(Image credit: Raj Mehta/USA Today Sports)
Written by: Nicholas Mullick
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholas-mullick-354076184/
Now that was an amazing week 1 in the NFL as there were many games that were close. It was a scary time for some people in Survivor as they thought they would get eliminated in week 1. Luckily some picks were successful. Let's dive into how I did, giving my top 5 options that I gave to pick in survivor and a trap game to avoid.
Week 1 Recap
Top 5 Options
1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (vs Dallas Cowboys) - That was a close one as Dallas was a lot better than we all thought they were. Dak Prescott is healthy and he performed extremely well against the Buccaneers. CeeDee Lamb played extremely well for Dallas too. Dallas actually showed life and Micah Parsons performed well all game and if he continues to develop well then he will be a big part of this defense. The Cowboys lost to a game-winning field goal by Ryan Succop. Speaking of which, why didn't Mike McCarthy ice the kicker at the end of the game? This team is going to be held back by terrible coaching again aren't they?
2. San Francisco 49ers (at Detroit Lions) - That was a lot closer than what it should have been. You know this team was up 38-10 during the third quarter. The team almost went Full Shanahan and choked a 28 point lead against the Detroit Lions. This team clearly checked out during the end of the 3rd quarter. Also, the 49ers suffered injuries to Rasheem Mostert and Jason Verrett. It was a scary sight to see especially as the Lions lost players including Jeff Okudah in the secondary and I thought the Lions would upset the 49ers at one point of the game. Luckily the San Francisco 49ers came to their senses and won the game after a brief scare from many people who chose them in survivor. Including myself as this team was my survivor pick and I was on the seat of my chair during the entire 4th quarter when the Lions were coming back. We all got lucky with this game and like I say the main goal is to survive and advance.
3. Los Angeles Rams (vs Chicago Bears) - Not even close, this game was over at the end of the 3rd quarter. The Rams defense was too good with that terrible Bears offensive line. That o-line just got worse now that Jason Peters left the game with an injury. I have no clue what the Chicago Bears will do to try and fix that terrible o-line and It will be interesting to see if they make a trade. I have no clue what this team is doing with Justin Fields. I like Andy Dalton but I doubt he lasts the season as the full-time starter for this team. David Montgomery has performed extremely well for the Chicago bears and with Tarik Cohen injured he will be a good player to utilize in fantasy. But the Rams put in a strong performance and I am glad Stafford has got a real coach in Sean McVay and a strong o-line to protect him. It showed as he threw for 321 yards and 3 touchdowns. Stafford should perform well in the entire season now that he has the proper tools to lead the Rams to success.
4. Carolina Panthers (vs New York Jets) - Another terrible performance by the New York Jets. Especially with the way the Jets performed in the first half was just a joke. To make it worse the Jets continued to suffer injuries with Mekhi Becton, Jamien Sherwood, Blake Cashman, and Lamarcus Joyner. Luckily Adam Gase is no longer the coach as if he would have given up in the middle of the game. This team came back in the second half and got this game closer than it should have been. Kudos to Matt Ammendola for replacing punter Branden Mann in this game after Mann also suffered a knee injury that is going to take him out multiple games. Sam Darnold and Robby Anderson got their revenge against the Jets and I am happy for both as they got screwed during their tenures with the team. I am excited to see what the Carolina Panthers do throughout the season but proceed with caution as Carolina’s o-line was a bit shaky all game and their defense almost made the Jets come back at the end of the game.
5. Baltimore Ravens (at Las Vegas Raiders) - Wow easily the game of the week. The Las Vegas Raiders offense heavily impressed me in this game. Derek Carr is still one of the most underrated players in this league and if he keeps performing the way he did then he could be a strong part of the Raiders' success. Kenyan Drake and Josh Jacobs were solid against the Ravens but it is clear that Jacobs is still hurt from his foot injury. While the receiving core excluding Darren Waller is weak, tonight they did a solid job against the Raiders. While I think the Raiders defense is garbage the one player I was impressed with the most was Maxx Crosby as he was all over the place in this game. But the rest of this defense really concerns me and that is due to poor drafting and player development. Clelin Ferrell is a big example as he was a healthy scratch. Speaking of defense the Ravens defense was up and down. I will say the 1st round pick Odafe (Jayson) Oweh is a player. He was all over the place and is going to be a future piece for this Ravens defense if he keeps performing this way. The Ravens offense is extremely beaten up after losing a huge chunk of their running backs. Receivers Rashod Bateman and Miles Boykin did not play due to injury. At least Marquise Brown played well. Lamar Jackson was solid but he had two fumbles all game and needs to strengthen his ball security. This offensive line is definitely worse than last year and Villanueva struggled all game.
Trap Pick: Jacksonville Jaguars (at Houston Texans) - I knew something was extremely fishy about this game. I said it before I will say it again Tyrod Taylor is still a serviceable QB in this league. He has been screwed over many times during his tenure with the Bills, Browns, and Chargers. He proved that against the Jacksonville Jaguars. What a terrible performance by Jacksonville in this game. First off, let's get to coaching with Urban Meyer. I knew that his hire was going to be a disaster when he was brought in to coach. I know it was his first game but my goodness is he going to be a big issue for this team. First off it is clear that the culture of the locker room is not good at all. In fact, news came out that his temper has rubbed the players and assistant coaches the wrong way. It also showed on the sidelines too as the players looked unenergetic throughout the game. This team also quit on the head coach during the 4th quarter. Trevor Lawrence was solid in this game but threw three terrible interceptions against a terrible Houston Texans secondary. The worst interception that he threw was to Vernon Hargreaves as that was a clear underthrown ball that he should not have thrown at all. Now DJ Chark, Marvin Jones, and Laviska Shenault were terrific in this game. James O’Shaughnessy was pretty solid. This guy Chris Manhertz who came out of nowhere, he was pretty good when he was given snaps blocking and his touchdown. You got really nothing out again from the defense but it is still a work in progress that should be built up in the future.