Football is back!
There were 13 games in the NFL last night, and of course there were a ridiculous amount of talking points. Don't worry if you missed it, as we at Balls.ie have you covered with the GIFs and Vines from Week One's Sunday action.
Minnesota Vikings 34-6 St.Louis Rams
The Rams are badly missing their starting QB Sam Bradford, who once again will miss a lot of action through injury. The Vikings strolled to an opening day victory, and no doubt the highlight of the game, and possibly of the week, was this insane touchdown run by Vikings electrifying utility man Corderrelle Patterson.
New York Jets 19-14 Oakland Raiders
Jets fans will no doubt be happy to see Geno Smith looking like a decent starting quarterback, and Chris Johnson also lended a hand with a TD in a solid week one road win. The game also provided a comedy moment as Maurice Jones-Drew fumbled and bicycle kicked the ball in the one motion:
Houston Texans 17-6 Washington Redskins
The main news from this game was that #1 overall draft pick Jadeveon Clowney went down with a knee injury and is expected to miss between four and six weeks, but at least they still have JJ Watt, who single-handedly dismantled the 'Skins offence and set the platform for a good start for the team with the worst record in football last year.
Pittsburgh Steelers 30-27 Cleveland Browns
The Steelers almost blew a 27-3 lead but for a late Suisham field goal, but really, all you need to see is this utterly ridiculous gif of Antonio Brown going full SPARTA on Browns punter Spencer Lanning.
Buffalo Bills 23-20 Chicago Bears
A late Dan Carpenter field goal won this one for the Bills in what was a largely forgettable encounter.
Philadelphia Eagles 34-17 Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jags shocked everyone when they stormed out to a 17-0 lead at half time, but remembered who they were in the second half and capitulated to allow 34 unanswered points, the highlight being this scamper from Darren Sproles.
Atlanta Falcons 37-34 New Orleans Saints
The Falcons came out on top in over-time of a thrilling game against Drew Brees' Saints. Atlanta QB Matt Ryan was elite-level as he threw for 448 yards and 3 TD's, just hope you didn't play against him in fantasy this week.
Tennessee Titans 26-10 Kansas City Chiefs
Jake Locker lead the titans to an opening week victory after Jamaal Charles and his Chiefs team were flat on offence, with the star running back gaining just 34 yards on 11 carries.
Cincinnati Bengals 23-16 Baltimore Ravens
The Bengals got a huge win against their divisional rivals in week one after seeing off a late fight-back from Joe Flacco and the Ravens. A.J. Green was the star of the show with two pivotal touchdowns.
Carolina Panthers 20-14 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
A nice moment came from this game as Bucs running back Doug Martin was re-united with his high school principal, who was one of the referees.
Miami Dolphins 33-20 New England Patriots
Despite Tom Brady rekindling his bromance with Rob Gronkowski, the Pats couldn't see off the Dolphins who got a huge week one win on the back of some great work by running back Knowshon Moreno.
San Francisco 49ers 28-17 Dallas Cowboys
Romo sucks! It's deja vu for Cowboys fans as Tony Romo threw three touchdowns in the first half as the 49ers sauntered to an easy road win. Romo also hung his main receiver Dez Bryant out to dry for one of those picks, and Dez really felt it...
Denver Broncos 31-24 Indianapolis Colts
Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell were in attendance to watch Peyton Manning's Broncos see off a gutsy late rally from Andrew Luck. Tight end Julius Thomas grabbed 3 TD's to help every fantasy team he is a part of.
Fantasy Heroes:
Matt Ryan - The Falcons QB threw for over 400 yards and 3 TD's to solidify his place as one of the best fantasy QBs to have this season.
Julius Thomas - The Broncos tight-end is one of Peyton Manning's favourite targets and started the season as he wishes to continue as he racked up 100+ yards and 3 TD's.
Fantasy Villains:
Jamaal Charles - If you have Chiefs running back Charles on your fantasy roster, you used a top 5 pick to get him, so to see him come away from week one with 34 total yards.
Doug Martin - Another high pick running back, Martin's 18 points will seriously dent the hopes of any team that was relying on him in week one.
