Pre-Season Week 1 Look-back

I know we already had the Hall of Fame game, but I have never truly considered it a pre-season game, more like a pre- pre-season game. We finally got our fill with a full slate of NFL action this past weekend (Thursday-Monday), and it was very fulfilling, for me at least.

We got things kicked off with six games on Thursday, beginning with Robert Griffin III’s debut as the Redskins visited Buffalo (quick side note, I think the best thing the Redskins could have done and didn’t, when Nike took over uniform production, would have been to use it as an opportunity to put the classic ‘R’ back on their helmets). RGIII didn’t disappoint and made the most of his limited action, throwing the only touchdown of the game for either side while taking 14 snaps over three drives.

Baltimore beat Atlanta handily, but not before Julio Jones made all fantasy football players aware of his potential (6 catches, 100+ yards and a TD in just a quarter of playing time). The Patriots narrowly beat the Hall of Fame Game winners, the Saints, 7-6 as Brady wasn’t protected well and Brees just went 1-4 in his short outing.

Philly and Pittsburgh played a close one, with the Eagles taking a 24-23 victory at home. Green Bay struggled a bit against San Diego, losing 21-13. The Chargers had their own bad news, however, as Ryan Matthews went down with an injury that could keep him out past the season opener.

And, of course, Peyton Manning made his return to the field. He looked good, not great, but very solid as he only played in one drive, and drove the length of the field before a tipped pass was picked off near the goal line. Denver’s backups got the job done, though, and they handily beat the Bears in Chicago, 31-3.

Friday saw another six games played. Mark Sanchez and Tim Tebow didn’t look terrible, but neither was able to get points up as Cincinnati won at home. Cleveland beat Detroit, 19-17, reminding us how silly it is to care about pre-season football; wins tend to mean a bit less when it’s your second and third string players who are better than the other team’s second and third stringers.

Jacksonville inched by the Giants, 32-31. Jordan Palmer, Carson’s younger brother, got a fair amount of playing time for the Jaguars. Tampa Bay beat the Dolphins soundly, shortly before Miami parted ways with Chad Johnson. Kansas City beat Arizona at home and the 49ers, also at home, earned a 17-6 victory over Minnesota.

The weekend saw a bit less action as the week wound down. The Texans beat Carolina, 26-13. Cam Newton was a little shaky throwing it in his pre-season opener, but he ripped off a 15-yard run on one of his two carries. The other Saturday game saw the newly swagged-out Seahawks notch a 10-point win over the Titans.

The only Sunday game saw the bottom two teams from the 2011 season, the Colts, who had the 1^st overall pick in the draft, and the Rams, who got several draft picks in trading their 2^nd overall pick to the Redskins. The Colts showed no mercy in their 38-3 blowout. Andrew Luck’s first pass went for a 63-yard touchdown, though it was only completed a few yards down field. The team would score touchdowns on three of his four drives as he went 10-16 with 188 yards and a pair of TDs.

Week 1 closed with a very different, 3-0 win by the Cowboys in Oakland. It is only pre-season, and kinks can be worked out, but neither team looked comfortable, or particularly good. I don’t want to analyze too prematurely, but both teams could be in for a long season based on what we saw from them and from the teams they will be facing in the regular season.

Like me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/cpuffnfl and follow me on Twitter @PuffontheNFL. Tomorrow I will post the coming week’s Top Things to Know and Pre-Season Week 2 will kick off Thursday with the Bengals playing in Atlanta and the Packers hosting the Browns.

Until then, thanks for reading!