NFL Week 1 takeaways: Veteran RB starts season in historic fashion, Miami woes and is this team a surprise title contender?

After almost seven months away, the NFL is back in emphatic fashion.

All 32 teams made their 2025 season debuts in Week 1, with dramatic endings, statement wins and potentially damaging defeats among the outcomes on display.

Here are three big takeaways from the opening week of action.

King Henry continues his reign, despite late error

Another year has gone by and Derrick Henry is still Derrick Henry.

Despite being the oldest starting running back in the league, Henry showed that he is still one of the best in the business in a dominant performance on Sunday Night Football.

Starting his second season for the Baltimore Ravens, 31-year-old Henry ran for 169 yards on 18 carries and two rushing touchdowns against the Buffalo Bills.

Henry’s overall performance showed his all-around skillset: his power to break tackles and his breakaway speed on long touchdown runs.

His two scores were the 107th and 108th rushing touchdowns of his NFL career, breaking a tie for sixth with Hall of Famer Jim Brown on the all-time list for most in a career. He is now just two behind Walter Payton in fifth and 56 behind the leader Emmitt Smith.

The fact Henry is still able to produce at this level given he’s (presumably) in the latter stages of his career is a remarkable sight, especially because the position favors younger players. And his production on Sunday against the Bills was the main talking point the majority of the game.

That was until late in the fourth quarter when Henry had a costly fumble which sparked a late Buffalo comeback and resulted in a 41-40 loss for the Ravens.

Henry – who played eight seasons with the Tennessee Titans before moving to the Ravens ahead of last season – had lost one fumble in his previous 37 games, including the playoffs, before Sunday.

“First of all, I got to take care of the ball,” Henry told reporters after the game. “I told my teammates after the game to put the loss on me. I own it, like a man.

“We emphasize taking care of the ball since we got back, it’s a big emphasis, especially in our room and the running backs taking care of the football. Keeping it high and tight, not lackadaisical, and they made a play. But I put the loss on me. If I take care of the ball, probably be a different situation.”

Despite his costly late mistake, Henry proved why he’s still a difference-maker in the NFL. His signing last season would’ve been more of a story – he scored 16 rushing touchdowns and ran for 1,921 yards – but he was eclipsed by Saquon Barkley in his debut season with the Philadelphia Eagles as he rushed for 2,000 yards on the way to a Super Bowl title.

But if Henry can keep producing at this level – providing a key physical element to pair with the elusiveness of superstar QB Lamar Jackson – then the Ravens could be in-line for another deep playoff push.

Early issues in Miami

While many teams’ offseasons are filled with hope and optimism, the same cannot be said about the Miami Dolphins.

A disappointing end to last season ramped up the pressure on head coach Mike McDaniel heading into his fourth season in charge.

To make matters worse, star wide receiver Tyreek Hill appeared to express his frustration with the team’s performances, saying “I’m out” on social media.

Although Hill has returned to South Beach for another season, the pressure was on McDaniel to produce a winning team.

But things couldn’t have started much worse for the Dolphins in Week 1 against the Indianapolis Colts.

Facing a team which benched its top-five quarterback pick from two years ago and starting a passer whose future in the NFL has been questioned, Miami looked totally outclassed in the 33-8 loss.

Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa threw two interceptions and lost a fumble as the offense spluttered. The team’s only touchdown came late in the fourth quarter when the defeat was almost assured.

It wasn’t much better on the defensive side of the ball as they failed to slow down Colts QB Daniel Jones who, after signing in the offseason, had an impeccable game, throwing for 272 yards and a touchdown, as well as rushing for two more.

Miami’s whole performance was littered with errors, miscues and costly penalties, and the Dolphins have plenty of work to do going forward.

“Guys let the bells and whistles of Week 1 get the best of them, and they got dealt some strong humility,” McDaniel said afterwards. “We’re a young team going through some growing pains. That’s what the NFL is and what the NFL does – it teaches you some hard lessons sometimes.”

Miami already faced a tough road to make the playoffs in a division with the powerhouse Bills but that job looks even harder now.

Are the Chargers a Super Bowl contender?

For the second season in a row, the NFL traveled to Brazil in Week 1. And like last season, we might’ve just seen a Super Bowl contender shine in South America.

Last year, it was the Philadelphia Eagles beating the Green Bay Packers – the Eagles would go onto win Super Bowl LIX. This time around, the Los Angeles Chargers were victorious against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Despite being more than 6,100 miles away from their South California home, the Chargers showed the world their aspirations this year by beating the NFL’s recent dynasty team and their AFC West rivals, 27-21.

While LA’s defense worked hard to clamp down Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the rest of the KC offense, almost all the headlines were made by Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert.

The 27-year-old put in an all-around performance in São Paulo, throwing for 318 yards and three touchdowns. Most importantly, Herbert clinched the victory with a vital 19-yard run late in the fourth quarter, snapping a seven-game losing streak for the Chargers against Kansas City.

“Justin was phenomenal today in every way with pinpoint accuracy,” Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh said after the game. “I thought he did a great job with his legs and running at the end to seal the game.

“Just overall toughness and just complete stalwart. He took some big hits and gave a few shots himself. It was incredible quarterback play today.”

While the victory was impressive, more important perhaps was what it showed – the Chargers are for real.

With Harbaugh at the helm, Herbert at quarterback, a physically dominant offensive line and a defense which has improved rapidly over the last 18 months, they are looking like a formidable opponent for any team.

The Chargers will have to battle their recent history of bad luck with injuries and playoff mishaps if they want to be taken seriously come January. But after the victory in Brazil, Herbert isn’t getting ahead of himself.

“This was an important one because it was the first one,” the sixth-year quarterback said. “It’s a very good opponent that we are going against and obviously have a lot of respect for them. But I’m happy the way that all three phases executed today. That’s what our goal was, and it was good to see.”

Full Week 1 results

Winners in bold (Home vs. away)

Philadelphia Eagles 24-20 Dallas Cowboys

Los Angeles Chargers 27-21 Kansas City Chiefs

Atlanta Falcons 20-23 Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Cleveland Browns 16-17 Cincinnati Bengals

Indianapolis Colts 33-8 Miami Dolphins

Jacksonville Jaguars 26-10 Carolina Panthers

New England Patriots 13-20 Las Vegas Raiders

New Orleans Saints 13-20 Arizona Cardinals

New York Jets 32-34 Pittsburgh Steelers

Washington Commanders 21-6 New York Giants

Denver Broncos 20-12 Tennessee Titans

Seattle Seahawks 13-17 San Francisco 49ers

Green Bay Packers 27-13 Detroit Lions

Los Angeles Rams 14-9 Houston Texans

Buffalo Bills 41-40 Baltimore Ravens

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