By JOSHUA NATOLI
Contributing Writer
Published September 20, 2011
Move over Major League Baseball, the NFL season is back. Week 1 has come and passed and we all experienced some great football action.
The New England Patriots are still a dominant force in the league. Last Monday night’s win over the Miami Dolphins showcased quarterback Tom Brady as a very early MVP candidate. Brady threw for 517 yards, 4 touchdowns, and 1 interception, his first in nearly eleven months.
The New York Jets’ roller coaster of a win over the Dallas Cowboys seemed to be the talk of Sunday’s action. After turnovers on both sides, the more costly of which belonging to the Cowboys, the Jets came out on top 27-24.
Some surprises also surfaced, the biggest being the 41-7 clubbing the Buffalo Bills handed the Kansas City Chiefs, the worst home loss the Chiefs experienced in 35 years. The Detroit Lions, who had a “defeated” 0-16 record two seasons ago, beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and looked good doing it.
Perhaps the biggest surprise to everyone was the absence of Peyton Manning from the Indianapolis Colts. Peyton Manning had started 227 straight games prior to that. The Houston Texans, whom the Colts played on Sunday, took advantage of the Manning-less team and beat the Colts 34-7.
Week 1 was also the stage to some flashy highlights but perhaps the most unique happened during the game between the Minnesota Vikings and the San Diego Chargers. Vikings kick returner Percy Harvin took the phrase “breaking ankles” to another level when he returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown.
He had only the kicker to beat when he performed a move on Chargers kicker Nate Kaeding which caused Kaeding to fall to the ground in pain. Kaeding left the game with a possible torn ACL and a possible end to his season.
It is too early to be making postseason predictions but I have a feeling NFL fans will experience two surprise postseason runs, the Detroit Lions and the Houston Texans. Both of these teams are very young and have enough star power to make the playoffs.
Lions quarterback and 2009 first round draft pick Matthew Stafford has developed into a solid leader. The Lions’ defense has also received a major boost the past two drafts with picks Ndamukong Suh and Nick Fairley. Suh won Rookie of the Year last year as well as a Pro-Bowl selection. It would appear that the Lions are finally ready to be taken serious this year.
The Texans are a team that has been on a steady rise since they joined the league as an expansion team in 2002. With arguably the best wide receiver in the game Andre Johnson, a very good running back in Arian Foster, and quarterback Matt Schaub, who has shown major improvements in his game over the past couple of seasons, the Texans are more than ready to get a shot at the postseason.
With the lockout a thing of the past, the NFL season is ready to get into full effect. If week 1 was any precursor of how the rest of the season will play out, then it will be a great year for NFL football.
