We had some exciting matchups Week 1. The defending NFC Champion Rams took on the Panthers and we got our first look at Kliff Kingsbury’s Air Raid Offense. Let’s take a look at what went on for the NFC West in Week 1.
Los Angeles Rams @ Carolina Panthers
The Panthers nearly won their week 1 game on the road against the Rams. Christian McCaffrey put on a clinic finishing with 19 rushes for 128 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 81 receiving yards. He was the Panthers leading rusher and receiver. The Rams defense could not stop McCaffrey, but they had no problem shutting Cam Newton down. Newton finished the day with 239 passing yards and an interception. Ultimately it was an ugly day for the Panthers.
The Rams did enough to win the game but it wasn’t necessarily the greatest outing. Jared Goff could only muster 186 passing yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception. What was most intriguing was the division of carries between Malcom Brown and Todd Gurley. All offseason Gurley was reported to have arthritic component to his knee, explaining his disappearance during last year’s post season. Brown ended up 53 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns. When the Rams got to the goal line Brown punched it in. Gurley had 14 carries for 97 rushing yards. So Gurley was used quite a bit, but it is clear Brown is a factor in this offense.
The lone passing touchdown was received by Tyler Higbee. None of the receivers managed to do much as a result of Goff’s rough day. When not focusing on the box score, this game was not the greatest for either team, however the Rams did enough to shake the rust off and secure a week 1 win.
Rams beat Panthers, 30-27.
My Prediction: Rams over Panthers, 24-17.
Cincinnati Bengals @ Seattle Seahawks
This game went nothing like what I expected it to. Both the offense and defense of the Seahawks had issues, but they managed to survive this game. What was most concerning was the stat line Andy Dalton posted. Red Rifle threw for 428 yards and 2 touchdowns, with no A.J. Green. The Bengals put themselves in position to win this game even without Joe Mixon for a good portion of this game. Mixon left the game due to a low grade sprain and is currently considered day to day.
John Ross was the Bengals star this weekend, ending the day with 158 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns. Despite the great game from Dalton and Ross, the Seahawks squeaked by with decent outings from Chris Carson and Russell Wilson. Even D.K. Metcalf finished the day with 89 yard on 4 receptions. It seems he could be a legitimate receiving threat this year. Perhaps the Seahawks had a great deal of rust, because on paper they should have handled the Bengals with ease.
Seahawks beat Bengals, 21-20.
My Prediction: Seahawks over Bengals, 34-17.
San Francisco 49ers @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Both the Buccaneers and 49ers struggled the first half of their week 1 game. The score at the end of the first half would be 7-6 Buccaneers. The 49ers managed to get 3 trips to the redzone but only managed the 2 field goals. The first half score would have been much better for the 49ers, as they did have 3 touchdown plays called back by offensive penalties. What had to be most reassuring from this game was the defensive play for the 49ers. Richard Sherman picked off Jameis Winston and took it to the house on a 32 yard touchdown.
Nick Bosa managed his first sack and Ronald Blair managed a forced fumble. The Buccaneers struggles start with Jameis Winston, who had 3 interceptions on the day. Star wide receiver Mike Evans was a ghost in this matchup, largely due to Winston’s inability to connect with him, but possibly because Evans had been fighting an illness the day before and could have possibly been sick still. The hope was that Bruce Arians would align this offense on the path of success. That didn’t happen this week. Perhaps it is just week 1 rust that seemed to plague a lot of teams. Fortunately for the Buccaneers all teams with the exception of the Saints lost week 1 as well.
49ers beat Buccaneers, 31-17.
My Prediction: Buccaneers over 49ers, 31-24.
Detroit Lions @ Arizona Cardinals
The way this game started for the Cardinals, was very reminiscent of their 2018 struggles. Both teams had their struggles in the beginning of the game, however it was the Lions that got things going first. No score happened until early in the second quarter with a 55 yard kick by Matt Prater. Before the second quarter would end touchdowns were scored by Danny Amendola and Kenney Golladay.
The Cardinals did manage to get on the board before the half ended with a field goal but the 1st half stats were terrible. The Cardinals had only 58 total offensive yards to the Lions 242. Things would only get worse for the Cardinals as there were multiple wide open opportunities for the Lions. T.J. Hockenson had a monstrous day gouging the Cardinals for 131 yards and a touchdown on 6 receptions. It wasn’t until the fourth quarter when Kliff Kingsbury, Kyler Murray, and the rest of the offense put an amazing run together. Murray would connect with David Johnson for a 27 yard touchdown pass, Larry Fitzgerald for a touchdown, and Christian Kirk for a 2 point conversion to send the game to overtime.
Both teams would score field goals in overtime, but neither team did enough to seal the victory. The Lions have to be truly disappointed because they let a rookie coach and quarterback almost come back and win. The Cardinals, have a lot of tape to watch on what they did wrong, what they did right, and some hope going forward. It wasn’t pretty for Murray or the whole team, but he showed why he was the number one draft pick.
Lions tie Cardinals, 27-27.
My Prediction: Lions over Cardinals, 27-21.
Week 1 appeared to be a week of rusty regular season play. Seattle and Los Angeles, who I consider the NFC West top dogs, won but nearly lost and struggled. San Francisco surprised me defensively, and how well they came out after halftime to handle the Buccaneers. Arizona, blew me away with their 4th quarter and OT, but I believe despite the hope established late in the game, may fade with a rough year of growing pains. Regardless I expect Seattle and Los Angeles to remain atop the NFC West, then San Francisco, followed by the Cardinals.
On the year for the NFC West I am 2-2 on my predictions. Didn’t even bother to guess a tie! Follow me all season long to see how my predictions go. Follow me on twitter at @rob_r_williams.
Week 1 prediction – Win-Loss
Los Angeles Rams – 1-0
Seattle Seahawks – 1-0
San Francisco 49ers – 0-1
Arizona Cardinals – 0-1
Week 1 result – Win-Loss
Los Angeles Rams – 1-0-0
Seattle Seahawks – 1-0-0
San Francisco 49ers – 1-0-0
Arizona Cardinals – 0-0-1
