Pittsburgh Steelers running back Najee Harris (22) jumps over Atlanta Falcons cornerback Mike Hughes (21) during the second half of an NFL football game on Sept. 8 in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)Butch Dill/The Associated Press
STEELERS 18, FALCONS 10
ATLANTA (AP) – With Russell Wilson’s Pittsburgh debut put on hold by a calf injury, Justin Fields stepped in to lead the Steelers to a 18-10 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday – with a big assist from Chris Boswell’s strong right leg.
Boswell booted six field goals, three of them longer than 50 yards, and the Steelers made life miserable for Kirk Cousins in his first game as Atlanta’s big-money quarterback.
Boswell connected from 57, 56, 51, 44, 40 and 25 yards to account for all the Steelers’ scoring.
BILLS 34, CARDINALS 28
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) – Josh Allen had three of his four touchdowns in the second half and Buffalo overcame a 14-point deficit to defeat Arizona.
Greg Rousseau had a career-best three sacks, including one that forced a fumble. The defence preserved the Bills’ win when Damar Hamlin and Ja’Marcus Ingram broke up Kyler Murray’s pass attempt to Greg Dortch near the goal-line on fourth-and-7 from Buffalo’s 29 with 26 seconds remaining.
This was a thrilling back-and-forth affair between two nonconference rivals on a blustery day with temperatures in the low 60s and heavy winds gusting up to 30 mph (45kph) from the west off of nearby Lake Erie.
BEARS 24, TITANS 17
CHICAGO (AP) – Caleb Williams had a rough debut for Chicago but got bailed out by his defence, with Tyrique Stevenson returning an interception 43 yards for the go-ahead touchdown to give the Bears a victory over Tennessee.
The Bears, who have their sights set on a playoff spot after going 10-24 over the previous two seasons, trailed 17-0 in the first half. They shut down the Titans from there and spoiled the debut of Tennessee coach Brian Callahan.
Williams, the No. 1 overall pick, finished 14 of 29 for 93 yards with a 55.7 passer rating. The former Heisman Trophy winner at Southern California still became the first quarterback drafted first overall to win his debut start since 2002, when David Carr led Houston past Dallas. The past 15 No. 1 picks were a combined 0-14-1 in initial starts, beginning with Cincinnati’s Carson Palmer in 2003.
PATRIOTS 16, BENGALS 10
CINCINNATI (AP) – Rhamondre Stevenson rushed for 120 yards and a first-quarter touchdown, Joey Slye kicked three field goals and New England won Jerod Mayo’s debut as coach, beating mistake-prone Cincinnati.
Quarterback Jacoby Brissett, who got the starting nod for the Patriots over first-round draft pick Drake Maye, was not exceptional, but he held onto the ball and kept the Patriots moving well enough against slow-starting Cincinnati.
The nine-year veteran directed a methodical 80-yard drive in the first quarter that included six first downs was capped by a 3-yard TD run by Stevenson.
TEXANS 29, COLTS 27
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Stefon Diggs caught two touchdown passes and Joe Mixon rushed for 159 yards and another score Sunday to help Houston close out a victory against Indianapolis.
Houston (1-0) won its second straight road game in the series for the first time in franchise history and its ninth straight road game in division play.
The Colts (0-1), meanwhile, extended the NFL’s longest active opening day winless streak to 11 despite getting two TD passes of more than 50 yards from Anthony Richardson, who also ran for a late score.
He was 9 of 19 with 212 yards and one interception and, ran six times for 56 yards including a 3-yard scoring run with 2:14 left to trim the deficit to 29-27.
DOLPHINS 20, JAGUARS 17
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) – Jason Sanders nailed a 52-yard field goal as time expired, and Miami rallied past Jacksonville to win their fourth straight season opener.
Fresh off a big off-season payday, Tua Tagovailoa threw for 336 yards and a touchdown and led Miami on an 8-play, 31-yard drive over the final 2:09.
Tyreek Hill started the comeback with 80-yard touchdown catch that sparked Miami’s sluggish offence in the third quarter and got the Dolphins within 17-14. After the score, Hill placed his hands behind his back as if to simulate being handcuffed, hours after he was placed facedown and handcuffed on a street by Miami-Dade Police officers after being stopped for a traffic violation near Hard Rock Stadium.
Hill finished with seven catches for 130 yards. Devon Achane seven catches for 75 yards and ran for 25 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries.
SAINTS 47, PANTHERS 10
NEW ORLEANS (AP) – Derek Carr passed for three touchdowns and New Orleans scored on their first nine possessions in a victory over Carolina.
Alvin Kamara and Jamaal Williams each ran for touchdowns and Blake Grupe kicked four field goals – two from beyond 50 yards – in an extraordinary debut for new Saints offensive co-ordinator Klint Kubiak.
The Panthers, who went 2-15 last season, made front office, coaching and key roster changes in hopes of showing more promise this season. But this season opener could not have gone much worse for new coach Dave Canales and second-year quarterback Bryce Young.
