NFL 2026 Week 1 Recap
New England Patriots at Seattle Seahawks was the season opening Wednesday night game. The defending champion Seahawks crushed the Patriots 29-13 in the Super Bowl. The rematch in Seattle had Legion of Boom star Richard Sherman whipping the 12th man into a frenzy before kickoff. The Patriots dealt with the Mike Vrabel scandal in the offseason, and he was determined to keep the team focused on football. Once the game began, the defenses dominated as the first quarter was a puntfest. Only 2 1/2 minutes into the game, Sam Darnold was sacked and left the game injured. Backup Drew Lock played most of the entire game. For the Seahawks, it was a test trying to play the entire opener without their star quarterback.
The Patriots began the first quarter at their own 23 and finally mounted a sustained drive. The key play came on 3rd and 2 from the Seattle 36. Drake Maye went deep and drew a 34 yard defensive pass interference call. Maye then hit Raridon for the 2 yard touchdown to make it 7-0 Patriots. The Patriots tacked on a 50 yard Alex Borregales field goal for a 10-0 Patriots lead early in the third quarter. With Lock, the Seahawks could not get anything going.
A field position game finally gave the Seahawks good field position with a short field at the New England 43. On 3rd and 4 from the New England 7, Lock found Cooper Kupp for the touchdown. Yet an illegal shift penalty nullified the score. The Seahawks settled for a 30 yard Jason Myers field goal to finally get on the board and trail 10-3 after three quarters.
The Patriots mounted a sustained drive and began the fourth quarter with a 2nd and 9 at the Seattle 45. The Patriots were one first down from long field goal range. Maye went for it all. The bomb was a perfectly reasonable call, but it backfired. Into double coverage, a leaping deflection by one defender was then batted in the air and intercepted by Pritchett. Pritchett then returned the interception 30 yards to his own 33. Then came the big play with 11 1/2 minutes left in regulation. Mike McDonald after failing to see his team convert on 3rd and 1 from he New England 45 gambled on 4th and 1. You have to run the ball in this situation. A pass is way to risky, especially with a backup quarterback. Lock zipped a pass over the middle to Jaxon Smith-Nigba, who outraced everyone for the 45 yard touchdown. Despite the Seahawks being dominated all game, the teams were deadlocked 10-10.
The Patriots soon faced 3rd and 14 at their own 22 with 9 1/2 minutes left. Lock again went deep and this time never saw the defender. Love jumped the route and made the interception at the New England 47. The Seahawks moved to a 2nd and 1 at the New England 3, but a delay of game penalty and pair of Lock incompletions ended the drive. Myers hit the 26 yard field goal. Somehow, led by their vaunted defense, the Seahawks led by a field goal with 6 minutes left.
The Patriots took over at their own 27 and Maye led a sustained 15 play drive that took the clock down. With 26 seconds left, the Patriots had moved to a 3rd and 5 at the Seattle 16. A short field goal would force overtime, A conservative play would possibly gain a first down, but the main thing was letting the kicker hit an easy 34 yard chip shot. The ghosts of NFL past offered plenty of warnings.
Ask the Browns why Red Right 88 still haunts them. Don Cockroft never got his 1980 field goal try because of Mike Davis of the Raiders. Ask the 49ers why Colin Kaepernick flamed out. It started in 2013 when he decided to test Richard Sherman. The Legion of Boom won as Sherman tipped the ball to teammate Malcolm Smith for the interception. Ask the Seahawks why they lost the 2014 Super Bowl to the Patriots. They could have handed the ball to Marshawn Lynch at the one yard line. Instead, a moronic decision to pass the ball into traffic led to Malcolm Butler preserving the win for the Patriots.
While this game was nowhere near as big, Maye threw a low percentage pass to the end zone. Jobe made a spectacular toe tap interception for a touchback. In a stunning turn of events, there would be no shot at overtime. Maye threw 3 interceptions in the most recent Super Bowl. In the rematch, he threw interceptions on 3 consecutive fourth quarter drives. Hate the term game manager all you want, but Lock did that. He was far from spectacular, but he did not make any mistakes. Maye did. From the Legion of Boom to the Dark Side, the Seattle defense bailed out the offense.
