Assessing first impressions from Week 1 of 2024 NFL regular season

4) There were a lot of old faces in new places, but two stood out, for very different reasons. The biggest free-agent signing of the offseason, Kirk Cousins, completed just 16 passes for 155 yards, with one touchdown and two interceptions, including one late in the fourth quarter with the Falcons trailing the Steelers by five points. Cousins is coming off an Achilles tear he suffered while with the Vikings in the middle of the 2023 season, and he looked a tick slow, with plenty of rust. He also made some head-scratching decisions Sunday, throwing under heavy pressure, which led to the two picks. The Steelers' T.J. Watt was everywhere wrecking the game, of course. But the Steelers were playing backup quarterback Justin Fields, and their only points came from six Chris Boswell field goals. While Cousins' first game as a Falcon was disappointing, Sam Darnold finally looked like the quarterback the Jets thought they were drafting back in 2018. Alas, Darnold is now on his fourth team, but he was a fit for the Vikings on Sunday. He was 19-of-24 passing for 208 yards and two touchdowns. He completed throws to eight teammates, including a 44-yarder to Justin Jefferson, zipping the ball down the seam and to the sidelines and generally playing with confidence and command. Darnold is the starter this season because rookie J.J. McCarthy is out for the year with a knee injury. But more performances like Sunday's will not only keep the Vikings in the mix in the very tough NFC North, it will earn Darnold a starting job somewhere else next season.

5) The rookie quarterbacks struggled. The Bears won thanks to defense and special teams, but first overall draft pick Caleb Williams had a 48 completion percentage, 93 passing yards and no passing touchdowns. The Bears totaled 148 yards of offense and Williams never looked comfortable. Jayden Daniels, who went second overall to the Commanders, made more of an impact with his legs than his arm, running for two 1-yard touchdowns. He finished the game with 16 rushes for 88 yards while completing 17 passes for 184 yards. But the offense could not extend drives, converting just two of eight third-down attempts. And Bo Nix, taken 12th overall by the Broncos, had two interceptions on careless throws, which helped dig a hole that even a nice late-game drive that ended with his own touchdown run could not erase. He finished with 138 passing yards in Denver's loss to Seattle. Sean Payton was playing conservatively early, calling for very short passes (the Broncos averaged 3.3 yards per play and just 3 yards per completion).

We all get romanced by promising performances in training camps and preseason games, but the shakiness of Williams, Daniels and Nix is a reminder that almost all rookie quarterbacks have growing pains. There are good arguments to be made for playing rookie quarterbacks to let them learn on the job. But the Patriots' decision to sit Drake Maye and let Jacoby Brissett manage the offense is a lot more understandable in the context of these early showings.

6) And the top rookie receivers were mostly quiet, all victims of their teams' general overall dysfunction. The Cardinals' Marvin Harrison Jr. was rarely involved in the offense. He was targeted just three times, with one catch for 4 yards as the Cardinals offense ground to a halt in the second half against the Bills. The Giants' Malik Nabers was targeted seven times, coming down with five receptions for 66 yards, including a 25-yarder. And the Bears' Rome Odunze had one catch on four targets for 11 yards. At least the Jaguars' Brian Thomas Jr. scored a touchdown on one of his four receptions on four targets. It served as a reminder -- no receiver, no matter how good, can overcome shaky quarterbacking and a sputtering operation.