NFL Report Cards: Team-by-Team Grades for Week 1
With Week 1 in the books, it's time to find out who was a teacher's pet and and who's staying after to write sentences.
Grades are, almost always and almost entirely, subjective. That's the name of this game. One can present objective facts to back up the grades—and I will—but when we get down to the essential exercise here, it's something that is rarely going to look the same from one grader to the next.
I'll be handling weekly grades for B/R all season. So, let's establish some criteria of what I am and am not looking for when I hand out grades.
Criteria for Grading:
—Coaching decisions and how a team performs on offense, defense and special teams.
—The caliber of opponent the team was facing.
—The atmosphere the performance was played in: at home, away, weather, etc.
Not Considered in Grades:
—Excuses. I grade the team on the field, not the ideal team that could have been out there without injuries, suspensions, etc.
—Expectations. If everyone picked your favorite team to lose and they won, that doesn't mean they get an A+.
—Results. A team can look really bad and win a game, while another team can look awfully great in defeat. While it's true that winners will often trend higher than losers from week to week, that doesn't mean all of the winners get good grades while the losers get F's.
Each team also gets a "game ball" and a "game goat" to clue you in to some of the things that went into the assessment of the team. Many will be obvious to those who watched the game, but some will require a deep dive into the stats or film.
Beginning in Week 2, I'll also be averaging grades for a season-long mark. Don't like your team's performance (or my grade for them) in Week 1? Don't worry. There's always time to bring those grades up before finals.
Get out your red pens and let's get started.
Arizona Cardinals
1 of 32
Game Ball: John Brown, WR (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Larry Fitzgerald, WR
The second game of Monday Night Football in Week 1 was a mess for the first three quarters, and a big part of that was the ineptitude of both offenses. No, this wasn't a "defensive struggle." Both teams just failed to move the ball for much of the game, though quarterback Carson Palmer found his rhythm late and finished with a pretty tremendous stat line (24-of-37, 304 yards, two touchdowns).
Something—or, rather, someone—Palmer also found late was receiver Larry Fitzgerald. I'm not foolish enough to blame Fitzgerald entirely for this sort of thing, but even a nice guy like him probably should've gone all Michael Irvin in the huddle by the second quarter.
Brown, with his game-winning touchdown, sneaks ahead of receiver Michael Floyd, who also had a fantastic day.
Team Grade: B
Atlanta Falcons
2 of 32
Game Ball: Matt Ryan, QB (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Gabe Carimi, OT
Let me be the first to admit: I got this game way wrong. I thought that the Saints could cruise, even on the road, with a high-flying offense and a stout defense. Instead, what we got was one of the best games of Week 1 that has the potential to be one of the best of the entire season, and the Falcons won quickly in overtime.
I questioned both the Falcons defense and the offensive line—and rightfully so, as both units lived up to my lowered expectations. Off the bench, Carimi almost deep-sixed the game a number of times at both tackle positions.
What I failed to account for, however, was the fantastic play of Ryan, who was one of the best players in the entire NFL in the opening week. His ability to extend plays single-handedly, moving both inside and outside the pocket while making huge throws, won this game for Atlanta.
Team Grade: A
Baltimore Ravens
3 of 32
Game Ball: Steve Smith, WR
Game Goat: Bernard Pierce, RB (Pictured Above)
The Ravens offense never really materialized.
Though Smith had his moments as a target for well-paid quarterback Joe Flacco, the offense as a whole seemed disjointed for much of the game. That had a lot to do with how little the run game offered. The problem wasn't even the offensive line, either, as that unit looked a lot better than it had in 2013.
As for Pierce, he just isn't the caliber of back this offense needs—at least, he wasn't in Week 1. And the defense (a unit I've been hyping most of the offseason) couldn't put enough pressure on the Cincinnati Bengals to put this game away.
Team Grade: B-
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Buffalo Bills
4 of 32
Game Ball: EJ Manuel, QB (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Kyle Williams and Marcell Dareus, DT
The Bills had no business winning this game, and it's a tremendous credit to them that they pulled out the victory.
Ironically, the Bills' greatest strength was their biggest weakness against the Chicago Bears, as Williams and Dareus both struggled to win their matchups against the Bears interior offensive line. It was strength-on-strength, and the Bears looked stronger.