Those who do not understand football would consider this an ugly game. Those who know football saw a beautiful, brutal street fight, an old-fashioned head-knocker. This was stone age magnificence. This was football. 13-10 Seahawks
San Francisco 49ers at Los Angeles Rams was the Thursday night game in Melbourne, Australia. Both teams had legitimate Super Bowl aspirations. The Rams loaded up in the offseason, convinced they were the best team last year despite falling short in the NFC Title Game. The Rams brought Aaron Donald out of retirement and brought in Myles Garrett from Cleveland. This team was built to win it all. Yet the 49ers always seem to have the Rams number. Sean McVay is an offensive mastermind, but Kyle Shanahan seems to beat him more often than not.
In the first quarter the 49ers had a 15 play, 65 yard drive that consumed over 7 minutes. On 3rd and goal at the 2, Brock Purdy threw incomplete. Kyle Shanahan was not in a gambling mood. Eddie Pineiro hit the 20 yard field goal to make it 3-0 49ers. Late in the first quarter a field position game had the Rams at their own 43. On 2nd and 2 just past midfield, Matthew Stafford went deep to Puka Nacua. The star wide receiver has plenty of controversy dogging him off the field, but on the field he remains a star. Nacua out jumped the defender and out-juked a pair of them for a 41 yard gain. Kyren Williams ran for a 5 yard touchdown and a 7-3 Rams lead. An interception of Purdy had the Rams at their own 31 with a chance to expand the lead and take over the game.
On 3rd and 10 from the San Francisco 35, Stafford went deep and was intercepted by Green. The Rams had given the ball right back. The 49ers were at their own 14, but it didn’t matter. On 3rd and 8 from their own 30, Purdy found newly acquired Mike Evans for 13. Purdy then went deep to Robinson for a 39 yard touchdown and a 10-7 49ers lead at the half. Deebo Samuel returned the second half kickoff 45 yards to have the 49ers starting just before midfield. Christian McCaffrey belted the Rams defense for big gains of 14 and 16. On 3rd and goal at the 2, Purdy hit Evans for the touchdown and a 17-7 49ers lead.
The Rams took over at their own 27 and embarked on a 12 play, 72 yard, 7 1/2 minute drive. On 3rd and goal at the 2, Stafford hit Nacua for one yard. Sean McVay opted to go for it. On 4th and goal at the one, Stafford took the quarterback sneak and ran into a San Francisco brick wall. A goal line stand led to the 49ers first Super Bowl win in the 1981 season and lifted them up 45 years later. After that, the 49ers just ground the Rams defense into dust. 11 plays and 6 minutes were less significant than a 99 yard drive. From his own one, Purdy hit Farrell for 14 and Samuel for 13. Purdy even ran for an 18 yard gain. Purdy hit Samuel for a 15 yard touchdown and a 24-7 49ers lead early in the fourth quarter.
The Rams self-destructed the rest of the way. A fumble led to a 49ers field goal. Another field goal try doinked off the upright no good, but the 49ers did not need the points. Again, the 49ers beat up the Rams. In addition to the 49ers, the big winner of this game was the people of Australia, who got to experience American rules football live in person. 27-7 49ers
Chicago Bears at Carolina Panthers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Cincinnati Bengals
New Orleans Saints at Detroit Lions
Buffalo Bills at Houston Texans
Baltimore Ravens at Indianapolis Colts
Cleveland Browns at Jacksonville Jaguars
Atlanta Falcons at Pittsburgh Steelers
New York Jets at Tennessee Titans
Arizona Cardinals at Los Angeles Chargers
Miami Dolphins at Las Vegas Raiders
Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings
Washington Commanders at Philadelphia Eagles
Dallas Cowboys at New York Giants is the Sunday night game.
Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs is the Monday night game.