NFL Week 1 Matchups: Previews, Thoughts, and Predictions

The NFL returns this week and we’re in for a phenomenal season

With preseason over and quarterback competitions decided, the 2021 NFL Season is finally going to get underway. Unlike previous Week 1’s, we have some terrific matchups to kickstart the season. The new and improved Cowboys visit Tampa Bay to open the season while previous AFC Playoff teams from last year collide and we have some great interconference games as well.

Like College Football, I’ll post a record of games I get right and if I correctly guessed the spread. We’ll start this week with primary logos and I will get throwbacks in over Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas weekend, and Week 18. Team records are from last season

Tampa Bay raising their first banner since 2002 shouldn’t be the main focus of attention in the kickoff game. Dak Prescott is back on the field after suffering that horrible ankle injury last season and all eyes will be back on the Cowboys. Lots of experts like the Cowboys in the East because of their improved defense and strength of schedule, now their stock goes up with Prescott back on the field. Dallas does suffer a major loss on their offensive line as Zack Martin is out on the COVID list, which will shorten the Cowboys protection. Tampa Bay’s chances of repeating as Super Bowl Champions are as good as any. Mainly because EVERYONE is coming back. Brady, Gronk, Evans, Jones, Brown, White, Suh to name a few. I think there’s not going to be any hangover for the Buccaneers after their SB win, but I don’t think this is an easy game for the Bucs out of the gate. It should be a great game to set up the next NFL season

PREDICTION: Defensive game, low scoring. Dallas’s defense is too young to keep up with all those weapons that Brady has. I think it’s closer than 8, but the Bucs raise the banner and win the game in a close one

Trevor Lawrence and Urban Meyer on the same NFL field. How about that? Lawrence and the Jags are my dark horse candidate to make the playoffs in the AFC South, but the loss of rookie RB Travis Etienne for the season will be huge for Jacksonville. My concern for the Jags is their defense; I don’t think it improved from last season. Houston has gone through a tough offseason with a lot of front office concerns and all the Deshaun Watson controversy over the last couple months. Tyrod Taylor will start for a Houston team that I think will finish dead last in the AFC. But I want to see how Jacksonville does with T-Law at the quarterback position in his first game under Coach Meyer

PREDICTION: It’s not gonna be pretty, but the Jags do get the win over a Houston team that is embroiled in controversy. I think Houston will score, but Jacksonville’s offense will outscore them and cover.

I think a lot of people are excited about the new and improved LA Chargers with OROTY Justin Herbert now the full time starter. The Chargers added a new head coach, pieces on the offensive line, and they get back S Derwin James who missed all of last season with an achilles injury. The Chargers have a tough task going to Landover against Chase Young and Washington’s defense. I really think Washington’s defensive line is the best in the NFL with Young back, but I dunno who Washington will start at QB. I think going with Fitz might be the best scenario, but Heinicke has playoff experience and the team believes in him. Should be a great game featuring two great defensive lines.

PREDICTION: I like the Chargers in this game. I think Herbert will throw three touchdown passes and the Chargers defense creates some turnovers and gets the win. Washington’s run game is also a question mark so I like the Chargers to win and cover

All eyes should be on Buffalo for this early week showdown. Pittsburgh’s rough playoff exit at the hands of the Browns left them with some holes to fill. The Steelers drafted Najee Harris to fill the hole in the run game and also Quincy Roche to fill the hole at the linebacker position left by Bud Dupree. But the bigger story is TJ Watt. The Steelers haven’t acquiesced to his request of a new contract so he has been absent at practice. His status for the game in Buffalo in uncertain. Meanwhile, the Bills wrapped up one of their best seasons as a franchise and a lot of experts believe they can get to the Super Bowl this year with Josh Allen in his 3rd year. Buffalo reloaded their defense and has an offense that could do a lot of damage this season. The Bills have a lot of expectations, the Steelers have some questions to answer, but what they both need is a big opening day victory.