Where the Bills won, however, was a fantastic four-quarter (and overtime) effort that many of Manuel's teammates attributed to their quarterback's fiery pregame speech. It's easy to picture last year's Bills falling apart and letting the Bears come back to sneak a victory.
Manuel passed for one score and ran for another, but to be hailed as a leader when so many have torn apart that part of his game this offseason was the biggest positive for the Bills' young QB.
Team Grade: B+
Carolina Panthers
5 of 32
Game Ball: Luke Kuechly, LB (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Mike Tolbert, RB
For all the fear people had this offseason about all of the Panthers' losses and all of the positions they failed to pick up in free agency and the draft, this team spent a lot of time in Week 1 looking just like the team it was in 2013, minus Cam Newton, of course.
On defense, this was still—largely—the fearsome front that drove opponents into submission last season. That included Kuechly, who was the best linebacker in the league for Week 1 according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required) thanks to six tackles, a sack and his normal awesome kind of day in coverage.
The offense's biggest problem, even with a fantastic relief performance by backup quarterback Derek Anderson, was the running game. DeAngelo Williams had a fine day with 14 carries for 72 yards, but both Jonathan Stewart and Tolbert had subpar days. Frankly, if they'd been able to perform a little better, this game likely wouldn't have been close. Tolbert gets the nod at goat with his 1.6-yard rushing average.
Though the Panthers were able to pull out a close victory, aspects of this team that have nothing to do with Newton's absence could have been a lot better.
Team Grade: C+
Chicago Bears
6 of 32
Game Ball: Brian De La Puente, C
Game Goat: Jay Cutler, QB (Pictured Above)
If it weren't for Dallas Cowboys QB Tony Romo, Cutler might be a much bigger headline when he has days like Sunday. At times, Cutler looked tremendous, but he also gave the Bills all of the extra opportunities they needed to win.
He wasn't alone, though; the defense was pretty atrocious against a quarterback it should have found much easier to rattle. The secondary was poor enough that it probably could've shared goat honors had its defensive ineptitude not been shared by a front that consistently let the Bills into the second and third levels.
As mentioned on the Bills slide, the lone real bright spot was the play of the interior offensive line. Though any of them could've been highlighted, De La Puente gets the nod for not allowing a single pressure all game long.
Team Grade: D-
Cincinnati Bengals
7 of 32
Game Ball: A.J. Green, WR (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Leon Hall, CB
There's little to dislike about a hard-fought win against a division rival.
Though the Bengals offense seemed to spend much of the game alternating between tepid and lukewarm, there were some good performances by tight end Tyler Eifert (before his injury) and running back Giovani Bernard. Quarterback Andy Dalton turned in a perfectly above-average performance.
It was the game-winning shot to A.J. Green, though, that puts Green on top of the board and helped the Bengals start 2014 on top of the AFC North.
Team Grade: B+
Cleveland Browns
8 of 32
Game Ball: Brian Hoyer, QB (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Joe Haden, CB
The Browns shouldn't have been anywhere close to Pittsburgh in this game.
Thanks to fantastic play by starting quarterback Hoyer, they were. Hoyer was efficient, hitting over 61 percent of his passes. He was poised against a Pittsburgh Steelers defense that was attempting to tee off on him all day long. He was composed, hitting a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to tie things up long after the Browns could've packed it in.
Where the Browns were let down, though, was by their best player on defense. Haden is one of the best cornerbacks in the league, but Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown clearly has his number.
Team Grade: C+
Dallas Cowboys
9 of 32
Game Ball: DeMarco Murray, RB
Game Goat: Tony Romo, QB (Pictured Above)
Sad Romo ... sad, sad Romo.
I wrote about the Dallas Cowboys Sunday-night ineptitude here, but the gist of the matter is that this Cowboys team is not talented enough to win on "Bad Romo" days. Romo threw some of the most mind-numbingly bad interceptions of his career (that's saying something) against a San Francisco 49ers defense missing some of its best players to both suspension and injury.
Murray and the line's run-blocking in general were bright spots, but new offensive coordinator Scott Linehan's play-calling did far more to limit Murray's numbers than anyone on the 49ers defense.
Team Grade: C-
Denver Broncos
10 of 32
Game Ball: Julius Thomas, TE (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Demaryius Thomas, WR
Quarterback Peyton Manning was typically good, and that alone might be worth an A.
