Afternoon and Sunday Night games

The first on the list of afternoon games has the Washington Redskins hosting the New York Giants. New York opened with Eli Manning rushing 2 yards for a TD, and Lawrence Tynes making the extra point. Washington tied it in the second quarter with Tim Hightower rushing a yard into the end zone, followed by a Graham Gano extra point. The Giants stole the lead back with a 6 yard TD rush from Ahmad Bradshaw, followed by a Tynes PAT. The Redskins evened it up again with Rex Grossman's passing TD to Anthony Armstrong, 6 yards for the score, and Gano made the extra point. The two teams are deadlocked at 14 going into the locker rooms. Washington got defensive in the third quarter, with Ryan Kerrigan intercepting Manning for 9 yards and a score, and Gano providing another extra point. The Redskins kept it up in the fourth quarter with Grossman finding Jabar Gaffney for 4 yards and a score, allowing another PAT by Gano. Washington won it 28-14, going to 1-0 and dropping the Giants to 0-1.

Across the country, the San Diego Chargers host the Minnesota Vikings. Minnesota struck early with Percy Harvin returning the opening kick 103 yards for the touchdown, allowing Ryan Longwell a PAT. San Diego replied quickly as Philip Rivers tossed a one yarder to Mike Tolbert for the touchdown, and Mike Scifres made the extra point. The Vikings took the lead back with Longwell kicking a 33 yard field goal in the second quarter. Minnesota extended the lead as Donovan McNabb found Michael Jenkins for 3 yards and a score , as Longwell provided the extra point. The score had the Vikings up 17-7 at half. The Chargers got a few back on Tolbert's 7 yard TD run, and Scifres extra point. San Diego tied it in the fourth with Scifres field goal from 40 yards away, and he added the extra point for the 7-point San Diego lead after Rivers and Tolbert made a 19 yard connection for a touchdown. They would hold onto this 24-17 lead until the end, giving them a 1-0 record and the Vikings an 0-1 mark.

Eastward, to Arizona, with the Cardinals hosting the Carolina Panthers. Arizona scored first on a Beanie Wells touchdown run of 7 yards and a Jay Feely extra point. Carolina wasted little time in tying, with Cam Newton connecting with Steve Smith for his first NFL touchdown pass, a 77 yard catch and run that was followed up by Olindo Mare's PAT. The Panthers snagged the lead before halftime with another Newton-Smith connection, this time of 26 yards and a touchdown before Mare's extra point. The Cardinals tied it back up with Kevin Kolb connecting with Jeff King for 48 yards, and Feely supplying the extra point. Carolina took the lead back again with Newton himself jogging it in the end zone, the 1 yard run capped off by Mare's extra point. Arizona retied it as Kolb connected with Early Doucet for a 70 yard TD pass, and Feely added the extra point again. The Cardinals took the lead on a punt return of 89 yards by Patrick Peterson, good for a touchdown and extra point by Feely. Arizona weathered the storm to win 28-21, going to 1-0, while the Panthers fell to 0-1.

The last of the second major kickoff wave is the San Francisco 49ers hosting the Seattle Viking outcasts Seahawks. San Francisco first dented the scoreboard with second quarter field goals by David Akers, from 27, 24, and 31 yards away. Just before halftime, the 49ers dinged in a touchdown as Alex Smith ran 1 yard for the score, setting up an Akers extra point, and a 16-0 halftime score. Seattle finally got on the board in the third quarter as Tavaris Jackson connected with Golden Tate for 8 yards, followed by Steve Hauschka with the extra point. The Seahawks added a Hauschka field goal of 39 yards in the fourth. Akers tacked on a field goal in response, from 18 yards out. Seattle pulled within two on a Jackson TD pass to Doug Baldwin, with the PAT by Hauschka, but that was erased eleven seconds later as Ted Ginn, Jr. ran the kickoff back 102 yards, and Akers converted that extra point, and also the one after the Seahawks punt, which Ginn, Jr. returned 55 yards. The 49ers took a 33-17 win, improving to 1-0 and dropping Seattle to 0-1.

The Sunday Night game is between the New York Jets and Dallas Cowboys. (As a disclaimer, forgive me if I sound absolutely disgusted with this game, considering the competitors.) Dallas led off with a 3 yard Tony Romo touchdown pass to Dez Bryant, followed by Dan Bailey's extra point. Bailey added a second quarter field goal of 34 yards. New York struck just before the half, making it 10-7 with Mark Sanchez's connection with Dustin Keller for 4 yards, and Nick Folk's subsequent PAT. Dallas opened the second half with Romo finding Miles Austin for 36 yards and the score, followed by Bailey's extra point. Folk replied with a 34 yard field goal. The Cowboys added on again in the fourth quarter with Felix Jones rushing a yard to score a touchdown, and Bailey coming through with the extra point. The Jets pulled back with a Sanchez TD pass to Plaxico Burress, 26 yards away, and Folk made the extra point, and he added the tying point after the Jets blocked a punt and returned it in the hands of Isaiah Trufant 18 yards to the end zone. New York took the lead with a 50 yard field goal by Folk, a 27-24 lead they'd maintain to the very end for the win. They improve to 1-0, while dropping the Cowboys to 0-1.