*(same intro every day) Right before the new preseason starts, I like to go back and re-read our Week 1 reports from the prior season...just for fun and for seeing what our first reactions to the new season were--what did we see that we would soon regret, what was revealed that we were wrong about all preseason (last preseason), and where we were on the money for the season about to unfold...were we more right than wrong about the first reactions to 2025 going into it.
So, I'm going to post one a day for 16 days leading right up to the 2026 HOF game that kicks off the preseason. I'm not adding any notes or trying to explain or make excuses or let you know we figured it out the next week. It's just here to read...open source, not behind the paywall. Judge it how you like to judge it if you're a nonsubscriber--I'm not going to try to whitewash anything or give extra explanations. This just some reading material from what is the single most important thing we do each year--watch and scout the games each week and report out our findings and make FF reactions to them. Every week, it's a new week to make adjustments to. This is just every team's Week 1 as we wrote it. Enjoy...or don't.
What I like is some of the memories of Week 1 that comes rushing back when I'm reading these a year later...on top of seeing what we were seeing right off the bat.
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The Broncos tried to hand this game to the Titans about 42 times, but the Titans are too lacking in talent and lacking in any cohesiveness to take advantage of such things. And I can’t get on the Titans too hard as they really tried to break through, and were close, but the Broncos defense rivals the Packers defense in 2025 greatness, so it’s gonna be hard for any offense to put up offense on this Broncos defense.
The Titans scored on their first drive, with a little luck and had an early 3-0 lead. The Titans also took a 12-10 lead early in the 3rd-quarter. The Titans were undermanned and undertalented and under coached (barely) but give them credit -- they kept fighting the Goliath/Denver...but the Denver D just wouldn’t allow it.
Fairly impressive fight put up by a bad Titans team. And another terrible offensive execution and plan from the offensive guru Sean Payton...no way they are winning the AFC West unless all the QBs get hurt/gone for the season.
Player Notes...
-- We have to start off with a quick nod to the best thing on the field this game...the Denver defense. They literally won this game. Tennessee was given golden opportunities off things like multiple turnovers and a muffed punt return, but the Denver D would come up with sacks and intimidating receivers into drops to keep the Titans out of the end zone. 6 sacks, 133 yards of offense allowed, 2 fumble recoveries for the Denver DST.
This was our plan for a HOT start to the FF season...and they responded by being the #1 scoring DST for the week.
-- Cam Ward (12-28 for 112 yards, 0 TDs/0 INTs)...terrible numbers, but pretty excellent game played considering. Ward was so composed against such a wicked defense to debut against...and he damn near pulled off a miracle here. He was unfazed all game...he was in control...he took hits and kept getting right back up and going after the defense the next play...he’s a true leader of this team already, not the fake ‘the QB is the captain’ honorary nod type fake leader like a Trevor Lawrence or Drake Maye...no, Ward is someone not to be F’d with. Very impressive football prospect.
I’ll give you two comparisons that come to mind with Ward after rewatching this game...
1) Bo Nix played this game like he was on Adderall and espressos...he was rolling out every other play, he was scrambling around a bunch, he was literally jumping during some of his passes thrown...his arms and legs were dangling and bobbling all over it seemed...he was like a wacky inflatable tube man come to life with a football uniform on in this game.
Whereas Cam Ward looks like he took a couple valium and went out and played a football game. Never bothered...never skittish...never not in control and never scared.
2) Denver and Green Bay are some BAD (meaning good) defenses. They are gonna take offenses out of their protective bubble/false sense of reality from their non-contact preseason practice (fake) successes and punch those offenses square in the face with real game play happening.
With that in mind...
I thought Jayden Daniels was horrible on TNF Week 2 vs. Green Bay. A ton of bad throwing decisions. Several scrambles right into the defense. He did not look scared, but he also did not look like he could see anything on the field properly half the time. I’ve seen JD look like that against Philly last year too, but I wrote it off as his rookie debut vs. the Eagles. I saw that guy again in Week 2. Those types of defenses can do that to you...but you don’t want them to faze your ace QB. Daniels was fazed.
Cam Ward completed 12 of 28 passes here...and of his 16 incompletions, probably 5-6 were dropped passes on the money or hopefully catchable, and the other 10 or so incompletes were mostly the right read/throw but covered well or didn’t connect. Ward was not as thrown off by the Denver defensive onslaught...not like Daniels was against GB.
I could not be more impressed with a rookie QB than Cam Ward.
What that means for FF 2025...I don’t know? This team is not good. His coaching staff is bad. His O-Line is shaky. I don’t know when or where, but Ward will eventually be a star QB in this league...and Tennessee will be the top threat in the AFC South shortly all because of Ward.
