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NFL Week 1 Highlights: Rodgers leads dramatic comeback, Adrian Peterson reaches a milestone

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The NFL season kick-started on Thursday night, which saw the Eagles reinstate their claim of dominance with a big win over the Falcons. Sunday has come and gone and the regular season is finally back with a bang. We at Franchise Sports couldn’t be more excited, we will be reviewing each game week in the NFL as it concludes, discussing stand-out performances, significant news and breathtaking plays.

Buccaneers Surprise a Few

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are the biggest winners of the week in my opinion. Despite the critics writing off their season before it even began, they proved everybody wrong with a huge win over the highly-favoured New Orleans Saints. Backup quarterback, Ryan Fitzpatrick, was absolutely immense covering for the suspended Jameis Winston. The veteran threw for 417 yards and 4 touchdowns, completing 21 of 28 attempted passes. Furthermore, the Bucs receiving corps was phenomenal with both Mike Evans and DeSean Jackson totalling over 140 yards. A huge effort from the team gained them the victory, 40-48.

Young Running Backs Rule

James Conner had big shoes to fill in the absence of star back, Le’Veon Bell. Despite a horrendous performance by many of the Steelmen, Conner rushed for 135 yards, scoring 2 touchdowns in the process. Week 1 also saw the coming of age of rookie running back, Saquon Barkley. Totalling 106 rushing yards, Barkley scored a superb 68-yard running touchdown.

Rodgers goes full Rodgers

Aaron Rodgers did the unthinkable, again. After a sack by Roy Robertson-Harris, Rodgers was carted off the field. Despite the worries, Rodgers returned to the lineup in the early stages of the third quarter, the Bears leading by 20 points. Rodgers recovered from the deficit, scoring 3 touchdowns and finishing the game with 286 passing yards. This performance  demonstrates Rodgers’ dominance as the league’s most dynamic quarterback and enhances his claim to the title of best QB in the league.

       

Fejedelum Forces a Fumble

With Andrew Luck returning to the Colts roster fully fit, many expected that they would get off to a great start. Clayton Fejedelum had other plans. After a solid throw from Luck to tight end, Jack Doyle, Fejedelum connected on a big hit which fumbled the ball loose. He then pounced on the ball and brought it all the way to the end zone in one of the best plays of the first week.

Poor Start for Bills and Steelers

The Buffalo Bills were maybe the worst team in week 1. Nathan Peterman was elected as starting quarterback, and boy did he disappoint! Connecting with just 5 of 18 passes thrown, Peterman would throw 2 interceptions and only amass a total of 24 yards. This performance shows that the Tyrod Taylor was never the problem in Buffalo.

Speaking of Tyrod Taylor, his new team managed to earn a tie against the Pittsburgh Steelers. After a shaky start from veteran quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger, the Steelers found themselves up by 14 by the end of the third quarter. Then the Browns climbed all the way back to tie the score, 21-21. In overtime both teams struggled to find a win, with Chris Boswell and Zane Gonzalez both missing game-winning field goals. The draw for the Steelers will feel more like a loss, than a win.

Milestone Maker

Adrian Peterson had an impressive debut for his new team, the Redskins. Participating in 26 carries, he compiled 96 rushing yards which sees him move forward in the all-time rushing leaders to 10th place with 12,372 yards. Peterson  also scored one rushing touchdown, which was his landmark 100th rushing touchdown. Making him tied 7th in all time rushing touchdown leaders.

 

With the whirlwind that was week 1 in the NFL, the footballing world was glued to their screens. Keep an eye out for our week 2 review, which is guaranteed to be epic.