Aaron Rodgers' 2024 debut looked worryingly similar to a recent New York Jets bust in Week 1 loss to 49ers

 

Garrett Bradbury, C, Minnesota Vikings

Bradbury started his 2024 with another serviceable showing at the center of the Vikings offensive line. Sam Darnold only got sacked once while Minnesota racked up 201 yards through the air and 111 on the ground in a 28-6 win over the Giants. Darnold, the sudden QB1 after J.J. McCarthy went down with an Achilles injury in the preseason, had plenty of time to deliver throws with Bradbury protecting him from pressure up the middle.

Ikem Ekwonu, OT, Carolina Panthers

The Panthers struggled to get much of anything going in a 47-10 loss in New Orleans, offensive line included. The Saints registered four sacks and five QB hits on Bryce Young. Two of those QB hits came from Chase Young, Ekwonu's primary responsibility on Young's blind side. Carolina struggled to get much going on the ground either, rushing for only 58 yards on 20 carries.

B.J. Hill, DT, Cincinnati Bengals

Hill logged three tackles and one tackle for loss amid a disappointing season-opening loss. Cincinnati only allowed 16 points to Brissett's Patriots but the defensive line struggled to stop New England's ground attack. Rhamondre Stevenson rushed for 120 yards on 25 carries, leading to the Bengals allowing the fifth-most rushing yards as a team in week one. Hill and company hope for better results next week when the travel to Kansas City.

Justin Jones, DT, Arizona Cardinals

Jones chipped in two tackles and a fumble recovery in Arizona's season opener against Buffalo. Jones pounced on the loose ball forced from Josh Allen by Roy Lopez on the opening drive, paving the way to a 10-0 Cardinals lead to start the day. That early effort wasn't enough to stop the Bills, however, who ultimately pulled out a 34-28 win. Jones and the Cardinals look ahead to next week against the Rams hoping to earn their first win of the season.

Alim McNeill, DT, Detroit Lions

McNeill didn't put up many numbers but played a solid role on the Lions defense on Sunday Night Football. He only registered one tackle in the box score but the fourth-year defensive tackle ate up space in the middle to pave the way for Aidan Hutchison and Marcus Davenport's combined 1.5 sacks and eight QB hits. The Lions needed overtime to take down the Rams 26-20 but McNeill's contributions on the D-line played a significant supporting role in the win.

Jakobi Meyers, WR, Las Vegas Raiders

New quarterback, same steady Jakobi Meyers in 2024. The Raiders wideout hauled in all three targets for 61 yards and one rush for three yards in Las Vegas' 22-10 to the Chargers. Though not huge numbers for him or the Raiders offense, Meyers picked up right where he left off in 2023 as an incredibly reliable target for Las Vegas in 2024.

He also boosted his career total to 3,626 receiving yards, surpassing Hall of Famer Don Hudson for 20th-most by an undrafted player through six seasons. With 16 games left in his 2024 campaign, Meyers has plenty of time to keep climbing that leaderboard as one of the best undrafted receivers in recent memory.

Kentavius Street, DT, Atlanta Falcons

Street joins fellow Pack Pro James Smith-Williams on the 2024 Falcons D-line but their combined powers couldn't overcome the Steelers. Street logged three tackles and 0.5 run stuffs in Atlanta's season opener against Pittsburgh, an 18-10 loss. He and the Falcons look for their first win of the season next week at Philadelphia.

Drake Thomas, LB, Seattle Seahawks

Thomas made the most of his 10 special teams snaps against the Broncos, making his first tackle of 2024 in Seattle's 26-20 win. The second-year linebacker executed three tackles in seven games his rookie year. He hopes to keep building on that resume in year two.

Joe Thuney, OG, Kansas City Chiefs

Thuney and the Chiefs went out on Thursday Night Football and outlasted the Ravens 27-20 in a hard-fought win, a successful first step in Kansas City's quest for a three-peat. Thuney and the O-line limited Baltimore to two sacks and seven QB hits on Patrick Mahomes which is about as good as you can hope for against the Ravens defense. The Chiefs look to improve to 2-0 next week at home against the Bengals.

Chandler Zavala, OG, Carolina Panthers

Zavala played only two snaps, both as part of the kicking unit, in the Panthers' week one loss to New Orleans. After a nightmarish blowout loss, he and the Panthers look to their home opener against the Chargers to generate some positive momentum for what may be a long season in Carolina.

