Week one of this NFL season has been nothing short of spectacular. Whether it was Baker Mayfield throwing for nearly 300 yards and four touchdowns through the air, Jayden Daniels’ excellent NFL debut or the Saints blowing out the Panthers by a healthy 37-point margin, there was much to talk about. As a result, many people are going to overreact following these games, and our group of writers will discuss these in this week’s roundtable.
Daniel Jones needs to go
With a locked and loaded front seven, a young talented wide receiver core and a newly bolstered offensive line, New York Giants fans came into this season with hopes of reentering the island of relevancy. There was but one question fans had: can this roster succeed with Daniel Jones as its quarterback? No, it cannot. After the 2022 season, Daniel Jones received a four year 160-million-dollar contract, an investment that has not paid dividends for the Giants. In an abysmal performance against the Vikings this week, Jones threw for a measly 186 yards while giving away two interceptions and coughing up a fumble. In recent years, many have accredited Jones’ poor performance to his weak offensive line. Against the Vikings, the offensive line allowed a pressure rate of only 26%, which would have ranked as the best in the league last season. Jones is out of excuses; he is incapable of reading the field, cannot protect the football and fails to make the tough passes when it matters most.
The Panthers are the new Jets
Ever since the Carolina Panthers made it to the Super Bowl and lost in the 2015-2016 NFL season, the team has not been the same. Last year, they traded up to draft a quarterback out of the University of Alabama, Bryce Young, hoping he would be the next Cam Newton for the franchise. In the 2023-2024 season, Carolina went 2-11, the worst record in the NFL. This year they started their season with a blowout loss to the New Orleans Saints 47-10. The first offensive possession the team had was an immediate pick by Young. This is an issue since they just hired a new head coach this offseason, Dave Canales, the former offensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In one season, he was able to help Baker Mayfield get better, and clearly after spending the entire offseason with Canales, Young has not gotten better.
It’s time for the Cincinnati Bengals to hit the panic button
The Bengals suffered a disappointing 16-10 loss to the New England Patriots at home. Cincinnati came in on Sunday as the biggest favorites to win in week one, but they came into the game looking stale. They were held scoreless until the final two minutes of the third quarter. The defense didn’t have an answer for Rhamondre Stevenson, and it allowed New England to preserve their lead at the end of the game. Joe Burrow couldn’t get the ball downfield consistently, and the offense was underwhelming for most of the game. Despite all of this, it’s a little too early to be panicking about the Bengals right now. They were without wide receiver Tee Higgins in this contest, and these early season struggles have been a common trend for the Bengals in recent years. While this loss certainly wasn’t great for Burrow and the Bengals, there’s still plenty of time for them to change course and compete for a playoff spot.
Is the week one Patriots win a fluke?
The New England Patriots came into this year with little to no expectations outside of the organization. The media has already been writing them off for several months. You can’t blame people for thinking New England will be bad again this year, as even though they have a top five NFL defense, their offense is lackluster at best. Durning week one, they proved many wrong, going on the road and defeating a Super Bowl contender in the Cincinnati Bengals by using their strong defense and putting up just enough points on the board. The Patriots found a way to win, and if they continue this every week, there is no telling how far this team can go.
Kirk Cousins has made the Falcons worse.
No NFC South team has won over 10 regular season games since the Buccaneers did in 2021. Following Atlanta’s signing of quarterback Kirk Cousins this off season, many expected the Falcons to break the double-digit win mark. The newly minted Cousins was to act as the saving grace for weapons Bijan Robinson, Drake London and Kyle Pitts. The former Vikings quarterback limped through his Atlanta debut, completing 16 of his 28 pass attempts (61.5%) for just 155 yards. Pairing that with a two interception, two sack game and three turnover-worthy-play performances, the Falcons were skunked in an 18-10 loss to Justin Fields and the Steelers. The offense was disheveled, as Cousins, pressured 11 times on 28 drop backs, led an attack totaling 226 yards and three turnovers.
Tyreek Hill is officially the NFL’s most polarizing star
Three hours before the Miami Dolphins kicked off their 2024-25 NFL campaign, Tyreek Hill was detained and placed in handcuffs by the Miami-Dade Police Department, ultimately being cited for reckless driving. Despite still clearly being rattled by the event in his post-game press conference, it didn’t serve as a distraction nor impact his play on the field. Hill’s game high seven receptions and 130 yards helped the Dolphins secure a thrilling 20-17 comeback victory over the Jaguars, including a brazen celebration after his touchdown, mimicking his earlier detainment. If the Dolphins wish to push for the Super Bowl this season, Tyreek Hill will need to star in his usual ways, and he’s already proving his ability to do that, even when accompanied by off-field drama.Â
Campus Correspondent
Baker Mayfield will lead the NFC in passing yards
In the first start of his second season as a member of the Buccaneers, Baker Mayfield had a spectacular game, throwing for 4 touchdowns, 0 interceptions and 289 yards on 24/30 pass attempts, making for a stellar completion percentage of 80% and a QBR of 146.4. He has a strong receiving core of Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, who both looked good versus the Commanders. Among NFC quarterbacks in week one so far, only Matthew Stafford had more yardage, and it took 19 more pass attempts to do so. Brock Purdy, Jared Goff and Dak Prescott remain threats to accumulate passing yards, but the 49ers are coming off a rocky contract situation with star receiver Brandon Aiyuk. The Lions also rely on a potent run game, and Prescott has few good options beyond CeeDee Lamb. The rest of the field, since Jordan Love was just injured, features the likes of Sam Darnold, Derek Carr and Daniel Jones. Mayfield is in pole position to improve further on last year’s season and lead the NFC in passing.
Chris Boswell will finish as the K1
While this may be the most absurd overreaction of them all, it is a valid one. Last Sunday, a Justin Fields-led Steelers offense proved incapable of finding the back of the endzone, with Chris Boswell splitting the uprights on all six scoring drives. If someone had told me a week ago that this offense would finish dead last in the league in scoring, I would have believed them. However, this offense has shown the potential to string some plays together and move the ball down the field. In today’s NFL, if you advance past the other team’s 40-yard line, you pretty much have a guaranteed three points. With a veteran like Boswell, who is one of the best at doing it, this means he will feast like it’s a Thanksgiving dinner. This will not change with Russell Wilson behind center, as this team lacks a legitimate threat at receiver outside of George Pickens, and Wilson has yet to return to form. If you claim to be a true fantasy footballer, I wouldn’t walk but run to the waiver wire to get the 33-year-old on your squad. While this may be an early overreaction, I see this as a weekly occurrence for Pittsburgh, no matter who is behind center.