NFL Week 1 Sorts the Field After Cardinals Stun Chargers

The Arizona Cardinals, a +9.5 underdog, beat the Los Angeles Chargers 26-14 on Sunday in the swing that defined NFL Week 1. Chicago then dropped 59 points on Carolina in a 96-point game. The Jets and Giants both won openers on the same Sunday for the first time since 2009.

By nightfall the Chargers, Packers, Cowboys and Browns were the teams with questions. Kansas City and Denver still have to play Monday night at Arrowhead Stadium.

Mike LaFleur Wins a Cardinals Debut That Hadn’t Worked Since 1973

Arizona came off a three-win, injury-soaked 2025 and a nine-game losing streak, then went into SoFi Stadium and scored on the first drive. Rookie running back Jeremiyah Love finished that march with a 5-yard touchdown, his first NFL score. The Chargers tied it at 7, and they did not lead again.

Jacoby Brissett completed 27 of 37 passes for 277 yards and a touchdown, with no interceptions. Trey McBride caught 9 balls for 95 yards and the dagger, a 3-yard score after Simi Fehoko blocked a punt at the Chargers’ 3-yard line early in the fourth. Love carried 11 times for 41 yards. Tyler Allgeier added 17 carries for 61.

NFL Research said LaFleur is the first non-interim Cardinals head coach to win his first game since Don Coryell in 1973. He did it in the building where he finished last season as the Rams’ offensive coordinator. Brissett spread the ball to six receivers, and Kendrick Bourne caught all 8 of his targets for 75 yards.

I’m just so happy that we were able to go on the road and get a win

Jacoby Brissett, Cardinals quarterback, after the win at SoFi Stadium

Justin Herbert went 17 of 27 for 209 yards, one touchdown and one interception, and he was sacked three times. Ladd McConkey had 5 catches for 82 yards and a score, then left with a chest injury before the third quarter ended. Mike McDaniel’s first game as Chargers offensive coordinator produced 14 points. Los Angeles converted 2 of 8 third downs, went 0 of 3 on fourth down, and lost the possession battle by 15 minutes. Andrew Wingard’s interception of a deep ball in the fourth closed the door.

A Super Bowl-hopeful favorite that opened as the week’s biggest lay never led a club that most survivor pools treated as a bye. That is the Chargers’ Week 1 problem, and it is not a slow start. It is a night they spent chasing.

Chicago and Carolina Make a 96-Point Week 1 Record

Bank of America Stadium kicked off at 89 degrees, tied for the second-hottest home game in that building, and the scoreboard kept pace. The Bears beat the Panthers 59-37. The two clubs combined for 96 points, the highest-scoring Week 1 game in history, eight more than Tampa Bay’s 48-40 win over New Orleans in 2018. The 59-37 final was also a Scorigami, the first time an NFL game had ended on that score.

WEEK 1 SCORING RECORD

Caleb Williams completed 21 of 29 passes for 269 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 65 yards and two more scores. NFL Research said he is the first player in Bears history to post 200-plus passing yards, two-plus passing touchdowns, 50-plus rushing yards and two-plus rushing scores in one game. D’Andre Swift ran 18 times for 124 yards and three touchdowns. Kyle Monangai added 100 yards on 10 carries, including a 61-yard touchdown. Chicago piled up 552 yards, 291 of them on the ground, and six rushing touchdowns on 39 carries. The 59 points were the Bears’ most in a game since 1980 and a franchise record for an opener, beating a 45-7 win over Green Bay in 1948.

Bryce Young went 23 of 37 for 361 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, with a 110.3 rating, and he ran for a score. Jalen Coker caught 8 passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns, including a 51-yard strike. In Young’s three previous openers the Panthers had scored 10 points each time, and he had gone 51 of 103 for 461 yards, two touchdowns and six interceptions. He finally had an opener. Carolina still gave up the most points in Panthers franchise history, past the 52 allowed at Pittsburgh in 2018 and at Oakland in 2000.

The Bears led 31-24 at half, with 55 combined points, tied for the most in a half since 2000. Chuba Hubbard tied it at 31 in the third. Then a roughing-the-passer flag on Derrick Brown set up Swift from a yard out, Monangai broke the 61-yarder, and Chicago scored the next three touchdowns. Carolina finished with 11 penalties for 84 yards, two touchdowns wiped out by offensive pass interference, and a muffed punt. A 46.5-point total on this game was in trouble before the third quarter. Chicago scored 59 by itself.

