NFL Week 1 Recap

The NFL regular season kicked off last Thursday when the Packers defeated the Saints 42-34 in a shootout at Lambeau Field.  That was just the beginning of an exciting opening week.  The Ravens and Steelers went head-to-head on Sunday, with the Ravens delivering an impressive 35-7 victory.  The Ravens forced 7 turnovers in the game and rushed for 170 yards, a feat that is unheard of for Steelers fans.  The Buffalo Bills went into Arrowhead Stadium to take on the Chiefs, and they put on a clinic as they scored 41 points. Bills' quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick only managed to throw for 208 yards, but he threw for four touchdowns. The Indianapolis Colts played their first game without Peyton Manning under center on Sunday.  He had made an impressive 227 consecutive starts. Veteran quarterback Kerry Collins stepped in and tried to take on as much of the complex playbook as he could handle in a couple of weeks.  Starting their season of against the up-and-coming Houston Texans didn't help the Colts' cause.  Houston went on to win the game 34-7.  Collins was 16 for 31 and threw for 197 yards, but did manage to complete a touchdown pass to Reggie Wayne (the score was already 34-0).  In his first career NFL start, Panthers' rookie quarterback and first overall draft pick, Cam Newton, put on a show.  The former Auburn star and Heisman trophy-winner set an NFL record as he threw for 422 yards in his first game. The quarterback had mixed emotions about his performance because the Panthers fell late to the Cardinals 28-21.  In his press conference after the game he displayed his maturity and devotion to his team; focusing more on the loss than his record-setting performance.  There's a bright future in Carolina. The Sunday night showdown between the Cowboys and Jets was no letdown. Jets' kicker Nick Folk hit a 50-yard field goal with 27 seconds left to propel the Jets to a 27-24 win.  That was just the ending to an all-around thrilling game; a game that was the most-watched in Sunday Night Football history (25.38 million viewers).  For the Jets, a blocked punt by former USC taiback Joe McKnight sparked their fourth quarter comeback.  Before that score, Mark Sanchez threw a 26-yard strike to Plaxico Burress, who was playing in his first regular season game in nearly three years.  The Cowboys looked impressive through the first three quarters.  Quarterback Tony Romo consistently found receivers Miles Austin and Dez Bryant, as well as tight end Jason Witten.  Bryant's potential was highlighted in the Cowboy's first drive as he connected with Romo for a score.  His domination of cornerback Antonio Cromartie on the drive led to the Jets moving arguably the best shut-down corner in the league, Darrelle Revis, over to cover Bryant for the remainder of the game.  As usual, Romo fell apart after the third and ended up throwing an interception to Revis to end the Cowboys last hopes of tying up the score.  Sunday's games were satisfying enough, but Tom Brady and the Patriots decided to follow the script and ran into a shootout down in Miami.  Brady's NFL record of throwing 358 consecutive regular-season passes without an interception came to an end, but he settled in to throw for 517 yards and four scores.  One of those touchdown strikes was to Wes Welker for 99 yards, a distance that can only be tied in the NFL record books. Dolphins' quarterback Chad Henne may have ended up on the losing team and out of the spotlight due to Brady's efforts, but he had a solid game himself.  Henne completed 30 passes for 416 yards and also rushed for 59. The Patriots cruised to a 38-24 victory.  The final game of the first week had a record-tying performance as well.  Raiders' kicker Sebastian Janikowski booted a 63 yard field goal during the Radiers' 23-20 victory.  Janikowski was humbly quoted saying, "To be honest, I didn't hit it that good. It barely got over the bar," Oakland's strong-legged kicker said after tying an NFL record with his monster kick as the first half expired. "I hit a 70-yarder in pregame."

That's it for this week's recap, but be sure to check out the High Octane Blather after next week's action.