Week 1 of the NFL season was wild, wacky and absolutely delicious. After a long offseason, predictably, the hyperbole is flowing.
So let's examine some conventional hot takes coming out of the weekend, judging what is fair and what is foul, Schein Nine style:
1) The Colts are NOT who we thought they were.
Well, , I picked the Indianapolis Colts to represent the AFC in 50. But in that piece, I acknowledged the Colts are far from a perfect team, noting major concerns all over the defense. My rationale for still giving them a ticket to Sunday: I thought Andrew Luck could be the ultimate deodorant. , he stunk along with the rest of the Colts, as that wasn't even that close.
Credit Buffalo. The Bills' defense flew around, Tyrod Taylor made plays, the crowd was awesome and Rex Ryan proved me wrong by winning his debut in impressive fashion.
The Colts' weaknesses -- including an overmatched O-line and the aforementioned shoddy defense -- were glaring. This was a grotesque debut for a team thinking .听Still, the hot-take headline above is a little aggressive -- I'm not jumping ship after one game.
2) The Giants can't recover from Sunday night's debacle.
This take is sizzling hot -- and totally accurate.
What happened on Sunday night was an absolute mess for the New York Giants. Unfathomable, to be honest.
Big Blue was in control of the game, leading 23-20 and facing a third-and-goal with 1:43 remaining, the ball at the Dallas 1 and the Cowboys out of timeouts. Then offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo and head coach Tom Coughlin called a pass play.
What?? That's inexplicable.
The Giants had every reason to run the football: Run to score and put the game away; run to bleed the clock, so Tony Romo doesn't have enough time to execute a game-winning drive; run to win. That was a losing play call. And Eli Manning's execution certainly didn't help. instead of just taking a sack and allowing the clock to tick? Wow! New York failed on every level.
The Giants don't have the talent to recover from this debacle, having blown a golden opportunity to change the narrative of their 2015 season.
3) Seahawks holdout Kam Chancellor made money on Sunday.
I think this is an overreaction, despite the fact the Seattle Seahawks did , and despite the fact Chancellor's replacement, Dion Bailey, got .
Let's be honest: A lot went wrong for the two-time reigning NFC champions.
The offensive line play was poor. The special teams, outside of , looked very suspect -- in particular, Seattle's onside kick to start overtime. That was mind-boggling. After the game, , that Steven Hauschka mishit the ball -- a claim Hauschka backed up. I don't know. It sure didn't look that way. To me, it looked like the Seahawks' staff made a goofy call late for the second consecutive game, going back to XLIX. Whatever the case, the result was ruinous.
I've always believed in the hangover for the losing team, and Seattle just didn't look like its usual self on Sunday. Which leads us back to Chancellor ...
The strong safety is a star. He's the second-best safety in the NFL (behind only his teammate, Earl Thomas). Seattle missed him, for sure, but the team had many opportunities to win this game. The Seahawks just paid Chancellor. I can't see them panicking and handing him gobs of new money now. And they shouldn't.
4) The Bucs will regret picking Jameis Winston over Marcus Mariota.
This is not a baseless hot take, not a Week 1 overreaction. This is exactly what the 2015 .
What a miserable day for Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans, who had to watch the true franchise quarterback they passed on shred their defense in Raymond James Stadium. And Marcus Mariota did it in historic fashion, becoming the first NFL quarterback to throw four touchdown passes in his first half of regular-season play. Mariota was so good he spent the fourth quarter on the sideline, soaking up .
Mariota over Winston on Sunday was a major harbinger of things to come. And a bad look for Lovie Smith.
5) The Chiefs will win the AFC West.
Denver's defense was fantastic against Baltimore, with representing the biggest play of the Broncos' win. Wade Phillips is going to make this unit one of the NFL's best in 2015. Thus, Peyton will not have to completely carry this team on the strength of his right arm聽(or lack thereof).
6) Terrell Suggs' injury drops Baltimore to third in the AFC North.
, the ugh, awful moment of the week. I named Suggs back in June. Yes, T-Sizzle's getting long in the tooth, but he still is a pass-rushing stud and the pulse of the tough Ravens defense.
Still, I'm not ready to overreact.
Pittsburgh's play selection -- why in the world did Todd Haley call with the Steelers marching on the game's opening drive? -- and defense were terrible . The Bengals looked fantastic , but a) they were playing the Raiders and b) we know the Andy Dalton-Marvin Lewis duo's reputation in a big spot.
The road to a division title just got much more difficult for Baltimore, but I certainly wouldn't deem it impossible.
7) The Browns are better off with Johnny Football under center.
Definitely. Especially thinking about the 2016Browns.
Here's the deal: Cleveland is dreadful. Free-agent addition Dwayne Bowe was inactive -- and a poor signing in the first place. The receiving corps is a barren wasteland. The Browns' D to a Ryan Fitzpatrick-led offense -- though, obviously, the unit was dealt a tough hand with five turnovers from Cleveland's offense.
Josh McCown is a solid veteran presence, but not the guy you want as a starter. For 2015, Johnny Manziel has more upside than McCown. And, more importantly, the Browns need to find out if a more mature John Football can be their man for next year or if they have to be in the quarterback business again.
8) Houston should make an immediate change at quarterback.
Yes, this is true.
, Brian Hoyer is not a legit starting quarterback. I'm not crowning Ryan Mallett, but the Texans have more upside with him under center. His cannon arm provides some necessary sizzle in the Texans' offense, as we saw when he led the Texans on a pair of scoring drives in the final six minutes of Might as well give him a whirl as the starter.
Now, will the Texans' QB position be a problem area all year long? That certainly could be the case. But I'd rather see what they have in the more unknown commodity. We all know what Brian Hoyer is.
9) James Jones will lead the Packers in touchdown receptions.
This is a stretch, but it isn't one to say that Jones -- -- will make a major impact. On the day Green Bay brought back Jones, I said on CBS Sports Network that he would catch 60-plus passes. He knows Aaron Rodgers and the system. Scooping him up on the cheap was a no-brainer for Ted Thompson and Co.
Still, Randall Cobb will be the touchdown-scoring machine.
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