A 17-Year New York Drought Ends on the Same Sunday

The Giants beat the Cowboys 28-20 at MetLife Stadium in John Harbaugh’s first game as New York’s coach. Jaxson Dart completed 23 of 29 passes for 230 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions and ran 11 times for 54 yards. Cam Skattebo added 81 yards and a touchdown. It was the Giants’ first Week 1 home win since 2010, and Harbaugh improved to 8-1 in Week 1 home openers going back to his Ravens years. While he won that debut, his brother Jim’s Chargers were already 0-1 on the other coast.

The Jets never trailed in Nashville, beating the Titans 23-10. Breece Hall ran for 102 yards and a touchdown. Geno Smith threw for 215 yards without a turnover. New York rushed 32 times for 142 yards, held the ball for just over 38 minutes, and outgained Tennessee by 172 yards, the Jets’ largest Week 1 yardage margin since 2014, the last time Smith started an opener for them. Rookie tight end Kenyon Sadiq scored on a 3-yard end-around, joining Ozzie Newsome in 1978 as the only tight ends with a rushing touchdown in their first NFL game. First-round rusher David Bailey logged six quarterback pressures and a sack. The Titans’ longest play gained 14 yards. Cam Ward was pressured on 41 percent of his dropbacks and sacked three times. Some of the home crowd chanted for Robert Saleh to be fired, loud enough for the boom mics, in the former Jets coach’s first game in Tennessee.

Sunday was the first time both New York teams won Week 1 in the same season since Sept. 13, 2009, when the Jets beat Houston 24-7 and the Giants beat Washington 23-17. The Eagles made it three NFC East wins in four tries, holding Washington 24-22 after breaking up a two-point try with a minute left. Dallas left with the loss and more medical tests. Linebacker DeMarvion Overshown hurt a hamstring, and safety Malik Hooker likely fractured a forearm, coach Brian Schottenheimer said.

Josh Allen Finally Wins in Houston

Josh Allen threw a 34-yard touchdown to Joshua Palmer with 1:36 left, and the Bills beat the Texans 36-31. It was Allen’s first win in Houston as a starter after four losses there. Buffalo had not won in that building since 2006, when J.P. Losman was the quarterback. Joe Brady got his first win as Bills coach on the same night.

Allen completed 20 of 29 passes for 334 yards and two touchdowns and ran for two more scores. He was sacked twice and did not throw an interception. Dalton Kincaid caught 5 passes for 130 yards. D.J. Moore, in his Buffalo debut after the trade from Chicago, had 5 for 100 and a touchdown. The Bills ran only 52 plays and gained 409 yards, 7.9 per snap. Eleven of Allen’s 15 throws that traveled at least 10 yards in the air gained 286 yards and both scoring passes, including the winner on a seven-play, 96-yard drive. Greg Rousseau’s second strip-sack of the day, recovered by Terrel Bernard, ended Houston’s last chance. Allen also scored the 80th rushing touchdown of his career, the first quarterback to reach that number.

Hell, yeah. We love chunk plays. That’s how you score 36 points. You give yourself opportunities to score in four, five plays in a drive instead of long, methodical, 13, 14, 15 plays. That’s also a way to win football games.

Josh Allen, Bills quarterback, after the 36-31 win in Houston

In Indianapolis, Jesse Minter’s first game as Ravens head coach was a 41-23 win. Baltimore scored 31 points before halftime. Lamar Jackson went 17 of 22 for 324 yards and ran four times for 43 yards and a score, kneel-downs aside. Derrick Henry ran for 144 yards and three touchdowns. Zay Flowers had 5 catches for 150 yards and a touchdown, then Zay Flowers left with a hamstring injury before halftime. Rookie Ja’Kobi Lane fractured a wrist and will miss several weeks. The Colts still gave up 506 yards. Minter’s teams are now 7-0 in Week 1 across his seven seasons as an NFL assistant or head coach, and those defenses have allowed 10.4 points per game in those openers, per NFL Research.

Cincinnati beat Tampa Bay 33-27 after forcing four turnovers, including a fumble return for a touchdown, and Baker Mayfield lost three fumbles. Pittsburgh beat Atlanta 20-13. Jacksonville beat Cleveland 34-10, with Trevor Lawrence throwing four touchdown passes in Todd Monken’s Browns debut on the other sideline. Las Vegas beat Miami 27-13, the Raiders’ first double-digit Week 1 win since 2017, with Ashton Jeanty totaling 147 scrimmage yards on 29 touches and two touchdown catches.

