NFL scores and recaps for every Week 1 game
DETROIT LIONS 21, KANSAS CITY CHIEFS 20
Offensive spotlight: Travis Kelce didn’t play in this game, and as a result, Mahomes was forced to spread the ball around to 11 different pass-catchers, completing 21-of-39 passes for 226 yards and two touchdowns. He also added 45 yards with his legs on six rushes, but he couldn’t win the game alone. Mahomes’ receivers combined for five drops, including three from Kadarius Toney.
Jared Goff connected with Amon-Ra St. Brown for the game’s first touchdown, but it took until halfway through the fourth quarter for the offense to get back on the board. Goff led a 75-yard touchdown drive on the back of 51 Josh Reynolds receiving yards and a David Montgomery rushing touchdown to give the Lions a fourth-quarter lead. And that ended up being enough, as the Chiefs’ offense couldn’t get back on track.
ATLANTA FALCONS 24, CAROLINA PANTHERS 10
Defensive spotlight: The Falcons defense, led by new defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen, got off to a hot start that included a big fourth down stop inside its own red zone and an interception inside of Carolina’s 20-yard line, both in the first quarter. That interception led to a touchdown Falcons’ offense. New free agent safety Jessie Bates made a significant impact in his first game for Atlanta coming up with two interceptions and two defensive stops.
BALTIMORE RAVENS 25, HOUSTON TEXANS 9
Rookie spotlight: Zay Flowers is going to be a big part of this offense. In this first quarter alone, he received four targets and one rushing attempt and finished the game with 87 rushing and receiving yards on 11 total touches.
C.J. Stroud faced as tough an opponent as you could hope for. He had some nice moments, was put under a lot of pressure by the Ravens defense and finished the game 28-for-44 for 242 yards. Will Anderson Jr., the third overall selection in the 2023 NFL Draft, recorded his first sack as a professional, bringing Jackson down in the fourth quarter, while wide receiver Tank Dell received four targets, picking up 34 yards on three receptions.
CLEVELAND BROWNS 24, CINCINNATI BENGALS 3
Offensive spotlight: Both passing offenses struggled heavily in this game. Joe Burrow went just 14-for-31 for 82 yards with no touchdowns. Deshaun Watson had better numbers, going 16-for-29 for 154 yards and a touchdown but had an awful interception in the third quarter, throwing the ball right at Bengals defensive back Dax Hill.
The Browns had more success on the ground though, with Nick Chubb rushing for 106 yards on 18 carries and another 100 yards coming from the combination of Watson, Jerome Ford and Elijah Moore. Ultimately, the ability to lean on their ground game was a big reason why the Browns were able to outlast the Bengals here.
SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS 30, PITTSBURGH STEELERS 7
Defensive spotlight: There wasn’t much to write home about for the Steelers in this one, but if there was a lone spotlight, it was T.J. Watt.
Watt finished the game with three sacks, two forced fumbles, one tackle for loss, one fumble recovery and five quarterback hits, pending reviews. Regardless of his team’s outcome, those numbers will put him in the early Defensive Player of the Year conversation.
TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS 20, MINNESOTA VIKINGS 17
Rookie spotlight: Vikings first-round draft pick Jordan Addison had a good debut, catching four of the six targets thrown his way against Tampa Bay. Two of his catches went for first downs and one resulted in a touchdown for Minnesota. Justin Jefferson was his usual outstanding self and Addison did enough to suggest he can act as a very important complement to the All-world receiver.
JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS 31, INDIANAPOLIS COLTS 21
Offensive spotlight: Calvin Ridley stepped right in as the lead receiver for the Jaguars and Trevor Lawrence, backing up the offseason hype that has surrounded him since his return from suspension. Ridney registered 11 targets, catching eight for 101 yards and a touchdown. His score was an impressive catch-and-run and overall, Ridley looked every bit the player he was before he found himself cast out of the league under suspension.
WASHINGTON COMMANDERS 20, ARIZONA CARDINALS 16
Defensive spotlight: The Commanders’ defensive line took it to the Cardinals’ offensive line, totaling 14 total pressures after PFF’s initial review of the game, which included three sacks of Dobbs. The unit also secured two fumbles. Edge defender Montez Sweat and interior defender Jonathan Allen, specifically, dominated in this game — with 1.5 sacks for Sweat, one for Allen and four unofficial pressures for each.
