Early injury woes again put Chiefs in a tough spot
Missing Brandon Flowers and Kendrick Lewis from the secondary, the Chiefs struggled to contain Julio Jones and the Falcons’ passing game. (John Sleezer/MCT/ABACAUSA.COM)
The Kansas City Chiefs spent much of the 2011 season trying to patch holes caused by injuries. They entered 2012 confident that, at full strength, they could make some noise.
“We went through three quarterbacks, had our home-run-hitting running back [Jamaal Charles] out, our safety [Eric Berry] out, our wild card in the pass game [Jonathan Baldwin] out, and we still had a decent season,” Brandon Flowers told Jim Trotter of the Chiefs’ 2011 injury woes for SI’s season preview issue. “So the attitude with everybody back in place is, Let’s go win some games.”
One problem: Kansas City could not even make it to Week 1 with its full starting lineup intact.
The Chiefs lined up against the Falcons on Sunday minus Flowers, the team’s No. 1 cornerback, as well as starting safety Kendrick Lewis and nose tackle Anthony Toribio — all dropped from the lineup by injury. They also did not have the services of dynamic outside linebacker Tamba Hali, who was suspended for Week 1 by the NFL.
The results were painfully familiar. Almost exactly one year after the Chiefs opened the 2011 season with a 41-7 home loss to Buffalo (and lost Berry for the season to injury), they fell apart again in a 40-24 defeat Sunday against the Falcons.
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Week 1 injuries: Fred Jackson among long list of battered players
Fred Jackson missed the last six games with injury in 2011, but the one he suffered in Week 1 this year doesn’t seem as serious. (Rich Kane/Icon SMI)
Nary a week goes by in the NFL without a substantial list on injuries, but Week 1 always seems to be particularly brutal — blame it on players going full speed for an entire game for the first time in months.
Several key players came out of Week 1 with ailments. SI.com injury expert Will Carroll returns again to help us sort through the latest injury situations …
• Fred Jackson, RB, Bills (knee): Buffalo’s offense sputtered in the second half of the 2011 season after Jackson suffered an injury, so seeing their No. 1 back fall to the turf after taking an awkward hit Sunday must have concerned the Bills. Jackson was carrying the football when the Jets’ LaRon Landry hit him from the side, causing his leg to bend awkwardly.
SI.com injury expert Will Carroll: Jackson was diagnosed with a sprained lateral-collateral ligament (LCL). This is a ligament on the outside (lateral) aspect of the knee and is a stabilizer that can be protected by bracing. Jackson isn’t a guy that needs to make hard cuts, so he should be back in a couple weeks in the worst case.
Who takes his spot?: C.J. Spiller put up 169 yards rushing in Jackson’s stead Sunday, and he would take over the No. 1 role for as long as Jackson is out. Tashard Choice also might see an uptick in carries.
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Peyton Manning of old quickly proves that he’s still got it
Peyton Manning looked right at home when the Broncos went to his trademark no-huddle offense. (Ron Chenoy-US PRESSWIRE)
Pittsburgh linebackers Lawrence Timmons and Larry Foote walked up to the line on a 2nd-and-7, showing blitz. Peyton Manning vacated his spot in the shotgun, walked up to his center, pointed to one of the defenders, then calmly returned to his position.
At the snap Timmons came crashing toward Manning, while Foote bluffed toward the line, then stopped. Manning, knowing what Pittsburgh was planning, waited two ticks and then floated a pass up the sideline and over the shoulder of his tight end, Jacob Tamme, for an 18-yard completion.
“I don’t know how Peyton’s neck is doing,” NBC analyst Cris Collinsworth quipped, “but his brain’s doing just fine.”
If this was Manning working off a little rust, then the rest of the league might be in trouble. In his first start since the 2010 season, Manning hit on 19 of 26 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns, as the Broncos opened their season with a 31-19 win over the Steelers.
BANKS: WEEK 1 SNAP JUDGMENTS | BURKE: WEEK 1 GAME BALLS
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First Down, Fourth Down: Robert Griffin III makes a smashing debut
Robert Griffin III followed in Cam Newton’s footsteps with a dazzling Week 1 rookie debut Sunday against New Orleans. (Jonathan Bachman/Reuters)
First Down, Fourth Down takes a weekly look at the good (First Down) and bad (Fourth Down) from NFL Sunday.
The only thing keeping the Robert Griffin III hype in check heading into the NFL season was a Week 1 Redskins’ trip to New Orleans. The Saints were favored by a touchdown or more all week and all signs pointed to a rough debut for Washington’s newest savior.
Well … you may commence with the excitement, Redskins fans. Griffin III turned in arguably the most impressive performance of the first Sunday of the season, and his Redskins followed right behind for a surprising upset win.
RGIII wasn’t alone in opening eyes on Sunday. Nor was it all smooth sailing for those in the spotlight — be it Griffin’s fellow rookies or some teams with high hopes for 2012.
