Oddities from a Wild Week 1 in the NFL

No Shortage of ‘Odd’ities in Week 1

Before the first quarter was over in Jacksonville in the game between the Chiefs and Jaguars, three star players were out of the game and did not return.

New Jacksonville quarterback Nick Foles took a tremendous hit and fall as he broke his left collarbone. Foles is expected to be out for at least two months.

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill left the game and was hospitalized after a clavicle injury.

Jacksonville linebacker Myles Jack was a little too “jacked up” as he was tossed from the game in the first quarter for fighting and going after an official.

Under 100 yards for Cousins

Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins made this list by pretty much doing nothing. What I mean by that is in a 16-point win at home vs the Falcons, he was a measly 8-for-10 passing for 98 yards.

I’m sure the Vikings don’t care because they won but for an entire NFL game, he only attempted 10 passes. That’s certainly a different way to win a game.

What Happened to the J-E-T-S?

A tale of two halves happened between the Bills and the Jets.

Things couldn’t have gone worse for Bills quarterback Josh Allen. Allen had four turnovers in the first half (2 fumbles and 2 interceptions, one for a pick-6) and the Bills found themselves being shut out at halftime.

Longtime ESPN announcer Chris Berman would say, “nobody circles the wagons like the Buffalo Bills.” That held true in the second half as Allen brought the Bills back from down 16 as he hit John Brown with the game-winning touchdown with three minutes left. Buffalo and Allen went on to beat the Jets 17-16.

Say Goodnight to the Fins

The Baltimore Ravens unleashed on the Miami Dolphins by scoring 42 points by halftime and taking mercy on them in the second half but still hung a 59 spot on them.

That isn’t the “odd”ity, however. What is the “odd”ity is that the Ravens outscored 12 teams by the first quarter (21 points). The dozen were the Packers, Bears, Browns, Dolphins, Falcons, Bills, Jets, Bengals, Giants, Bucs, Steelers and Broncos.

‘Mr. Automatic’ Vinatieri Was Far From a Sure Thing

Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri had a Sunday to forget. In a game that went to overtime, the 46-year-old future Hall of Famer missed two field goals (one was from 26 yards) and an extra point. This was the first time in his 24-year career that he missed two field-goal attempts and an extra point in the same game.

Vinatieri has missed a PAT and a field goal in a game seven times in his career. Interestingly, five of those seven games for Vinatieri came in September.

Well-Traveled Fitzpatrick is Setting NFL Records

Finally, 36-year-old journeyman quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick of the Miami Dolphins is now going to be known for quite a dubious fact. With the Harvard graduate’s one touchdown pass against Baltimore, he became the first quarterback to throw at least one touchdown pass for eight NFL franchises.

If you are trying to recall the teams, let me help you refresh your memory.

Fitzpatrick’s teams: