NFL Week 1 Rewind

So before you think I cheaped out on my NFL Season Preview (smart writers wait until after Week 1 people!), let me recap the first weekend of the 2010 NFL season and tell you what caught my attention.

Saints 14 – Vikings 9

Everybody’s talking about how amazing the defense was, well, what did you expect? While both teams have explosive offenses, the Vikings have had a top-5 defense in the league the past three seasons, and the Saints were the only team last season that could stop Peyton Manning. Drew Brees was as amazing as he was in 2009 and the Saints look like a legit threat to repeat. Don’t be fooled though, Brett Favre will work off his rust and the Vikings will be there down the stretch too.

Buccaneers 17 – Browns 14

The Bucs are starting the season 1-0 for the first time since 2005, a season they finished 11-5. Well, this team will definitely not finish 11-5 but Josh Freeman looked good despite Micheal Spurlock being his best receiving option. In other news, the Browns still stink.

Dolphins 15 – Bills 10

The Bills were one of only 3 home teams to lose Sunday afternoon, and showed their fans that they’ll probably be doing some more losing as the season progresses. They were out-rushed 132 to 50, and with Marshawn Lynch, Fred Jackson, and C.J. Spiller all being talented backs you have to hope that the ‘Fins just have an incredible run-defense. Brandon Marshall caught eight balls in his Dolphins debut and Chad Henne didn’t lose the game against an underrated defense. Hang in there Chan.

Patriots 38 – Bengals 24

Why won’t these guys just go away? This was the one season that there was speculation that maybe the Pats were in rebuilding mode, that they weren’t the same team that went 18-1 just three years ago. They’re not, they’re faster on defense and barring injuries will only get better and wiser under a season of Belichick tutelage. Carson Palmer hit his two diva receivers for a combined 17 receptions, 241 yards and a score, and we’re just waiting for them to combust (I know, too soon).

Texans 34 – Colts 24

As a Jets fan who considers it the best moment of his life everytime the Jets beat the Patriots, Texans fans I feel you! Houston ran for a franchise record 257 yards, led by Arian Foster’s franchise record 231 rush yards…but where was the vertical game? Matt Schaub threw for 107 yards, his lowest tally since 2007, which begs the question…is this a new era in Texans football? Has the ground and pound hit Houston? With Andre Johnson threatening opposing secondaries I’m going to guess no, but the Texans are talented and have new-found confidence, which combine to make a dangerous football team. Oh yeah, Peyton Manning threw for 433 yards and 3 touchdowns, Jim Caldwell better get his defense together before number 18 decides to play both sides of the field (obviously that won’t happen, just saying).

Jaguars 24 – Broncos 17

Booooorrrrrrrrinnggggg. Tim Tebow carried the ball twice for two yards. To be fair, these are two teams that will spend 2010 upsetting playoff plans for better teams, but as the famed Officer Barbrady would say “nothing to see here.”

Steelers 15 – Falcons 9

In my opinion these are two playoff teams who played one of the closer games we’ll see this season. I think the Steelers will really return to prominence once Ben Roethlisberger finishes his 4-game suspension, and I think the Falcons have everything except for a pass defense. Luckily for them, the Steelers didn’t have their usual pass offense in Week 1. Dennis Dixon was more than serviceable, but a Roethlisberger lead Steelers would probably have had this game put away in the third quarter. Ugly game but an important win for the Steelers.

Titans 38 – Raiders 13

The Raiders actually recorded four more first downs than the Titans, it’s too bad that statistic isn’t what determines the outcome of a football game. Jason Campbell reminded the silver and black what a quarterback looks like and Darren McFadden showed the NFL what he’s capable of, but it was all Tennessee on Sunday. Efficient is the best word to use when describing how the Titans looked as Vince Young completed all but four passes (2 TDs, 0 INT). Javon Ringer will be an incredible spell back for Chris Johnson, who put in another day at the office with 150 all-purpose yards and two scores. The AFC South will be the best division in the NFL this season, we’re talking scary good.

Giants 31 – Panthers 18

Plaxico Burress you have been replaced. If it wasn’t enough that Steve Smith caught 107 balls last season, second-year product Hakeem Nicks has emerged as the red-zone, big-bodied threat that Eli Manning needs to thrive in this offense. Manning and Nicks got together for three touchdowns as the Giants were able to overcome four turnovers and win the first regular season game played at New Meadowlands Stadium. Trailing at halftime, the G-Men came out in the second half and outscored Carolina 17-2. It doesn’t help that Carolina turned the ball over 5 times, and starting QB Matt Moore was knocked out of the game in the fourth quarter after being hit by the Giants impressive pass rush. The Giants played sloppy on Sunday but avenged their embarrassing loss in 2009 in the last game they were to play at the old Giants’ Stadium.