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS 16, TENNESSEE TITANS 15
Rookie spotlight: Saints first-round defensive lineman Bryan Bresee got a half sack in his first regular season game in the NFL. He also recorded two quarterback hits.
LOS ANGELES RAMS 30, SEATTLE SEAHAWKS 13
Offensive spotlight: This Rams team is completely different from the one that won the Super Bowl two years ago, but several relatively unknown players stepped up to make an impact for L.A. in this game.
Running back Kyren Williams led the charge out of the backfield, scoring two rushing touchdowns. Cam Akers also added a rushing touchdown to help the Rams bury Pete Carroll’s squad.
On the receiving side, rookie Puka Nacua and former second-round pick Tutu Atwell led the way with a combined 238 receiving yards (119 each).
Geno Smith and the Seahawks offense couldn’t get much going outside of a touchdown pass to D.K. Metcalf early in the game. Seattle put up less than 200 yards on the day, as the Rams defense was surprisingly too much to overcome.
MIAMI DOLPHINS 36, LOS ANGELES CHARGERS 34
Defensive spotlight: What defense? This game certainly didn’t do anything to suggest that the Chargers might finally put things together defensively under head coach Brandon Staley — a defensive-minded hire. The Chargers allowed 531 yards of offense at 8.2 yards per play. What’s perhaps most concerning is that they gave up all of that production despite actually recording multiple turnovers, as J.C. Jackson snagged an interception and Nick Williams had a fumble recovery.
GREEN BAY PACKERS 38, CHICAGO BEARS 20
Rookie spotlight: Green Bay Packers rookie wide receiver Jayden Reed caught two passes for 48 yards, and rookie tight end Luke Musgrave caught three passes for 50 yards, both showing serious speed in space. Reed also had a 35-yard punt return that gave Green Bay a short field for an eventual touchdown drive.
Bears rookie running back Roschon Johnson ran hard in the second half and also hauled in a few receptions, finishing with five carries for 20 yards and a touchdown to go along with five receptions for 30 yards. Johnson bowled over several defenders, and while he largely played in garbage time, he looks too good to keep off the field in first halves for much longer.
LAS VEGAS RAIDERS 17, DENVER BRONCOS 16
Offensive spotlight: The Russell Wilson-Sean Payton era got off to a clean but unexplosive start, with Wilson completing 27-of-34 passes for 177 yards and two touchdowns. Running back Javonte Williams looked crisp despite returning from the devastating injury he suffered in 2022, totaling 52 yards on 13 carries to go along with four receptions.
Raiders free-agent wide receiver Jakobi Meyers got off to a tremendous start with his new squad, hauling in nine receptions for 81 yards and two touchdowns, but he had to leave the game early after Broncos safety Kareem Jackson delivered a crushing blow to his head/neck area on a catch over the middle.
PHILADELPHIA EAGLES 25, NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS 20
Defensive spotlight: Eagles cornerback Darius Slay returned an interception 70 yards for a touchdown 10 minutes into the game to help Philadelphia jump out to a 10-0 lead. On the very next offensive snap for the Patriots, linebacker Zach Cunningham forced a fumble on running back Ezekiel Elliott. Once Philadelphia went up 16-0, it was simply too much for the Patriots to overcome despite the valiant effort.
Patriots edge defenders Matthew Judon and Josh Uche picked up where they left off in 2022, each recording a sack. Overall, New England held the Eagles to under 4.0 yards per carry and just 4.3 yards per pass, limiting Philadelphia as much as any team did throughout 2022.
DALLAS COWBOYS 40, NEW YORK GIANTS 0
Rookie spotlight: Things could have gone a lot worse for Giants rookie cornerbacks Tre Hawkins III and Deonte Banks, which is a positive of sorts for a team that should be reeling after tonight’s performance. Banks was targeted twice but didn’t allow a catch, and he even forced an incompletion. Hawkins allowed a catch on his only target, which went for 19 yards.
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