NFL Week 1: It Feels Good to Football
Renewed rivalries, thrilling comebacks, and so much kicking weirdness. Welcome back, NFL.
On Thursday night, the NFL ushered in the 2022 season with a star-filled commercial called “It Feels Good to Football.” And you know what? It does feel good to football.
This past weekend gave us a college football slate that looked garbage on paper and then, as in typical college football fashion, it was a near-constant stream of bangers and upsets. Unfortunately, that led to another round of the same old tired debate about whether college football or the NFL is the superior game, and how could *anyone* like one more than the other?
Well, the NFL answered on Sunday with its own display of what makes it a unique sport: high drama, fierce rivalries, double-digit comebacks, numerous game-winning kicks (some made, some missed … badly), one 20-20 tie and one almost 20-20 tie.
Both the NFL and college football have their own charms (and flaws). It’s totally fine to like one more than the other, or to appreciate both equally on their own merits. But the idea that one is “better” is simply subjective and, to me, a completely unnecessary argument. Just enjoy the football!
Or, in other words:
Now let’s talk about Week 1 in a little more depth.
Welcome back, rivalries
Six of Sunday’s contests were divisional rivalries; four others pitted a starting quarterback against his former coach (I’m including Patrick Mahomes and Kliff Kingsbury, even if their time together came in the college ranks). Though there were no fights on the field, there was simmering tension all around the league.
I’d like to focus on a few familiar rivalries that stood above the rest on Sunday, starting with the most wackadoodle game of the weekend.
Bengals vs. Steelers vs. kickers
For most of the afternoon, Joe Burrow looked like he had the worst Super Bowl hangover of all time. Not that you can blame him after he was sacked seven times in that game and 70 times all of last year. Burrow threw four interceptions, including a pick-six, and fumbled once against Pittsburgh. He was, siiiiiigh, sacked seven times again.
But he still came through when the Bengals needed him near the end of the fourth quarter, when he found Ja’Marr Chase in the front corner of the end zone for the game-tying score as time expired.
It should have been the game-deciding score, but the usually clutch Evan McPherson got his extra point blocked. Long snapper Clark Harris sustained an injury, leading third-string tight end Mitchell Wilcox to fill in. He was slow on the snap and that gave Minkah Fitzpatrick enough time to break through the line and block the kick.
In OT, Burrow gave McPherson and Wilcox a second chance with a potentially game-winning field goal. The Bengals even kicked it on third down in case the snap was bad. And it was! And they tried to kick it anyway! It was bad!
Six plays later, Steelers kicker Chris Boswell doinked his own field goal try and it looked like we were headed for a 20-20 final score, just after the Texans and Colts had done moments earlier.
But once again, the Bengals had to account for their backup long snapper. They punted the ball with 13 seconds left on the play clock to give Wilcox a buffer. Those extra seconds proved costly because Boswell got a chance for redemption and this time, he nailed it.
It was a very Steelers type of win, especially on the first Sunday. Mike Tomlin, to no surprise, has an excellent record in season openers: He’s 10-5-1 in Week 1, including 3-0-1 in OT matchups and 6-4-1 on the road. And it was a very “Bungles” type of loss that the Bengals had hoped they had put behind them, filled with self-inflicted mistakes and questionable coaching decisions.
It’s also important to put this loss into perspective. Burrow sat out all preseason after getting his appendix removed. Tee Higgins left with a concussion. Neither Burrow nor the offense was crisp early, though they settled into things and came back from a 17-3 deficit. Cincinnati would have won if not for a fluke long-snapping injury.
It’s a gut punch for the Bengals, who had a three-game winning streak over Pittsburgh snapped, to lose like they did, against a foe that they’ve had bad blood with for decades. It’s much too early, however, to definitively declare they have a Super Bowl hangover or to drop unhinged takes about Burrow.
Baker Mayfield vs. Browns
Last year, Baker Mayfield engineered zero game-winning drives for Cleveland, despite having several opportunities. The Browns went 8-9 and just missed the playoffs.
After the Browns decided to “upgrade” at quarterback with their extremely gross courtship of Deshaun Watson, Mayfield asked for a trade. He finally got his wish in July when he was shipped to Carolina.
It was a messy breakup, and there were mixed feelings all around about this Week 1 meeting. But, obviously, both sides wanted to get the win. For the first three quarters, the Browns seemed well on their way to humbling Mayfield. Behind Jacoby Brissett, they took a 20-7 lead into the final 15 minutes. Then, Mayfield looked like he was finally going to break his comeback drought, against his old team that hadn’t won a season opener since 2004. Three straight Panthers scoring drives — a Mayfield touchdown run, a 75-yard strike to Robbie Anderson, and a field goal — sandwiched between a Cleveland field goal, put the Panthers up 24-23 with just over a minute remaining.
