With the opening week of the NFL coming to a close last night, it's safe to say that we saw some real surprises already. I mean, David Akers kicking a 63 yard field goal that bounced off the cross bar and over? You don't see those kinds of breaks until at least week 7! There were some pleasant and not so pleasant surprises this week:
Michael Vick looked like he was the one in a dog fight this week with the Browns. He single-handedly made the Browns in this week look like a team of All-Stars. He threw 29-56 for 317 yards, 2 touchdowns, and
4 interceptions. 4 interceptions? And I thought the Eagles were supposed to be the dream team this year? Andy Reed might have just pulled a Rex Ryan with that kind of pre-season prediction. If the Eagles had played almost any team besides the Browns in week one, odds are these 4 interceptions cost them the game, easily. Instead, they escaped with a 17-16 win to start 1-0.
RGIII had one of the most impressive starts this week, and perhaps one of the best first starts by a rookie quarterback ever. He ran well, he threw well, and he dominated the Saints. 19/26 throwing for 320 yards, 2 touchdowns, and no interceptions. He also had 10 rushes for 42 yards. I can't remember the last time the Redskins scored so evenly and often; 10 points every quarter. Not only did RGIII look impressive, he looked incredibly comfortable. I expect nothing but big things from him and the skins this year.
With almost no visible offense this pre-season, the Jet's offense came into week one and blew everyone away. Tebow even added to it by recovering an on-side kick! They finally discovered his real position. However, Mark was able to go 19-26 for 266 yards and 3 touchdowns. He really hit his marks, making some miraculous throws into good coverage. Overall, a big surprise in my opinion after what the world saw in the pre-season.
Wes Welker disappointed fantasy owners everywhere. Only being targeted 5 times, he had 3 catches for a miniscule 14 yards. Now Welker is entirely to blame, the Patriots ran a lot of 3 tight end formations, and it's hard to pass up throwing to an open Gronkowski or Hernandez. I'm sure he will bounce back and get some more targets, as the opponents will shift the focus of coverage to the best tight end duo in the league.
Year after year, you can expect the Ravens to bring some hard-hitting and well-executed defense. But when was the last time they were known for their explosive offense? They put up a week one high of 44 points against the Bengals, who should have had a much better defensive effort. 308 yards through the air and 122 on the ground provided a very balanced attack. They also tacked on a defensive touchdown in the form of an Ed Reed interception return touchdown, just so people didn't forget their defense.
Another example of a great quarterback with a horrendous start. Though he did throw for 355 yards and a touchdown, his day was clouded by the 3 interceptions he threw very early in the game. He finished with a quarterback rating of 69.4. To put that in perspective, RGIII finished with a quarterback rating of 139.9 (more than double Stafford's). Against the lowly Rams's defense, I expected much more out of Stafford than what he gave.
While watching the Jaguars vs. Vikings game, I was ready to put them in this discussion after they recorded a surprise opening-week victory. However, the Jaguars are still the Jaguars, and found a way to let it slip right out of their hands late in the 4th quarter. With the luck of the Jaguars on the Viking's side, Blaire Walsh (rookie kicker) drained a 55 yard field goal to tie the game and send it to overtime. Against any other team, that kick goes wide right. But, that's the Jaguars for you in a nutshell.
Week one was an eventful day on the couch for me. With some great match-ups set for week two, I'm looking forward to even more surprises and another awesome week of football.
