Panic Meter for Bryce Young, Worst Week 1 NFL Performances

It's easy to have optimism just ahead of the NFL season.

It's also not uncommon for it to all come crashing down by the end of Week 1.

The first week of action brought plenty of surprises and not all of them were good.

Bryce Young's sophomore season didn't get off to the strongest start, the Browns and Bengals sputtered, and more than one rookie quarterback struggled to make an impact in their debut.

The hard part is figuring out just how worried fans, coaches and front offices should be about these performances.

Football is already a small sample size sport and drawing conclusions based on one week can be a dangerous game.

Here, we'll take a look at some of the most disappointing team and player performances from the opening slate of games and determine whether or not it's time to hit the panic button.

What Went Wrong The Falcons offense is supposed to be one of the most improved in the league.

With Kirk Cousins taking over at quarterback and Zac Robinson moving into the offensive coordinator role, there's a lot of hype that the core of Bijan Robinson, Drake London and Kyle Pitts will finally thrive.

That wasn't the case on Sunday, though, as Cousins completed just 16-of-22 pass attempts for one touchdown and two picks.

The Falcons managed just 10 points in an eight-point loss.

Reason for Optimism Changing the offensive coordinator and quarterback is going to bring a seismic change to the offense, but it could also mean taking some lumps along the way.

According to ESPN Analytics , Atlanta utilized a pistol formation on 52 percent of its offensive plays and Cousins had never taken more than 10 pistol snaps in a game throughout his career.

That's just one change that the veteran QB is going to adjust to under Robinson.

It also doesn't help that the Falcons opened the season with TJ Watt and a strong Steelers defense.

Reason for Panic This could be the result of taking a risk on a 36-year-old quarterback coming off a midseason Achilles tear.

Cousins did not look comfortable throwing the ball downfield and the offensive line did not look good in protection.

Watt's big day was understandable, but Montravius Adams and Larry Ogunjobi also combined for a sack and three quarterback hits.

This wasn't just a Cousins problem, there were issues with the scheme, blocking and the four-time Pro Bowler that made it a bad day all round.

Panic Meter: 3/10 All things considered, most of the Falcons' issues should get better with time.

Cousins is going to get back up to speed after sitting out with his injury, Robinson will figure out how to put his playmakers in position to make plays, and they'll play worse defenses than Pittsburgh.

What Went Wrong The Broncos put a lot on Bo Nix's plate in a 26-20 loss to the Seattle Seahawks and it wasn't good for anyone.

He threw the ball 42 times and his 3.3 yards per attempt was tied for the sixth-lowest figure in any game with at least 40 pass attempts since 1970, per Benjamin Solak of ESPN.

The Oregon product threw for just 138 yards with two interceptions.

It was expected that he would have some growing pains, but there were not a lot of highlights in this performance.

Reason for Optimism Nix is still a rookie and didn't get much support from the cast around him.

The Broncos' run-game woes are partially responsible.

The trio of Javonte Williams, Jaleel McLaughlin and Audric Estime combined for 64 yards on 20 carries.

Nix had a rough outing, but the run game shouldn't be that bad every week and that should give him a better context to have success.

Reason for Panic The numbers speak for themselves and they don't say much positive.

Nix's 2.5 average completed air yards were lower than everyone in the league outside of fellow rookie Jayden Daniels, per Next Gen Stats .

If Nix doesn't show that he can push the ball down field a bit, it's going to be easy for teams to defend the Broncos by stacking the box and getting aggressive.

Panic Meter: 3/10 There are a few mitigating factors at play here.

The Broncos are asking their rookie quarterback to play with a supporting cast that is also trying to grow alongside the quarterback.

There's also no reason to panic after a quarterback's first start unless it is a truly putrid performance.

Nix is going to need time to develop, but he's going to have to do it in front of a big audience every weekend.

What Went Wrong The Carolina Panthers had a rough season debut, but it was Bryce Young's performance that could be cause for panic.

Only Deshaun Watson had a lower QBR than Young's 10.7 mark, and he had the second-worst completion percentage over expected rate at -16.9, per Next Gen Stats .

The 2023 No.

1 overall pick completed just 13 of his 30 passing attempts for 161 yards, throwing two picks and taking two sacks.

The Panthers mustered just 10 points in a 47-10 blowout loss to the Saints.

Reason for Optimism Dave Canales made a name for himself by reviving the careers of Geno Smith and Baker Mayfield as an offensive coordinator.

