hopkins still looked decent, especially given the QB play. Can't imagine Tannehill's line had he not played
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| Photo: Silas Walker/ Getty |
-Jeffery Simmons got a sack while Denico Autry and Arden Key each had 1.5. Really fun, under-the-radar defensive line in Tennessee
-This is the kind of game Derek Carr creates, and usually finds a way to win. He wasn't particularly impressive, but there's much worse days to be had-- as we saw on the opposite sideline
-Jamaal Williams seems like a really cool guy, but he's not a lead dog. He also had the ball punched loose by Sean Murphy-Bunting while trying to ice the game late, but fortunately recovered it
-Let's clap it up for Chris Olave, an immediate benefactor to New Orleans' upgrade at QB. Eight catches for 112 yards is how you start off a season. Michael Thomas was good too, snagging 5 for 61
-Speaking of Saints receivers, Rashid Shaheed felt like he kind of came on out of necessity last season. He might just be pretty good... His caught five for 89 yards, including the game's only touchdown
Atlanta 24- Panthers 10
-Desmond Ridder was 5/6 passing for nine yards and a touchdown at the beginning of the second quarter. Although Carolina's got an sneaky good defense, he looked completely lost. Taylor Heinicke looms
-Bijan Robinson looks the part! First career touchdown and sixteen total touches, not too shabby young man.
-Tyler Allgeier may have been even better, racking up fifteen carries at two yards a clip + two scores that really deflated some Bijan fantasy owners (me). Imagine if they get any competence at quarterback
-Drake London got straight 0'ferred by Jaycee Horn. One target. A clinic.
-Jessie Bates introduced himself to his new hometown fans, intercepting two passes and forcing a fumble for Atlanta
-Kinda what I expected from Bryce Young. Reich didn't ask him to do too much, rightfully so given the state of his weapons, but he didn't really shine in what he was asked to do. Long season, but the New Orleans D will be imposing next week
-Miles Sanders and Chuba Hubbard did actually run the ball pretty well, outside of the former losing a fumble in the third quarter. The turnover set up the go ahead score
-These Panthers receivers just aren't good. Thielen's over the hill, Terrace Marshall isn't 100% healthy, Laviska Shenault's never lived up to the hype...hard to get a read on Young with that supporting cast. They really miss DJ Moore
-Derrick Brown, Brian Burns and Frankie Luvu. That's a core trio for your front seven there, combining for 23 tackles and 3.5 sacks; dogs
Jaguars 31- Colts 21
-Upset alert was red hot for a minute in Lucas Oil Stadium, as the Colts shockingly took a 21-17 lead into the fourth quarter
-Trevor Lawrence was so good for so much of the game, but the fumble six was bad. He adds so much to their offense but has to do a better job at minimizing mistakes
-Travis Etienne looked solid. He should be firmly entrenched as the early down back after Tank Bigsby's fumble, plus a tipped pass that resulted in Lawrence's only interception. Bigsby looks to have a role near the goal line however
-There's living up to expectations, then there's what Calvin Ridley did. 8/101/1 in his first go round with the Jags, not skipping a single beat in his return from suspension
-Christian Kirk was invisible, completely ceding to Ridley and Zay Jones. I expected him to be phased out some, but one catch for nine yards?!
-Josh Allen had three sacks and Trayvon Walker had one. Those are the performances Jacksonville needs from their stud edge guys if they're going to overcome their flawed secondary
-Didn't think Anthony Richardson was going to be so proficient in the passing game. He wasn't too quick to tuck and run, showing a willingness to maneuver the pocket and look down field. He found his top wideout Michael Pittman Jr. early and often
-He should only improve with some balance on offense. Colts' running backs combined for 24 yards on 15 carries: a firm 0.6 YPC
-As mentioned above, MPJ had a big day-- taking eight catches for 97 yards and a score. He won't be up against Jags corners every week, but it was an encouraging connection with his rookie QB
-Josh Downs was second in the team for targets with 7, lending some credence to my sleeper prediction for him
-The DeForest Buckner trade always seemed odd timing wise, but he is a true game wrecker on this defensive line. Zaire Franklin had a huge performance too with 18 tackles
49ers 30- Steelers 7
-I'm not sure if this game says more about the 49ers or Steelers...but my goodness.
