2008 Could Be The Year The NFL Tides Turn

Week 1 of the NFL season brought more than its fair share of surprises.

The Falcons won.

The Bills trumped Seattle.

Tennessee beat Jacksonville.

The Panthers one-upped the Chargers, and the Bears took down the Colts.

As you look at the updated standings, you also see some surprising changes.

Last year the top three divisions were the AFC South, NFC East, and NFC North.

After Week 1 the best three divisions in football are the NFC North, NFC East, and NFC South.  In all three divisions three of the teams won their first game.

Sure, the NFC North and East are familiarly successful, but the NFC South makes a shocking appearance in the top three.  Even if just for this first weekend of the NFL, the NFC South proved the most (maybe restate this phrase), despite the fact that it was one of the two worst divisions in football last year.

This past Sunday the Panthers went across the country to San Diego and beat the venerable Chargers.  Carolina outplayed San Diego for most of the game. 

The Chargers only stayed in the game because the Panthers couldn't execute in the red zone in the first half, and the refs also seemed to want to make sure the Chargers didn't lose. 

There were multiple questionable calls throughout the game that really tilted momentum in the Chargers' favor.

In addition, the Panthers got into the red zone three times in the first half.  These possessions turned out two field goals and a turnover-on-downs.  They easily should have resulted in at least one touchdown. 

On the turnover-on-downs Carolina had the ball on the San Diego 1 yard-line.  Instead of trying to punch it in with power back Jonathan Stewart, they opted for a play-action pass, which fell incomplete.

Nevertheless, in the end, Carolina got what they deserved—a win against a top-five team.  The Panthers are rightfully 1-0, no matter what you may think.

The Buccaneers lost to the Saints in a game whose 24-20 result indicated a closer game than it really was.

The Saints played well, with Drew Brees and Reggie Bush leading the dynamic offense on its way to 24 points. 

Bush broke out for 163 all-purpose yards, and Brees, who threw for 343 yards and three touchdowns, was spectacular.

New Orleans's "improved" defense was decent, though nothing special.

The only turnover came off an interception on 4th-and-6 by linebacker Scott Fujita with less than a minute to play in the game.  Fujita also ranked second on the team in tackles (eight, one assisted). 

Fellow linebacker Jonathan Vilma led New Orleans with nine tackles (two assisted). 

But this doesn't mean that the Bucs were particularly awful—at least not on the offensive end.

Jeff Garcia led the Bucs offense with 221 yards passing and a touchdown.  Running back Earnest Graham helped balance the Tampa Bay offense with 91 yards on 10 carries. 

However, the Bucs defense got lit up by the Saints’ prolific attack.

The two positives on the defensive side of the ball for the Bucs were linebacker Barrett Ruud and safety Tanard Jackson, who notched 10 and seven tackles, respectively.  One of Barrett's tackles was assisted.

The Falcons used one-man wrecking crew Michael Turner, their starting running back, to cruise past the Lions 34-21.

Turner gained 220 yards on 22 carries and scored two touchdowns in his first regular season game with Atlanta.

Backup Jerious Norwood also ran for 93 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries.

Apparently the Falcons may have an impressive running attack in ’08.

Rookie quarterback Matt Ryan, taken third overall in April's NFL Draft, came through when it mattered, going 9-of-13 for 161 yards and a touchdown.

But overall the Falcons passing game was nonexistent except for receiver Michael Jenkins' 62-yard touchdown catch—his only catch of the game.

The only standout defensive performance for the Falcons was fifth-year linebacker Michael Boley's seven tackles (one assisted).

Lions starting quarterback Jon Kitna and receiver Calvin Johnson formed a nice rapport and connected on seven passes for 107 yards.

Receiver Roy Williams, running back Kevin Smith, and fullback Casey Fitzsimmons scored touchdowns for Detroit of 21, 3, and 1 yards, respectively.

Rookie running back Kevin Smith (Central Florida) ran for 48 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.

Backup Rudi Johnson, who was recently acquired as a free agent from the Bengals, indicated that Cincy may have been wrong to release him.  He rushed for 14 yards on three carries.  However, 12 of those yards came on one run.

The Panthers stormed onto the scene with their opening weekend upset of the powerhouse Chargers.  The Saints thoroughly outplayed the Bucs, for the most part. 

The Falcons exploded, rushing for 318 yards and three touchdowns against the Lions.  In addition, Matt Ryan played very well in his NFL regular season debut and started to prove to everyone that he is the right man to build future success around. 

The NFC South wasn’t one of the weakest divisions in football during Week 1—they were one of the best.  It may have only been for one week, but if these exemplary performances continue, the rest of the NFL better watch out.