NFL Week 1: 10 Best Games You Gotta See

The NFL returns this week and there are a ton of great games to kick off the season. 

The New Orleans Saints and the defending Super Bowl champions, the Green Bay Packers, get the season started on Thursday night. The great games don't stop there though. 

Sunday has a great slate of games including the always contentious game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens, the Philadelphia Eagles versus the St. Louis Rams and the day concludes with the Dallas Cowboys taking on the New York Jets.

The fun doesn't stop there though, as there is a great double header on Monday night to conclude the week.

Get your remote ready and be prepared to flip back and forth between these 10 games that you have to see on opening weekend. 

New Orleans Saints at the Green Bay Packers

The 2011 NFL Season kicks off on Thursday night with the New Orleans Saints traveling to Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers. 

This matchup features the last two Super Bowl champions and two of the favorites in the NFC this year.

Both squads have high octane offenses that can score with any team in the league so get ready for a shootout. What a great way to start off the season.   

Atlanta Falcons at the Chicago Bears

The Atlanta Falcons and Chicago Bears both had a bye in the first round of the playoffs last year and now they meet in the opening week.

The Falcons have emerged as a popular Super Bowl pick and they will be put to the test from the get-go by a tough Bears team. 

Many are predicting a letdown on the Bears' part this season, but don't take them lightly. No one was high on them last year and they made it all the way to the NFC Championship Game.  

Philadelphia Eagles at the St. Louis Rams

The "Dream Team" makes its debut against the St. Louis Rams. 

Everyone will be anxiously waiting to see Michael Vick and the dynamic Philadelphia Eagles offense. Don't sleep on the Rams though. This team has a great defense and will make things tougher on the Eagles than most people think.

We will also get to see all of the Eagles' free agent additions—mainly Nnamdi Asomugha—take the field for the first time.  

Detroit Lions at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

This Week 1 matchup between the Detroit Lions and Tampa Bay Buccaneers features two teams that many people expect to have a breakthrough year and reach the playoffs.

Matthew Stafford was nothing short of awesome in the preseason and now must produce like that—while staying healthy—in the regular season.  

The Buccaneers came out of nowhere last year and won 10 games, missing out on the playoffs on a tiebreaker. As the youngest team in the league, will they take the next step or experience a drop off? We could get get a good idea in Week 1.  

Pittsburgh Steelers at the Baltimore Ravens

It doesn't get much better than when the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens square off. They usually don't play until later in the year, but this year we get a treat as they play the first week.  

The games between the two teams are always close and usually come down to a key play late in the fourth quarter. The two teams generally play stifling defense, much to the joy of football purists.

The Ravens will be out for revenge after the Steelers came back from a 14 point deficit to eliminate the Ravens from the playoffs last season. This could very well be the best game of the week.  

Indianapolis Colts at the Houston Texans

This matchup has lost of little of its luster now that Peyton Manning has been ruled out, but it still remains one of the top games of the week. 

The Houston Texans finally got over the hurdle of defeating the Indianapolis Colts last season after countless heart-wrenching defeats.

Now with Manning out, they are expected to take care of business. Will they be able to handle the pressure, and how much fight do the Cols have without their field general? 

Dallas Cowboys at the New York Jets

The New York Jets play the Dallas Cowboys in the nightcap on Sunday in what should be a great game.

The game could be called the Ryan Bowl as it pits brothers Rex and Rob (Ryan) against one another. There should be plenty of talk leading up to this game by these two men. Rob already got it started by bringing up Rex's foot fetish the other day. 

The on-field action isn't lacking either. These are two of the most talented teams in the league and it should be great to watch them square off Sunday night. 

New England Patriots at the Miami Dolphins

On paper this game looks like it could be a blowout, but that's hardly the case when these two AFC East rivals meet on the gridiron.

For all of the New England Patriots dominance over the years, the Miami Dolphins have beaten them at least once in five of the past seven seasons.

In this game we'll also get to see Reggie Bush make his South Beach debut and Chad Ochocinco catching passes from Tom Brady for the first time.  

Oakland Raiders at the Denver Broncos

All bets are off when these two divisional opponents face off. It doesn't matter what the records are, anything can happen when these two teams meet.

Even though neither of these teams are playoff-caliber, the game should still be entertaining.

ESPN realized this and is airing this game as part of its Monday night doubleheader. This is a great game to put to bed the return of the NFL.   

Minnesota Vikings at the San Diego Chargers

The San Diego Chargers and Minnesota Vikings game is one of only two out of conference games in Week 1 and it should be a good one. 

The Chargers look primed for a Super Bowl run, but will their propensity for poor starts cripple them again?

As for the Vikings, its their first game A.F. (After Favre) and also the beginning of the Donovan McNabb era. Will McNabb play like he did when he was in Philadelphia or will he be the washed up quarterback we saw with the Washington Redskins last season?