Big questions off Sunday's NFL Week 1 games: Hot start by Trevor Lawrence? Bengals' defensive upgrades work?

The 2026 NFL season is already off to an exciting start. On Wednesday, the Seahawks defeated the Patriots again in a Super Bowl LX rematch — this time without quarterback Sam Darnold. And a day later on the other side of the planet, the 49ers stunned the Rams in Melbourne, Australia.

In the early window Sunday, the Jaguars easily handled the Browns in Deshaun Watson’s first regular-season game since October 2024. The Bengals’ revamped defense looked good in a win over the Bucs, forcing four fumbles. And coach Robert Saleh couldn’t get revenge against the Jets in his debut with the Titans.

Our NFL Nation reporters reacted to all the action, answering lingering questions coming out of each game and detailing everything else you need to know for every team. Fantasy football analysts Matt Bowen and Tristan Cockcroft also have fantasy takeaways from every matchup. Let’s get to it.

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Catch up on the action: Box score | Recap

Steelers

What’s next with Joey Porter Jr.? It’s rare that the biggest question has nothing to do with what happened on the field, but that’s the case as the Steelers and Porter failed to reach an agreement on an extension by the regular-season negotiating deadline. Porter was inactive in coach Mike McCarthy’s debut, though the 2023 second-round pick was spotted on the sideline wearing a gray hoodie and gray Steelers shorts. Sources told ESPN that there is a possibility of trading Porter. Once an unthinkable outcome for one of the team’s up-and-coming defenders and legacy players, that possibility seems more realistic after Porter missed the game following a week of limited practice participation with a back injury. Cornerback Asante Samuel Jr. started in Porter’s place, and he played well opposite Jamel Dean despite an unnecessary roughness penalty.

Trend to watch: After seeing his opportunities reduced a season ago, tight end Pat Freiermuth was Mr. Consistency for QB Aaron Rodgers. Through three quarters, Freiermuth had five catches on five targets for 46 yards. He had just five catches once last season and five-plus targets four times. Freiermuth’s dependability was especially key because wide receiver DK Metcalf struggled to make contested catches. Metcalf finished with just four catches on 10 targets for 40 yards. — Brooke Pryor

Next game: at Patriots (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET)

Falcons

Who will be the Falcons quarterback in Week 2? Cooper Rush was not good in replacing Tua Tagovailoa (oblique) against the Steelers. The Falcons have classified Tagovailoa as week-to-week and Michael Penix Jr. is close to returning, he said a few days ago. Atlanta would love to have Penix back against the Panthers for Week 2. It does not seem like the team thinks undrafted rookie Jack Strand, who played great in the preseason, is ready just yet.

Most surprising performance: Kicker Nick Folk missed two field goal attempts combined over his past three NFL seasons. On Sunday, Folk missed his first two of the 2026 season, including a 45-yard attempt. The Falcons were a mess at kicker during the 2025 and 2024 seasons and were hoping Folk would be a savior. — Marc Raimondi

Next game: vs. Panthers (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET)

Fantasy football takeaway: It’s hard to imagine how badly an offense needs a healthy Tagovailoa, but that was the story of the Falcons in Week 1. Thankfully, RB Bijan Robinson managed a massive 35.3 fantasy point game and accounted for 66% of their yardage, including a heavy dose of receiving work. — Cockcroft

Catch up on the action: Box score | Recap

Jets

How optimistic should the Jets be? This is rarefied air for coach Aaron Glenn, who needed eight games last season to record a victory. Unlike last season, he now has a balanced offense. Consider: By the first drive of the third quarter, the wide receivers already had 148 receiving yards — more than any game in 2025. Garrett Wilson and Adonai Mitchell delivered explosive plays while Breece Hall (102 yards) and Braelon Allen (40 yards) spearheaded a 152-yard rushing attack. QB Geno Smith, with terrific protection, played a clean game — no turnovers, a bugaboo from last year in Las Vegas. If the Jets can stick to this formula, they could be a surprise team.

Stat to know: The defense has gone 571 pass attempts without an interception, dating to the 2024 finale — a historic drought. Despite no picks against second-year QB Cam Ward, the defense played fantastic, making three sacks and holding the Titans to 195 total yards. They did it without safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, who left with a groin injury after six snaps. — Rich Cimini

Next game: vs. Packers (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET)

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Kenyon Sadiq scores opening TD for Jets

Titans

Will it be this hard for the Titans to reach the end zone? The first-team offense scored one touchdown on six drives in the preseason. They managed to do worse against the Jets with 10 points on nine drives. The only touchdown came in garbage time with the Jets up by 20 points. Carnell Tate’s 14-yard catch in the fourth quarter was the longest offensive play of the day. New Titans offensive coordinator Brian Daboll stressed taking what the defense gives them, but that won’t work if Cam Ward keeps missing easy throws. It could be worse next week when Tennessee hosts the Eagles.