PREDICTION: I think this will be a great game. Buffalo is going to win because I think Josh Allen is a better quarterback than Ben Roethlisberger and Buffalo’s defense will stop the run to take home the victory. Bills win and cover

Might be the more underrated game of the week because I think Arizona is a contender. The Cardinals did win the offseason when they acquired JJ Watt, AJ Green, and James Conner to add onto a good defense and an improved offense. I think Kyler Murray is due for a breakout season after a really poor ending to last year. Hopefully Kliff Kingsbury opens his offense up a little more and gets this defense to get after the quarterback. Tennessee’s season came to a sudden halt at the hands of Baltimore last season but did a good job by going out and getting pass rushers like Bud Dupree from Pittsburgh. I think getting Julio Jones to replace Corey Davis on the outside was a big move and that can help Ryan Tannehill. Definitely expect a great year for Derrick Henry and a Titans team that I think will repeat as division champs. With both teams winning the offseason, we’re about to find out who takes a big step forward in Nashville on Sunday.

PREDICTION: Should be a shootout in Nashville with the Cards and Titans offenses capable of scoring a lot of points. I am really tempted to pick Arizona. I think they’ll go out and play a great game, but this Tennessee team has too much firepower on offense and a much improved defense and, of course, Derrick Henry. He’ll have a big game. Titans win and cover.

I do not have high expectations for the Panthers this season because I know how it goes: They get off to a great start, I think they’ll make the playoffs, and then they completely self destruct. The fact that the Panthers might be the 2nd best team in this division doesn’t change my opinion. Carolina has a very solid defense with the addition of Jaycee Horn at CB and added some weapons onto their offense now quarterbacked by Sam Darnold, who gets a shot at defeating his old team in Week 1. I have pretty low expectations for the Jets. New coach, new quarterback, inexperience offensive line, and a defense that really struggled in the secondary makes this another down year for New York. Surprisingly, this should be a pretty competitive game in Charlotte this weekend

PREDICTION: Despite the fact I said a lot of bad things about the Panthers, I do think they’ll get the win over the Jets. Darnold should be more than motivated enough to go out there, use his weapons and be able to score some points and I think the Panthers defense gets after Zach Wilson and forces turnovers. Panthers win a close one, but the Jets will cover

This version of battle of the birds features two of the NFC’s worst teams from last year. The Falcons and Eagles each won four games last season and come into this season with two unimproved defenses. The Eagles made the steal at the draft by trading up with Dallas to get Heisman WR Devonta Smith adding to a mediocre offense, but I think this is a year that Jalen Hurts steps up. Philly still has one of the easiest schedules in the NFL and could compete with the Cowboys to win the East. I think Atlanta’s time with Matt Ryan is running out. Sooner or later they’re gonna have to move on from him or vise versa and not improving their defense at the draft didn’t help. Atlanta is doomed for another four or five win season

PREDICTION: No big compelling reason but I just think the Eagles are the better team. Eagles go on the road and get the upset in the ATL

Joe Burrow is back on the field for Cincinnati after that gruesome ACL injury he suffered last season. While it’ll be great to see Burrow back on the field, He is gonna need to stay upright against Minnesota’s defense. Cincy’s offensive line hasn’t improved since last year despite adding a few more weapons at the draft, and the Bengals defense also didn’t improve. That being said, they get a chance to start strong against a Minnesota team that has a lot of questions. Many important offensive players like Kirk Cousins and Dalvin Cook have not been vaccinated against the virus, will the Vikings defense be better this year than last year, will Cousins shine in his fourth year at the helm. This game against Cincinnati should answer a lot of those questions

PREDICTION: I think there’s too many questions about this Vikings team and Joe Burrow is back with a lot of weapons and he’ll lead the Bengals to a big home win. He’ll have a big day throwing the football against a Vikings secondary that struggles against the pass

This is about more than Sunday for San Francisco. The 49ers get all their star players back like George Kittle, Nick Bosa, and Deebo Samuel who all missed last year with injuries. My question is the QB competition. No question that Jimmy Garropolo will win the starting job for SF, but I think Trey Lance perfectly fits Kyle Shanahan’s system more than Jimmy G. The 49ers get an easy game out of the gate in Detroit. First year head coach, lots of changes on both sides of the ball, and a new quarterback with Jared Goff. With the 49ers on a mission to get back to the Super Bowl with a full roster, this game has blowout written all over it

