The first week of NFL football has just finished, and it is already chaotic. And while it is only week 1, here are 4 takeaways from week 1.
The Cowboys have the best defense in the NFL
Speaking of takeaways, let’s talk about the 3 takeaways the cowboys had. First one, was a tipped-interception touchdown by Daron Bland. This was not at all a bad throw. Daniel Jones threw a check down to Saquon Barkley, who seemed to have caught it but before he knew it, Trevon Diggs hit him and the ball went flying into Daron Bland’s hands. Bland ran it into the end zone right after that. Another interception came when Daniel Jones was running for his life from Micah Parsons, and threw the ball to Darren Waller, but Stephon Gilmore made a diving catch to pick the ball off. The last takeaway came when Daniel jones completed a pass to Isaiah Hodgins for 24 yards, but Hodgins fumbled the ball when Trevon Diggs threw his hands at the ball. The fumble was then recovered by Israel Mukuamu. But it’s not just about takeaways. Micah Parsons and the defense terrorized the Giants. Daniel Jones has nightmares about having to face Micah and the Cowboys. The Boys had 7 sacks. They also blocked a field goal into a touchdown. No team has ever Lost 40-0 or worse, Lost the sack battle 7-0 or worse, Lost the turnover battle 3-0 or worse, had a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown, or thrown a pick 6 in the same season. The Giants did that in just one game. The Cowboys also only allowed 171 yards. That is insane. The best defense in the NFL is the Dallas Cowboys, and it’s not even close.
Josh Allen needs to get it together
Josh Allen, on a good day, can look like the next coming of prime Cam Newton. But the problem is, the turnovers. The carelessness. The general confusion he gives viewers with some of his wacky throws. You’ll see him throw a beautiful pass 50 yards downfield and think, “This guy can throw the ball”. And then he’ll target a receiver who’s in double coverage and you’ll be like, “What is he doing?”. This is the concern. Josh Allen had 4 turnovers. 3 interceptions, and 1 fumble. he actually fumbled 2 times, but the Bills recovered one of them. Josh can’t carry a team if he’s going to play like that. Let’s look at the box score. The Bills defense only allowed 289 yards, and forced a turnover. Stefon Diggs had 102 yards and a touchdown. James Cook even added 46 yards on the ground. The rest of the team played well, and they lost. They lost because of Josh. Every one on his team has the right to be frustrated with how Josh is playing. Maybe it was just a bad day, maybe it’s a sign of things to come, maybe it’s the Madden Curse, but if Josh wants to carry this team past the Divisional Round and into Super Bowl glory, he needs to get his turnover problem under control.
Turf Field should be illegal
This one is a problem. Over the offseason, their was a bunch of buzz over the Aaron Rodgers trade to the Jets. The Jets made great offseason additions to add to a team that won 7 games with Zach Wilson and Mike White at quarterback. This team is good, but without a quarterback, they are not. The Jets had so much hype, which ended in 4 plays after Aaron Rodgers tore his Achilles. That was pretty much the Jets Super Bowl hopes, gone. In 4 plays. Now here’s the problem. The Jets stadium needs to replace their turf fields with real grass. Most NFL players don’t like turf, the NFLPA doesn’t like turf, it’s just not a good idea to keep turf. The New York Jets now have to hold off their Super Bowl hopes for next year, while Aaron Rodgers has to endure another year of falling short (extremely short this time). So, what’s the solution? MetlLife Stadium should replace their turf with grass. it’s an extremely simple solution. However, The New York Giants are lucky. Despite getting sacked 7 times by the Cowboys, Daniel Jones did not get hurt playing on turf. But that’s not gonna last long if the problem doesn’t get fixed soon. Anyway, good luck to the Jets for next year, and NFL, fix this problem.
Justin Jefferson has competition
When I made my first article, Bold Predictions for every NFL Team, I predicted that Justin Jefferson would hit 2,000+ yards. And while he did make a significant jump to start the season, someone else made an even bigger jump. That someone, was Tyreek Hill. Tyreek Hills caught 11 balls for 215 yards and 2 touchdowns. Tyreek Hills is pushing Justin Jefferson for the title of best receiver in the NFL, and after week 1, I think he is. Will it stay that way? I don’t know, but what I do know is that they are both phenomenal receivers, however, because Justin Jefferson doesn’t have a great No. 2 receiver, I still give him the edge over Tyreek later on in the season. But, let’s look at something. Justin Jefferson in week on had 150 yards. In order to hit 2,000 yards, he needs 1,850 more yards in 16 more games. That’s an average of 116 yards per game. Meanwhile Tyreek, he had 215 yards, which means in order to hit 2,000, he will need an average of 112 yards per game. Now, let’s look at quarterbacks. This is all personal preference, but I would rather have Tua Tagovailoa than Kirk Cousins. So, Tua and Tyreek have a better chance of hitting 2,000 yards, right? Wrong! Because like I said, Tyreek has some form of competition in Jaylen Waddle. Jaylen Waddle will be taking targets from Tyreek, which means there is no definite best receiver in the NFL because, even if Justin Jefferson puts up better numbers, Tyreek will be getting thrown to less.
Everyone can celebrate that football is back, except Giants fans (sorry Giants fans). So there you have it. Four takeaways from the first week of the NFL season. How will these hold up during the season? I have no clue. But I guess we’ll find out.