The one hiccup in the passing attack had nothing to do with the absence of suspended and concussed wide receiver Wes Welker, but rather the drops and lack of chemistry of No. 1 wideout Demaryius Thomas. He caught only four of his 11 targets with two of those momentum-crushing drops.
Thankfully, the other Thomas more than made up in the offense, as the tight end caught seven of his eight targets for 104 yards and three touchdowns.
Team Grade: A-
Detroit Lions
11 of 32
Game Ball: Matthew Stafford, QB (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Dominic Raiola, C
Stafford played out of his mind in Week 1.
From the variety of receivers he hit (only six in total, but he spread it around all night) to the way he extended plays with his legs, Matthew Stafford—yes, that Matthew Stafford—was money. He also looked comfortable if not composed against rushers and found ways to reset his footwork and balance before making throws.
Almost the entire Lions team was money, too, thanks to a huge start (Calvin Johnson fantasy owners rejoice!) and an even bigger door-slamming finish. The running game had some issues and the secondary play became a bit of a M*A*S*H unit at the end, but the Lions offense was more than enough to lean on.
Raiola gets goat honors because he allowed a number of free rushers up the middle that forced Stafford to scramble out. He also got dinged for a terrible facemask penalty that makes one wonder what sort of "veteran" presence he is actually bringing to this team.
The grade gets docked a little because I'm still not sure if the Lions are just that good or if the Giants were just that bad; I'm guessing it's a little of Column A, a little of Column B.
Team Grade: A-
Green Bay Packers
12 of 32
Game Ball: Josh Sitton, OG
Game Goat: Julius Peppers, LB (Pictured Above)
The Packers looked terrible in the NFL opener on Thursday night of Week 1.
There's really no other way to describe it.
Yes, their opponent was the Seattle Seahawks—the best team in the NFL, period—but that's no excuse for laying an absolute egg in almost every facet of the game starting in the third quarter. If we're looking for one bright spot, it was Sitton, who managed well against a fearsome Seattle pass rush.
Speaking of pass-rushers, Peppers was awful in his first regular-season snaps as a Packers outside linebacker. He didn't look nonathletic; he just looked lost. There's plenty of season left, but he looked like a liability against the Seahawks and not a solution.
Team Grade: C
Houston Texans
13 of 32
Game Ball: J.J Watt, DE (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: D.J. Swearinger, S
J.J. Watt is playing like the best player—at any position—of our generation right now. If you weren't around to watch Jerry Rice or Reggie White in their respective heydays, this is your moment. Enjoy it. Against Washington, Watt only had one sack, but he added four QB hurries and five QB hits alongside his signature batted passes.
The rest of the defense was pretty solid as well against an impotent-looking Washington offense, but the worst player in coverage was safety D.J. Swearinger. He allowed four catches on the five passes thrown toward him, and his part of the field was one of the few places Washington QB Robert Griffin III could throw safely.
The offense is still a work in progress and is keeping this Week 1 grade from being an A. Running back Arian Foster may have eclipsed 100 yards, but it took him 27 whole carries to get there.
Team Grade: B+
Indianapolis Colts
14 of 32
Game Ball: Andrew Luck, QB (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: A.Q. Shipley, C
If Sunday Night Football had ended at halftime, this grade would almost certainly have been a little lower.
Luck had to take things into his own hands more than a couple of times in the second half, and it looked as if he was awfully glad to have wide receiver Reggie Wayne back from last year's injury. Defensively, it's difficult to completely fault the Colts for looking poor against Peyton Manning and company, and they had some positive moments as well—especially in run defense.
The opposite was true of the Colts running game. While many might point to running back Trent Richardson (who, honestly, wasn't that bad on Sunday night), a much bigger problem was Shipley, who not only missed a number of big blocks but also factored into plenty of miscommunication that led to pressure on Luck.
Team Grade: B-
Jacksonville Jaguars
15 of 32
Game Ball: Allen Hurns, WR
Game Goat: Chad Henne, QB (Pictured Above)
If this game had ended at halftime, the Jaguars might have had an A+ on the week.
Seriously.
This Jaguars team was exciting; they were explosive and they were dynamic. Then, as the game settled in, Henne couldn't convert a third down to save his life and huge deep threat Hurns all but disappeared.
