Welcome to Week 1 of the NFL season. With Thursday night’s opener behind us, we welcome a full slate and a load of uncertainty as we greet the 2022–2023 football calendar. Alongside Albert Breer, we’ll take you through the Sunday and Monday games, noting the best matchups and what we’re looking for.
We encourage you to join us on Sunday for our live blog, where we can trade notes and discuss what should be a fascinating week after a month of meaningless dress rehearsals.
GAMES OF THE WEEK
Browns at Panthers, 1 p.m. ET Sunday: While this is obviously billed as Baker Mayfield vs. the Browns, I’m personally interested in seeing how a healthy Jacoby Brissett operates the Kevin Stefanski–Gary Kubiak hybrid offense and how much better he is than a 60% Mayfield a season ago. While the Browns are ultimately making a long-term gamble by signing Deshaun Watson, one has to wonder whether they could have been patient with Mayfield and saved themselves the headaches. Obviously, we’ll have an eye on Mayfield’s body language and there will be a camera perma-fixed on the demonstrative former No. 1 pick. But to beat his former team, might he have to rein that all in? —
Patriots at Dolphins, 1 p.m. ET Sunday: This one really is about the unknown. What will the Dolphins’ offense look like under coach Mike McDaniel—long Kyle Shanahan’s secret weapon as a run-game savant and game-planning star—with Tua Tagovailoa throwing to receivers Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill. And what, for that matter, do second-chancers Joe Judge and Matt Patricia, both coaching exclusively on offense for the first time, have cooked up for Tagovailoa’s old Alabama backup Mac Jones? And how about the fact that you’ll have Belichick’s old secondary coach, Josh Boyer, going head-to-head with his old boss Patricia? For teams that are so familiar with each other in so many ways, there’s still a lot of guesswork to what form this game will take, which should be the fun of it. —
Packers at Vikings, 4:25 p.m. ET Sunday: Aaron Rodgers might have the best defense he’s played alongside—if Devonte Wyatt draws the start on Sunday, the Packers will roll out home-grown first-round picks on that side of the ball for the first snap of the season. And in camp, the Packers looked like they were playing to their talent on that side of the ball in standing their ground against Rodgers and the offense. Add Aaron Jones, A.J. Dillon and a top-flight run game to the equation, and the Packers should be able to buy Rodgers time to develop a rapport with his revamped receiver group. And, yet, it’s a good bet all eyes will be on how that receiver group, sans Davante Adams, is coming along. As for the Vikings? Yes, there’s a new coach and a new GM, and for that reason a roster that’s stayed relatively static thinks you’ll see a group that comes out playing faster and freer than before. —
Chiefs at Cardinals, 4:25 p.m. ET Sunday: This will be our first chance to see Patrick Mahomes as more of a point guard than a superstar, full-court scorer. The Chiefs are ready for this stage of his evolution, using Mahomes’s arm talent without taxing him as a backfield escape artist. Hill is gone to the Dolphins, which means Kansas City will have to beat teams more strategically. It has all the components—the burner, the possession receiver, the blocking-receiver hybrid, the bully—but spread out over five players who will be shuffled in and out of lineups. Personally, I think there’s a chance this makes the Chiefs even better. Ask those close to Mahomes and they’ll attest: He has otherworldly physical gifts, but it would be great if he didn’t have to use them all the time. —
Raiders at Chargers, 4:25 p.m. ET Sunday: Who want the rematch of last year’s regular-season finale? A lot has changed for both of these teams since Brandon Staley’s decision to call an ill-fated timeout in overtime. Josh McDaniels and Dave Ziegler run the Raiders now. Derek Carr’s throwing to Adams again. Chandler Jones is opposite Maxx Crosby. Khalil Mack is opposite Joey Bosa. JC Jackson’s a Charger, too (though his status for Sunday is up in the air). And, yet, this one will still be about how last season ended—and the chance a talented Charger team has to emphatically put that moment behind it. —
Buccaneers at Cowboys, 8:20 p.m. ET Sunday: There will naturally be a focus on Tom Brady, but I’m watching the Cowboys’ offense to see how it spreads the wealth throughout its backfield. I have been waiting for the true promise of a two-back backfield to emerge in the NFL, with the Cowboys and Jaguars best suited to show us something special this year. Tony Pollard is a talented player who has been underutilized in the waning years of Ezekiel Elliott’s prime years as a running back. There is such an incredible buffet of presnap motion options and formational looks available to the Cowboys based on their personnel. Will they take advantage of it? —