-- Tony Pollard (18-60-0, 1-29-0) was totally fine here, just Denver was not allowing much nor letting Tennessee get close to the goal line or red zone really. If you’re pouty or giving up on Pollard already, you’re making a mistake. He’s more of a ‘buy low’.
-- And I see some 10-team leagues dropping Calvin Ridley (4-27-0/8)...which means some 12-team leagues will sell you Ridley for virtual chump change. The time to act is NOW...but remember it’s BUY LOW. He was priced as a 5th-6th-round 12-tm league redraft pick before the season, he may be like an 8th+ rounder if we drafted today -- people don’t like Titans things and then they saw Ward throw for 112 yards and Ridley do little but drop passes...so he can come cheap.
Ridley didn’t drop passes as egregiously as I thought watching live. He had passes miss thrown by a tad and they hit his fingertips of his outstretched arms on one that was too high and one that was too low. One drop was a sheer drop over the middle right in his chest. I’m still interested in Ridley + Ward ahead. You have to take the Denver D into consideration here for the performance of all things. The public is not.
Are you selling Jacory Croskey-Merritt or Terry McLaurin because Green Bay shut Washington down? Take advantage of Week 1 and 2 overreactions on things they don’t like in the first place...and the public does not like or care about or like Tennessee things or Cleveland things, as two examples.
-- Eric Ayomanor (2-13-0/7) is not my favorite rookie WR, but he did see 7 targets here, but I think he got a good count due to Ridley getting shut off by traveling Pat Surtain...and Ward had little else to try to make yards with.
-- Bo Nix (25-40 for 176 yards, 1 TD/2 INT, 8-18-0) actually started this game well. He was jumpy (not scared, just like amped or anxious) all game, but it worked early on and then it started melting with drops and not-open receivers as the game went on, but also Nix forcing too much and making a couple bad decisions as the game ticked down.
I have no idea what has happened to Nix...his last 8 regular season games last season he had 21 TD passes and 6 picks. He doesn’t look like that same guy this season for some reason...and we noted it clearly in the preseason.
-- All Nix wants to do is throw to Courtland Sutton (6-61-1/9). He is comfortable throwing it there and he will force it there.
When not forcing it to Sutton, Nix likes to throw to his BFF from college, Troy Franklin (4-44-0/6), who has overtaken Marvin Mims (3-12-0/4) in snaps and in Nix’s target-heart. You can move on from Mims as needed, as many have.
The door is not shut on Mims, but there are too many new/early season opportunities to chase than to hold Mims hoping for a total 180 on his usage/snap counts ahead.
And Evan Engram (3-21-0/4) is barely detectable in this offense. ‘Joker’...are you kidding me with the stupid label? There is NOTHING creative about this offense or its supposed ‘Jokers’ (Engram, Harvey, Mims).
Unless by ‘Jokers’ Payton means the ‘Impractical Jokers’, because we’re all definitely getting pranked on this offense.
This is what I’d like to do to Payton when he opens his yapper about ‘Jokers’ talk: https://youtu.be/4nrhTlP6aec?si=wu_P2x5CAYLzvMp9
-- Broncos RB report...
They all look bad(ie).
J.K. Dobbins (16-63-1, 2-5-0/2) is the lead because someone has to be.
R.J. Harvey (6-70-0, 1-0-0/1) isn’t ready to be a lead.
Tyler Badie (2-16-0/6) looks more like the preferred pass game back than RJH.
Look at that Badie stat line...2 catches on 6 targets, on simple passes to the RB. Ridiculous. Let me guess, he’s a ‘Joker’ too?
-- IDP Notes...
Talanoa Hufanga (11 tackles) has a nice debut IDP tally.
Nik Bonitto (3 tackles, 1 sack, 2 TFLs, 3 QB hits) picked up where he left off last year...arguably the single best pass rusher/EDGE in the NFL.
Cedric Gray (8 tackles) did get the start and had a solid debut as a starter.
AHEAD...
DEN: @IND, @LAC, CIN
TEN: LAR, IND, @HOU
Snap Counts of Interest:
72 = Sutton
45 = Franklin
40 = Mims
26 = Sherfield
04 = Bryant
40 = Dobbins
22 = RJH
14 = Badie
54 = Ridley
45 = Ayomanor
33 = Lockett
10 = Dike
50 = Chig
23 = Helm
Sean Payton’s ‘Jokers’...he’s pranking all of us just like this (PG13): https://youtu.be/RtM7IuywPTk?si=qLYoBqr-zHASSWPF
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