What to make of the QB performance: Saying Ward’s 2026 debut was bad is an understatement. Ward missed easy throws to RB Tyjae Spears and WR Wan’Dale Robinson near the line of scrimmage, and he failed to connect with Tate on a pass across the middle that would have been a big gain. Ward finished with 140 passing yards, though 55 came on the final drive. — Turron Davenport

Next game: vs. Eagles (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET)

Fantasy football takeaway: Hall, who worked through a groin injury in camp, saw a team-high 22 carries and finished with 118 total yards and a score (19.8 points) for the Jets. He will remain a high-end RB2 next week. — Bowen

Catch up on the action: Box score | Recap

Bengals

Is the Bengals’ defense as good as it appeared against Tampa Bay? It’s not a mirage. There are still some aspects that need to be shored up, but the defensive line was as good as advertised. Cincinnati forced and recovered four fumbles, including a scoop and score by second-year LB Demetrius Knight Jr. for the team’s first TD of the season. Cincinnati got key contributions from nearly all of its offseason signings. It was the exact impact the Bengals hoped for from a revamped defense.

What to make of the QB performance: Joe Burrow took what the defense gave him Sunday. He did a good job finding the tight ends, particularly Mike Gesicki, and working the underneath routes to move the ball down the field. The pick-six he threw in the third quarter didn’t prove to be disastrous, and Burrow typically gets better the deeper he gets into a season. — Ben Baby

Next game: at Texans (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET)

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Bengals get scoop-and-score TD off Baker

Buccaneers

What do we make of the Bucs’ four fumbles that led to 24 points? Quarterback Baker Mayfield’s first fumble came while moving laterally to try to find an open receiver. The second fumble was from running back Bucky Irving, who left the ball exposed when he collided with Boye Mafe and Myles Murphy. (It’s unclear if his offseason shoulder surgery played into this at all.) The third came from Mayfield while he was spinning his way out of a sack, scrambling and desperately trying to reach the end zone while in a 14-3 hole — trying to do too much. The fourth was simply the result of Mayfield holding on to the ball too long; Mafe hit him from behind to jar it loose.

Stat to know: Rookie linebacker Josiah Trotter is the first NFL rookie with a pick-six and a sack in his NFL debut since sacks became an official stat in 1982, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. He is also the ninth player in NFL history with a sack and interception in his NFL debut since 1982. — Jenna Laine

Next game: vs. Browns (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET)

Fantasy football takeaway: Don’t panic, Ja’Marr Chase managers: The star wide receiver had 3.2 fantasy points, but he is no stranger to slow starts. Two of his worst games have come in the past two Week 1s. And over his career, he has averaged 5.5 fewer points in September than the rest of the season. — Cockcroft

Catch up on the action: Box score | Recap

Jaguars

Is the Jaguars’ Week 1 dominance sustainable? The Jaguars controlled the entirety of their season opener against the Browns, led by four touchdown passes from quarterback Trevor Lawrence. But it’s the next five games that will tell us if they are actually as good as this win suggested. Four of the Jaguars’ next five games are against 2025 playoff teams, beginning at the Broncos next week, Patriots at home in Week 3, at the Bengals in Week 4, and then back-to-back games in London against the Eagles and Texans. Thrive in that stretch and the Jaguars could enter their Week 7 bye as one of the best in the AFC. Time will tell.

Trend to watch: Lawrence targeted 10 players — nine had at least one catch — and four different players caught TDs (Parker Washington, Josh Cameron, Brenton Strange and Jakobi Meyers). Not only that, but Lawrence targeted all areas of the field. He had two TD passes of 20 or more yards, which is one shy of what he had in 2025. Having that many options in the pass game could make this offense hard to stop. — Mike DiRocco

Next game: at Broncos (Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET)

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Trevor Lawrence evades Browns, fires to Jakobi Meyers for a TD

Browns

Was this just a bad game or a bad sign for the Browns? Todd Monken’s first game as an NFL head coach was a worst-case outcome for a team with major question marks. Deshaun Watson looked every bit the quarterback who hadn’t played a regular-season game in 693 days, while the defense looked like a unit missing edge rusher Myles Garrett and ex-defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz. Jacksonville was a tough Week 1 draw, but Sunday highlighted fundamental issues that might not be solved in a week.

What to make of the QB performance: Concerns over Watson’s training camp — inconsistent at best — and preseason performance will only grow after this outing. In his first regular-season game since October 2024, Watson looked tentative and inaccurate throughout the game. (He went 16-of-22 with five sacks and an INT). Those are issues that predated the Achilles injury that sidelined him for all of the 2025 season. — Daniel Oyefusi

Next game: at Buccaneers (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET)

Fantasy football takeaway: The Browns, who scored 10 points and saw the opposing Jaguars D/ST score 14 fantasy points, reaffirmed their status as a top-shelf D/ST streaming target. The Buccaneers (Week 2), Panthers (Week 3) and Jets (Week 5) — all widely available defenses — are three of their next four opponents. — Cockcroft