PREDICTION: Detroit competes for a half, but the 49ers dominate this game. 49ers win big

Another great early matchup in Indy with two solid defenses ready to take the field. Seattle’s mantra changed in the middle of the season last year from “Let Russ Cook” to “Run game and defense”, which ultimately lead to their early round exit against the Rams. Russell Wilson is back despite some early controversy in the offseason, and Jamal Adams is back on defense. Seattle needs to win the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball if they’re expected to repeat as division champs. The Colts already have one of the NFL’s top defenses with Darius Leonard and Deforest Buckner up front and a great secondary. Combine that with an excellent run game spearheaded by Jonathan Taylor and the best offensive line in football, Indy is expected to make it back to the playoffs. QB Carson Wentz is expected to start despite suffering a knee injury, so there are some questions on who Frank Reich will go with at QB. If he goes with Wentz, it’ll test that knee a little bit prematurely but it makes this a much more fun game to watch

PREDICTION: I don’t think Wentz is 100% if he does start in this game, so because of that I’m taking the Seahawks in a close game. Russell makes enough throws to win and the Seahawks D forces turnovers and gets the win

Best game in the NFC field in Week 1. This sounds like a make it or break it season for the Packers based off all of the Aaron Rodgers talk and the fact that Green Bay is 0-2 in the last two NFC Championships. Green Bay does return all of their defensive starters from last season and of course that great offense with Rodgers and Aaron Jones and Davante Adams. The Packers focus has to be other offensive productivity cause I don’t think they can lean on Jones or Adams forever. Meanwhile it’s the dawn of a new era in New Orleans. The Saints turn to Jameis Winston as their new quarterback, but they have all the skill players for him to be successful. The problem is, he’s too turnover prone and I don’t trust him to make smart decisions. I think both defenses be key and turn their pass rushers loose, but which pass rush wins the battle in this heavyweight showdown

PREDICTION: I have two quarterbacks, a turnover prone Jameis Winston or a determined Aaron Rodgers. Who do I trust more? Aaron Rodgers. Packers defense also is much more trustworthy than the Saints defense. Packers win, but the Saints will cover in a high scoring game

Remember the 2011 regular season meeting between Alabama and LSU where LSU won the game 9-6 in overtime? That score is coming into play this week when the Broncos travel to the Meadowlands to take on the Giants. Two teams with extremely talented defenses but very young and inexperienced offenses. The big question in this game is the Giants after the Eagles snatched any chance at a divisional title by losing to Washington at the end of last season. Will the Giants and Daniel Jones be motivated to get back on that field? How will the Giants offense improve from last year? Saquon Barkley is back along with former Detroit Lion Kenny Golladay, but this is a tough challenge going up against Denver’s defense. This defense, in my eyes, is extremely underrated because they play in Kansas City’s division, so it’s easy to overlook this Broncos team. Patrick Surtain will be a DROTY candidate and Bradley Chubb and Von Miller will cause a lot of disruption up front. But I want to see Denver’s offense take a step up with all their young talent on the outside and now under former Panthers QB Teddy Bridgewater. Expect a very low scoring game in the Meadowlands on Sunday

PREDICTION: I think the Giants have the advantage in the running game and Saquon is due for a breakout season. I’ll take the Giants in a low scoring game like a 13-10 or 17-13 kinda game. Denver’s defense will keep it close but I can’t trust their young offense

This should be a great game. I think the Browns are going to have a season to remember with the fact they now have one of the best offensive and defensive lines in the NFL, the best one-two punch running attack, a very good secondary, and Baker Mayfield back at the helm. Kevin Stefanski’s group looks to continue the momentum from last season into this season and what better way to start of 2021 than avenging their playoff loss to Kansas City? The Chiefs offensive line is a question mark with some veteran tackles gone going against a much improved Browns pass rush and defensively some losses at linebacker. But they still have Patrick Mahomes and his crew of Kelce, Hill, Hardman, Edwards-Helaire, and others. Kansas City has such a tough road to begin their season, and this is not the same old Browns they faced back in the playoffs. This is the new and improved Cleveland Browns team that is going to go in guns blazing looking to hand the Chiefs their first season opening loss since 2014

