NFL Sundays, you were deeply missed.
A monstrous 693 points were scored. Every team found the end zone. A thrilling overtime game. Quarterbacks were dealing and defences made game-changing plays.
And the best part? There’s 17 more weeks of this.
Here are some takeaways from Week 1’s 13-game Sunday slate:
Bears offence might be unstoppable
Rarely does a team surrender 37 points and win comfortably.
It’s also not every day a team nearly drops a 60 burger.
Talk about a hot start for year two of the Ben Johnson-Caleb Williams duo.
The Chicago Bears offence erupted for 59 points in their win over the Carolina Panthers, which marked the fourth-most points scored in the franchise’s history.
The 59 points rank second-most all-time in Week 1, while the total combined score of 96 (the final was 59-37) also set the record for the highest-scoring Week 1 game in NFL history.
Not too shabby for a season opener.
Williams was on fire, completing 72 per cent of his passes for 269 yards and two scores while also running in two TDs, and the running back duo of D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai totalled 224 yards and four TDs on the ground.
The 552 total yards set a single-game record for the franchise, and as crazy as it sounds, Williams said post-game that “this is going to be our worst game.”
Now, does he truly think 59 points will be the weekly benchmark? Probably not. But operational and execution issues are common in Week 1, plus the Bears didn’t even get their stud sophomore tight end Colston Loveland involved in the passing game.
So if the result of an imperfect game is an exceptionally high offensive floor for the rest of the season, look out, league.
Points, points and more points!
Even though the Bears-Panthers matchup marked the highest-scoring game in the NFL since the Rams and Chiefs combined for 105 points in 2018, there were still plenty of points to go around.
The Bills and Texans each reached 30 points in their matchup, as did the Lions and Saints in theirs, while the Ravens dropped 41, the Vikings 39, the Jaguars 34 and the Bengals 33.
So much for defence wins championships.
Just kidding — defence is still extremely important. But after nearly 250 days since the last full slate of football on a Sunday, it’s refreshing to be brought back into the NFL while points are being handed out like candy on Halloween.
Well, unless you’re a fan of the Browns, Titans, Falcons, Chargers and Dolphins.
But even those teams each got to celebrate at least one touchdown.
Continuing with the offensive theme, it was quite an afternoon for Canadians on the gridiron.
Chuba Hubbard found the end zone twice for the Panthers, while Buffalo’s Joshua Palmer, Cincinnati’s Chase Brown and Tennessee’s Eric Ayomanor all scored a TD for their clubs.
The five TDs between the four athletes tied a mark set in Week 9 of 2024.
Palmer’s score was the most impactful of the bunch as it was the game-winner for the Bills — a 34-yard strike from Josh Allen with 1:34 left to play. It was the wideout’s lone grab of the game, but he was ready for the moment.
“I just knew someway, somehow I was going to make an impact in the game,” the Brampton, Ont. native said post-game, per Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News. “I knew it. When we were down, I said, ‘I’m going to make the game-winning or game-sealing touchdown.’ It happened.”
On the other side of the ball, Giants safety Jevon Holland logged a pick, and Chargers rookie outside linebacker Akheem Mesidor looked solid in his NFL debut.
With 28 Canucks on NFL rosters around the league, expect plenty more Canadian content throughout the rest of the campaign.
We knew the Cleveland Browns wouldn’t be a good football team this season.
The Browns were embarrassed by the Jaguars on Sunday, falling 34-10.
Quarterback Deshaun Watson showed no signs of his the player that inked a five-year, $230-million contract, completing 16 passes for 202 yards with one TD and an interception.
He also was sacked five times, fumbled once and consistently missed his targets.
The Browns mustered only 14 first downs, were a mere 13 per cent on third down, and committed 11 penalties. Not a winning formula.
Cleveland finally got on the board with a field goal a few minutes into the third quarter, but its lone touchdown didn’t come until the final two minutes.
Second-year back Quinshon Judkins was also stymied on the ground, but the game script played a part in him only toting the rock 12 times.
The defence, which played in its first game without superstar Myles Garrett, got gashed for 360 yards and three first-half TDs and did little to make Trevor Lawrence’s life difficult.
Jacksonville is a very good team, and the Cleveland loss isn’t that surprising, but this performance is one that echoes the days of fans in the Dawg Pound wearing brown paper bags over their heads.
The Chargers are always going to Charger.
What does that mean, you might ask? Well, they always get in their own way and find a way to falter despite seemingly having the right pieces to be a serious contender.
It’s a tale as old as time.
The 2010 squad missed the playoffs despite having the top-ranked offensive and defensive units in football. Why? The 32nd-ranked special teams unit.
There’s also the 2023 wild-card round loss to the Jags when the Chargers blew a 27-0 second-quarter lead.
Or even losing to the lowly Giants in Week 4 last season. They just somehow find a way to lose in winning situations.
Los Angeles is good for at least one of these games a year, but for it to happen in Week 1 to one of the teams favoured for the top pick in the 2027 draft was quite unexpected.
Full credit to the Cardinals, though. They played great.
Jacoby Brissett looked like a solid starting QB, Tyler Allgeier and prized rookie Jeremiyah Love ran for over 100 yards combined and the defence spoiled Mike McDaniel’s debut as the Chargers offensive co-ordinator.
But the Chargers are supposed to be the better team. They’re coming off a post-season appearance, got their two stud tackles and running back back from injury, have stars at all levels on their defence and one of the game’s best QBs in Justin Herbert.
It just didn’t work out as it was supposed to on Sunday.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login