The defense—especially in terms of depth—held its own, and the offensive line was impressive, but the Jaguars put together half a game and I'm giving them about half of that A.
Team Grade: C
Kansas City Chiefs
16 of 32
Game Ball: Justin Houston, OLB
Game Goat: Andy Reid, Head Coach (Pictured Above)
Andy Reid is an embarrassing head coach.
No one embraces mediocrity or decides that losing is OK more than Reid. He's a known source of incompetence when it comes to establishing the run game, and he's likely ruining the best of Jamaal Charles' career. He's also ridiculously risk-averse and had his team giving up (albeit with an idiotic fake punt in there) with plenty of time left.
The defense had small glimmers of hope, highlighted by Houston, who was able to compile two sacks and four QB hurries to go along with a great day in run defense.
With apologies to the Tennessee Titans, who played a fantastic game, the Chiefs should've dominated this game.
Because of Reid, they didn't.
Team Grade: D
Miami Dolphins
17 of 32
Game Ball: Knowshon Moreno, RB (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Mike Wallace, WR
Moreno won't completely take fellow running back Lamar Miller out of the lineup, but he's coming close.
The former Denver Bronco came to Miami as a well-rounded, all-purpose back, someone who could be a nice complement to Miller, pass-block, pass-catch and do all the little things while the speedier Miller toted the rock.
In the end, Moreno has actually been the better runner, and he was a huge part of beating the heavily favored New England Patriots on Sunday. Wallace, however, almost looked like he was trying to do his best to throw (drop?) the game away. He and quarterback Ryan Tannehill couldn't find their chemistry, and it took a great performance from the Dolphins defense to keep the squad from allowing that to spoil their day.
Team Grade: A
Minnesota Vikings
18 of 32
Game Ball: Cordarrelle Patterson, WR (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Chad Greenway, LB
What is this team?
Before the weekend, one of my Twitter followers asked me how the St. Louis Rams were supposed to stop running back Adrian Peterson, tight end Kyle Rudolph and wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson. I didn't really take the question seriously (oops) because I have a ton of respect for the Rams defensive front, and the Vikings have shown a strong inability to get those weapons rolling in the past.
That Twitter follower's question proved prescient.
Patterson won every which way but loose, and I'm giving him (make-believe) bonus points for showing up Rams receiver Tavon Austin so expertly. He not only won as a traditional receiver, but also as a gadget player and a rusher—exactly what the Rams thought they were once getting with Austin.
Greenway had some moments, and it's difficult to pick a goat when the team performs so well overall, but the linebacker missed as many tackles (two) as he made and allowed both throws sent his way to be caught.
Team Grade: B+
New England Patriots
19 of 32
Game Ball: Rob Gronkowski, TE
Game Goat: Vince Wilfork, DL (Pictured Above)
Maybe it's just obstinance, but I'm confident that the Patriots are a good team that just played a terrible game.
The defense was terrible against a Miami Dolphins team that had some great individual performances. The defensive front—especially Wilfork—was terrible and got pushed around by an offensive line that should still be concentrating more on gelling together than handing the Patriots' proverbial butts right back to them.
The one bright side was seeing Gronk back on the field and doing Gronk things. With the talented tight end in the lineup, the offense really has no excuse to look this bad again.
Team Grade: D+
New Orleans Saints
20 of 32
Game Ball: Brandin Cooks, WR (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Kenny Vaccaro, S
C'mon, Saints, play along!
Last season, the Saints were one of the top defenses in the league. With the continued maturation of guys like Vaccaro and pass-rushers Junior Galette and Cam Jordan, and the addition of a top-flight safety Jairus Byrd, the Saints defense should be able to take just about any offense down a peg.
The Saints defense got whupped.
Defensive coordinator Rob Ryan and his famed pass rush couldn't get much pressure on Falcons QB Matt Ryan, and when they did, the quarterback found ways to evade it. Vaccaro, especially, missed a number of tackles and was terrible in coverage.
The offense, though, was tremendous. It was incredible to see the immediate impact of the talented rookie receiver, Cooks. He's replaced both Lance Moore and Darren Sproles' roles in that offense, and he's done so immediately.