The moves the Panthers made on paper are still good to help him reach his potential.

Baker Mayfield didn't look great in his Bucs debut last year, throwing for 173 yards on 20-of-34 passing, but he still ended up having the best season of his career.

Reason for Panic The performance wasn't just a result of a poor supporting cast or even bad coaching.

Young did not deliver the ball as he was expected to when he had opportunities to do so.

His first interception came on his first throw of the game when he overthrew Diontae Johnson and floated into the hands of a defender.

The offense itself was completely stagnant and crossing the 50-yard line was a rarity.

Panic Meter: 7/10 This is about as high as it can go for one player in a one-week sample size.

There's a chance that Young turns things around in Week 2 against the Steelers, but there's no evidence it's going happen.

It's hard to point to anything he did and believe there's going to be a quick turnaround.

The Alabama product was not good on Sunday, and that's bad news for the Panthers.

They spent the offseason investing in new weapons, an improved offensive line and better coaching.

They are running out of places to put the blame.

What Went Wrong The Chicago Bears got the win, but Caleb Williams did not light the world on fire in his pro debut.

In fact, his completion rate over expected was third-worst in the league with only Daniel Jones and Bryce Young putting up worse numbers, per Next Gen Stats .

The 2024 first overall pick was stifled by a Titans defense that isn't expected be among the league's best, but he only passed for 93 yards while taking two sacks.

Reason for Optimism The one difference between Williams and the other quarterbacks on this list is that he didn't turn the ball over.

One criticism of the USC product's game in college that had some merit was that his penchant for extending plays and going for chunk gains is that he is prone to turning the ball over.

There was none of that on Sunday.

Williams has the tools in front of him to rebound in a big way.

Given the Bears were playing with a new quarterback, offensive coordinator and receivers in Keenan Allen and Rome Odunze, it should have been expected that there would be some growing pains.

Reason for Panic There aren't a lot of real reasons for panic here.

Williams is an immensely talented prospect, and the Bears have surrounded him with talent.

The lack of production in Week 1 could be chalked up to a lot of things, and it's going to take a lot more than one bad game to panic about the No.

1 overall selection.

Panic Meter: 1/10 There's now way around the fact that this was a disappointing debut.

Williams was not only the top prospect in the class, but he was also the most fun.

He just has to get better at running the every-down operation of the offense, and the highlight throws will come.

What Went Wrong Given the expectations surrounding the Bengals going into the season, it's not hyperbole to say they got off to the worst start in the league.

The offense was lifeless and the defense got gashed by Rhamondre Stevenson of the New England Patriots.

Joe Burrow looked a lot like the version of the quarterback we saw early in 2023 when he was dealing with a calf strain.

He was unwilling to push the ball downfield and Ja'Marr Chase couldn't get loose.

Reason for Optimism The Bengals have been here before.

For whatever reason, Cincinnati has been a slow starter under Zac Taylor.

It lost three of its first four games last season before rallying to go 9-8.

In 2022, it famously went 2-3 before ripping off 12 wins in 13 games to go to the AFC Championship Game.

Getting Tee Higgins back should be big for this offense, and Burrow should gain confidence as he distances himself from the wrist injury that ended his season last year.

Reason for Panic No amount of Burrow improving or getting Higgins back is going to help the defense.

The run defense became an issue last season, and it doesn't appear that losing D.J.

Reader this offseason is going to do anything to help that.

The offense is probably going to be fine, but the Bengals defense took a real step back last season and it's unclear that they did enough this offseason to ensure it doesn't happen again.

Panic Meter: 7/10 This is not a good Patriots team.

The Bengals' slow start in 2022 was more of a product of an offense that just needed to get hot.

Even if the offense finds its groove, there are legitimate reasons to be worried what this defense is going to look like against the better teams in the league.

What Went Wrong The Browns defense that carried this team to the playoffs gave up 33 points and the revamped offense didn't offer much help.

Cleveland scored just 17 points and that included a touchdown with under a minute left when the game was well in hand for the Cowboys.

Deshaun Watson was a major letdown.

He went 24-of-45 for 169 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.

What was supposed to be an announcement that the Browns could become a threat against the Cowboys at home became a nightmare of an opener.

Reason for Optimism The defensive performance wasn't as bad as the final 33-17 score indicated.

The Browns held Dak Prescott to 179 passing yards and a QBR of 31.3 .

