Week 1 News: Tom Brady Out For The Season. What Now?

Nobody in the entire world expected this. The New England Patriots MVP Quarterback Tom Brady is undergoing season ending knee surgery. That means Matt Cassell will start the rest of the season for the 18-1 Patriots. Yes you heard me right, Matt Cassell. The Patriots are also bringing in NFL Veteran Tim Rattay, and former Tampa Bay starter Chris Simms, to likely back-up Cassell. Fantasy owners everywhere are devastated, as many people wasted their 1st round pick on Brady, and opposed to people like Joseph Addai, and Stephen Jackson. The injury to the MVP leaves the AFC East wide open for the taking. Brett Favre looked as good as ever in his first start with the Jets. Going 15 for 22 with 194 yards and 2 touchdowns turned a lot of heads. The Jets beat the Miami Dolphins, another division 20-14 in Week 1. Chad Pennington looked sharp, but the team doesn't look strong enough to compete for the division title. The 4th team in the division shocked many as the Buffalo Bills crushed a highly-ranked Seattle team 34-10. Many projected Seattle to win the NFC West but Buffalo made them look awful. Trent Edwards threw for 215 yards and a Touchdown while Punter Brian Moorman threw a 19 yard Touchdown pass on a fake field goal. If Buffalo comes up with trick plays like that, they will be tough to beat. The entire AFC looked weak in Week 1, with the top 3 teams struggling. The Chargers lost on a last second pass to Carolina, and Indianapolis couldn't get anything going against a once again strong Bears defense. The AFC looks up for grabs for any surprise team. Let's talk NFC. The Dallas Cowboys just beat up on the Cleveland Browns. Romo had 320 yards with a touchdown and a 103.6 passer rating. Marion Barber also had 80 yards and 2 touchdowns on 15 carries, and Felix Jones' first NFL carry was an 11 yard touchdown carry. He finished with 62 yards. The Eagles dominated the Rams 38-3 where Donovan McNabb? Remember him? He threw for 361 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Giants beat the Redskins 16-7. ( Nothing special there). And finally, my game of the week, the Vikings in Green Bay to take on the Packers. All the pressure was on Aaron Rodgers, and he stepped it up. He threw for 178 yards with a touchdown, and he rushed for a touchdown with capped off the game. Minnesota's Adrian Peterson was the story (as usual). He had 103 yards and a touchdown in the 19-24 loss. A punt returned for a touchdown by Green Bay sparked the offense in the second half, and the Packers never looked back.

Overall, Week 1 was dominated by the NFC, injuries, and surprising rookies. I will be back with my week 2 game predictions.

Brad