Bears 19 – Lions 14

The Lions were wronged. Or were they? Calvin Johnson nabbed what looked like the game-winning touchdown with just 25 seconds to go in regulation, until it was ruled an incomplete pass as Megatron let the ball go in celebration as he hit the ground. It’s hard to rationalize losing a game in which the opposing quarterback threw for 372 yards, and the opposing running back gained a total of 201 yards. The Bears offense looked good with Mike Martz calling the plays but the Lions proved they won’t lie down for anyone. Detroit’s’ offense wasn’t overly impressive, but they played without franchise quarterback Matt Stafford, who went down with a shoulder injury in the first quarter after being hit by newly acquired Bear Julius Peppers. A writer from the Detroit Free Press tweeted Sunday that Stafford’s injury “doesn’t look good”

Cardinals 17 – Rams 13

Another snoozer. The Cardinals let the Rams stay in this game until the clock expired and if Sam Bradford had a legit receiver they may even have lost this one. Derek Anderson did things Matt Leinert couldn’t dream of, but at the same time Cardinals’ fans will absolutely miss Kurt Warner this season. Not many teams don’t miss a Hall of Fame quarterback after he retires, but the Cardinals will not be a playoff team this season and that’s saying a lot considering they play in the worst division in the NFL. Bradford threw for 253 yards but was picked off three times.

Packers 27 – Eagles 20

I don’t think there could be a bigger story or more significant game than this one was. In their first game after the Donovan McNabb era, the Eagles came out and picked up 3 first downs and netted 49 total yards in the first half. Kevin Kolb played a miserable first half and his day only got worse as he left the game with a concussion at halftime. Trailing 20-3 in the third quarter, Michael Vick took over the Eagles offense, and when I say took over, I mean he took over. Vick looked better than he looked with the Falcons, this was like Virginia Tech Michael Vick. Vick threw for 175 yards and ran for 83 yards in the second half, including runs of 31 and 23 yards, and this is against the top run defense in the NFL last season.

Although the Eagles weren’t able to pull off the comeback, it was a moral victory. Michael Vick looked great and did a way better job of making the Eagles faithful forget about McNabb than McNabb’s supposed predecessor did, but more impressively is that he did it against an elite team. I was ready to get on my blog and absolutely destroy the Eagles for letting McNabb go because they were so sure they were better off without him. I’m a huge fan of McNabb and he did nothing but give his all to the city of Philadelphia. I understand sometimes you have to move in a different direction, but I don’t think the Eagles shortcomings were because of McNabb and I think he makes pretty much any team better. This story will unfold as the season plays out, and Andy Reid said if Kolb is cleared to play in week 2 he will start. So maybe I’ll yell about the Eagles next week instead.

Seahawks 31 – 49ers 6

The surprise of the day without a doubt. I know it’s only week 1, but waiting for this San Francisco team to turn the corner is getting old. It’s never easy to play at Qwest Field, but this was the first time that this Seahawks team under Pete Carroll was playing in a real game, and the Niners should have come out more prepared. Alex Smith was woeful and first-round fantasy pick Frank Gore was ineffective. I’d like to give Carroll credit and say he really turned this team around, but a) it’s only week 1, and b) the Niners went into the season as the division favorite and they came out and laid an egg! Matt Hasselbeck looked great and the Seahawks seamed pumped to play for their new coach. Who knows? Maybe the Seahawks are the team to beat in the NFC Less, I mean NFC West.

Redskins 13 – Cowboys 7

Great way to end the first Sunday of the NFL season. It was a gritty game that relied on defense and breaks. At the end of the night, the Redskins got the bigger breaks and McNaShanahan got their first win together. Alright, I’ll never call them McNaShanahan again, but Donovan McNabb and Mike Shanahan really fed off of each other well and as Trent Williams matures and the team grows familiar with each other, the Redskins look like they could be a playoff contender. Tony Romo threw for 282 yards and the Cowboys outgained the ‘Skins by 130 total yards, but in the second quarter DeAngelo Hall fumble return touchdown turned out to be the determining factor in the game. The Cowboys shot themselves in the foot again as left-tackle Alex Baron was called for a holding penalty to not only end the Cowboys’ final drive, but end the game as well. It was an ugly game but it was exciting to see two teams with so much at stake in the first game of the season.

I don’t want to say that Dallas can’t be a championship contender this year, but I don’t have faith in these guys. Tony Romo’s good but there are at least four quarterbacks who are better than him (Brees, Peyton, Rodgers, Brady), and 5 guys probably about as good as him (Rivers, Eli, McNabb, Palmer, Matt Ryan). And these are all guys who are trying to win a championship! What else do the Cowboys have going for them? Their coach? Please. You can almost eliminate any team being coached by Norv Turner, Eric Mangini, and Wade Phillips just because they’re led by men who are not leaders. They may know football, but if you’re coaching in the NFL of course you know football, you have to know how to motivate, how to gain respect, and how to lead, and I don’t see those qualities in any of the three men I listed before. The Cowboys have a good defense, but good offenses continuously beat their defense. Last season Minnesota rang 34 on them, and the Giants put up 31 and 33 in their two respective meetings. The Cowboys get the new-look Bears and the Texans the next two weeks. Those two games really will show us if this Dallas team is a contender or a pretender.