With one week of regular season NFL football behind us, it’s a good time to remember that the trajectory of many games can flip in an instant. And a game’s outlook for one team can shift on absolutely anything in a seismic turning point.
One bad snap. One good throw. One unfortunate and ill-timed penalty. A sloppy turnover here and there. A terrible coaching decision in the crunch. Truly, there are many ways to snatch victory out of the jaws of defeat and vice versa. We already saw it in Week 1.
A young quarterback put his offense on his back in a messy affair. Elsewhere, redemption for a formerly injured receiver put the Giants in a great spot on the road. Meanwhile, no matter what they did, the Broncos seemingly couldn’t get out of their own way.
Here’s a breakdown of the biggest turning points from Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season.
Justin Fields creates a hole in the 49ers' defense by himself
In a muddy, rain-drenched game, the Bears’ offensive efforts against the 49ers on Sunday weren’t any better than the on-field conditions. Through one half of play, Chicago had six possessions, punted five times, and had 68 net yards. San Francisco was mercilessly bullying the Bears’ weak offensive front, and Justin Fields found it challenging to create space for himself or his receivers who couldn’t get separation.
Everything shifted on a dime late in the third quarter, with Fields and the Bears chasing a 10-0 deficit. On a third and very long 10 from midfield, the 49ers collapsed the young QB’s pocket almost instantaneously after the snap. Fields, ever the athlete, spun away from Arik Armstead and Charles Omenihu as the two pass rushers collided with one another.
Then, Fields kept his eyes downfield while rolling to the left before lobbing an easy pass across the field to a wide Dante Pettis. The receiver would take it into the end zone for a 51-yard score to make it 10-7:
.@justnfields magic 🪄
📺: #SFvsCHI on FOX pic.twitter.com/amaGgbiPm7
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) September 11, 2022
The pass in itself was probably an easy one for Fields. With his current receiving corps, that might be the most open he sees a target all season. But the blown coverage on Pettis doesn’t happen if Fields doesn’t make two professional edge rushers look silly with his athleticism.
If the Bears’ quarterback never pirouettes and extends the play with his legs, stressing the 49ers’ front as they chase him, Chicago’s possession likely ends in a sack and a punt. From there, the 49ers could just slowly salt away a messy win to the end, and the Bears would, once again, be who we thought they were. Instead, after Fields broke away from the rush and connected with Pettis, the Bears would score another 12 unanswered points (one another Fields touchdown pass) en route to a 19-10 win. At the same time, each of the last four San Francisco possessions went like this:
- Punt
- Interception
- Turnover on downs
- Turnover on downs
Fields plays the hero to break the back of the 49ers’ defense and ends up having the Bears salt away their own messy victory. It’s a set-up the Bears will assuredly take 10 times out of 10 moving forward.
Sterling Shepard sparks the Giants' offense in inspiring return
A year ago, Sterling Shepard suffered one of the worst injuries for an NFL player. In a late-season game against the Cowboys, the receiver tore his Achilles. It’s safe to say many in the Giants organization weren’t sure what Shepard’s immediate injury would be after an injury that often has an extended recovery process. And that’s for non-professional athletes, not dynamic football players who make a living with their speed.
With the Giants locked into a heated battle against the Titans, they missed an extra oomph while down 13-6 early midway through the third quarter. They were without a little extra something that could put them over the top and at least push the Tennessee defense. Saquon Barkley was running hard and well, but he had the complete attention of Titans’ DC Shane Bowen and all his players. Someone else would have to factor in the offense if the Giants were to pull the upset.
The “someone else” would be the resilient Shepard, who caught his longest pass since 2017 on a perfect 65-yard dime from Daniel Jones:
Great to have Sterling Shepard back. Here's his 65 yard touchdown pic.twitter.com/rG5gRDMYwX
— Nick Falato (@nickfalato) September 12, 2022
You can bet your bottom, top, middle, and diagonal dollar that Titans’ corner Kristian Fulton wants a complete do-over on that rep because Shepard toasted him to tie the game. Tennessee did score on the next possession in an answer but otherwise sputtered out entirely in a humiliating collapse with zero points in the last approximately 20 minutes of play.
Meanwhile, by the end of the game, with the Giants on the doorstep of a thrilling comeback, Shepard continued to be a tenacious force. This time he laid down a block on safety Amani Hooker in the hole, giving Barkley a lane for a big seven-yard run:
Here's a better angle of Shepard's impact block
Barkley's jump cut and acceleration through the hole were insanely impressive pic.twitter.com/KoF7Km700P
— Nick Falato (@nickfalato) September 12, 2022
Just two plays later, New York would tie the game and take the lead with a two-point conversion that turned out to be the difference in a 21-20 win.
Shepard showed a ton of grit and resolve with his Week 1 performance. And the Giants don’t leave Nashville with a win if he’s not scorching the Titans’ defensive backs on a much-needed explosive play or plugging them back in the hole.
Melvin Gordon and Javonte Williams hang the Broncos out to dry on the goal line
The Broncos should’ve blown out the Seahawks in Russell Wilson’s emotional return to Seattle on Monday night. Without looking at the final score, you’d have thought Denver opened the floodgates.
They outgained the Seahawks 433 to 253 in total yards. They were a sparkling 8-of-15 on third downs. And Russell Wilson even threw for a robust 340 yards at a strong 8.1 yards per pass attempt.
Yet, that’s not what happened for the Broncos. The Seahawks and Pete Carroll pulled off the incredible 17-16 upset over a squad many had pegged as a Super Bowl contender (they still might be!). Plenty of credit should go to a confident Geno Smith, and plenty of blame should go to Nathaniel Hackett for coaching way too conservatively in the clutch.
But the Broncos didn’t lose this game because Smith played well, nor because Hackett coached like a coward who didn’t trust his $161 million guaranteed quarterback to nab the win. Those reasons would be too easy to find fault in. They lost because their running backs couldn’t handle the ball near the goal line.
The first fumble came courtesy of Melvin Gordon. After the Broncos went on a sparkling 10-play drive to open the second half, Gordon got a fourth-down goal-to-go carry to potentially give the Broncos a well-earned 20-17 lead. Instead of a jubilant score, the Seahawks’ defense punched the ball out of Gordon’s arms and recovered it while he fought for the goal line in a (tragic) second effort:
Michael Jackson picks up the Melvin Gordon fumble on 4th and goal. pic.twitter.com/pfKZTM4twZ
— Main Team (@MainTeamSports2) September 13, 2022
No matter. There was still plenty of ball game left.
After the Denver defense forced and recovered a Seahawks fumble on the next possession, the Broncos once again found themselves on the doorstep in a goal-to-go situation. This time, they would lean on Javonte Williams. Not every ball-carrier can have butter on their fingers, right?
It produced largely the same results:
Javonte Williams saw Melvin Gordon fumble on the goalline and said “Bet” pic.twitter.com/09NFDietOy
— PlayerProfiler NFL (@Profiler_NFL) September 13, 2022
There’s arguably nothing more devastating in this sport than turning the ball over just a couple of yards away from paydirt. But to do it twice? When your offense generally had little issues moving the ball between the end lines? That’s … not ideal.
By the end of the evening, the Broncos wouldn’t convert a touchdown on any of their four red-zone trips. Given how Seattle managed a mere 44 total yards and scored no points in the second half — if either Gordon or Williams doesn’t lose the ball, we’re probably talking about a triumphant homecoming for Russell Wilson. Wilson likely gets his “revenge” over the Seahawks with one quality goal-line carry.
Football is so cruel, isn’t it?