Ezekiel Elliott and Rico Dowdle combined for 66 yards on 18 carries.

Some of Watson's struggles could be attributed to the offensive line.

With Jedrick Wills and Jack Conklin both out with injuries, Watson was sacked six times with 17 quarterback hits.

Getting both tackles and Nick Chubb back from injury are all silver linings for an offense that was bad on Sunday.

Reason for Panic It's been a long time since we've seen Deshaun Watson look elite.

The Browns brought in Ken Dorsey as offensive coordinator and traded for Jerry Jeudy to upgrade the passing game.

It was hard to see those improvements, though, and it's fair to wonder if and when Watson is going to look like the quarterback he was in Houston.

There's much less reason to legitimately panic about the defense, but it's reasonable to expect that it might take a step back and that's a scary thought if the offense can't progress.

Panic Meter: 7/10 Is there a chance that the return of Wills, Conklin and Chubb eventually rights the offense? Sure, but there's a chance the offense continues to look sluggish and erratic.

Time is running out on the Watson era of the Cleveland offense, and there aren't great options to get out of his contract at this point.

The Browns are going to have to reverse course quickly to stave off the panic.

What Went Wrong Antonio Pierce's official head coaching debut was a disappointment.

Expectations weren't high, but part of hiring the 45-year-old was the notion that he could continue the momentum gained from the team's 5-4 finish to last season and a defense that was on the rise.

Losing to the Chargers, who are also in the first year of a new head coach, by double digits was not what the Silver and Black had in mind.

The Raiders defense gave up 135 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries from J.K.

Dobbins.

The Chargers outscored Las Vegas 16-6, and the Raiders lost 10.7 percent win probability with their fourth-down decision-making, per ESPN Analytics .

Reason for Optimism The defense wasn't great, but the Raiders were able to move the ball through the air.

Gardner Minshew II isn't the most exciting starting quarterback, but he connected on 25 of his 33 pass attempts for 257 yards and a touchdown with one pick.

It wasn't all about Davante Adams, either; he led the way with five receptions for 59 yards, but Jakobi Meyers had more yards with 61 on three catches and eight players made at least one catch.

The secondary, which was a concern heading into the season, looked fine.

The Chargers don't have good receivers, but they limited Justin Herbert to 144 yards through the air.

Reason for Panic The Raiders really missed Malcolm Koonce, and Tyree WIlson didn't step up to replace his production.

Maxx Crosby had a sack, but it was a quiet day for the rest of the pass-rushers.

Vegas only hit Herbert five times all game.

It's going to be hard for the Raiders to be a factor this season without an elite pass rush.

On offense, the Raiders' inability to run the ball is a real cause for concern.

They averaged 3.2 yards per carry, and there wasn't a whole lot of room to run.

Panic Meter: 8/10 The Raiders are a hard team to get a read on.

There's a universe in which the defensive front takes the next step forward and anchors a defense that could be top 10 in the league.

Given Minshew's play, they could scrape together enough offense to be relevant.

There's also a world in which the Vegas run game doesn't get going, it can't get after the quarterback and it put way too much on Minshew's plate on its way to a top-10 pick.

What Went Wrong Just about everything.

Every pessimistic view of the Giants heading into the season was verified in their season opener.

They lost 28-6 against a team that was 25th in our initial power rankings before the season started.

Sam Darnold soundly outplayed Daniel Jones in the blowout, and the Giants defense had no answer for a quarterback who has a career passer rating of 78.8.

The offense was equalliy pitiful and didn't attempt a single pass that traveled more than 20 yards in the air.

Reason for Optimism Maybe Darnold is in for a career resurgence.

We've seen Geno Smith and Baker Mayfield revive their careers, and Darnold could be next in line with a good situation in Minnesota.

A matchup against Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders could see the defense bounce back in Week 2.

The offense might get better as Daniel Jones gets into a groove after missing 11 games last season.

Reason for Panic There's a good chance Daniel Jones is just Jets-era Darnold.

There was speculation going into this season that Jones was a lame-duck quarterback with the Giants giving themselves an out in his contract next season.

The secondary was an issue on paper before the season even started.

Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux are the Giants' best bet to field a capable defense.

That might just be a lot of wishful thinking.

Panic Meter: 9/10 The GIants came into the season as the 31st-ranked team in our initial power rankings.

This season opener only confirms that the Giants might just be who we thought they were..

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