GREEN BAY, Wis. — Jordan Love threw a pair of touchdown passes and Micah Parsons produced a sack in his Green Bay debut as the Packers delivered an exceptional defensive performance in a 27-13 victory over the Detroit Lions on Sunday.
Opening a season at home for the first time since 2018, the Packers beat the two-time defending NFC North champions after going 1-5 in divisional games last year. The Packers won their 13th consecutive home opener, giving them the longest such streak since the Miami Dolphins also won 13 straight from 1976-88.
After getting outscored 99-40 in the first half of NFC North games last season, the Packers got points on their opening three possessions Sunday to take a 17-3 lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
Love went 16 of 22 for 188 yards with touchdown passes of 15 yards to Tucker Kraft and 17 yards to Jayden Reed. Josh Jacobs added a three-yard score in the fourth quarter, giving him a touchdown in a franchise-record nine straight games.
The Lions, who scored an NFL-high 33.2 points per game last season, didn’t reach the end zone until the final minute against a Green Bay defence featuring Parsons, who got a huge ovation from the Lambeau Field crowd when he was introduced before the game.
STEELERS 34, JETS 32
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Aaron Rodgers threw four touchdown passes in his Steelers debut, including two in a 50-second span in the second half, and Chris Boswell kicked a go-ahead 60-yard field goal with 1:03 remaining to lead Pittsburgh to a 34-32 victory over the New York Jets on Sunday.
With the Steelers trailing the season opener 32-31, Rodgers got the ball against his former team with just over three minutes left and led the offence into Jets territory. On fourth-and-11 from the 42, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin opted for a field goal try and Boswell easily made the kick.
The Jets, who lost in coach Aaron Glenn’s debut, had a chance to drive for a potential winning field goal when they got the ball back with 56 seconds remaining. On fourth-and-3, Justin Fields connected with Garrett Wilson for what could’ve been a first down — but Jalen Ramsey smacked into the Jets receiver, who couldn’t hold onto the ball.
The 41-year-old Rodgers then just needed to take a knee to cap a successful return to the stadium he called home the past two seasons. He was 22 of 30 for 244 yards with TD passes to Calvin Austin III, Jaylen Warren, Jonnu Smith and Ben Skowronek.
BUCCANEERS 23, FALCONS 20
ATLANTA — Rookie Emeka Egbuka caught two touchdown passes, including a go-ahead 25-yarder with 59 seconds remaining, and Tampa Bay recovered after losing the lead on a marathon drive by Atlanta to beat the Falcons 23-20 in a dramatic opening game Sunday.
Following Baker Mayfield’s 25-yard pass to Egbuka, Chase McLaughlin’s missed extra point gave the Falcons an opening to force overtime with a field goal.
Michael Penix Jr., who capped an 18-play drive by scoring on a 4-yard run for a 20-17 lead with 2:17 remaining, moved the Falcons into field goal position in the final minute. Younghoe Koo was wide right on the 44-yarder.
Mayfield completed 17 of 32 passes for 167 yards with three touchdowns. Penix, entering his first full season as Atlanta’s starter, completed 27 of 42 passes for 298 yards with one touchdown.
Bijan Robinson had 12 carries for 24 yards as the Tampa Bay defence held the Falcons to 69 yards rushing.
COLTS 33, DOLPHINS 8
INDIANAPOLIS — Daniel Jones ran for two touchdowns and threw for another, and the Indianapolis Colts snapped the NFL’s longest active opening-day winless drought at 11 with a 33-8 rout of the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.
The Colts are 1-0 for the first time since 2013 and did it in Jones’ first game with the team. He went 22 of 29 for 272 yards, including a career-high 197 yards in the first half, as Indy scored on all seven possessions.
New defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo also had a splashy debut as the Colts came within 6 1/2 minutes of delivering their first shutout since December 2021.
Nothing went right for the Dolphins as their Week 1 winning streak ended at four.
While they had 43 total yards in the first half, Indy ran 43 plays. Miami finished with just 211 total yards and needed De’Von Achane’s strong effort on a screen pass on fourth-and-goal from the Colts’ 11-yard line with 6:21 left to avoid getting shut out for the first time in four years. A 2-point conversion pass made it 30-8.
COMMANDERS 21, GIANTS 6
LANDOVER, Md. — Jayden Daniels threw for 233 yards and a touchdown, Deebo Samuel scored in his Washington debut, and the Commanders kept the New York Giants out of the end zone in a 21-6 win Sunday.
