After months of anticipation, the NFL season has finally begun and both the Giants and Jets took the field this past Sunday. The Jets had MetLife Stadium last week, hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers in a matchup between two quarterbacks facing their old teams. The Giants visited the Washington Commanders in a NFC East matchup. The first week of regular season football brought much excitement to the region.
Steelers Defeat Jets 34-32 in Final Minutes
Entering their matchup against the Steelers, the headlines had written themselves with Aaron Rodgers playing against his former team and Justin Fields doing the same. The Jets offense was clicking in the first quarter, where Justin Fields collected his first touchdown as a member of the Jets on a 33-yard pass to Garrett Wilson. The touchdown and a field goal left the Jets with a 9-7 lead entering the second quarter.
The Jets continued their impressive performance holding a 19-17 lead entering half time, thanks to another field goal and a Braelon Allen rushing touchdown. A rushing touchdown from Justin Fields gave the Jets a 26-17 lead and a commanding presence in the game, however, Rodgers continued to push the Steelers down the field throughout the final quarter and taking advantage of a Jets fumble. The Steelers now held a 31-26 lead, which the Jets soon erased with another Fields rushing touchdown.
Down to what could have been their last drive, the Steelers got just into field goal range thanks to a lucky, bobbling catch that fell in the hands of D.K. Metcalf to set up Chris Boswell for a potential game-winning field goal. Boswell drilled a 60-yard field goal, the longest in Steelers franchise history and the longest of his career.
The Jets had the opportunity to stage a comeback, which fell short after the team turned the ball over on downs with the clock winding down. However, in their defeat they showed great glimpses of potential.
Giants Fall to Commanders 21-6 in Divisional Matchup
Russell Wilson’s Giants debut didn’t live up to the hype, unfortunately, as the team’s offense was unable to get it going against the Washington Commanders. The Commanders got on the board first with a Zach Ertz touchdown and never looked back. The Giants tacked on a few points with two field goals, one in the first quarter and the other in the third quarter.
Malik Nabers offered a bright spot for the team, recording 71 receiving yards in the season opener of his sophomore season. One question that has now risen amongst fans of the team is the future of Jaxson Dart, who could bring a young fire to the team after being drafted with the 25th overall pick in the previous year’s NFL draft.
What to Look Out for Next Week
Next week, the Jets will be hosting the Buffalo Bills at MetLife Stadium for a divisional matchup on Sunday, Sept. 14 at 1 p.m. The Bills are coming off an epic battle against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday Night Football, which ended with a walk-off win for them. The Jets will look to build off their offense’s impressive performance heading into their second game.
The Giants will be travelling to Dallas on Sunday at 1 p.m., where they will be taking on the Cowboys. With both teams holding an 0-1 record, the Giants will hope to get their offense going in the matchup. The Giants have announced that they will be entering the game with Russell Wilson still starting this week.