PREDICTION: UPSET OF THE WEEK: I think Cleveland will dominate the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, force some turnovers on defense, and Baker Mayfield will make some plays and the Browns get the upset in Kansas City in a high scoring game

The reason that this is the game of the weeks is because the winner of this game is going to compete with the Bills in the AFC East. Not to mention, the first of what hopes to be many battles between the two recent Alabama quarterbacks in Tua Tagovailoa and Mac Jones. The Patriots made a lot of offseason moves on defense acquiring Matthew Judon, Kyle Van Noy, and Jalen Mills to help boost an already talented defense. Acquiring Nelson Agholor, Hunter Henry, Jonnu Smith, and Kendrick Bourne gives Mac Jones some experienced weapons. Bill Belichick has talked about how confident he and his coaching staff are in Jones and a lot of experts believe that Mac is the most NFL ready quarterback. But what makes a team dangerous is everyone overlooking them, and that should give Miami a big opportunity to make their mark. Tua is back with his old friend, speedy WR Jaylen Waddle, but Mike Gesicki being out on the COVID list could make it tough sledding for the Dolphins offense. Miami’s defense has a talented defensive line and the best safety in the AFC in Xavien Howard so they’ve got a punchers chance to beat the Patriots in Foxboro.

PREDICTION: This is going to be a great game. I think the Patriots defense is just a little better than the Dolphins defense and Mac will outduel Tua in a close game. I’m taking New England at home in a very close game

Sunday Night Football is back at SoFi Stadium for the 2nd straight opening week. But this time, we’re getting a much lower scoring game than last year’s game as the Bears and Rams face off for the fourth straight year. Both teams feature excellent defenses headed by Khalil Mack and Aaron Donald, but two offenses with some question marks around them. I think Matt Stafford is an excellent quarterback for Sean McVay’s system, but with Sony Michel as their new RB and some young weapons on the outside, the Rams have to work out some things if they’re going to win a competitive NFC West this year. Chicago drafted Justin Fields, but they’re still sticking with the veteran Andy Dalton. In my opinion, Fields won the starting job in the preseason and can take the Bears back to the playoffs so I don’t know what Matt Nagy is thinking. Maybe it’s the learning curve or maybe it’s something else. The Bears offense has to pick up where it left off at the end of the regular season last year. So we’re in for a defensive slugfest on the first Sunday night of the season

PREDICTION: Defensive game with not a lot of points, but I would take Matt Stafford over Andy Dalton any day of the week. Stafford and the Rams defense will pick up a close win at home but the Bears will cover.

Lamar Jackson in Las Vegas. The superstar quarterback takes the high powered Ravens into the Death Star for the first Monday Night Football game of the season. This is a little bit of a mental game for John Harbaugh’s flock. Las Vegas is better that most people think (myself included) and they have Kansas City next week for their home opener. Can’t look past these Raiders. The Ravens run game was one of the best in the NFL last year, but I wanna see the 2019 MVP version of Lamar Jackson where he was running and throwing the ball all over the place. Also, how will the Ravens defense be without their leader Matthew Judon? This is a boom or bust season for Gruden’s Raiders. Las Vegas has had two strong starts over the last two seasons just to fall apart at the end and miss the playoffs (sounds a lot like the Carolina Panthers). We’re gonna find out if this Raiders team is legit and see if Derek Carr should still be the quarterback for this Raiders offense that I think needs to move on from him. He’s too inconsistent throwing the ball and his offensive line doesn’t give him help. We’ll see where everything lies on Monday night under the lights in Vegas

PREDICTION: Last year, the Raiders opened their home half of the schedule with a win over the Saints. That’s not gonna happen two years in a row. I think Lamar Jackson and the Ravens offense runs for over 300 yards and dominates the Raiders in Las Vegas

Let the season begin!

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Sports Blog by David Maher

NFL Week 1 Matchups: Previews, Thoughts, and Predictions

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