Top 10 Takeaways From the NFL: Week 1

   

Tom Brady

The NFL is back. Week 1 of the season was entertaining to say the least. There was a lot of old faces in new places, a few highly anticipated debuts and plenty of empty stadiums. I will give the top 10 things that stood out to me more than anything. 

1. The Colts overpaid for Philip Rivers - Philip Rivers was paid over $20 million for the 2020 season. He is coming off of his worst season and people thought 2020 he would redeem himself and help the Colts compete for one of the top spots in the AFC. Well, after the performance against Jacksonville, I can officially tell you that it will be another season of BAD Philip Rivers. 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions and only producing 3 points in the second half against a team that everyone believed to be "tanking". 

2. Russell Wilson is still as good as advertised - Russell Wilson might get him a well-deserved MVP trophy this season if he puts on this type of show every week. 31 of 35 passes completed 322 yards passing and 4 touchdowns. Not only did they beat Atlanta in the dome, they made it look fairly easy and most of it was the Russell Wilson show. 

3. DeAndre Hopkins wasn't the problem he is just a problem - The Houston Texans traded away their star wide receiver, DeAndre Hopkins, over the summer to the Arizona Cardinals. In his Cardinals debut, Hopkins only caught 14 passes for 151 yards. Kyler Murray is my MVP front-runner for the 2020 season and Hopkins is the reason why. With five 1,000-yard receiving seasons in his first six seasons, I am still trying to rationalize why the Texans traded Hopkins, he was clearly the best receiver the franchise had seen since Andre Johnson. New team, new quarterback, same great receiver. 

4. The Washington Football Team showing coaching can makeup for talent - In their debut with the new team name, new coach in Ron Rivera and defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio,  Washington came from a 17-point deficit and scored 27 unanswered points to beat the Philadelphia Eagles 27-17. Many people have been saying that Eagles quarterback, Carson Wentz lost this game for the Eagles. I saw a Washington defense win the game. 8 sacks, pressure on nearly every passing play and they held the Eagles to under 60 rushing yards in the game. I was very impressed with what I saw from what I saw from a Washington defense that doesn't have much star power on it. Jack Del Rio is one of the greatest defensive coordinators I have seen. 2020 could be a season that Washington becomes a team that begins to trend up. 

5. Cleveland is a work in progress - The Cleveland Browns got embarrassed by the Baltimore Ravens. While people can say that Cleveland is still Cleveland, I'm the optimism that the Browns need for 2020. I believe that Baker Mayfield will get things corrected, head coach Kevin Stefanski will continue to find out what works for the offense and they still have running backs Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. Even though the Ravens won 38-6, the Browns had both Hunt and Chubb average over 5 yards per carry. Cleveland can still have a good season, there's a lot of football left to play. Also, they don't have to play the Ravens every week, so there's a bright spot. 

6. The Lions aren't making the playoffs with that performance - A lot of analysts have been on this "Lions are going to be a surprise playoff team in 2020" and based on the 23-6 lead they gave up to the Bears, I can't buy-in. I like Matt Stafford and believe he's wasting his best years trying to help the Lions become a competitor in the NFC. They haven't made the playoffs since 2016 and have had a worse record every year since. This could be the final year for head coach Matt Patricia, if he doesn't show improvement with this ball team. They won't have to make the playoffs but they have to win at least 6-or-7 games coming off a 3-win season in 2019. 

7. Tom Brady is getting older and is no longer playing for the Patriots - Tampa Bay was probably the most hyped-up team entering the 2020 season. In his Buccaneers debut, Brady looked like he was playing for a new team. The Saints are a very good team, the defense is serious this season, and they showed Brady who is the superior team in the NFC South. Tom Brady completed 23 of his 36 passes with 2 touchdowns through the air (also, had one rushing). However, the 2 interceptions, one for a defensive touchdown, is what hurt Tom terrific in his debut. Brady at times looked like he was on opposite pages with the receivers and didn't look like he trusted some of his teammates. Maybe they get things turned around as the season progresses. But, honestly, I believe this is an average team with a 9-win season being the ceiling. Maybe I'm wrong. 

8. Kickers need crowds - I saw a handful of games with kickers missing what are seen as "chip-shots" or fairly easy field goals. The Cincinnati Bengals were a field goal away from taking the Los Angeles Chargers to overtime and then kicker Randy Bullock went to attempt a 31-yard field goal, missing it wide to the right. The Cleveland Browns waived kicker Austin Seibert on Monday after he missed a field goal before halftime. There were kicks missed all around the NFL in the opening week. I don't know if they need the crowd or if it was due to the lack of the offseason. I guess it's safe to say "kicking ain't easy". 

9. The Baltimore Ravens are ready - Already in mid-season form, the Baltimore Ravens are playing like they have something to prove. The rich obviously got richer this offseason. When you already had to worry about this team running the ball on offense, finishing first in that category in 2019, they went out and drafted former Ohio State Buckeyes stand-out running back J.K. Dobbins in the second round. Putting up 38 points in their opening game against Cleveland leads me to believe that they still have a sour taste in their mouth from the loss to the Tennessee Titans in the 2019 playoffs. I expect Lamar Jackson to run less in 2019 and have more passing touchdowns. 

10. Aaron Rodgers is like wine - The Green Bay Packers traded up in the 2020 NFL draft and with their first-round pick took quarterback Jordan Love, from Utah State, to potentially be the successor to Aaron Rodgers. In week 1 of the season, against the Minnesota Vikings, Rodgers proved that he still has a lot left in the tank. 36-year-old Rodgers threw 4 touchdowns, 364-yards passing and made it look easy. Rodgers had 24 touchdowns through the air and only 2 interceptions in 2019... 2020 can he repeat that type of performance or even better? 

The opening week of the NFL season was entertaining... I can't wait to see what week 2 has for us.