NFL Week 1: A Key Matchup for Each Sunday Game
New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski (87). Stew Milne-USA TODAY Sports
Chicago Bears vs. Buffalo Bills: QB E.J. Manuel vs. Bears safeties
The Chicago Bears are essentially having some in-season competition at safety, because the starting duo of Chris Conte at FS and offseason signing Ryan Mundy is hardly set in stone. Those seem to be their best and most experienced safeties on paper, and they mesh well together with Conte playing a coverage role and Mundy mostly spending his time in the box. But this duo is hardly inspiring, and beloved rookie Brock Vereen could very well usurp one of them by the time the season is over.
E.J. Manuel also comes into the regular season with plenty of question marks, and he has seasoned veteran Kyle Orton breathing down his neck. A former first-round pick, Manuel has done nothing to show that he deserved his draft slot, so it’s crucial for him to show up well right off the bat. He deserves plenty of leash after how much the Bills invested in him, but he can’t afford to fail against this safety duo. It will be up to him to start showing some downfield arm strength to keep the Bears honest, especially since he has two wideouts who can beat defenses deep in Sammy Watkins and Mike Williams. The players on both ends of this matchup are unproven, so this is an important first game for all parties involved.
Miami Dolphins vs. New England Patriots: TE Rob Gronkowski vs. LBs and Safeties
There are a multitude of enticing matchups on tap in this rivalry game between the top two teams in the AFC East, and I always love watching Cameron Wake and Sebastian Vollmer go at it on the right side of the New England Patriots offense. But this week the big storyline is unsurprisingly focused on the return of Rob Gronkowski and how the Dolphins can stop him. The Dolphins have their own major mis-match at TE in Charles Clay, but the Patriots are better-equipped to stop him than the Dolphins are against Gronk.
The Patriots are going to ease Gronk back into things, so they will focus his snaps on pivotal moments of the game, such as red zone plays, because Gronkowski is arguably the toughest pass-catcher in the NFL to out-muscle. He’s also difficult to out-hustle, so the Dolphin safeties will have to be sure he doesn’t get behind them. Gronk probably won’t feature much as a blocker in his first game back, but linebackers like Koa Misi and Philip Wheeler will have to watch out for his pass-catching and blocking.
Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Cleveland Browns: WR Antonio Brown vs. CB Joe Haden
This is an even better CB-WR battle than Jones vs. Lewis, and it has a chance to be the most enticing matchup of the week. Joe Haden does everything you want a No. 1 corner to do, as he can shut down the best receivers in the league mano-a-mano. With a better cornerback opposite of him, Haden’s job has gotten a little bit easier, but he’s still the unquestioned alpha dog of this entire defense. Likewise, Antonio Brown is the toast of the Pittsburgh Steelers skill position players, and they clearly aren’t short on talent on offense with Markus Wheaton (his battle against Justin Gilbert will be almost as important), Heath Miller, Le’Veon Bell, LeGarrette Blount, and others. Brown has blossomed into one of the league’s elite receivers, so this is a blue-chip-on-blue-chip battle between AFC North rivals. If Haden can smother Brown, then the Browns have a chance of keeping up with one of the league’s most underrated offenses. The Browns have to play a great game on defense, because their offense doesn’t have the firepower.