Week 1 Reactions

By:  Bobby Shores

The majority of the first week of the NFL season has been completed and I decided that I would do a little reaction article to some of the major storylines out there. I am going to highlight some of the key developments of the day and decide if it’s a “week 1 anomaly” or the beginning of an era in the NFL. Because we all know that after week 1 there are 16 teams fans making preparations for a Super Bowl party while the other 16 teams fans are preparing for the #1 overall pick in the 2013 NFL draft.

Rookie Quarterbacks Will Be The Story Of The Week

RG3 First NFL Toudchdown

Yes, RG3 had a great debut and the Redskins were able to hold on for an impressive win against the Saints, but let's not forget that his impressive debut was again against the Saints, whose defense hasn't ever been known for greatness. But I do believe he will be a very good NFL quarterback as I have been saying since September of 2011 and prior to the draft here and here. Unfortunately the other rookie quarterbacks didn't fair so well....

Andrew Luck and Russell Wilson each showed flashes of what made them high draft picks (in the case of Luck) and why they were preseason superstars, but it again shows us that you cannot put too much stock in preseason "fake" football. Luck threw for 300 yards and his dismal 6.9 yard average per attempt was scarier, but the team around him is bad and that's why they won (or lost) the right to draft him. Russell Wilson on the other hand struggled with the rush that regularly got through the Seahawks offensive line, but showed the required skill to "forget the previous play" when he nearly led the team back for a win. Wilson will get better, trust me!

That leaves us with Ryan Tannehill....Tannehill didn't look good, but its hard to properly evaluate him when the Dolphins supporting cast is THAT bad. I am not sure if we will see a whole lot of improvement from him this year as it's hard to get better when it's hard to tell if his wide receivers even belong in the NFL. To make things worse I'm not sure if the Dolphins are truly committed to him long-term, as "word on the street" has been that owner Stephen Ross was the driving force behind drafting him, and not head coach Joe Philbin or offensive coordinator Mike Sherman (who was Tannehill's college coach). [See Below for Brandon Weeden]

Aaron Rodgers & Mark Sanchez Body Swap

Who expected the New York Jets, the same Sanchez led Jets who didn’t score a single touchdown in the preseason to rip off 48 points while posting an “A-Rod” like 123.4 QB rating. While on the opposite coast the “A-Rod” led Packers, he still had a very respectable 93.3 QB rating but led a very uninspired team to failed game winning/tying drives. It was very surreal as Sanchez seemed to be the inspired leader, the general on the field that everyone wanted to follow into battle, while Rodgers was struggling to rally his team like the current NFL MVP should. Honestly it reminded me of the movie that has been remade at least 15 times, Freaky Friday.

Panthers Have the Best Backfield in the NFL, But Failed To Use It

Carolina Panthers Unused Backfield

I didn't get to see this game, but the stat line tells you all that you need to know, 13 rushes for 10 yards, that's a 0.8 yards per carry. On a team that was built to run the ball with the two highly paid running backs in Jonathan Stewart and  DeAngelo Williams, the leagues most dangerous rushing quarterback in Cam Newton, and the highest paid THIRD STRING running back Mike Tolbert; and yet they only attempted 13 runs in what was a fairly close game? Even with their most dangerous running back, Stewart, out with an ankle injury, they still have a potent backfield. The Panthers need to remember their strengths and identity before they fall back into pre-Cam obscurity. 

Kevin Kolb Will Save The Cardinals Season

When John Skelton went down with an injury every Cardinals fan on the planet was scared to death. Then Kolb leads his team to victory with an efficient scoring drive on his first opportunity. With Skelton's ineffectiveness the first 3 quarters coupled with the fact that the show he put on by writhing on the ground in pain and requiring an air cast and a cart all for an ankle sprain, and not even a "high" ankle sprain, I mean I honestly thought they were going to have to amputate his leg...

Anyways, now the Cardinals get to see if they can finally get a return on their $60 million+ investment and the 2nd round pick and starting cornerback that they gave up for him. I think he will finally play well because he has nothing to lose, it can't get any worse for him, and much like Derek Anderson in Cleveland a few years ago, people tend to play loose and carefree when they have nothing to lose.

Countdown on When The Nick Foles Era Begins In Philly

Well I know its against the Browns, and the Browns are....well the Browns....and they do have a fairly solid defense, but regardless Michael Vick picked up right where he left off last year, throwing interceptions. Vick has had one solid period of play and that was in 2010, since then he has steadily regressed, which I believe is largely due to having more of the playbook thrown at him. Vick is still good for some great moments and some great games, which will be blown out of proportion by the folks at ESPN to say "he's back" as they have to back up the near consensus opinion that Vick would regain his 2010 form this year.

With head coach Andy Reid knowing that he has to have a good year to keep his job, I don't think he continues to put his fate into Vick's hands (looked what happened when the Falcons did it). Unfortunately Reid can be loyal to a fault, so I think that when (not IF, but WHEN) Vick gets injured and Foles is forced into duty that he will pick up where he left off in the preseason which will force Reid to stick with him. And with a decision having to be made on Vick due to his contract before the 2013 season, Reid needs to find out what he has with Foles, and just like Vick took the job from Kolb, Foles will take the job from Vick; sooner rather than later.....

More Heartbreak for Browns Fans

Dawg Pound ALMOST got Revenge

Between the NFL Draft and supplemental draft this year, Browns fans felt that they had their version of "The Triplets" when they grabbed RB Trent Richardson, QB Brandon Weeden and WR Josh Gordon all in the first and second round. Unfortunately spending a Top 5 pick on a RB and a Top 20 pick on a QB is not the best formula to win in today's NFL (you should probably flip that in my opinion). Now the balky knee that Richardson had surgery on prior to the draft has acted up again causing him to miss the preseason recovering from a second knee surgery (Not good for a rookie RB to have 2 knee surgeries before his first NFL carry), and Weeden's 5.1 quarterback rating is close to his 5.2 ERA that helped run him out of professional baseball. It's not all Weeden's fault, he had no running game to take the pressure off of the passing game, his offensive line was well offensive, and they were unable to get anything going.

Wanna get the jump on fantasy football? Check out Fantasy Corner guaranteed to win or your money back!

Use the money you win using our fantasy football advice and buy SleeperTees!

Follow ReclinerQB on Twitter:  @ReclinerQB

Don't Forget to Follow ReclinerQB.com's other contributors on Twitter: @amazingmattyp, @SonnyPrier, @CoreyDoiron, @mwyche2, @TCM_Revolver, @ChurchOfYoda