By: Ryan Croke and Jeremy Park The first weekend of the 2021 NFL season wrapped up on Monday night, and what better way to kick off the year than to give a brief recap of each game? In this article, Jeremy Park and Ryan Croke give you their thoughts on the games that took place in Week 1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeat Dallas Cowboys 31-29 This was a perfect way to start off the season. Two elite NFL teams, one of them being the defending Super Bowl champions, having an incredible down-to-the-wire game to kick it all off. Tom Brady and Tampa Bay impressed, as their offense lit up the Cowboys' defense all night long, which was to be expected. Chris Godwin, Antonio Brown, and Rob Gronkowski all played great, and it was awesome to see Brady and Gronk dominate as they did years ago in New England. However, the Bucs' defense left cause for concern, despite going up against one of the most talented offenses in the league. The secondary had trouble all night long, especially after Sean Murphy-Bunting went out with an injury, as Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb toasted the secondary for almost 250 combined receiving yards and 3 TDs, and Dak Prescott showed to all the doubters that he is one of the best QBs in the league. This was an outstanding game, particularly on the offensive side of the ball, but Greg Zuerlein, the Cowboys' kicker, missed 2 field goals and an extra point that had he converted, the Cowboys would have won the game. Despite his troubles kicking the ball, the Cowboys took a 1 point lead with under 2 minutes left, but everyone watching knew they left Brady too much time. And they did. Tom Brady did what Tom Brady does, and that is run an incredible 2-minute drill that resulted in the game-winning field goal. This was an incredible way to start off the season, and the way these two teams played should remind fans of just how talented these teams are, especially the frequently overlooked Cowboys. Seattle Seahawks defeat Indianapolis Colts 28-16 The Seahawks marched into Indianapolis and flat out embarrassed the Colts on their home turf. The Colts, boasting a defense that was one of the most dominant units in the league last year, that prides themselves on stopping big plays, was torn up by Russell Wilson and Tyler Lockett, as Lockett put up 100 receiving yards and 2 TDs on only 4 receptions. The Colts clearly weren't themselves on defense, and the Seahawks coasted to an easy victory. Indianapolis' new QB Carson Wentz put up solid numbers, and so did RB Johnathan Taylor, who picked up where he left off last year in his impressive rookie season, as he led the team in both receiving and rushing. The problem with the Colts is their receivers, as they have almost nobody that qualifies as a solid NFL wideout. They should be pretty pleased with their performance on offense, but their defensive issues need to be sorted out fast because if they aren't, this team will be a massive disappointment. The Seahawks looked like they did last year; a big-play-oriented offensive unit leading the way for a sub-par defensive unit. That won't fly in the playoffs, and it didn't last year, but it might win them some games during the regular season, and it did in this game. This team has a lot of talent, but their ceiling is a lot lower than people realize. Regardless, they played well in week 1, but they showed a lack of growth as a team that will catch up to them as the season progresses. Houston Texans defeat Jacksonville Jaguars 37-21 It's unlikely that the total number of viewers this game got is high, but if it weren't for Trevor Lawrence, it would have been trending towards 0. The number 1 overall pick from the 2021 draft made his highly anticipated debut and showed a lot of promise, throwing for 332 yards, and 3 touchdowns, however, his 3 interceptions held him back from a cleaner stat line. He found 8 different receivers with his arm but didn't show much with his running game, one of his strongest traits in college at Clemson. On the Houston side of things, Tyrod Taylor in his Texans debut did very well, throwing for nearly 300 yards and 2 touchdowns. While it will take them playing an actual defense to prove if Taylor is Houston's guy, he is off to a good start. Both of these teams could use a boost on their defenses, but the offense for Jacksonville has lots of young potential, while Houston will have to hold on to Tyrod Taylor, Brandin Cooks (5 catches, 132 yards), and an armful of running backs to keep their offense afloat. Philadelphia Eagles defeat Atlanta Falcons 32-6 This was one of the most shocking results of the weekend, as the Falcons, 3 point favorites, were embarrassed by the Eagles. Atlanta, who has a promising core on offense consisting of Kyle Pitts, Calvin Ridley, and Mike Davis, couldn't get anything going with Matt Ryan under center. The Eagles front 7 dominated the entire game, and the Falcons' o-line gave Ryan no time to make a play if he even can at this point in his