Last seen allowing 55 points to Philadelphia in the NFC championship game, Washington’s defence had a much better time of it against the Giants. New York managed only 231 yards of offence and was particularly ineffective running the ball.
Daron Payne had a sack and batted down a third-down pass, and the Commanders never let Russell Wilson look all that comfortable in his first start with New York. The Giants, who went 3-14 last season, showed enough on defence to suggest some improvement is possible. Washington didn’t score a point in the second half until Samuel’s 19-yard touchdown run made it 21-6 with 7:09 to play.
Washington faced second-and-17 on that drive, but Daniels bounced off a tackle for a 12-yard run, then threw to Samuel for 19 to put the Commanders in field goal range. Moments later, Samuel, acquired in a trade from San Francisco in the off-season, took a handoff and swept to the left, shedded a tackler and reached the end zone.
BENGALS 17, BROWNS 16
CLEVELAND — Cincinnati’s defence came up with two second-half turnovers, including DJ Turner’s interception with 1:24 remaining, and the Bengals held on for a 17-16 victory over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.
The Bengals’ defence — playing their first game under new coordinator Al Golden — got the huge plays on a day when the offence sputtered in the second half.
Cincinnati, which won an opener for the first time since 2021, also benefited from new Cleveland kicker Andre Szmyt missing a pair of second-half kicks.
Szmyt, who won the kicking competition from Dustin Hopkins in the pre-season, was wide right on an extra point after Cedric Tillman’s 5-yard TD reception midway through the third quarter put Cleveland up 16-14.
Szmyt was wide right again on a potential go-ahead 36-yard attempt with 2:25 remaining in the game.
RAIDERS 20, PATRIOTS 13
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Geno Smith opened his stint with the Raiders by throwing for 362 yards and a touchdown, rookie Ashton Jeanty rushed for his first career touchdown and Las Vegas rallied to beat the New England Patriots 20-13 in their season-opener Sunday.
Tight end Brock Bowers had five catches for 103 yards before leaving in the fourth quarter with a knee injury. Jakobi Meyers added eight catches for 97 yards. Maxx Crosby and Malcolm Koonce also added sacks to help give Pete Carroll his first victory as the Raiders’ coach.
Las Vegas outscored the Patriots 13-3 in the second half. New England got within seven points on a 44-yard field goal by rookie Andy Borregales, but its ensuing onside kick rolled out of bounds.
New England was just 4 of 14 on third down in coach Mike Vrabel’s debut.
Drake Maye was 30 of 46 for 287 yards and a touchdown but also had an interception that led to the Raiders’ go-ahead score. Kayshon Boutte finished with six catches for 103 yards. Jaylinn Hawkins had an interception and a sack.
CARDINALS 20, SAINTS 13
NEW ORLEANS — Kyler Murray threw two touchdown passes and the Arizona Cardinals narrowly held on for a 20-13 victory over penalty-prone New Orleans on Sunday in the Saints’ first game under rookie coach Kellen Moore.
Murray passed for 163 yards, hitting Marvin Harrison Jr. five times for 71 yards and a TD. Murray also rushed for 38 yards and his other TD toss came on a 4-yard shovel pass to running back James Conner.
Saints star running back Alvin Kamara scored on an 18-yard, tackle-slipping touchdown run around the right end. Spencer Rattler passed for 214 yards without a turnover and nearly rallied the Saints into a tie during the final five minutes.
Rattler, a second-year pro who has now lost all seven of his NFL starts, drove the Saints for Blake Grupe’s short field goal to pull New Orleans within a touchdown with 2:42 left.
After Alontae Taylor’s third-down sack on a cornerback blitz forced Arizona to punt from inside the 20, the Saints began a potential tying drive on their 42 with just less than two minutes left.
Without any timeouts, Rattler scrambled for nine yards and completed five quick passes to move the Saints to the Arizona 18. After a spike to stop the clock with 13 seconds left, Rattler took three shots at the end zone. All fell incomplete, but the second throw nearly connected with leaping tight end Juwan Johnson, who lost control of the ball as he came down hard in the end zone.
JAGUARS 26, PANTHERS 10
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Trevor Lawrence threw a touchdown pass, Travis Etienne ran for 143 yards and the Jacksonville Jaguars beat the Carolina Panthers 26-10 to give their new regime a debut victory Sunday.
Brian Thomas Jr. also ran for a score for Jacksonville, which controlled both lines of scrimmage and kept Lawrence upright all afternoon.
