Overreactions after Week 1 of the NFL season: Kirk Cousins benched already? Cowboys made mistake paying Dak?

The first Sunday afternoon slate of the NFL season is completed, with some wild results. The Miami Dolphins came back to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Cincinnati Bengals were upset by the New England Patriots, and the Los Angeles Chargers earned the first win of the Jim Harbaugh era by defeating the Las Vegas Raiders. 

Week 1 certainly had its surprises and comebacks. Three teams trailed by at least 14 points and came back to win in Week 1, the most on the opening weekend in 45 years. Nine games were decided by one score-or-less, showcasing how competitive the league is every week.

With the Sunday afternoon slate complete, there were plenty of overreactions from the games. Let’s dive into the biggest ones and debate if they actually are overreactions or not. 

The Panthers are the worst team in the NFL — again

Overreaction or reality: Reality

What a start to the Dave Canales era in Carolina. The Panthers were steamrolled by the Saints of all teams, trailing 30-0 in the first half before even scoring a point (Carolina lost 47-10), Bryce Young looked like the worst quarterback in football again, going 13 of 30 for 161 yards with two interceptions and a 32.8 passer rating. 

The Panthers were 1 of 10 on third down, averaged 3.5 yards per play and had 3.9 yards per pass attempt in the blowout loss. The defense allowed 6.1 yards per play as the Saints scored on each of their first nine possessions.The Saints aren’t exactly a powerhouse in the league, either. 

Carolina is the worst team in the NFL again. Sunday was another embarrassing day for the franchise. 

Home-field advantage is out of reach for Cincinnati

Overreaction or reality: Overreaction

Losing to the Patriots is unacceptable for a team with Super Bowl aspirations like the Bengals, who continued their string of getting off to notoriously slow starts. Joe Burrow threw for 164 yards and zero touchdowns as the offseason distractions with Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins loomed large for the Bengals. Cincinnati didn’t score on its first five possessions, punting three times, fumbling and having a turnover on downs before getting on the scoreboard. 

The Bengals have to beat the Chiefs next week if they want a shot at home-field advantage in the AFC. They keep putting themselves in unnecessary holes. 

The Giants won’t win more than four games

Overreaction or reality: Reality

Looks like another year the Giants are going to be one of the worst teams in the NFL. Their performance against the Vikings was embarrassing, especially since their offense looked just as bad as last season. Daniel Jones had another horrendous performance as he threw two interceptions (including a pick-six by Andrew Van Ginkel) as the Giants averaged 3.5 yards per pass attempt. 

The offensive line allowed five sacks and 12 quarterback hits, also not a formula to win games. The Giants still have a bad quarterback and a poor offensive line. They’ll be fortunate to win more than four games, and they’d be smart not to if they want to win in the future. 

Michael Penix Jr. will replace Kirk Cousins at some point this year

Overreaction or reality: Overreaction

Cousins certainly looked like a 36-year old quarterback coming off a torn Achilles in his debut with the Falcons. He threw for 155 yards with two interceptions as the Falcons averaged 4.5 yards per pass attempt as a team. Keep in mind the Falcons gave Cousins $180 million guaranteed to put up 10 points in 10 possessions. 

The Falcons held Cousins back in the preseason and it showed, as Cousins looked like he hasn’t played a snap in nearly a year. Cousins will get time to figure things out, but a few more games like that will unleash the hounds in favor of Penix. Cousins will have to look over his shoulder after this performance. 

The Bears don’t have a running back 

Overreaction or reality: Reality

Chicago thought it improved at running back by giving D’Andre Swift $8 million a year, pairing him with Khalil Herbert to add a dynamic 1-2 punch to its offense. Swift had a six-yard run on his first carry and nine carries for 24 yards the rest of the way (10 carries for 30 yards total). 

Swift and Herbert combined for 12 carries for 34 yards, 20 of which came on a Swift run. Take that away and the duo had 11 carries for 14 yards. It’s just one game, but the Bears top two running backs were ineffective behind their offensive line. Swift and Herbert have to be better if Caleb Williams going to have any success in year one. 

Buccaneers are still the best team in NFC South

Overreaction or reality: Reality

Tampa Bay did play the worst team in the NFC East last year (by record) in Washington, yet the Buccaneers took care of business in dismantling the Commanders. Baker Mayfield didn’t miss a beat in throwing for 289 yards and four touchdowns, while the veteran defense held Washington to just one touchdown on its first five possessions (not counting the end of the half). 

Not counting the end of the game kneel down, the Buccaneers scored on seven of their first eight possessions — with three touchdowns in the second half. Mayfield found the reliable Mike Evans for two scores and showcased the speedster rookie Jalen McMillan on a 32-yard touchdown. 

The Buccaneers are the team to beat in the NFC South. They demonstrated they’ll still be good based on their Week 1 performance. 

Cowboys made a mistake paying Dak Prescott

Overreaction or reality: Overreaction

Jerry Jones paid Prescott too late, but did not make a mistake paying him. The Cowboys did give Prescott $60 million a year with $231 million guaranteed, the highest deal for a quarterback in NFL history. Based on how Prescott played last regular season, he deserves that money since that’s the market rate for quarterbacks now. 

Prescott was fine in Week 1, throwing for 179 yards and a touchdown in a dominant performance by the Cowboys defense and special teams. He also didn’t need to be great in Week 1.

The Cowboys got Prescott signed, which is great. Prescott still needs to prove he can win in January, just like the Cowboys.