Lions win OT thriller, newly-minted Cowboys dominate Browns and Caleb Williams has debut victory: NFL Week 1 Sunday review

Another Sunday of NFL Week 1 action, another mountain of storylines to pick through after wall-to-wall drama.

The opening slate of games for the 2024 NFL season is almost in the books, with only Monday Night Football between the New York Jets and San Francisco 49ers to come.

It was a thrilling day of action on Sunday, one which began with the news that Miami Dolphins star Tyreek Hill had been “briefly detained” by police on his way to the stadium.

Here are the main storylines from Sunday’s games.

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Lions win overtime thriller against Rams

Sunday Night Football between the Detroit Lions and Los Angeles Rams was one steeped in context; the two teams’ starting quarterbacks – the Lions’ Jared Goff and the Rams’ Matthew Stafford – were traded for one another in 2021.

The two met for the first time since last season’s Wild Card playoff game, with Detroit coming out on top.

And once again, it was Goff and the Lions who had the last laugh on Sunday, as David Montgomery’s one-yard touchdown run in overtime clinched a dramatic 26-20 victory for Detroit.

It was a slow burner at Ford Field, with the Lions leading 10-3 at halftime thanks to Jahmyr Gibbs’ touchdown run. A 52-yard Jameson Williams TD catch from Goff extended Detroit’s lead and it looked like the Lions would run away with the game.

But a second-half comeback from the Rams saw them claw their way back into the game.
First, Kyren Williams ran home from close range near the end of the third and then Stafford connected with Cooper Kupp on a nine-yard throw to give LA a 20-17 lead with 4:30 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Lions kicker Jake Bates tied the game at 20-20 with just seconds remaining, sending the game to overtime.

And having won the OT coinflip, Detroit marched down the field, going 70 yards – 60 of which came on the ground – in four minutes and 41 seconds before Montgomery sealed the win.

According to the NFL, it was Detroit’s first overtime victory since Week 9 in 2016, when Stafford threw a game-winning touchdown to Golden Tate.

For a team that has Super Bowl aspirations, it was an important start to the season for Detroit, which benefited from Williams’ career game: five catches for 121 receiving yards including that long touchdown.

Lions head coach Dan Campbell sung Williams’ praises after the victory.

“Yeah, listen, I expected him to play pretty good, to play better, and he showed up,” Campbell told reporters. “I mean, that was a big game to be able to catch some of these and go through it. And the best part of it was he didn’t even play his best ball.

“There’s still so much to clean up, but it also shows the work that he’s put in, and he is improving, and he’s an improved player, and he wants it, and he keeps working on it. And he just, he keeps taking these steps. So as long as he keeps doing it, and keeps making plays, he’s just going to continue to get better. So yeah, I’m proud of him, I’m proud of where he’s at, but he’s got so much room to continue to grow.”

The loss was made even more painful for Los Angeles as one its star receivers, Puka Nacua, was ruled out of the game at halftime after suffering a knee injury in the second quarter.

Newly-minted Cowboys dominate Browns

After an offseason of questions surrounding the Dallas Cowboys, it has all come together for ‘America’s Team’ with the final piece of the puzzle falling into place hours before a Week 1 clash against the Cleveland Browns.

Just weeks after CeeDee Lamb had signed a massive extension with the team, Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott agreed to a record four-year, $240 million contract extension to remain in Texas, making him the highest-paid player in the NFL.

And that money seemed well spent for the Cowboys as both Prescott and Lamb excelled in Dallas’ impressive 33-17 victory over the Browns on Sunday.

Prescott threw for one touchdown, running back Ezekiel Elliot ran for another and kicker Brandon Aubrey had four field goals as the Cowboys claimed the victory in Ohio.

The team’s defense was perhaps the star of the show though, as it intercepted Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson twice and sacked him two times.

Micah Parsons was a menace throughout, consistently taking advantage of Cleveland’s injuries at the tackle position.

“We didn’t open up the full bag,” Parsons said afterwards. “I think the sky’s the limit. This is just the beginning.”

For the Browns, it was a disappointing afternoon where the offense struggled to move the ball. The crowd at Huntington Bank Field expressed its displeasure at Cleveland’s performance with loud boos in the first half.

Watson – who has underwhelmed since his controversial trade in 2022 – threw 24-of-45 for just 169 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions as he was pressured all day.

As another team who has high hopes this season, it was an auspicious opening for Cleveland head coach Kevin Stefanski’s team.

But Watson said he and his Browns teammates cannot lose faith after a disappointing start to the 2024 season.

“We’ve got 16 more opportunities. It’s the NFL, anything can happen. I started 0-4 in 2018. We won 11 straight, so it’s one game at a time,” Watson told reporters. “Take it one week at a time. You get ready, regardless if you win or you lose, you gotta scratch that one and get ready for the next week. So anything can happen.”

The game also saw the commentary debut of NFL legend Tom Brady who was in the Fox booth for the first time in the regular season.

Caleb Williams gets debut victory

It wasn’t pretty, but Caleb Williams’ life in the NFL is off to a winning start.

The 2024 No. 1 overall pick struggled throughout the Chicago Bears’ opener against the Tennessee Titans behind a shaky offensive line and with some understandable rookie inexperience.

The Bears fell into a 17-point deficit and it took a heroic effort from Chicago’s defense and special teams to drag them out of that hole.

First, Jonathan Owens – husband of US gymnast Simone Biles – returned a blocked punt for a touchdown to begin the comeback. The seven-time Olympic gold medalist seemed overjoyed at the moment, writing on X, formerly known as Twitter: “I ALMOST HAD A HEART ATTACK.”

Then, after a couple of Cairo Santos field goals to tie the game, Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson intercepted Titans quarterback Will Levis, returning it 43 yards for a touchdown to give Chicago a 24-17 lead and the win to begin the Williams-era in Illinois on a high note.

Williams – who went 14-of-29 throws for 93 yards – became the first quarterback taken with the No. 1 pick to win his Week 1 debut in more than 20 years and just the fourth ever.

Despite the obvious improvements he can make, Williams wasn’t worried about the performance.

“Yeah, I don’t care about stats. I feel great,” Williams said. “To be honest with you, I feel great.”

He added: “Obviously, we didn’t perform how we wanted to (offensively). We want to be the most efficient team out there, myself included. Didn’t perform the way I wanted to.
I missed a few passes that I normally don’t miss. All these other things.”

Full Week 1 Sunday scores

Away vs. home (winners in bold)

Pittsburgh Steelers 18-10 Atlanta Falcons

Arizona Cardinals 28-34 Buffalo Bills

Tennessee Titans 17-24 Chicago Bears

New England Patriots 16-10 Cincinnati Bengals

Houston Texans 29-27 Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars 17-20 Miami Dolphins

Carolina Panthers 10-47 New Orleans Saints

Minnesota Vikings 28-6 New York Giants

Las Vegas Raiders 10-22 Los Angeles Chargers

Denver Broncos 20-26 Seattle Seahawks

Dallas Cowboys 33-17 Cleveland Browns

Washington Commanders 20-37 Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Los Angeles Rams 20-26 (OT) Detroit Lions

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