The game was delayed 1 hour, 16 minutes because of nearby lightning strikes. The Jags led 10-3 when players and coaches headed to locker rooms and did much of the scoring after it resumed.
Jacksonville’s revamped defence contributed as much as Lawrence and the offence. Newcomers Jourdan Lewis and Eric Murray made several big plays, with Lewis’ pass breakup leading to a first-half interception for Foye Oluokun.
The complementary play created rave reviews for first-time head coach Liam Coen, first-time general manager James Gladstone and first-time executive vice president Tony Boselli. Throw in first-time offensive and defensive coordinators, and there was no telling how the Jaguars would handle their season opener.
They were much better than the Panthers, who turned the ball over twice in the first half and turned it over on downs twice in the second.
Bryce Young turned in another season-opening stinker. He completed 18 of 35 passes for 154 yards, with a TD pass to Chuba Hubbard, two interceptions and a fumble. He also made a head-scratching throw out of the back of the end zone on a fourth-and-1 play from the 5-yard line.
RAMS 14, TEXANS 9
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Matthew Stafford threw for 245 yards and a touchdown while becoming the 10th quarterback in NFL history with 60,000 yards in the air, and Braden Fiske recovered a fumble forced by Nate Landman with 1:43 to play in the Los Angeles Rams’ 14-9 victory over the Houston Texans on Sunday.
Puka Nacua had 10 catches for 130 yards for the Rams, who went ahead on Davis Allen’s TD catch on the opening drive of the third quarter. Neither team scored again in a choppy season opener.
Landman, the Rams’ new starting linebacker, punched the ball away from Dare Ogunbowale after C.J. Stroud drove the Texans inside the Los Angeles 20. Stafford then hit Nacua for a 24-yard gain on third-and-long to seal the Rams’ seventh victory in nine openers under coach Sean McVay.
Stroud passed for 188 yards with several sharp throws in his first pro game in his native Southern California despite playing behind a struggling offensive line.
But the Texans couldn’t score in the second half after Ka’imi Fairbairn made three field goals in the first half, and they were whistled for 11 penalties for 80 yards.
Davante Adams had four catches for 51 yards in the star receiver’s debut with the Rams, while Kyren Williams rushed for 66 yards and a touchdown.
49ERS 17, SEAHAWKS 13
SEATTLE — Third-string tight end Jake Tonges caught a deflected pass for a touchdown with 1:34 remaining, and the San Francisco 49ers rallied for a 17-13 season-opening win over the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday.
Tonges entered the game having never caught an NFL pass. He finished with three receptions in relief of injured All-Pro tight end George Kittle and came down with a 50-50 ball from a scrambling Brock Purdy for a 4-yard TD. Seahawks cornerback Riq Woolen got a hand on the ball, but it bounced off him and Tonges grabbed it.
Jake Moody converted the extra point to put the Niners up by four, a critical conversion given that he missed two field goals earlier.
Sam Darnold moved the Seahawks into position to win his debut with the franchise, hitting Jaxon Smith-Njigba for 40 yards to the San Francisco 14. But on second down from the 9, Nick Bosa strip-sacked Darnold to put the game away.
Purdy went 26 of 35 for 277 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions, improving to 4-0 as a starter at Lumen Field. Darnold went 16 of 23 for 150 yards, with Smith-Njigba by far his favourite target. He had nine catches for 124 yards.
BRONCOS 20, TITANS 12
DENVER — Bo Nix overcame three turnovers and the Denver Broncos spoiled top overall draft pick Cam Ward’s debut with a 20-12 victory over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday, winning despite a sloppy offensive performance and two key special-teams blunders.
Nix threw a touchdown pass to Courtland Sutton to go with his two interceptions and lost fumble, and rookie running back R.J. Harvey’s 50-yard scamper set up J.K. Dobbins’ 19-yard TD burst up the middle that made it 20-12 midway through the fourth quarter.
Denver’s stingy defence held Ward to 12-of-28 passing for 112 yards with no touchdowns. Ward didn’t have an interception, but fumbled the ball away in the final minute. The Titans managed just 134 yards on 55 plays and went 2 for 14 on third down. Ward was sacked six times.
Quarterbacks taken at No. 1 overall are 4-14-1 in the common draft era starting a season opener. When Caleb Williams got the win with Chicago last year, it was the first season-opening win for a No. 1 pick quarterback since David Carr in 2002.
Ward didn’t join Williams, instead adding his name to a long list of No. 1s who lost their first game. Since 2000, the last 17 quarterbacks taken No. 1 overall are 1-15-1.
