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    • Lions get brave against Rams
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    Lions get brave against Rams

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    The first NFL Sunday of the 2024 season is here and it’s exactly what pro football fans have been waiting for.

    The slate gave us a complete surprise of a surprise, with the Cincinnati Bengals, who came in as near double-digit favorites, losing to the New England Patriots. It gave us a pair of come-from-behind victories early in the slate in the form of the Miami Dolphins beating the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Chicago Bears beating the Tennessee Titans — with the winning defenses each shutting down their opponents in their respective second halves.

    It even gave us the first-ever dynamic kickoff return for a touchdown, by DeeJay Dallas of the Arizona Cardinals. Here are Sunday’s winners and losers from Week 1.

    WINNERS

    The toughness and determination of the Detroit Lions

    This was far from their best performance. The Lions’ offense faltered significantly in the second half, throwing three three-and-outs in the first five drives after halftime, with an interception on another in the period. Still, Detroit outlasted the Rams and showed its mettle as an NFC contender. This was the first game since the Lions blew a 17-point halftime lead to the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC championship game. And while it wasn’t pretty — star receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown caught just three passes for 13 yards and Detroit went 2-of-4 on red zone conversions — the team’s offensive line dominated the Rams in overtime, rushing the ball seven times for 60 rushing yards on a game-winning drive. The Lions sent a message that their identity hasn’t changed.

    Aggressive moves for Houston Texans pay off

    Kudos to Houston for knowing they had a solid young core and taking steps to improve. The Texans jumped out to an early lead in the AFC South with their 29-27 win over the Indianapolis Colts, and it was two trade acquisitions that made an impact.

    Running back Joe Mixon was the focal point of the offense, carrying the ball 30 times for 159 yards and a touchdown. Receiver Stefon Diggs, acquired in an April trade from the Buffalo Bills, caught six passes for just 33 yards. Two of those receptions were touchdowns, though, one coming late in the fourth quarter to give Houston a nine-point lead.

    The support around Caleb Williams

    The No. 1 overall pick didn’t play particularly well in his debut, but no harm was done. Chicago showed that it can overcome a huge deficit — a 17-point deficit, to be exact — and score in multiple ways to win. The Bears’ defense shut out the Titans in the second half and, following the special teams unit’s lead, scored a touchdown.

    At some point (soon), Williams is going to have to put his team in a position to win, but this is a huge advantage for a rookie quarterback. The idea is that if the Bears can win when their offense converts just 2 of 13 third-down attempts and generates 148 total yards — just 64 of which come through the air — they can emerge as a sleeper contender once Williams and the offense get their act together.

    The dynamic kick-off (sort of)

    This is honestly neither a winner nor a loser, but more a matter of holding, given the sample size and the fact that teams are still primarily kicking kickoffs through the endzone. But on the few occasions that kickoffs were returned, the tweaked rules did add some excitement to the game.

    Sunday night’s game saw 101 touchbacks on 157 kickoffs. There were 54 returns — or 34.4 percent — with two going out of bounds. But those returns averaged 27.2 yards, significantly higher than last season’s average of 23 yards per kick return. In essence, the game was more exciting when the kicks were actually returned. The Cardinals-Bills game in particular saw several huge returns, including the first for a touchdown.

    The return rate, however, is still too low. Eleven of the 54 returns — or 20.4 percent — came in the Carolina Panthers-New Orleans Saints game alone, of which Carolina had nine. The return has potential, but it’s just a start; the league needs to further incentivize teams to avoid touchbacks for the tweaks to have any real value. One unsolicited solution: put a touchback on the 35-yard line to encourage more returns.

    LOSERS

    Is Cincinnati due for a regression?

    Don’t let the absence of receiver Tee Higgins fool you; this was an inexcusable loss to a Patriots team in the midst of a cultural rebuild. And the Bengals — notoriously slow starters who are three years removed from a Super Bowl appearance — showed troubling indicators of offensive regression.

    The Bengals suffered just two fumbles last season. They tied that stat midway through the third quarter on Sunday. Cincinnati was the only offense, through Sunday’s action, that didn’t score a single point before halftime. Joe Burrow finished with just 164 passing yards and, aside from Ja’Marr Chase’s 62 yards, the Bengals receivers accounted for just 37 receiving yards on five catches. Worse, the Bengals are missing Mixon in the running game; Cincy’s 70 rushing yards were second-worst in Week 1, trailing only the Panthers (58).

    It’s time for the New York Giants to stop repeating Daniel Jones’ mistake

    Now in Year 6, the Daniel Jones experiment has run its course. Jones hasn’t been blessed with a ton of talent around him during his time in New York, but the team’s decision to reward him with a four-year extension in March of 2023 looks worse for wear.

    Jones is simply duplicating mistakes he’s made throughout his career, as he did in a two-interception game in a 28-6 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. He often holds the ball too long and climbs into the pocket for sacks and pressure. He also takes sacks when dumpoffs or throwing the ball away are clearly better options. He commits turnovers, seemingly at the worst times. According to Spotrac.com, Jones is expected to be billed $47.86 million against the 2024 salary cap, and the team would still owe $22.2 million in dead cap if it cuts him in the offseason.

    The Browns, however, don’t have that luxury

    Cleveland is essentially stuck with Deshaun Watson after a 33-17 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. Because the Browns gave him a fully guaranteed contract in March 2022, even as he faced 24 allegations of sexual assault and misconduct, the team has little choice but to tolerate his underperformance. It’s unlikely any team will trade a player who can’t consistently lead an NFL offense, let alone one with Watson’s personal baggage. Cutting him in the midseason would incur an absurd $172.78 million dead cap hit, according to Spotrac.com.

    Not all of Cleveland’s problems are Watson’s fault. But the offense was uneven last season when he was behind center, only to have Joe Flacco unlock the downfield passing game — and the Browns’ offense in general — while Watson was sidelined with a shoulder injury. And unlike Jones, Watson actually has talent around him — an abundance of it, even in Amari Cooper, Jerry Jeudy and David Njoku.

    Kirk Cousins ​​and the revamped Atlanta Falcons offense need more time

    The Pittsburgh Steelers failed to score a touchdown on Sunday but still defeated the Falcons 18-10. Atlanta’s offense, in its first game with Kirk Cousins ​​at quarterback and Zac Robinson as offensive coordinator, was overwhelmed and ineffective.

    Cousins ​​finished with just 155 passing yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. The second pick came with 2:47 left in the game, with Atlanta in Steelers territory, down five points. Cousins ​​was under pressure the entire game, especially with TJ Watt coming at him. Atlanta lost the turnover battle 0-3, and with so many new pieces, it could just take time for the offense to settle into a rhythm. But with games at the Philadelphia Eagles and against the Kansas City Chiefs coming up, an 0-3 start could be a very real concern.

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