NFL Week 1: Big questions, risers, fallers and takeaways

Dallas 40, N.Y. Giants 0

Cowboys

Are the Cowboys really this good? The last time the Cowboys opened the year with a dismantling of the Giants was in 1995 (35-0). That team went on to win Super Bowl XXX. The Cowboys have been searching for another Super Bowl ever since. The road ahead will be much more difficult -- maybe as soon as next week against Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets at AT&T Stadium -- so don't book flights to Las Vegas yet. But this was as dominant of a performance the Cowboys have had in Mike McCarthy's tenure. The defense shut down the Giants and contributed a touchdown. The special teams contributed a touchdown. Tony Pollard contributed two goal-line touchdown runs, answering any questions as to how the Cowboys would handle the loss of Ezekiel Elliott.

Stock up after the win: Dan Quinn. The coordinator had his defense ready, which wasn't unexpected, but the unit was completely dominant (six sacks in less than three quarters of action). Since 2021 when Quinn took over, the Cowboys have 10 defensive touchdowns, including DaRon Bland's pick-six Sunday, tied with the New England Patriots for the most in that time. They also have had 22 games -- out of 35 total -- with multiple takeaways, three more than any other NFL team.

Stock down after the win: Since we have to pick somebody, Brandon Aubrey didn't help turn many into true believers by missing his first extra point of the season, bringing up some Brett Maher memories. But he made his next four point after tries and both field goal attempts, so there's no need to be too worried. -- Todd Archer

Next game: vs. Jets (Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET)

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Giants

Is the Giants' offensive line going to be their Achilles heel all season long? This was perhaps the team's biggest concern entering the opener. Would the Giants' line hold up against a dominant Cowboys pass rush? The answer was clearly "No" after New York allowed seven sacks. It made it impossible for the team to run any offense and quarterback Daniel Jones was flustered and regressed to his early form. The Giants need to figure a way to get this right quickly, otherwise they'll be embarrassed again by the 49ers in prime time in Week 3. Second-year guard Joshua Ezeudu is an option, but he couldn't win a starting job this summer despite every opportunity. Looking outside the organization for a veteran (Justin Pugh, Dalton Risner or D.J. Fluker) might be an option the Giants need to explore.

Stock up after the loss: Sorry, can't think of anything. Nobody was good for the Giants. They lost 40-0 after giving up 26 first-half points. It's hard to pick positives from that kind of takedown. The Giants opened with a field goal attempt returned for a touchdown. Jones had two interceptions, including a pick-six. Even the always reliable Graham Gano missed a chip-shot field goal.

Stock down after the loss: More than anything, the right side of the offensive line was especially concerning. Right tackle Evan Neal and right guard Mark Glowinski were at fault for five sacks. They also allowed constant pressure throughout the contest. Dallas had 12 pressures in the first half alone, with most of it coming against that right side. -- Jordan Raanan

Next game: at Cardinals (Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET)

Philadelphia 25, New England 20

Eagles

What's up with the Eagles offense? The normally dynamic offense sputtered for much of the game and had to settle for four Jake Elliott field goals. The Eagles went three-and-out on four straight possessions in the first half. They had only one game with four three-and-outs last season: their Week 17 loss to the Saints with Gardner Minshew under center. And Jalen Hurts' late fumble could have cost them the game. It's likely just a temporary malaise -- the starters didn't play during the preseason so there's some rust to knock off, and the Patriots' defense is legit. The concern would be if this is a sign teams have identified ways to slow this attack through their offseason studies.

Stock up after the win: DT Jalen Carter. The rookie made his presence felt in his NFL debut, generating a team-best six pressures and registering his first sack. Carter made it look easy, using his unique blend of speed and power to routinely pierce the backfield.

Stock down after the win: Eagles offensive line. Normally a primary strength of this team, the offensive front struggled to keep a clean pocket for Hurts, who was pressured 19 times and sacked three times. It was a tough first assignment, as Bill Belichick is as good as it gets at creating confusion upfront, but this unit needs to be better. -- Tim McManus

Next game: vs. Vikings (Thursday, 8:15 p.m. ET)

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Patriots

Can the Patriots start faster in Week 2? Self-inflicted mistakes helped put the Patriots into a 16-0 hole, which made life more difficult than it had to be. Captain Deatrich Wise Jr. lined up in the neutral zone on the initial second down of the game, so instead of a third-and-long after a botched snap, the penalty helped extend the Eagles' opening drive that ended with a field goal. That was followed by a Mac Jones pick-six and Ezekiel Elliott losing a fumble that was turned into a touchdown. The Patriots didn't look ready to play early, which was a major disappointment on a day when Gillette Stadium was rocking with Tom Brady back in town to be honored. The team is home again in Week 2 and another slow start could be costly with road games at the Jets and Cowboys in Weeks 3 and 4.

Stock up after the loss: Defense. After a shaky start to open the game, the unit held the Eagles to nine points after the first quarter. The Patriots were stingy in limiting the Eagles to 251 total yards.

Stock down after the loss: Running game. It didn't help that starting guards Cole Strange (knee) and Mike Onwenu (ankle) were inactive, but holes were hard to come by for backs Rhamondre Stevenson, Elliott and Ty Montgomery II. The group tallied 76 rushing yards on 22 attempts -- Mike Reiss

Next game: vs. Dolphins (Sunday, 8:20 p.m. ET)

Dolphins

Was today's run defense the new normal or an anomaly? The Chargers ran for 121 yards in the first half and didn't slow down, finishing with 234 rushing yards -- the most the Dolphins have allowed since the Bears ran for 252 yards in 2022. The Dolphins' offense looked plenty capable of holding up its end of a shootout, but it's disheartening to get into a shootout with the Chargers when Justin Herbert

 passes for only 228 yards. Against a run-heavy opponent in the New England Patriots next week, this facet of the Dolphins' game must be cleaned up.

Stock up after the win: Tua Tagovailoa and Tyreek Hill. Tagovailoa had 466 yards with three touchdowns and was 8-of-14 on throws of at least 15 air yards, with five going to Hill, whose road to 2,000 receiving yards got off to a scorching start with a 11-catch, 215-yard, 2-touchdown day.

Stock down after the win: The Dolphins' front seven. They were dominated throughout the day by the Chargers' rushing attack -- but Miami's pass-rushers were also quietly ineffective. They did come through when it counted, forcing a Herbert intentional grounding before sacking him twice on the Chargers' final drive to seal the win. -- Marcel Louis-Jacques

Next game: at Patriots (Sunday, 8:20 p.m. ET)

Lions

Will Lions QB Jared Goff break the NFL record for most consecutive passes without an interception? Goff was not intercepted Thursday and has now gone 359 consecutive passes without a pick. That's the third-longest streak in NFL history behind Tom Brady (399) and Aaron Rodgers (402). Goff says he's comfortable in the offense and has placed an emphasis on ball security, so there's reason to believe he can do it.

Stock up after the win: DE Aidan Hutchinson. The second-year edge rusher had a career-high six QB pressures on Thursday night, tied for the most by a Lions player since the start of the 2020 season.

Stock down after the win: WR Marvin Jones Jr. The veteran dropped a pass and coughed up the first fumble of his 12-year career during the second quarter on a scoring opportunity on his 563rd career touch. -- Eric Woodyard

Next game: vs. Seahawks (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET)

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