However, Mayfield’s plan for vengeance was quickly foiled. Brissett, and the help of two controversial calls, got the Browns to the Carolina 40-yard line. Somehow, with all their horrid kicker luck and even worse Week 1 luck over the years, that was close enough for rookie kicker Cade York:
Meanwhile, Mayfield will have to wait at least another year for his first 1-0 start in the NFL.
Aaron Rodgers vs. his receivers
The Packers and Vikings have animosity of their own, but despite their history, I don’t know if it can compare to the antipathy Aaron Rodgers feels for his Davante Adams-less receiving corps.
After Rodgers publicly crapped on them in his “let’s see how insufferable I can be” preseason tour, the receivers responded by … dropping wide-open touchdowns:
The good news for the Packers is they should get Allen Lazard back soon, and they’ve dealt with a blowout, but ultimately meaningless, Week 1 loss before. They had Adams at the time, though. Now he’s with the Raiders and racked up 141 receiving yards in his debut. Hopefully Rodgers is pissed about that too.
Derek Carr vs. Joey Bosa
Last year, Derek Carr didn’t take too kindly to Joey Bosa calling him, in so many words, a bit of a wuss after the Chargers beat the Raiders. Carr got the last laugh in the final week of the season when the Raiders’ OT win kept the Chargers out of the playoffs.
The Chargers got their own payback to start this season. They teamed Bosa up with Khalil Mack, and the two combined for 4.5 sacks, four TFL, and six QB hits against Carr.
To make matters worse for the Raiders QB, his new coach called a play that asked Carr to try to help block Bosa, and lolololol:
To be fair to Carr, not being able to block Bosa doesn’t make you a wuss. It just means you’re not, like, the Kraken.
Falcons vs. themselves (and yeah, the Saints)
The Falcons aren’t supposed to be good this year, but they can at least play spoiler from time to time. Even better if it comes against their most hated rival.
Alas, some things never change:
The comeback begins?
Injuries are a part of the game and they always suck. On Sunday, T.J. Watt, Dak Prescott, Mac Jones, Connor McGovern, and Chris Godwin all suffered an injury that either will or could cause them to miss time.
The only upside to injuries is when we can celebrate a player’s triumphant return from them. On Sunday, a few oft-injured (at least recently) stars shined once again and looked, dare we believe, like their old selves. Now please stay healthy!
Saquon Barkley
Barkley couldn’t be stopped in the Giants’ come-from-behind-victory over the Titans. He totaled 18 carries for 164 rushing yards and this touchdown, with his explosiveness on full display:
The former No. 2 overall pick also caught six passes for 30 yards and scored the go-ahead two-point conversion that proved to be the game-winner. This is not Joe Judge’s team anymore!
Michael Thomas
Thomas, who missed all of last season with an ankle injury, started off slow against the Falcons, as did the entire New Orleans offense. The second half was a different story; Thomas hauled in five catches for 57 yards and both of the Saints’ fourth-quarter touchdowns.
I guess you still can’t guard Mike. Or at least the Falcons can’t.
Julio Jones
To add insult to injury, the Falcons later had to watch their former No. 1 receiver bounce back with Tom Brady as his quarterback. Jones recorded three receptions for 69 yards (nice) and, somewhat randomly, two carries for 17 yards. He appeared to be the healthiest he’s been since his last Pro Bowl season in 2019.
He must be on that TB12 diet.
The weirdest kicks, non-FG edition
Missed field goals were a big story from Sunday, but there was other strangeness happening in the world of kicking. To (briefly) recap:
The Bears’ punter penalty that put them out of FG range
Soldier Field was a watery disaster that threatened to derail the Bears:
By the end of the afternoon, it turned into a watery playground for the home team.
The safety who was called into emergency kicking duties
The Chiefs’ new safety, Justin Reid, is also their new backup kicker. He did a pretty good job overall, even though he missed one of his two extra point tries:
Luckily, Kansas City’s 23-point win over Arizona meant the Chiefs didn’t need that one point. And Harrison Butker returned, so Reid didn’t have to perform double duty all game.
Bucs rookie punter, meet JerryWorld
This was rookie Jake Camarda’s first punt of his NFL career:
It didn’t count because it hit the video board, so he got a redo … which also didn’t count. Third time was the charm, however.
Love reading your thoughts, Sarah!