Week 1 Recaps

New England briefly led 12–8, but Seattle soon turned a competitive opening into a comfortable win. Josh Allen threw for 334 yards and two touchdowns, ran for two more and delivered 26 points as the Seahawks built a 55–24 advantage. Ladd McConkey added 10 points and the Jets kicker 11. Trevor Lawrence kept working, throwing four touchdown passes for 19 Patriots points, but the supporting cast could not close the gap. Four passing touchdowns usually sound like good news. New England discovered the importance of checking the other quarterback’s box score.

The Rams stretched a 13–2 advantage into a 52–9 cushion, leaving San Francisco chasing a game that had gotten away. Justin Jefferson supplied 18 points through two touchdown catches and a two-point conversion, while Dalton Kincaid’s 130 receiving yards produced seven. Los Angeles also received seven from Kyren Williams and eight from the Steelers kicker, overcoming a quiet four-point outing from Bo Nix. Dak Prescott led the 49ers with nine, but their receivers combined for one. The eventual 33-point margin was the largest of Week 1.

Arizona trailed 20–2 before its lineup found enough answers to turn the game around. Baker Mayfield and Trey McBride supplied 10 points apiece, with Bucky Irving adding eight and Devaughn Vele nine. The finish belonged to the supporting details: McBride’s yardage tied it at 42, MarShawn Lloyd’s rushing contribution put Arizona ahead, and the Raiders kicker extended the lead before McBride’s touchdown made it 52–42. Bryce Young delivered 25 Chargers points, but scoreless replacements for Isiah Pacheco and TreVeyon Henderson left Los Angeles short of help on the ground.

Atlanta built a 46–6 lead before Pittsburgh found enough offense to make the final score more respectable. Tyler Shough’s 410 passing yards and three touchdowns produced 19 points despite two interceptions, while Nico Collins added 10 and the Bills kicker 12. The Steelers eventually received 14 from Kyler Murray, nine from Jacory Croskey-Merritt and seven from Evan Engram, but their receivers combined for only two. Atlanta had three scoreless lineup spots of its own; its productive players simply did enough damage to give those empty spots some cover.

Isaiah Likely turned Sunday night into a particularly unpleasant viewing experience for Indianapolis. Baltimore had trailed 29–15, but Likely’s first touchdown helped put the Ravens ahead 42–41. Malik Nabers’ receiving yardage then restored a 43–42 Colts lead, only for Likely’s second touchdown to swing it back to Baltimore. He finished with 16 points, supported by Jayden Daniels’ 11 and Chase Brown’s nine. The Bengals kicker supplied 15 for Indianapolis, but even four field goals and three extra points could not protect the Colts from another change at the top.

Houston fell behind 9–0, then found enough production from Jared Goff and the Ravens kicker to claim the week’s lowest-scoring matchup. Each supplied 11 points, with the Kansas City defense adding five as the Texans built a 27–12 lead and finished eight ahead. Buffalo received nine from Stefon Diggs and eight from the Detroit defense, but its marquee offensive names offered little support: Christian McCaffrey scored three, Matthew Stafford one and Ja’Marr Chase zero. Houston did not need a spectacular total. It needed Buffalo’s stars to stay unusually quiet.

Carolina and Chicago kept handing the lead back, then saved their sharpest exchange for the finish. T.J. Hockenson’s touchdown moved the Bears ahead 38–37, but Jacoby Brissett answered with a touchdown pass that gave the Panthers a 41–38 edge. Chicago added one more point and went no farther. Bijan Robinson led Carolina with 14 points from 83 rushing yards, 90 receiving yards and a receiving touchdown; Breece Hall supplied 12 for Chicago. In the week’s closest game, Brissett’s eight-point total mattered most for when its final four arrived.

Cleveland cut a 40–13 deficit to 41–40, giving Jacksonville something to think about before Monday night. The remaining matchup favored the Jaguars’ opportunity: Patrick Mahomes still had his entire game ahead, while Cleveland had J.K. Dobbins. Mahomes contributed 15 points through a rushing touchdown and two passing scores; Dobbins added one. Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s 12 points, plus 10 apiece from Mike Gesicki and the Jaguars kicker, had established Jacksonville’s lead. Jaxson Dart’s 18 brought Cleveland close, but the Browns could not finish the pursuit once Mahomes joined the scoring.

