There were thirteen NFL games played yesterday. Six of those games saw at least 60 points scored. Bears-Panthers ran it up to 96. Jacksonville threw up 34 points in the first three quarters. The Giants put on a clock-chewing masterclass that was just as dominant as any other offensive game of the day even with only 28 points. If you liked offense, it was a good day.

By The Numbers

On the day, games averaged 53.3 points, a record for week one in NFL history. Even factoring in the Wednesday and Thursday games, the average of 50 is a week one record in the Super Bowl era. Even if tonight is a defensive slugfest in Kansas City, the overall sentiment remains. There’s not a lot of defense in the league right now. Which I find a bit strange.

The season just started. Offenses should not be clicking on all cylinders yet. Defenses should be one step ahead right now. And yet, we’re sitting on five 300 yard passers, six 100 yard rushers, and seven 100 yard receivers, with one game to go. Of the 30 teams who have played so far, how many of them can be truly proud of what they did defensively?

Finding The Treasure In The Trash

The way I see it, both teams that can truly pound their chest about their defenses right now played before Sunday. The Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers were so good on that side of the ball, you might have been fooled into believing you’d see more of the same on Sunday. I’d give the bronze medal out to another NFC West team, actually, in the Cardinals.

The New York Jets, Pittsburgh Steelers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Las Vegas Raiders, and New England Patriots also did well defensively, but they had very low degrees of difficulty. The 49ers held the Rams, 2025’s top offense, to seven points, and the Seahawks spun up a ten point masterpiece against 2025’s second-best offense in New England. 

The Brilliance of Mike Macdonald

Once again, the New England Patriots had the second-highest point total in the NFL last season, and then upgraded their offensive line and wide receivers. Sure, A.J. Brown got hurt in the third quarter, but the body of work for the Patriots was still no better than the one they put forward in Super Bowl LX back in February. And we know what this defense has lost since then.

Boye Mafe. Coby Bryant. Riq Woolen. And then Nick Emmanwori and Ty Okada missed the game. If you have ever doubted how much of a genius Mike Macdonald is at putting together a defense, doubt no more. In a league that is treating defense like the NBA in the 1980s, Macdonald knows how to get it done. And that’s incredibly valuable.

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