-Brock Purdy didn't appear to be dealing with any nagging from that UCL injury, absolutely dicing Pittsburgh's secondary
-Christian McCaffery's 22/152/1 day was accentuated by a 65-yard touchdown scamper in the third quarter. He was incredible
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| Photo: Justin K. Allar/ Getty |
-We wrote a few weeks ago about Brandon Aiyuk's connection with Purdy and they did me no injustice! The fourth year wideout went nuclear with 8 catches and 129 yards, finding paydirt twice
-Javon Hargrave collected a sack in his 49ers debut, but it was Drake Jackson that had the hat trick
-Pittsburgh's first first down came with less than a minute and a half remaining in the first half. At one point, they were being outgained 199-1. Hard to find positives in that
-Kenny Pickett had no shot against this defense, getting sacked five times and tossing two picks
-Najee Harris looked generally inexplosive, not that he had any room to run
-Who saw that game coming from Allen Robinson! Wasn't sure he'd total 64 yards in the first quarter of the season, let alone first game. Meanwhile, George Pickens is in the news for allegedly liking a comment on Instagram that slandered his quarterback. Probably will be water under the bridge soon, but not drama Mike Tomlin wants
-TJ Watt was easily the best player on the field for the Steelers. Three sacks and five QB hits...tremendous performance
Commanders 20- Cardinals 16
-Josh Dobbs was a fun story during the Titans playoff push last year, he's not a good quarterback though
-James Conner did about as well as expected, averaging just over 4 YPC. His 0.6 yards per reception is impressively bad
-As much shit as we gave Jonathan Gannon for being a weirdo, he did have this defense playing really well. Take it with a grain of salt against Sam Howell, but much better than the oddsmakers thought they'd fare
-Sam Howell was...decent. Certainly didn't quell any concerns that he might not be the long term solution, but he put the Commanders in a spot to win late and got the job done
-Brian Robinson's a workhorse, but I'd love to see a little more burst. After racking up 19 of the 25 running back carries, he seems solidified as the early down back
-Curtis Samuel's involvement was nice to see, he's an exciting player when he's healthy. Not a lot of vertical attack overall though
-Washington has an elite defensive line, and that's with Chase Young on the sidelines. Given their needs in other areas, I'd definitely be gauging interest in the former #2 pick overall around the league
-Kudos to Josh Harris for securing his first victory as owner! We saw some firm handshakes in FedEx Field Sunday afternoon
Raiders 17- Broncos 16
-Russell Wilson's the problem. It's not Nathaniel Hackett, it's not the offensive line, it's not Sean Payton, it's not the weapons. It's Russell Suck Ass Wilson. Seven incompletions and two turnover-free touchdowns sounds great on paper, until you see the pathetic 5.2 YPA and 16 total points. Dude's toast
-Javonte Williams looked explosive in his return from an ACL tear, running really hard all afternoon
-Samaje Perine looks like he'll have a role in this offense regardless of Williams' health, racking up twelve total touches for 78 yards
-Patrick Surtain II only allowed two catches to Davante Adams when he was the primary defender, shutting him down to the point that the Raiders had to move Adams into the slot. While his numbers weren't eye popping there, he at least tacked on seven additional catches
-That's my guy Jimmy G! All he does is win. He overcame a horrific red zone interception in the third to will Las Vegas to a late victory, finding Jakobi Meyers for a second time in the end zone for the decisive score. Meyers posted a superb 9/81/2 line in his first game donning the silver and black
-Josh Jacobs got a bunch of carries and didn't do much with them. Better days ahead, especially if Garoppolo is going to sling the rock this successfully
-Surprised we didn't see Michael Mayer pop up in the box score at all. Big fan of the rookie tight end's skill set
Dolphins 36- Chargers 34
-At least one game this weekend delivered on the hype in this high scoring affair!