career. It has to be asked when the Falcons will finally move on from the veteran QB, as it's clear that something has to be done, and it's been that way for a few years now. Philadelphia wiped the floor with Atlanta and toyed with the lackluster Falcons defense all game long. Jalen Hurts played lights-out, and the Eagles looked like a legitimate threat to win the NFC East. Now, it is only week 1, and there is plenty of football left to play this season, so it's unlikely the Eagles will be able to sustain this, especially with the glaring issues on their roster. Regardless, this is an impressive performance Eagles fans should be encouraged by. Los Angeles Chargers defeat Washington Football Team 20-16 Justin Herbert vs Ryan Fitzpatrick, the reigning offensive rookie of the year vs the 16-year veteran. Chase Young vs Rashawn Slater, the reigning defensive rookie of the year against the 13th overall pick from the 2021 draft. This matchup wasn't getting much hype leading up to it, but I was pretty excited to see how they would do in their first game against a playoff team. Granted, said playoff team was part of one of the worst divisions last year the NFL has ever seen, but a playoff team nevertheless, that far exceeded expectations against the eventual Super Bowl 55 champions, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Now onto this game. A dynamic LA offense against one of the best defensive lines in the league was sure to be a close one. However, rookie o-lineman Rashawn Slater took care of Washington's front line, refusing to give up even a single pressure, giving Justin Herbert plenty of time to throw for 337 yards, a touchdown to Mike Williams, and only a single blemish of one interception. The sophomore did a great job spreading the football around to multiple receivers (a rather Tom Brady looking trait I must say), as 8 different players got at least one catch, with the always-underrated Keenan Allen leading the game with 9 catches and an even 100 yards. On the Washington side of the offense, Taylor Heinicke had to step in as quarterback midway through the second quarter after Ryan Fitzpatrick left the game with a hip injury. Heinicke performed well against a very talented Bucs defense that won a championship early this year, but it looked like the Chargers, with star safety Derwin James back from injury, met the match. Washington had only half the number of first downs as LA, and Dustin Hopkins, a kicker, was the Football Team's leading scorer, not exactly an admirable trait for an offense. Justin Herbert gave up 2 turnovers, an interception, and a fumble, but Washington just couldn't capitalize on either. Had it not been for those Herbert turnovers, this game most likely wouldn't have been as close as the scoreboard said. The heroes of this game for the Chargers were the rookie Rashawn Slater, Derwin James who had a PFF grade of 90.0, the highest of any defensive player this week, and Keenan Allen, who was a reliable target for Justin Herbert all four quarters and sealed the game with a first down on a crucial third. And who could forget the Chargers' new head coach, Brandon Staley? He truly knows what he's doing, and it sure looks like he will turn the Bolts around into a potential playoff team. The Chargers return to Los Angeles next week and will face another formidable NFC East opponent, the Dallas Cowboys, who look to be leaving their blunders of past years behind with the return of potential MVP candidate Dak Prescott. The Football Team will stay in Washington and also play an NFC East team, the New York Giants led by Daniel Jones himself. Pittsburgh Steelers defeat Buffalo Bills 23-16 It's highly unlikely many people saw this result coming. The Bills, riding high after an AFC Championship game appearance last year, despite having a controversial off-season, are poised to only improve, and maybe give the Chiefs a real challenge for the conference championship. But they didn't play like it in this game. Things looked fine in the first half, as Buffalo had some trouble on offense, which was to be expected, as the Pittsburgh defense is one of the best in the league, and the Buffalo defense was able to keep the Steelers from scoring a single point through one half. On top of that, Big Ben threw for only 188 yards throughout the entire game. So what happened? The Bills fell apart in the second half, allowing 17 points in the fourth quarter, including a blocked punt TD scored by the Steelers special teams unit. The Bills will recover from this embarrassment, but this is a concerning showing, and this pivotal loss against a conference rival may come back to haunt them in terms of seeding later down the road. Pittsburgh, on the other hand, impressed, as many people wrote them off and underestimated the Steelers after they were obliterated on their home turf by the team they had written off as a non-contender, the Cleveland Browns. This team is more talented than people give them credit for, boasting one of the be