Bedard: 10 questions from Around the NFL following week 1

Greg Bedard of BostonSportsJournal.com joined the Felger and Mazz program on Tuesday, as he does every Tuesday during the NFL season. While on, Bedard answered the weekly 10 questions from Around the NFL following week 1 of the 2024 season. Here are a few of the top answers to the questions!

Thoughts on the three rookie QBs who started on Sunday....All were disappointing. Who was the most disappointing and/or concerning?

Greg Bedard: All I could think about watching these guys struggle is like, you really wanted Drake Maye out there? I mean, all these guys just, you know, let them adjust, let them sit and watch like one game. 

What’s wrong with the Cleveland Browns? 

Greg Bedard:  I mean, Deshaun Watson. Ever since he got the contract, you know, his problems off the field, I don't know if that messed him up. Does he not care? Did he just want to get paid and now he doesn't really care? All I could think is, man Bill O'Brien looks pretty good for what he was able to do with Deshaun Watson in Houston and make him one of the best quarterbacks in the league. But now, I mean, he's just...he's horrible. 

Thoughts on Packers-Eagles Friday night?

Greg Bedard: The field was embarrassing. That just angered me. It wasn't a real football game. I will say I was impressed with the Eagles and Barkley and some of their additions and they look good. Jordan Love, I didn't think he played very well at all. But the field was just embarrassing.

What teams across the league are already in the most trouble?

Greg Bedard: Carolina Panthers, Atlanta Falcons, and New York Giants.  

What's your least favorite city to travel to in the NFL?

Greg Bedard: Buffalo. It's a pain in the ass to get to. It's always gray there covering the Patriots. You normally have to go during the winter, which is a disaster. I had to drive Shaughnessy back one year because our plane got snowed in....that was fun.  

Listen to Felger and Mazz from 2-6 every Monday-Friday on 98.5 The Sports Hub, with hosts Mike Felger, Tony “Mazz” Massarotti, and Jim Murray “Big Jim”. You can listen live in the Sports Hub App and subscribe to their podcasts here. Follow @FelgerAndMazz on Twitter to keep up with the show!

The New England Patriots are 1-0 on the 2024 season after an upset win over the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium. Here are 12 players we graded either UP or DOWN based on their performance on the field...

Stevenson could very well be the Patriots' offensive MVP this season. The fourth-year pro led the way on the ground with 25 carries for 120 yards and a touchdown, and perhaps most importantly, rushed four times for 26 yards on the Pats' final possession of the game to bleed the clock dry.

Over the course of the win, Stevenson showed off his best traits: power, balance, and sneaky elusiveness for a guy his size. He's a good fit for this new offense, and the one-cut running style that is often called for on the ground. Stevenson made a lot of guys miss, in addition to running with his typical power.

To be fair, Stevenson did almost lose a fumble in what would've been a massive turn of events in the game. But he was able to recover his own fumble on the play. Overall, an outstanding start to what could be a big season for Stevenson.

Okorafor didn't even make it to the end of the first quarter before he was taken off the field, after starting the game at left tackle. The previously injured Vederian Lowe came in and didn't play all that well, either. But it was a tough look for Okorafor to be abandoned so soon.

MORE: Patriots start season with upset win over Bengals

Left tackle remains the biggest concern for the Patriots, despite a great game for most of the roster. They may have to hope Lowe can be serviceable, because they're pretty much out of options at the moment.

Dugger kept momentum in the Patriots' favor with an outstanding red zone series in the second quarter, when the Bengals were threatening for what would've been a game-tying touchdown at the time. First, Dugger got just enough of a hand on the ball to jar it loose from Bengals tight end Mike Gesicki, leading to an overturned touchdown call.

On the next play, Dugger chopped the ball loose from the Bengals' Tanner Hudson, not just breaking up another possible touchdown but getting the ball back to the Patriots and keeping the Bengals off the scoreboard. Great start to the season for a Patriots defensive cornerstone.

Wilson made perhaps the only straight-up bad play all afternoon for the Pats defense. After the punting unit pinned the Bengals down at the 10-yard line, Wilson gifted the Bengals 20 yards with a pass interference penalty, as he wrapped his hands around Bengals receiver Andre Iosivas down the field.

It very easily could have been a momentum-shifting play, as the Bengals went down the field for a touchdown to make it 13-7 at the time. Fortunately, the Pats held on. The film may show Wilson had a better game than that one play indicated, but that was a tough moment for him.

No. 99 may very well be a game-wrecker. White amassed 2.5 sacks in his season debut, adding another QB hit, a forced fumble, and four tackles. He lined up both inside and outside and made an impact both ways.

The Pats are going to count on White as a pass-rusher in the post-Matthew Judon era, and it appears they have a really good one.

Uche came up empty on the stat sheet, and had a rough series early in the second quarter, giving up the edge for a Joe Burrow scramble then committing an offside penalty to gift consecutive third-down plays. The Bengals turned the ball over at the goal line, but that was potentially a damaging performance by Uche on that drive. He needs to play with better discipline.

Jones made one of the biggest individual plays of the game when the Bengals went for it on fourth-and-2, flying toward Iosivas and blowing him up behind the line to gain to force a turnover on downs. Jones finished with three tackles and a pass breakup.

He'll be a key piece of the Pats secondary all season, and he's off to a fast start.

The Patriots seemed to have protection issues up the middle, and it's on Andrews to make sure they set the right blocking before they even snap the ball. Andrews is as reliable as they come at center, and the Patriots at least know they'll snap the ball cleanly. But Andrews may have some work to do with the protection setting in this new offense.

The rare UP for the long snapper! Never mind that Cardona snapped the ball cleanly all game, as he's expected to do every snap, every game, all season. But he came up with one of the biggest plays of the game with a forced fumble on a tackle, after the Pats had punted the ball.

The play set them up in the red zone and got them three extra points. Strong start for the special teams units overall.

Only one tackle for Godchaux in the game. He's never been big on stuffing the stat sheet, but he'll need to do a little more than that, especially in the run game. The Bengals got their ground attack going up the middle on a key touchdown drive at the time. Godchaux is going to need to lock things down a little better in those spots.

Bentley was all over the field in his first game captaining the defense under new coordinator DeMarcus Covington. He logged a team-high 12 tackles, and also generated a half-sack, as he was often shooting gaps to bring the pressure on third downs. The Pats defense was humming for most of the game, and it's no coincidence that Bentley was heavily involved in that.

Lowe isn't as much of a "down" as Okorafor, as he came into the game as essentially an emergency backup. But it turned out that Lowe had to check into the game in the first quarter. He committed a false start during his first series and gave up a fair amount of pressure, but quarterback Jacoby Brissett handled it well. Despite the thrill of victory, left tackle remains a big concern for the Patriots going forward.

Next Patriots Ups & Downs comes after they take on the Seattle Seahawks in their 2024 home opener at Gillette Stadium.