Dallas reached 86 points while the Giants still had 31, then watched New York keep scoring without ever catching up. Caleb Williams led all Week 1 players with 27 points, D’Andre Swift supplied 24 and David Montgomery 21. That trio alone nearly matched the Giants’ final total. Ashton Jeanty’s 19 and the Cardinals kicker’s 14 helped New York narrow a 55-point deficit to 13. The Giants finished as the league’s second-highest scorer and still opened 0–1. An impressive performance, with absolutely no consideration from the schedule.

Minnesota built a 23-point lead, then made it survive Green Bay’s pursuit. Kyle Monangai and Daniel Jones combined for a 14-point scoring jump that pushed the Vikings ahead 49–26. Zay Flowers finished with 14 points from 150 receiving yards and a touchdown, matched by a Cincinnati defense that collected four sacks, four fumble recoveries and a touchdown. Jonathan Taylor supplied 16 for Green Bay, while Jordan Love’s 14 helped reduce the deficit. The Packers kept adding points, but Minnesota’s cushion held through a seven-point divisional victory.

Miami entered Monday ahead 39–36, with the Denver defense facing the Raiders’ remaining duo of Kenneth Walker and Rashee Rice. Walker’s yardage first erased the deficit and put the Raiders ahead; Rice’s touchdown then created breathing room before Walker scored both rushing and receiving touchdowns. Their 26 Monday points turned a close game into a 20-point win. Jalen Coker had kept the Raiders within reach with 19 points. Christian Watson matched that total for Miami, but his strong afternoon could not withstand the Raiders’ two-player finishing act.

Detroit’s rematch with its 2025 playoff nemesis brought another Saints win, although this time New Orleans built the lead and made the Lions chase. CeeDee Lamb’s touchdown stretched the advantage to 50–28 before Javonte Williams scored on the ground and through the air to bring Detroit closer. Williams finished with 14 points, all earned during that late push. DJ Moore led New Orleans with 12, Juwan Johnson added nine and the Jacksonville defense seven. The defending Tabor Trophy champions had enough banked to withstand Detroit’s response and open 1–0.

Jahmyr Gibbs scored 21 points, one more than Tennessee’s entire lineup, as the Jets built a 38–7 cushion and coasted to an opening win. Gibbs rushed for 156 yards and two touchdowns, adding 30 receiving yards to carry a New York lineup with four scoreless spots. Sam Darnold supplied seven points and the Saints kicker six. Tennessee was missing Josh Jacobs, with Chris Brooks contributing one point in his place, and Justin Herbert led the Titans with seven. The Jets’ supporting cast has room to improve. Gibbs made sure that could wait.

Tampa Bay’s scoring came in pairs: two touchdown catches for Amon-Ra St. Brown and a rushing and receiving touchdown for Chuba Hubbard. Their 29 combined points joined Brock Purdy’s 15 to give the Buccaneers three substantial threats in a 62–42 win. Jeremiyah Love added seven in his opening appearance after being selected first overall. Dallas Goedert answered with two touchdown catches and 16 points for Cincinnati, but the Bengals’ three receivers combined for one. The Buccaneers could spread the workload; Cincinnati relied on Goedert and Kirk Cousins for 28 of its 42 points.

Derrick Henry’s three rushing touchdowns helped Washington build a 40–18 lead, but Philadelphia had considerably more scoring opportunity left. Jalen Hurts drove the response with 16 points, while Kendrick Bourne and DeVonta Smith supplied useful receiving yardage. Saquon Barkley’s rushing contribution broke a 40–40 tie before Hurts’ third touchdown pass extended the advantage. The Pittsburgh defense had already provided most of its 12 points before the rally, helping keep Philadelphia within reach. Henry finished with 25, but the Eagles turned the 22-point deficit into an eight-point divisional win.

Cam Skattebo supplied the separation after Denver and Kansas City reached Sunday night tied at 37. His rushing touchdown put the Chiefs ahead, and additional yardage brought his contribution to 10 points, exactly the final margin. Kansas City had earlier trailed 20–6 before C.J. Stroud, Antonio Williams and the Buccaneers kicker helped bring it back. Lamar Jackson led Denver with 17, while the Packers kicker added 10. The Broncos received only four combined points from everyone outside Jackson, the kicker and Brenton Strange, leaving no answer to Skattebo’s finish.