Sportsnaut
NFL regular-season action returned this week and featured several big-time performances in Week 1. On the flipside, several teams, players, and one owner had days they’ll want to forget to open the 2025 season. With all of that in mind, let’s take a look at 20 of the biggest winners and losers from NFL Week 1, including league legend Aaron Rodgers and
In a perfect piece of scheduling, league legend Aaron Rodgers was given a unique chance at sweet revenge in Week 1 against the Jets. And only like an NFL great can do, the 41-year-old turned back the clock as he threw for four touchdowns on opening day, and led the Steelers down the field for an eventual game-winning field goal. The future Hall of Famer served up some ice-cold revenge on Sunday.
There was hope that Bryce Young had fixed his turnover issues in 2024 and was primed to take a big step forward this year. Well, that didn’t happen in Week 1. He threw two interceptions to start the season and didn’t get much help from the rest of the offense. Their 10-point output to open the year was not what the Panthers expected in Week 1.
Although they lost on Sunday, the Jets’ setback to the Steelers was not Justin Fields’ fault. Sure, he could not get it done late and help them retake the lead in the final minutes, but the 32 points the offense put up should have been more than enough to get a win. He hit on 16 of his 22 passes for over 200 passing yards and a TD, while adding 48 more on the ground and two more TDs. At least for a week, he quieted some of the concerns from an underwhelming performance in the summer.
Falcons kicker Younghoe Koo has proven to be a reliable late-game kicker. That was until Sunday. After blowing the lead late in the fourth. Michael Penix led Atlanta down the field and put Koo in a position to send the game into overtime. However, the veteran kicker failed to nail the kick, and instead of having a big win to open the year, Atlanta will look back on this game with a lot of regret.
Micah Parsons, making his Packers debut, was one of the biggest stories of Week 1. While he got a limited amount of snaps as he recovers from a back injury, the superstar pass rusher looked worth every bit of his $188 million deal. However, the rest of his team also showed the potential they have in 2025 by pushing around rivals, the Lions, in a big win to kick off the season.
Patrick Mahomes did all he could to try and get the Chiefs a win on Friday night against the Chargers. While it...
