It’s the opening weekend of the NFL season. A time most teams and fans look ahead. However, there is also the opportunity to look back at some of the great performances in the first week of seasons past.
2000
Morten Andersen kicked five field goals and 3 PATs as the San Francisco 49ers defeated the Atlanta Falcons, 36-28 …. Duce Staley rushed for 201 yards and a touchdown as the Philadelphia Eagles blitzed the Dallas Cowboys, 41-14 … Kurt Warner was 25-of-35 for 441 yards with 3 TDs and 3 picks as the Rams upended the Broncos, 41-36 … Daunte Culpepper threw for 190 yards and rushed for 73 more and 3 second-half TDs as the Vikings upended the Bears, 30-17.
2001
Kurt Warner and Donovan McNabb combined for 620 yards passing but Jeff Wilkins was the eventual hero, kicking a field goal in OT to give the Rams a 20-17 victory over the Eagles … LaDainian Tomlinson rushed 36 times for 113 yards and 2 TDs as the Chargers lit up Washington, 30-3 … Ahman Green had 17 carries for 157 yards and 2 TDs, including an 83-yard run, as the Packers doused the Lions, 28-6… Sebastian Janikowski kicked 4 field goals as the Raiders edged the Chiefs, 27-24 … Edgerrin James rushed 28 times for 135 yards and 2 TDs as the Colts downed the Jets, 45-24 …
2002
Chad Morton had 96- and 98-yard kickoff returns for TDs, including one on the overtime kickoff, as the Jets outlasted the Bills 37-31 … Priest Holmes rushed 22 times for 122 yards and 4 TDs as Kansas City edged Cleveland, 40-39 … Ahman Green had 27 carries for 155 yards rushing as Green Bay edged Atlanta, 37-34, on a Ryan Longwell field goal in overtime … Tom Brady was 29-of-43 for 294 yards and 3 TDs as the Patriots upended the Steelers, 30-14.
2003
The Bills intercepted Tom Brady 4 times en route to a 31-0 rout of the Patriots … Joey Harrington and Jeff Blake combined for 7 TD passes as the Lions downed the Cardinals, 42-24 …
2004
It was Tom Brady and Peyton Manning on display as the season opened with the Patriots winning, 27-24. The QBs threw for 591 yards and 5 TDs … Quentin Griffin rushed for 156 yards and 2 TDs as Denver dropped Kansas City, 34-24 … Curtis Martin rushed 24 times for 196 yards and a TD as the Jets bopped the Bengals, 31-24.
2005
The Giants got a 95-yard kickoff return from Willie Ponder and a 52-yard punt return from Chad Morton in a 42-19 win over Arizona … It was the Drew Show as Bledsoe and Brees threw a total of 5 TD passes in a 28-24 Dallas win over San Diego. … Willie Parker ran for 161 yards and a TD as the Steelers upended the Titans, 34-7.
2006
The Manning Bros. met and combined for 523 yards and 3 TDs but Peyton got the best of Eli, as the Colts downed the Giants, 26-21. LaDainian Tomlinson rushed for more yards than Philip Rivers passed for — 131-108 — as the Chargers doused the Raiders, 27-0 … Kurt Warner threw for 301 yards and 3 TDs as the Cardinals downed the 49ers, 34-27.
2007
Tom Brady ignited the Patriots’ 16-0 regular season by throwing for 3 TD passes and completing 22-of-28 passes for 297 yards as the Patriots crushed the Jets, 38-14 … Tony Romo threw for 345 yards and 4 TDs as the Cowboys outlasted the Giants, 45-35, despite Eli Manning throwing for 315 yards … Joseph Addai rushed for 118 yards and 3 TDs as the Colts clocked the Saints, 41-10.
2008
Willie Parker gained 138 yards rushing and scored 3 TDs as the Steelers toppled the Texans, 38-17 … Jay Cutler went 16-of-24 for 300 yards as the Broncos rattled JaMarcus Russell and the Raiders, 41-14,
2009
Adrian Peterson ran for 3 TDs and 180 yards as Minnesota clocked Cleveland, 34-20 … Drew Brees went 26-of-34 for 358 yards and 6 TDs as the Saints laced the Lions, 45-27 … Tom Brady found Ben Watson for 2 TDs in the last 2:06 as the Patriots jarred the Bills, 25-24. Brady threw for 378 yards.
