NFL WEEK ONE IN REVIEW

The first week of the 2009 NFL season is in the books and there were the usual surprises that come with the first week of the new season.
Who would have thought the 49ers would beat Arizona, last year's NFC representative in the Super Bowl, in the opener while limiting the Cardinals to 16 points? That's what happened though and it looks like it may be a three-team race in the NFC West this season.
Philadelphia bombing Carolina 38-10 was a surprise considering the Panthers strong home record in season's past. Quarterback Donovan McNabb was injured in the game and the Eagles signed Jeff Garcia to take his place in a move that worked so well in 2006 when Garcia took the Eagles to the playoffs when McNabb went down.
Traditional rivals Chicago and Green Bay went at it on the national TV Sunday night game with the Packers pulling it out 21-15 as new Bears' QB Jay Cutler was intercepted four times in the game. Aaron Rodgers hit Greg Jennings with the game-winning TD strike late in the game.
The weekend wrapped up with an exciting finish to complement the season opener that saw defending Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh top Tennessee 13-10. The Monday night games (the traditional ESPN doubleheader) were duds for the the most part until the fourth quarter in both games.
That's when the fireworks happened. New England Patriots QB Tom Brady threw a pair of touchdown passes in the final two minutes to lead the Pats back to victory against the upstart Buffalo Bills 25-24. A fumbled kickoff return by the Bills' Leodis McKelvin set up the game winning pass from Brady to Tight End Benjamin Watson (for the second time) with just one minute remaining.
The last game of the kickoff weekend saw the San Diego Chargers beat their arch rivals, the Oakland Raiders 24-20 as Darren Sproles scored on a five-yard run with 18 seconds to play for the win.

Some of the best individual achievements included ...

New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees throwing for 358 yards and SIX touchdowns in the Saints' 45-27 win over the Detroit Lions... Patriots QB Tom Brady throwing two TD passes in a span of 1:16 to bring his team back from defeat against Buffalo... Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson rushing for 180 yards and three touchdowns as the Vikes beat the Browns in Cleveland... The Philadelphia Eagles defense forcing SEVEN turnovers against Carolina and scoring a touchdown in the process in the 38-10 rout... The Seattle Seahawks "D" for a shutout victory against the St. Louis Rams... New York Jets rookie QB Mark Sanchez throwing for 272 yards and a TD in the 24-7 win over Houston... Dallas Cowboys' QB Tony Romo passing for three TDs and 353 yards in his team's 34-21 win at Tampa Bay.

Notable Injuries from Week One- Donovan McNabb (Philadelphia, QB); Brian Urlacher (Chicago, Linebacker); Nick Hardwick (San Diego, Center); Troy Polamalu (Pittsburgh, Safety)

Stay tuned for more excitement as Week Two in the NFL unfolds this coming weekend.
Key games will include ... Pittsburgh at Chicago; New England at New York Jets; Baltimore at San Diego; New York Giants at Dallas; Seattle at San Francisco; New Orleans at Philadelphia.