-Tua is so ridiculous when he's working in this offense. 28-45 for 466 yards and three scores, insane. Still think the lefty throwing motion is one of the most awkward in all of sports, but what a start to 2023 for the Dolphins' QB
-Who needs a running game when you have Tyreek Hill? The man is on a different level, taking 11 receptions for 215 yards and two touchdowns, gashing the Chargers defense at will
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| Photo: Ashley Landis/ AP |
-Love Jevon Holland. The star safety led the way for Miami with 14 tackles, just topping former Raven DeShon Elliott
-Wild that the Chargers put up 34 points, yet Justin Herbert only threw for one touchdown. They didn't look as imposing through the air attack as anticipated
-Austin Ekeler was a machine in the run game, putting up 117 yards to the tune of 7.3 a tote. He added 47 receiving to his totals
-How do you think LA fans feel watching Zay Flowers and Jordan Addison pop off in their debuts while Quentin Johnston took two catches for nine yards? Didn't like him coming out of TCU, said he was Breshad Perriman 2.0, and so far I'm right
-Crazy that a defense featuring Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack couldn't record one sack on the afternoon. In fact, their front seven only hit Tua twice
Eagles 25- Patriots 20
-Jalen Hurts looked really good early, falling off a bit as the game went. The shitty weather didn't help, but not the start we were looking for
-Kenneth Gainwell shocked the world by taking the lead in this Eagles' backfield, tallying fourteen of the sixteen carries that went to running backs. If you took D'Andre Swift early in fantasy, you're smashing that panic button
-AJ Brown and Devonta Smith are incredible...no need to dive further into that
-Jalen Carter notched his first career sack as well, after being listed at +600 to do so on FanDuel. Missed an opportunity not throwing some bills at that
-Mac Jones was the total opposite of Hurts, starting really slow before putting up some huge numbers. We tweeted about him sucking in the first quarter and really turned it around from there
-Ezekiel Elliott surprisingly outgained Rhamondre Stevenson on the ground, despite five less carries. He also lost a fumble, which is the fastest way into the Bill Belichick doghouse. Don't expect that dynamic to stick, Stevenson's clearly the better player at this point in their careers
-Kendrick Bourne had a huge day, pacing the Pats with a 6/64/2 stat line
-Nice debut for Christian Gonzalez too. The blue chip talent trickled down to the Pats at 17, possibly as the steal of the draft. He had seven tackles, a sack and a pass defensed
Packers 38- Bears 20
-Jordan Love looked as good as Justin Fields looked horrible. Two totally different vibes surrounding the two QBs after this one
-DJ Moore was completely blanketed by Jaire Alexander all afternoon, catching his sole two targets for a paltry 25 yards
-Chicago's two-headed monster at running back was severely underwhelming, with Khalil Herbert and D'Onta Foreman taking 14 combined carries for just 43 yards
-AJ Dillon supremely busted in this matchup, taking fifteen touches for just 36 yards. Aaron Jones is banged up, potentially set to miss next week, so Dillon's workload shouldn't be changing. But he sure could be more efficient with it
-Lukas Van Ness notched a sack in his first NFL game. Devonte Wyatt was busy too at nose tackle, recording 1.5 of his own
Rams 30- Seahawks 13
-Wonder how many parlays this one blew...this was possibly the most shocking game of the week
-Geno Smith looked alright early, finding DK Metcalf for a score and putting Seattle up 13-7 at the break. They got thoroughly beaten throughout the second half, managing negative seven yards in the final two quarters until the final drive, where they picked up nine. Two yards of offense over thirty minutes, unbelievable incompetence. Or adjustments by Sean McVay?
-Hyped rookies Zach Charbonnet and Jaxon Smith-Njigba combined for just 24 yards
-Matthew Stafford looked SO much more motivated than I expected him to. He diced the Seahawks secondary all afternoon, helping facilitate 119 yard receiving days by Tutu Atwell and Puka Nacua. A real who's who
-Kyren Williams looked substantially more explosive than Cam Akers in the run game, despite being outcarried. He'll be worth keeping an eye on for fantasy purposes
-I talked a lot of shit on this Rams defense over the last month, and they went out and dominated. We'll see how they fare against a much tougher 49ers offense next week
Cowboys 40- Giants 0
-What an ass kicking this was, holy shit. Top to bottom, through and through, an absolute embarrassment of a display by the New York Football Giants
-They're not that bad as a team, but man...171 total yards of offense. Disgraceful
-Saquon looked good, per the eye test anyway. No shot of him getting the run game going in this bloodbath
-It wasn't even Dak and the boys scoring either, as the team was leading 19-0 before the offense punched it in for the first time
-Tony Pollard averaged five a carry and two scores, looking sharp for the Cowboys
-CeeDee had 77 receiving yards, over half of the Dallas' total in a game where they probably didn't need to pass the ball
-Micah Parsons only had one sack but he was a force all evening. Newcomer Stephon Gilmore had three passes defensed too
Jets 22- Bills 16
-Aaron Rodgers...torn Achilles' tendon. It was a hideous sight, sending all the best wishes for a quick recovery
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| Photo: CBSnews |
-Breece Hall's all the way back, racking up 127 on the ground, including an 83-yarder. The man's as explosive as they come
-Garrett Wilson...man if you haven't seen it. My words won't do it justice
-Quinnen Williams is every defensive coordinators wet dream for an interior defensive lineman, man he's something special
-Josh Allen was horrible, tossing three picks and losing a fumble. The Jets have really been his kryptonite the last two matchups
-Glad to see Dalton Kincaid involved as much as he was, catching four passes for 26 yards. The Bills could definitely use pass catching help with their weak receiver play, outside of Stefon Diggs
-...who was absolutely fantastic. The only bright spot for Buffalo, posting a 10/102/1 line against one of the best defenses in the league. Shame on me for putting him in my sit category, should've just put "Every Bill but Diggs"
-Wild finish to this game, with a walk off punt return. Very exciting way to wrap up an otherwise pretty dull week one. Fingers crossed for better things ahead!
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@Choppinglines
*I own no rights to any images found in this blog
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