Young was 13 of 30 passing for 161 yards and was intercepted twice – once each by safeties Will Harris and Jordan Howden.
VIKINGS 28, GIANTS 6
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) – Sam Darnold threw two touchdown passes in a highly efficient performance and Andrew Van Ginkel scored on a spectacular one-handed 10-yard interception return to lead Minnesota to an easy victory over the woeful New York Giants.
Darnold, who played his home games at MetLife Stadium for three seasons after being taken No. 3 overall by the Jets in 2018, had touchdown passes of 3 yards to Justin Jefferson and 21 to Jalen Nailor in his Vikings debut.
Darnold also had a 22-yard pass to Josh Oliver to help set up Aaron Jones’ 3-yard TD run that put Minnesota ahead 7-3 late in the first quarter and got Kevin O’Connell’s team off to a good start as it looks to rebound from a disappointing 7-10 season.
CHARGERS 22, RAIDERS 10
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) – J.K. Dobbins rushed for 135 yards, including a 12-yard touchdown, and Los Angeles had a successful debut under Jim Harbaugh as they rallied in the second half for a victory over Las Vegas.
All 10 of Dobbins’ carries came in the second half. It was the fifth 100-yard rushing game for Dobbins, who signed a one-year deal with the Chargers during the off-season after beginning his career in Baltimore.
Dobbins played in only one game last year when he tore his Achilles tendon during the second half of Baltimore’s opener against Houston.
Justin Herbert was 17 of 26 for 144 yards and a touchdown as the Chargers avenged a 63-21 loss to the Raiders last December, which resulted in the firings of coach Brandon Staley and general manager Tom Telesco. That set in motion the eventual hiring of Harbaugh after he led Michigan to a national title.
Gardner Minshew was 25 of 33 for 257 yards with a touchdown and an interception in his first game for the Raiders.
SEAHAWKS 26, BRONCOS 20
SEATTLE (AP) – Kenneth Walker III rushed for 84 of his 103 yards and a touchdown in the second half and Seattle overcame a mistake-filled first half to beat Denver in the debut of new coach Mike Macdonald.
Walker sparked a second-half rally after an unsightly performance by Seattle’s offence over the first 30 minutes littered with sloppy miscues. The Broncos led 13-9 at the half thanks in part to two safeties.
Walker changed the momentum in the third quarter as Seattle recommitted to the ground game. He gained 53 yards on five carries on Seattle’s first drive of the second half, capped by a 23-yard touchdown run. Walker had another TD called back on a penalty, but he still produced the seventh 100-yard rushing game of his career.
COWBOYS 33, BROWNS 17
CLEVELAND (AP) – Dak Prescott threw a touchdown pass hours after agreeing to a four-year, $240 million contract with Dallas and the Cowboys’ defence roughed up Deshaun Watson in his return, throttling Cleveland in their opener.
Prescott’s deal makes him the first player to average $60 million per season and ends months of speculation about his future with the Cowboys, who have won 12 games in each of the past three years with him.
Earlier this week, Prescott, coming off his best season and entering his final year under contract, said he wants to be the quarterback to finally end the team’s Super Bowl drought. He’ll get the chance.
He completed 19 of 32 passes for 179 yards, and relaxed for much of the second half.
BUCCANEERS 37, COMMANDERS 20
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) – Baker Mayfield threw for 289 yards and four touchdowns to lead Tampa Bay to a rout of new-look Washington, spoiling the NFL debut of No. 2 overall draft pick Jayden Daniels on Sunday.
Daniels was more effective running the ball than passing, scoring a pair of rushing TDs for Washington, which is aiming for a fresh start with the 2023 Heisman Trophy winner at quarterback, Dan Quinn as the coach and Kliff Kingsbury and Joe Whitt Jr. running the offence and defence, respectively.
The former LSU star was one of three rookie starting quarterbacks in Week 1, along with No. 1 pick Caleb Williams of the Chicago Bears and 12th pick Bo Nix of the Denver Broncos. He joined Robert Griffin III (2012) as the only rookies to start a season opener for Washington since 1967.
Mayfield jump-started a fizzling career last season, signing a one-year contract with the Buccaneers and winning Tom Brady’s old job before leading Tampa Bay to a third consecutive NFC South title and a playoff victory.
LIONS 26, RAMS 20, OT
DETROIT (AP) – David Montgomery’s 1-yard touchdown run in overtime lifted Detroit to a win over Matthew Stafford-led Los Angeles in a rematch of their NFC wild-card game.
The Lions lost a two-touchdown lead in the third quarter, but extended the game with Jake Bates’ tying 32-yard field goal in the final minute of regulation.
Detroit won the coin flip and took advantage of having the ball, gaining at least 9 yards on its first four plays in overtime to set up Montgomery’s winning score.
The Rams were in a position to spoil Detroit’s season-opening party when Stafford threw a go-ahead, 9-yard touchdown pass to Cooper Kupp with 4:30 left in the fourth quarter.
They just couldn’t make enough plays on both sides of the ball to hold on for the win.