NFL: The Most Shocking Trends From Week 1
By CHRIS BERNUCCA
In Week 1 of the NFL season, Tony Romo got reacquainted with the rest of his receiving corps now that T.O. isn't around to demand the ball on every play, and Mike Bell made the New Orleans Saints more dangerous on offense, which didn't seem possible.
But those weren't the biggest surprises. These were:
The Baltimore Ravens go Jekyll and Hyde
Ryan may have something to do with this as well. For years, the Ravens relied on their smash-mouth defense to give their Big Ten offense a chance to win. But they appear to have undergone a personality transplant.
In the opener vs. the Chiefs, the total was 37, and the Ravens covered it - by themselves in a 38-24 win. They rang up 501 yards - nearly 200 on the ground - and had 32 first downs, posting their second-highest points total in the last three years.
Meanwhile, the defense looked vulnerable, allowing backup Brodie Croyle to keep the Chiefs in it until the closing minutes, when the unit came up with a pair of sacks. Baltimore is at San Diego with a total of 40.5.
Turnovers by the Miami Dolphins
Last year, the Dolphins led the NFL in turnover margin, forcing 30 while committing just 13. In Sunday's 19-7 loss at Atlanta, Miami gave it away four times.
Two of the turnovers had huge returns and led to scores - an interception by Chad Pennington that set up a touchdown and one of two fumbles by normally sure-handed tight end Anthony Fasano that positioned the Falcons for a field goal.
The Fish also failed to cover as 4-point road dogs. They get 3 points at home to the Colts this weekend.
The return of Cadillac Williams
One year ago, Williams was trying to make his way back from a torn right patellar tendon. He returned in Week 12 and was gaining strength when he tore the left patellar tendon in the season finale.
In the offseason, the Buccaneers signed 1,000-yard rusher Derrick Ward to a four-year, $17 million deal. But Williams again worked his way back and won the starting job in preseason, then ran for 97 yards on 13 carries in the opener.
Alongside Ward, Williams gives Tampa Bay a great 1-2 punch at running back and make things easier for Byron Leftwich. Now if only one of them could play defense.
Fantasy football players were the only ones happy with the Bucs’ performance, though. The club lost big against Dallas and failed to cover as 6.5-point home dogs.
The Denver Broncos' defense
In last season's collapse, the Broncos allowed 112 points in their final three games. They were 29th in yards allowed and 30th in points allowed.
All but two of their games totaled at least 40 points.
New coach Josh McDaniels hired defensive coordinator Mike Nolan, who put in a 3-4 set backed by the savvy of veteran safety Brian Dawkins. In the opener at Cincinnati, Denver had three sacks, two interceptions and pitched a shutout for 59 minutes in a 12-7 victory that was well under the total of 42.
This week's total for the home opener vs. Cleveland is 37.5.
The Jets shut down Houston's offense
The Jets allowed 26.2 points per game in their 1-4 season-ending swoon and replaced coach Eric Mangini with defensive demon Rex Ryan, whose tough talk since taking over appears to have translated to the field.
Taking on the Texans, who averaged 25.8 points at home last season and had all of their skill-position players healthy, New York basically shut out Houston, which scored its only TD on a fumble return.
The Jets allowed just 11 first downs, put constant pressure on Matt Schaub and kept the Titans out of the red zone.
With the inconsistencies that usually come with a rookie quarterback, the Jets will need a steady defense. Ryan's crew gets another test this week with the Patriots, which should be sharper after Tom Brady shook off some of the rust in the opener.
The line is Jets +5 and the total is 47.