The Patriots' Week 1 starter got the job done in an upset 16-10 win over the Bengals. Brissett completed 15 of 21 passes for 121 yards and rushed for 32 yards on seven carries.

Those aren't eye-popping numbers, especially considering he never found the end zone, but his production becomes quite impressive when you factor in the 48.3% of dropbacks where he faced pressure. Despite getting pressured more than any other QB in Week 1, Brissett committed zero turnovers and led the Pats to a 1-0 record.

"I don't think people understand," Brissett said, via a transcript from the team. "I think it's like the plan [head coach Jerod Mayo] put in place with us this week, knowing the work that he knows, foresaw for us to get to this point. He was preaching that the people in this room are the ones that matter and that came to fruition."

Seeing A.J. Cole do A.J. Cole proved one of the silver linings of the Raiders' mostly unproductive loss to the Chargers. The 2023 All-Pro kept up the good work by averaging 53 yards on his five punts against Los Angeles. He deposited three of those inside in the 20-yard line compared to one touchback and registered a long of 62 yards.

That 62-yarder marked his 48th career punts of at least 60 yards, tying Cleveland's Corey Bolorquez for the second-most such punts by a player in their first six seasons going back to 2000. Cole joins Meyers as a Pack Pro Raider climbing up leaderboards pertaining to his first six seasons in the NFL. If you got a nickel for every time a Raiders Pack Pro hit a milestone this week relating to their first six seasons in the NFL, you'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot but it's weird that it happened twice.

Brayden Narveson went undrafted this spring. He put together a great preseason for the Titans, including a 59-yard game-winning field goal, only to get cut. Friday night he made the most of his opportunities with the Packers by scoring the first-ever NFL points in Brazil.

Green Bay came up short in a hard-fought 34-29 loss against the Eagles but stayed in striking distance thanks in large part to Narveson. The rookie converted three out of four field goals, including a 31-yarder for those first NFL points in Sao Paolo, and both the Packers' extra points. His lone miss came at the end of the third quarter on a 43-yard attempt which bounced off the upright. Narveson kept his composure, however, and split the uprights for a 26-yarder on the very next drive. He hopes to keep up the good work in his Lambeau debut next week against the Colts.

Pratt did his part despite a 16-10 loss to the Patriots to start the season. The sixth-year linebacker racked up eight tackles, a tackle for loss and a pass deflection against New England.

That's not to say there's room for improvement. The Bengals still allowed 170 rushing yards and forced zero turnovers in a game where the offense desperately needed a little help from its defensive counterparts -- to be fair, Cincinnati losing the time of possession battle by nearly 10 minutes didn't help much either. Pratt and defense hope to right the ship quickly against an elite opponent on the road next week in the Kansas City Chiefs.

Smith-Williams marked one of three Pack Pros in the Falcons-Steelers and one of the two to earn their own slides. He amassed five tackles, two tackles for loss and a run stuff in his Falcons debut. This performance marked Smith-Williams' first career game with multiple tackles for loss and his second-highest career tackles in a game.

Smith-Williams spent his previous four seasons in Washington where he logged 85 tackles, 14 tackles for loss and seven sacks. After putting up those solid numbers with the Commanders, he took his production to new heights in his first game for Atlanta.

The latter of two NFL debuts on this list also earns its own slide. Payton Wilson racked up three tackles -- all of them solo -- in his first game for the Steelers. He drew the attention of fans and teammates alike for his instincts on the field to find the football in a hurry. The former manifested by dragging down Bijan Robinson and saving a touchdown in his first career tackle.

Man can we talk about this touchdown saving tackle by Payton Wilson though? pic.twitter.com/YCVoSBS4QF

— ???????? ???? ?? (@NajeeOPOY) September 9, 2024

After the game, Wilson's teammates also wasted no time praising the rookie for his speed. Star Pittsburgh linebacker and 2021 Defensive Player of the Year T.J. Watt -- who probably knows a thing or two about playing linebacker in the NFL -- praised Wilson's playmaking ability in the postgame presser.

"The guy's a gazelle -- he runs so fast," Watt told Brooke Pryor of ESPN during the Steelers postgame. "He's sideline-to-sideline. He absorbs so much information; always taking down so much notes. I'm not surprised he had a good game today."