2010
Arian Foster rushed for 231 yards and 3 TDs to offset Peyton Manning’s 433 yards passing and 3 TDs as the Texans stung the Colts, 34-24 … Chris Johnson rushed 27 times for 142 yards and 2 TDs as the Titans beat up on the Raiders, 38-13.
2011
Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees combined for 731 yards and 6 TD passes as the Packers outscored the Saints, 42-34 … Tom Brady was 32-of-48 for 517 yards and a quartet of TDs as the Patriots outscored the Dolphins, 38-24 … Ryan Fitzpatrick was 17-of-25 for 208 yards and 4 TDs as the Bills crushed the Chiefs, 41-7.
2012
Nate Kaeding was 5-of-5 on field goals as the Chargers ruined the Raiders, 22-14 … C.J. Spiller had 169 yards rushing but the Bills fell to the Jets, 48-28.
2013
Peyton Manning threw 7 TD passes as Denver downed the Baltimore Ravens, 49-27. Manning and Joe Flacco combined for 824 yards passing … Aaron Rodgers and Colin Kaepernick combined for 7 TD passes and 745 yards as Green Bay outscored SF, 34-28 … LeSean McCoy rushed for 184 yards and a TD as the Eagles edged Washington, 33-27 … Matt Schaub threw for 346 yards and 3 TDs to top Philip Rivers, who tossed 4 TDs as Texans tipped the Chargers, 31-28.
2014
Knowshon Moreno rushed for 134 yards as the Dolphins beat the Patriots, 33-20 … Matt Bryant hit a 51-yard field goal to force OT and a 52-yarder to win the game as Atlanta outlasted New Orleans, 37-34 … Peyton Manning threw 3 TD passes to Julius Thomas in the second quarter as Denver beat the QB’s former team, Indianapolis, 31-24.
2015
Tom Brady was 25-of-32 for 288 yards and 4 TDs as the Patriots topped the Steelers, 28-21. Three of the TD passes went to Rob Gronkowski … Philip Rivers completed 34-of-41 passes for 403 yards and 2 TDs as the Chargers toppled the Lions, 33-28. Fifteen of the completions went to Keenan Allen, who had 166 yards receiving. Heisman winners faced off as Marcus Mariota threw 4 TD passes to lead Tennessee to a 42-14 rout of Jameis Winston and Tampa Bay … Tony Romo hit Jason Witten with an 11-yard TD pass with 7 seconds left to give the Cowboys a 27-26 win over the Giants. Romo threw for 356 yards and 3 TDs.
2016
Matthew Stafford and Andrew Luck combined for 725 yards and 7 TDs as the Lions outlasted the Colts, 39-35 … Alex Smith threw for 363 yards and 2 TDs and scored on a 2-yard run in OT as the Chiefs beat the Chargers, 33-27 … DeAngelo Williams rushed for 143 yards on 26 carries and scored 2 TDs in the fourth quarter as the Steelers downed the Redskins, 38-16 … Drew Brees and Derek Carr threw for 742 yards and 5 TDs as the Raiders nipped the Saints, 35-34.
2017
Alex Smith was 28-of-35 for 368 yards and 4 TDs as the Chiefs upended the Patriots, 42-27, with a 21-point final quarter … Smith got help from Kareem Hunt, who debuted with 148 yards rushing, 98 receiving and a total of 3 TDs … Sam Bradford went 27-of-32 for 346 yards and 3 TDs as the Vikings downed the Saints, 29-19.
2018
One performance stood above all others as Aaron Rodgers left the game in the first half against the Chicago Bears with a knee injury. The great Green Bay QB surprised everyone by returning and leading the Packers from a 20-0 deficit for a 24-23 victory. … Ryan Fitzpatrick was 21-of-28 for 417 yards and 4 TDs as the Bucs stunned the Saints, 48-40. And, of course, the Browns showed signs of life for the first time in years, tying the Steelers, 21-21, behind 14 points in the fourth quarter.