Team Grade: B
New York Giants
21 of 32
Game Ball: Prince Amukamara, CB
Game Goat: Eli Manning, QB (Pictured Above)
For a short time, it looked as if the Giants were going to come back on Monday Night Football, but the Detroit Lions (of all teams) slammed the door thanks to Manning's unsteady play. His two interceptions and 54 percent completion rate were the antithesis of what this new Giants offense is supposed to look like.
However, Amukamara had a solid day (albeit with a few mistakes). Tasked with stopping a whole lot of jump balls to receivers like Calvin Johnson, he was able to more than hold his own for much of the game.
Team Grade: C-
New York Jets
22 of 32
Game Ball: Chris Ivory, RB (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Willie Colon, RG
Running back Chris Johnson was supposed to be a big deal for the Jets this season, but I fully expect more games to look like Week 1, when Ivory paced the team because of his ability to both get tough yardage and extend plays. Ivory just has more burst than Johnson at this point of his career.
The problem with the offense, though, is that there isn't a lot of synergy within the scheme and available talent. The running game could be good, but the blocking is still pretty awful at times. Pro Football Focus had the Jets as one of the worst run-blocking teams of Week 1 (subscription required) and Colon was especially bad.
This then snowballs into a situation where the passing game can't get rolling.
Overall, this was not a tough first test for the Jets, but they'll need to play better against better opponents and more experienced quarterbacks.
Team Grade: B
Oakland Raiders
23 of 32
Game Ball: Derek Carr, QB (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Maurice Jones-Drew, RB
Carr gets my game ball for one reason and one reason only: He walked away from this game without making a complete fool of himself. He wasn't sacked every other snap, and he even managed not to throw an interception. His performance wasn't great, but it was wonderfully mediocre in a terrible situation.
If only the running game were that average.
MJD looked horrible for the Oakland Raiders and lacks almost all of the burst (not straight-line speed, but acceleration and violence to the hole) that once characterized his game.
Team Grade: C+
Philadelphia Eagles
24 of 32
Game Ball: Nate Allen, S
Game Goat: Nick Foles, QB (Pictured Above)
Foles was terrible.
Then, Foles was merely "pretty bad."
I'll give the Eagles offense partial credit, because the Jaguars have both a good defense and they brought a good scheme against Chip Kelly's group. Between the Jaguars' disguised coverages, injuries on the Eagles offensive line and Foles' unforced errors, the Eagles didn't get into a good rhythm until late.
Eventually, it was the defense that ended up creating the momentum shift, holding the Jaguars offense to punt after punt. Allen, not at fault for Allen Hurns' two big TD catches, only allowed one intermediate pass in his direction.
Team Grade: C
Pittsburgh Steelers
25 of 32
Game Ball: Le'Veon Bell, RB (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Jarvis Jones, LB
Part of my me wanted to give wide receiver Antonio Brown the "goat" for his kick to the face of Browns punter Spencer Lanning. However, since the dude with horns on my other shoulder wanted to give him the game ball, we split the difference.
Brown owned Browns cornerback Joe Haden, and not a lot of people can make that claim.
The game ball ends up with Le'Veon Bell in Week 1, who looked faster and more agile than I remember him coming out of college. He's not the battering ram the Steelers drafted—he's better.
The defense was disappointing, especially against Hoyer and a lightly regarded Browns offense. Jones, especially, was hard to watch as he's still not anything more than a situational pass-rusher. Some of his ineptitude against both the run and in coverage was a big part of the Browns' ability to stick in the game.
Team Grade: B-
San Diego Chargers
26 of 32
Game Ball: Jeremiah Attaochu, LB
Game Goat: Keenan Allen, WR (Pictured Above)
Quarterback Philip Rivers had a better game than his stat line indicated, but he struggled down the stretch and finished close to getting the goat award for Week 1. Instead, Allen, who dropped a pass right—albeit tipped—in his mitts to effectively end the Chargers' comeback hopes, gets the nod.
The Chargers struggled against Arizona's defense all day, and it was surprisingly the Chargers defense that carried them for most of the game. That isn't how this team is built and probably isn't how they're going to win many games.
Attaochu was a treat to watch, though, coming away with a sack and a blocked punt.
Team Grade: C-
San Francisco 49ers
27 of 32
Game Ball: Colin Kaepernick, QB (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Ahmad Brooks, LB
The 49ers offense had been out of sync most of the preseason, but a game against the Dallas Cowboys defense is "good for what ails ya." Kaepernick completed more than two-thirds of his passes and drove the ball well down the field thanks to plenty of protection.
