NFL week one: Four things we learned

By Alex Merson

After a long seven months of watching time go by, the NFL season finally returned this past week, and if the season continues the way week one has gone, it is certainly going to be another great season.

Here are four things we learned from the opening week of games:

The Chiefs have a great chance at history

As we all know by now, the Kansas City Chiefs are back-to-back champions, and have the opportunity to do something never seen before in NFL history, a three-peat. 

The opening game of the season more than proved that they have every chance of achieving that feat, as they battled it out and JUST about beat the same team they did in last season’s AFC Championship, the Baltimore Ravens.

It was a game that came down to the last play, as the Chiefs had a seven-point lead with just a couple of seconds remaining, the Ravens had the ball in the red zone, and Lamar Jackson found tight end Isaiah Likely in the back of the end-zone as the clock expired. However, on review, Likely’s toe was deemed to be out of bounds, and with no time remaining the game was over.

It was a great game to open the season, and despite the Chiefs being inches away from a loss, there were glimpses of even bigger strengths then they had last year.

For one, their first-round draft pick in this years’ draft, Xavier Worthy, had a perfect start to the NFL, as he scored a rushing and a receiving touchdown, as well as 68 all-purpose yards. Worthy broke the combine record in April for the 40-yard dash, with a time of 4.21. Ever since losing Tyreek Hill a few years ago, the one thing it seemed Mahomes was missing was some speed in the receiving room, but that problem is now seemingly solved.

The defense looked just as solid as last year, despite not having any turnovers and only just one sack, holding a team like the Ravens to just 20 points is a difficult task, as they averaged just under 32 points per game last season.

It is only week one, and as we know in the NFL anything can happen, but the Chiefs have set themselves up for more success, and with the improvements they have made, they have a real shot at history and cementing themselves as one of the best squads ever.

The Panthers are bad.... really bad

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 There is no other way of putting it really, the Panthers will struggle to even put a few wins on the board this season. They opened their 2024 season in New Orleans, facing the Saints, and any slim hope for success that Panther fans may have had coming into the season has already been diminished.

It was a battering from start to finish, with the Saints winning 47-10. The Saints started the season on fire, as Derek Carr found Rashid Shaheed on a 59-yard touchdown pass to open the scoring.

Panthers’ quarterback Bryce Young, the former first pick of the draft who is coming into his second season, already had a lot of question marks surrounding him and his play. Those doubts were not helped when he was intercepted on the Panthers’ first play of the season by the Saints, and they would go on to score 30 unanswered points until Eddy Pinerio hit a field goal at the end of the first half to give the Panthers their first points of the year.

Bryce Young rushed in a touchdown to damage limitations during the third quarter, however, the Saints continued to pile on the points and won by 37.

There were barely any positives to take from the game for the Panthers, they completed just 10% of their third downplays, compared to the Saints’ 54%, and only managed ten first downs the entire game. Bryce Young was intercepted twice and only completed 13 passes of his 30 passing attempts. On the defensive side of the ball, they allowed Derek Carr to pick them apart, giving up three touchdowns in the air, as well as two on the ground.

The Panthers face the Chargers next Sunday, who are coming off an opening weekend win, and could continue to be in a world of trouble against the likes of Justin Herbert, Joey Bosa and Derwin James.

Aaron Rodgers has some rust to shake off

After going down with an Achilles injuring during the New York Jets’ opening game of last season that saw him ruled out for the entire season, Aaron Rodgers made his return to the field, as his side lost heavily to the San Francisco 49ers, 32-19.

Rodgers began his first drive with a three-and-out after an incomplete pass on third down, and the 49ers did the same. On the next opportunity, Rodgers found running back Breece Hall, who fumbled and gave the ball back to the 9ers, resulting in a field goal. On the third drive, however, Rodgers looked like the rust had shaken off, as he led the Jets to a 12-play, 70-yard touchdown drive to give them an early advantage. Breece Hall ran in for the score, but on the drive, Rodgers found the highly rated third-year wide receiver Garrett Wilson four times for 41 yards, with three of the catches coming on third-down situations.

Rodgers would only have ball twice for the rest of the half, both resulting in three-and-outs, allowing Brock Purdy and the 49ers to capitalise, scoring a touchdown and a field goal to take the lead at half, 16-7. They went ahead even further on the first drive of the second half, as Jordan Mason, who was filling in for the injured Christian McCaffrey, capped of a 70-yard drive with a touchdown run.

On the next possession, the Jets’ needed something big to stay in the game, however Rodgers’ throw to Wilson was batted away and into the arms of a 49ers’ defender for an interception.

Rodgers would once again come back firing with a vintage play, getting the 49ers to jump offside for a free play, which allowed him to sling a 36-yard touchdown pass to Allen Lazard, but it wasn’t enough to give the Jets a way back into the game, and the 49ers ran away with a 32-19 victory.

Whilst we saw many glimpses of what the four-time MVP could do, there was certainly still rust on the offense, and it could take time for everyone to get on the same page.

There is no doubt the game would be easy, the 49ers are coming off a Super Bowl overtime defeat and are expected to make another run towards the Super Bowl. They have one of the most complete teams in the NFL, and are a tough matchup for anyone, let alone someone coming off an injury as bad as Rodgers’.

The Jets’ fortunes may change next week, as they play the Titans who, respectfully, are not anywhere near on the same level as the 49ers.

Rookie QBs struggle across the board

Three rookie quarterbacks started for their teams in week one, and it was a disappointing start for each of them as they began their careers.

First of all, the quarterback from Oregon, Bo Nix, couldn’t continue his pre-season form into the regular season, as he threw two interceptions and just 128 yards in a 26-20 loss for the Denver Broncos. His interceptions were poor, throwing into heavy traffic when it was unnecessary and he paid the price. He did manage to rush a touchdown in late on, but things need to improve in the air for Sean Payton’s side.

Next up is the most hyped from the class, the number one overall pick for the Chicago Bears, Caleb Williams. He is the most hyped for good reason, we all saw the unbelievable he was able to create at college for USC, but for his first game in the NFL, it was disappointing. Williams threw 29 times, completing 14 of them for 93 yards, as his team failed to score a touchdown on offense. Williams wasn’t able to create much magic throughout the game, however the Bears somehow managed to win the game, thanks to some huge defensive and special teams plays.

Williams is the first no.1 overall pick to win in week one since David Carr in 2002, but still has plenty to prove with plenty of football left.

The final rookie QB to make a start is Jayden Daniels, who was arguably the best of the three, despite his team suffering the worst loss. The Commanders were beaten by the Buccaneers 37-20, however last years’ Heismann award winner showed off his running ability, as he rushed for 88 yards and two touchdowns, as well as keeping efficient in the air with 184 yards and had a 70% completion rate.

Despite the loss, Daniels’ impressed, and for a team like the Commanders where they are not expected to win right now, getting Daniels comfortable early on will be a big positive.

ALEX MERSON

NFL ANALYST

Previously writing for Ninety-Nine Yards, Alex is a sports content creator and Football Journalism Student at the University of Derby. Follow him on Twitter at @AlexMerseJourno.

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