Here’s the best and worst from Week 1:
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Will Smith, Jonathan Vilma, Scott Fujita will make their mark on Week 1
Will Smith is the Saints’ best defensive lineman, with 61.5 sacks in eight seasons. (Jonathan Bachman/AP)
By Tom Mantzouranis
Well, we’ve got another Week 1 storyline to examine.
An appeals panel overturned the bounty suspensions of Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma (season), free agent defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove (eight games), Saints defensive end Will Smith (four games), and Browns linebacker Scott Fujita (three games), for now at least. That means that all four are eligible to play this Sunday when the regular season kicks off in full.
While we don’t yet know how long these players will be available after Sunday — Roger Goodell could still reissue the suspensions under a different interpretation — the Saints and Browns, and maybe even the Packers, might want to send the panel a gift basket, as they’ll nothing but benefit from the decision.
MCCANN: PANEL’S DECISION BACKS ROGER GOODELL INTO A CORNER
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Bounty suspensions overturned: Twitter reactions from Saints players
On Friday, a three-person appeals panel overturned the bounty suspensions given to Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma (season), free agent defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove (eight games), Saints defensive end Will Smith (four games), and Browns linebacker Scott Fujita (three games).
Saints players — including some of those involved — immediately took to Twitter to comment on the news. Below are some of the reactions.
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NFL Week 1 storylines: Peyton Manning returns, Andrew Luck debuts, more
In making his first start since January 2011, Peyton Manning will face a Steelers team the Broncos sent out of the playoffs last season. (AP)
Technically, Week 1 of the 2012 NFL season began on Wednesday, when the Cowboys knocked off the defending champion Giants. It won’t feel like the season is fully underway, though, until Sunday afternoon.
That’s when most of the rest of the league gets to fire its opening salvo for 2012. The first weekend of the year concludes with a thrilling Sunday night matchup and a pair of intriguing Monday night games.
The Week 1 storylines …
• In case you hadn’t heard … Peyton’s back
All eyes will be on Denver Sunday night, as Peyton Manning makes his long-awaited regular-season debut for the Broncos. But he does not exactly have a cake walk in Week 1 — the blitzing, attacking Pittsburgh defense will put Manning to the test right out of the gate.
Pittsburgh’s season ended in Denver last year, on a playoff OT touchdown pass by Tim Tebow. Even though Tebow has taken his talents to the Big Apple, the Steelers, coming off an offseason that saw them say farewell to several longtime teammates, would love to earn some revenge.
• Showdown at Lambeau
A potential NFC championship game preview is set for Green Bay, pitting the 49ers and Packers in a clash of styles. The 49ers made it to last year’s conference title game by unleashing a dominating defense to compensate a so-so offense; Green Bay finished 15-1 with Aaron Rodgers winging the ball all over the field, while the defense merely tried to hang on.
The winner here will get the early upper edge in the season-long battle for playoff home-field advantage.
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Break It Down: Finding the positives in Victor Cruz’s tough night
Victor Cruz had three drops in Wednesday’s season opener. (Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images)
Victor Cruz dropped 11 passes all of last season. He had three on Wednesday night, as part of the Giants’ frustrating season-opening loss to the Cowboys. It’s hardly time to panic, though — either for Giants fans or fantasy owners of Cruz.
“I just lacked concentration,” Cruz told The Star-Ledger, something New York coach Tom Coughlin said has been an issue “on occasion.”
The positives from Wednesday’s game are two-fold for Cruz, who is coming off a breakthrough 82-catch, 1,500-yard season: First off, he was open frequently; secondly, Eli Manning looked his direction constantly, targeting Cruz 11 times on the night — more than any other Giants receiver.
So what went wrong? And what might provide some glimpses at better days to come? Let’s break it down …
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Cowboys-Giants: What to watch
Michael Coe will be forced into a greater role, thanks to Prince Amukamara’s injury. (Tom DiPace/Sports Illustrated)
Last season’s opening game was a high-flying barnburner, with the Packers holding off the Saints, 42-34, thanks to a goal-line stand in the closing seconds. So the bar is high for Wednesday night’s Dallas-New York showdown, which will kick off the 2012 NFL season.
These two teams wrapped up the 2011 NFL season, too, with the Giants taking down the Cowboys to clinch an NFC East title. The rest, as they say, is history — New York went on to win the Super Bowl; Dallas limped home after another disappointing finish. The Cowboys could make a statement with a road win in Week 1, but the defending champs have no intention of rolling over.
Here are five things worth tracking in Wednesday night’s key Week 1 contest:
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David Garrard’s release means there’s no turning back for Dolphins
Ryan Tannehill had a 66.9 rating in four preseason games. (Lynne Sladky/AP)
A few short weeks ago, David Garrard appeared to have the inside track on the Miami Dolphins’ starting QB job. Now, just five days before the Dolphins open their season in Houston, Garrard does not even have a spot on the roster.