29 Unanswered Points Flip the NFC North Opener

Green Bay led 22-10 in the third quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. Minnesota scored the next 29 points and won 39-22. Kyler Murray lasted into the first quarter, went 3 of 5 for 18 yards with an interception, and left with a concussion after a hit to the head. Carson Wentz, the veteran backup listed ahead of J.J. McCarthy, completed 12 of 19 passes for 133 yards and three touchdowns. Justin Jefferson caught 8 balls for 92 yards and two scores. Aaron Jones, the former Packer, and Jordan Mason each ran for a touchdown.

Jordan Love finished 21 of 42 for 387 yards, two first-half touchdowns to Christian Watson, one interception and a lost fumble on a sack. Watson had 6 catches for 147 yards, including an 81-yard score. The Packers went 3 of 12 on third down, took 12 penalties for 98 yards, and were stuffed on fourth-and-1 with a five-point lead. They played without running back Josh Jacobs and linebacker Micah Parsons. They gained 419 yards to Minnesota’s 239 and still lost because the last quarter belonged to the defense that had spent the first half getting run past. Green Bay closed last season on a five-game losing streak. Week 1 did not break the feeling.

Detroit almost handed Minnesota a cleaner NFC North picture. The Lions led New Orleans 21-0 in the third quarter, then needed overtime to survive 31-30 after a two-point try failed. Jahmyr Gibbs carried a career-high 29 times for 156 yards and two touchdowns in his 50th career game and now has 51 career scores, fifth-most through 50 games in NFL history. Tyler Shough threw for 410 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions and a lost fumble. Chris Olave caught 10 passes for 182 yards. A three-score lead that becomes a one-score escape is still a win. It is also a tape the Lions will not enjoy.

Dallas, Miami and Cleveland Open With Familiar Damage

Not every ugly Sunday was an upset. Some of it was a pattern showing up on time.

THE HOLE TEAMS AFTER SUNDAY

Cleveland’s opener record since returning in 1999 is now 3-24-1. Deshaun Watson and a new staff under Monken never made it a game. Miami lost to a Raiders team that punted for the first time in the fourth quarter. The Rams were already 0-1 before Sunday’s slate, buried 27-7 by San Francisco on Thursday. Carolina at least scored 37 and still left as the club that just set a franchise record for points allowed.

The medical list is the other sorting mechanism, because several of the winners will have to replace people this week.

THE BODIES THAT LEFT SUNDAY

• Ravens receivers: Flowers is in the concussion-and-hamstring pile with a hamstring, and Lane’s fractured wrist is weeks, not days.
• Vikings quarterback: Murray is in the protocol after the first-quarter hit, which is why Wentz closed a division game.
• Chargers skill: McConkey (chest), KeAndre Lambert-Smith (hamstring) and corner Elijah Molden (hamstring) did not return to a night Los Angeles already could not finish.
• Cowboys back seven: Overshown’s hamstring and Hooker’s forearm turn a bad opener into a thinner Week 2.
• Jets depth: Minkah Fitzpatrick (groin) and Omar Cooper Jr. (ankle sprain, MRI next) left a win that still looked clean.

Atlanta also lost Da’Shawn Hand (knee) and Chris Lindstrom (concussion) in Pittsburgh. Washington lost Chigoziem Okonkwo, Frankie Luvu and Tyler Owens in Philadelphia. Those are the clubs that have to play next week with less of what they brought to Week 1.

Monday Night in Kansas City Closes an Unfinished Week

Fifteen of 16 games are in. The last one is Denver at Kansas City on Monday night, Sept. 14, at 8:15 p.m. ET from Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs are 2.5-point favorites, and the total sits at 43.5. Kansas City is coming off a rare missed postseason. Denver is the defending AFC West champion. Until that one kicks, Week 1 still has an empty cell in the West.

THE WEEK 1 CLOCK

1. Wednesday, Sept. 9: Seattle 13, New England 10.
2. Thursday, Sept. 10: San Francisco 27, Los Angeles Rams 7.
3. Sunday, Sept. 13: Thirteen games, including Arizona’s 26-14 win in Inglewood, Chicago’s 59 in Charlotte, both New York wins, and Minnesota’s 29 unanswered points.
4. Monday, Sept. 14: Denver at Kansas City, 8:15 p.m. ET, Arrowhead Stadium.

The NFC West already has three winners and the Rams. The NFC North has three winners and the Packers. The AFC East has Buffalo and the Jets at 1-0, with Miami and New England in the other column. That is a lot of sorting for one weekend, and it is still missing the Chiefs and Broncos. The clubs that cashed Sunday do not need Monday. The ones that did not will watch it anyway.