On defense, the suspensions and injuries took their toll a bit—perhaps nowhere more than with Brooks, who seemed to be pressing, making a number of mistakes which extended Cowboys drives.
The 49ers probably should've won this game by quite a bit more, but this was a positive step.
Team Grade: B
Seattle Seahawks
28 of 32
Game Ball: Russell Wilson, QB (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Kam Chancellor, S
The Seahawks are the best team in football.
It's crazy that anyone could think anything else right now. From the stifling defense that put the clamps down on Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers to an offensive line that far outperformed expectations, the Seahawks did not take their opponent lightly and the Packers were driven off of the field with their cheese curds tucked firmly between their legs.
Wilson, overall, was not one of the best quarterbacks in Week 1, but he looked like he has a better command of the game than he did for much of last season. He wasn't just throwing the ball; he was managing an offense and taking it directly to the Packers. He trusted both his arm and his legs, putting the Packers away early in the second half.
It's tough to pick on the Legion of Boom, but Chancellor has had better games. You'll see that it didn't drop the team's grade at all, but the talented strong safety missed three tackles and allowed three receptions on four balls thrown to his zone.
Team Grade: A+
St. Louis Rams
29 of 32
Game Ball: Aaron Donald, DT
Game Goat: Tavon Austin, WR (Pictured Above)
The Rams brought one of the most fearsome defensive lines in the NFL, and only Donald had himself a game.
But it wasn't just the quarterback position (though when the backup to the backup is playing, things aren't going to go well). It was an entire team effort to stink up the joint and somehow make the Minnesota Vikings look like playoff contenders in Week 1. (No offense, Vikings.)
I highlighted Vikings wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson in the Vikings slide, so I'll low-light Austin, here.
When is the light going to turn on for this kid? Where are the ball skills? Where is the dynamic running? He looks like "just a guy" out there, and it's not just the offense or the quarterback's fault. With the ball in his hands, he's just not as dangerous as the scouting report said he should be.
Team Grade: D-
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
30 of 32
Game Ball: Gerald McCoy, DT
Game Goat: Vincent Jackson, WR (Pictured Above)
McCoy got more attention against the Carolina Panthers than a One Direction concert. He was double- and (yes) triple-teamed by the Panthers blockers as the Newton-less Panther squad refused to let him run roughshod over their patchwork offensive line.
He did anyway.
McCoy finished with a sack, a QB hit and a hurry along with four tackles. It's not a crazy stat line, but when you see what he had to put up with, it was a superhuman effort.
Jackson, on the other hand, must've been playing with some kryptonite in his pocket, as his four receptions on nine targets (two drops) kept the Tampa Bay offense from really finding a cohesive flow.
Team Grade: C-
Tennessee Titans
31 of 32
Game Ball: Jake Locker, QB (Pictured Above)
Game Goat: Michael Griffin, S
I don't know who was playing QB for the Titans, but I need to know what y'all have done with Locker.
Locker hit two-thirds of his passes for an average 8.1 yards per attempt. He only took a handful of sacks and managed to not throw a single interception against a defense that forced QBs to do a lot of those two things last year. He wasn't a huge threat as a runner, but he kept plays alive and moved better than he's done in recent memory.
Griffin gets the goat vote here as the one player on the Titans defense who provided safe haven for the Chiefs receivers. He managed to grab an interception, yes, but also allowed three big catches, a bunch of yards after the catch and a touchdown.
Team Grade: B+
Washington
32 of 32
Game Ball: Roy Helu, RB
Game Goat: Robert Griffin III, QB (Pictured Above)
We're still waiting.
The new Jay Gruden offense was supposed to be revealed by now, but it looks a whole lot like the offensive impotence of last year while the team's former offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan was a darn-near miracle worker over in Cleveland this weekend.
Griffin was bad. He looked slow, reluctant to drive the ball down the field and confused, and he was subsequently battered by the Texans defense.
Helu only had four carries and a couple of catches, but he turned those into 61 total yards from scrimmage and looked like one of the best (only?) playmakers Washington brought to town, on either side of the ball.
Team Grade: D
Michael Schottey is an NFL National Lead Writer for Bleacher Report and a member of the Pro Football Writers of America. Find more of his stuff on his archive page and follow him on Twitter.
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