WASHINGTON — Fortunes flip, dominant DMV football, and a no-good-very-bad-tie highlight the first NFL Recap of the 2018 season.
Here’s is how the teams did in their first week.
Oh my god Marcus Peters did the Marshawn Lynch crotch grab in the Raiders house on this touchdown!!! pic.twitter.com/laRYs8ZlMz
— Will Brinson (@WillBrinson) September 11, 2018
Lions 17 Sam Darnold became just the third player to throw a Pick 6 on his first career pass attempt, but the first in Jets history with 2 TDs in his debut — which also happens to be the second largest season-opening win in team history. Considering he’s also the youngest QB in six decades to start Week 1, it’s not a stretch to think his response to that rough start is what will help make him a star. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)
Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images
Packers 24 In a battle between the largest contracts in NFL history, Aaron Rodgers and Khalil Mack showed why they’re worth every single penny. Rodgers shrugged off a second quarter leg injury and a 20-point deficit to author the greatest comeback in the history of the NFL’s oldest rivalry, and Mack proved to be every bit as unblockable as advertised. The NFC North is gonna be fun this year. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images
Cardinals 6 Yes, Alex Smith and Adrian Peterson had great debuts but the Redskins’ first opening day victory since 2012 came courtesy of the defense. The ‘Skins fell just 5:47 shy of their first shutout in 27 years, held Arizona to 63 first-half yards. If this is a sign of things to come for this unit, the race for NFC East supremacy will be more compelling than expected. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images
Panthers 16 Get used to this, Dallas. Your new kicker is feeling more pressure than he let on, and your offense is Ezekiel Elliott and little else. Of course, if Greg Olsen stays in a boot, Carolina could face similar problems with Cam Newton starring as the Panthers’ one-man show. (AP Photo/Jason E. Miczek)
AP Photo/Jason E. Miczek
Broncos 27 As great as it was to see Phillip Lindsay do Terrell Davis’s number proud, the real sight for sore eyes was the Griffin brothers taking the field together for Seattle.
(Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)Minutes before their pro debut, over the crowd and the music, Shaquill and Shaquem Griffin heard mama. pic.twitter.com/72pNEnDqtw — Robert Klemko (@RobertKlemko) September 9, 2018
Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images
Chargers 28 While I’m not ready to admit I underestimated Patrick Mahomes, I can say I didn’t give Tyreek Hill his full props. Since Week 15 of 2016, he’s got more than twice as many 50+ yard plays as his nearest competition, making him the biggest X-factor in football. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images
Ravens 47 Nathan Peterman was every bit as bad as expected, but Joe Flacco stunned us all with his first 3 TD game in two years, with each of his touchdowns going to receivers not on the team last year. This could be the beginning of a fast start for Baltimore. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
AP Photo/Patrick Semansky
Giants 15 Jacksonville didn’t get exactly what they wanted from Blake Bortles, but Big Blue got the big debut from Saquon Barkley they needed. Through one game, it’s already obvious the Giants will only go as far as Barkley and Odell Beckham will carry them. (Photo by Mike Lawrie/Getty Images)
Photo by Mike Lawrie/Getty Images
Saints 40 For me, this was the biggest stunner of the week. The Bucs won the highest scoring season opener in NFL history by blasting my Super Bowl pick for a franchise-record 48 points, led by journeyman Ryan Fitzpatrick’s mind-boggling 417 yards and 4 TDs against one of the best defenses from last season. I’ll chalk this up to the Saints’ typical slow starts — they’ve lost five straight season openers — rather than some Dirk Koetter payback. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images
Patriots 27 A day after reports that Rob Gronkowski turned down New England’s efforts to trade him, Gronk registered the 27th 100-yard game of his career. If you think Tom Brady was mad over Alex Guerrero, wait’ll you see what he does if you take Gronk away from him. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
AP Photo/Charles Krupa
Vikings 24 While Kirk Cousins’s debut in Minnesota was a tad less impressive than Alex Smith’s for the Redskins, it demonstrated what should already be known about the Vikings: They don’t need Cousins to carry them. He’s there to be efficient and effective when it matters — which he was. Jimmy G, however, was not. In his first professional loss, he completed fewer than half his passes and threw as many TDs to his guys as Vikings defenders. The mystique is gone. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images
Dolphins 27 Because of multiple weather delays, this 7-hour, 8-minute eyesore was by far the league’s longest game since the NFL/AFL merger in 1970. If injured Titans Marcus Mariota, Delanie Walker and Taylor Lewan — easily Tennessee’s three most important players — miss significant time, Mike Vrabel’s first season will feel just as long. (Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images)
Photo by Mark Brown/Getty Images
Colts 23 Cincinnati got its first win in Indy since 1997, and Andrew Luck played his first game in what feels about as long. If the Colts expect him to throw 53 times every week, his return will be shortlived. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
AP Photo/Jeff Roberson
Browns 21 (OT) For the first time since December 2016, Cleveland didn’t lose — and in true Browns fashion, didn’t bother to win either. My thoughts on ties are well-documented but in this case, it’s almost comical considering Cleveland’s yearslong ineptitude and the Steelers’ recent organizational arrogance. Speaking of the Steelers … nobody’s laughing in Pittsburgh. James Conner may have shown they can live without Le’Veon Bell, but committing six turnovers and blowing a 14-point lead to a team with one win in two seasons to settle for the first season-opening tie since 1971 is a bad look all around. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images
Eagles 18 Even though it literally rained on their pregame parade, Philadelphia got to celebrate their first Super Bowl by repeating history, while Atlanta settled for the league’s best use of social media this week. https://twitter.com/atlantafalcons/status/1037856381804654592?s=21 (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)
Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images
