The NFL season starts with every team at 0-0. One game makes up only a small part of the schedule. Yet some Week 1 moments have shaped entire seasons.
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The 2026 season began Wednesday, Sept. 9. The defending champion Seattle Seahawks defeated the AFC champion New England Patriots, 13-10, at Lumen Field in a rematch of last February’s Super Bowl.
Week 1 runs through Monday, Sept. 14. The opening slate also included the NFL’s first regular-season game in Australia, with the San Francisco 49ers rolling over the Los Angeles Rams, 27-7, in Melbourne.
Over the years, quite a few Week 1 games ended up having huge ripple effects. A single game completely flipped a team’s quarterback situation on its head, exposed glaring weaknesses or set the stage for an unforgettable championship run.
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Here are six Week 1 shockers that changed the course of an entire NFL season.
New York Jets Training Camp | Mike Stobe/GettyImages
The New York Jets entered 2023 with huge expectations after acquiring Aaron Rodgers from the Green Bay Packers. The four-time MVP was supposed to end New York’s long playoff drought.
That plan lasted four offensive snaps.
During the Monday night opener against Buffalo, Bills edge rusher Leonard Floyd sacked Rodgers. Rodgers landed awkwardly and tore his left Achilles tendon. The MRI confirmed the injury the next day.
His season ended after just one pass attempt.
New York still beat Buffalo 22-16 in overtime behind Zach Wilson. The win, however, could not hide what had happened.
The Rodgers trade had included an unconditional 2023 second-round pick sent to Green Bay. It also included a separate, conditional 2024 second-round pick that would upgrade to a first-round pick if Rodgers played at least 65% of the Jets’ offensive snaps that season. His injury made that threshold impossible, so Green Bay’s bonus pick stayed a second-rounder.
The Jets finished 7-10. They missed the playoffs for the 13th straight season. That was the same record they had in 2022.
Rodgers returned in 2023 and put together a decent season, but the Jets took another step back, finishing 5-12.
A tie foreshadows a lost season
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Indianapolis Colts quarterback Matt Ryan before a game against the Houston Texans at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Credit: USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
Matt Ryan’s first game with the Indianapolis Colts looked like a disaster for three quarters.
Indianapolis had a chance to win in overtime. Rodrigo Blankenship missed a 42-yard field goal, and the game ended in a tie.
It was the Colts’ first tie since 1982. The result also extended their streak without a Week 1 win to nine seasons.
Problems from that opener continued. Indianapolis started 3-5-1, and head coach Frank Reich was fired on Nov. 7. Former Colts center Jeff Saturday took over as interim coach despite having no previous professional coaching experience.
Saturday went 1-7. The Colts finished 4-12-1.
Their season also included a 33-0 halftime lead that disappeared against Minnesota. That became the biggest blown lead in NFL history.
Oct 19, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Peyton Manning looks on during the game between the New York Giants and the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
Peyton Manning opened the 2013 season with one of the best games of his career.
Denver faced the defending Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens on Sept. 5. Manning completed 27 of 42 passes for 462 yards.
Manning became only the sixth quarterback to reach seven touchdowns. He was also just the second to do it without an interception, after Y.A. Tittle in 1962.
The performance proved to be a sign of things to come. The Broncos finished 13-3 and scored an NFL-record 606 points. That mark still stands entering the 2026 season.
Manning also set records with 55 touchdown passes and 5,477 passing yards. Five Denver skill players scored at least 10 touchdowns each.
The Broncos reached Super Bowl XLVIII but lost 43-8 to Seattle. Their record-setting offense, however, had already been on display from Week 1.
Patriots: Tom Brady goes down
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New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady throws a touchdown pass over the Tennessee Titans defense at LP Field, the Titans lost their home and season opener 34-13. Credit: USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
New England entered 2008 as the defending AFC champion, a season removed from nearly pulling off a perfect season. Then its outlook for the new campaign changed in the first quarter.
The Patriots still beat the Chiefs 17-10. Their biggest problem had just begun.
Matt Cassel took over at quarterback. The 2005 seventh-round pick had not started a football game at any level since a 1999 high school playoff game.
Cassel ended up making 15 starts. He threw for 3,693 yards, 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
New England finished 11-5. That normally would have been enough to reach the playoffs. Instead, the Patriots missed the postseason on conference-record tiebreakers behind Miami and Baltimore.
They became only the second 11-5 team in the 16-game era to miss the playoffs. The other was the 1985 Denver Broncos.
Brady’s injury also helped lead to a 2009 rule clarification. It became known as the “Brady Rule” and gave quarterbacks greater protection around the knees.
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New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick watches a play against the Buffalo Bills in the fourth quarter at Highmark Stadium. Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports
The 2007 Patriots opened with a 38-14 win over the New York Jets. The game also started one of the biggest controversies in NFL history.
Four days later, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell punished the Patriots. Bill Belichick received a $500,000 fine. The team was fined another $250,000.
New England also lost its 2008 first-round pick, which would have been the 31st selection. It was the first time the NFL had taken away a first-round pick as a penalty.
The Patriots responded by dominating the league. They finished 16-0, becoming the first team to complete a perfect 16-game regular season.
Tom Brady threw 50 touchdown passes. Randy Moss caught 23 of them. The team scored 589 points.
New England came within one win of a perfect season. The Giants beat the Patriots 17-14 in Super Bowl XLII after David Tyree’s famous helmet catch.
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St. Louis Rams quarterback Kurt Warner (13) walks to the sidelines after being sacked during a 20-17 loss to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXVI at the Louisiana Superdome. Credit: Bob Breidenbach/Providence Journal-USA TODAY NETWORK
The St. Louis Rams entered 1999 after going 4-12 a season earlier. Their offense ranked 27th in the NFL in yards gained in 1998.
St. Louis signed Trent Green to a four-year, $17.5 million contract. He was expected to become the team’s starting quarterback.
That plan ended in the preseason. Green tore his ACL and MCL after a hit from Chargers safety Rodney Harrison.
Kurt Warner suddenly became the starter.
Warner was an undrafted 28-year-old who had worked at a grocery store. He had also played in the Arena Football League and NFL Europe. Before the opener, he had only 11 career NFL pass attempts.
The rookie-looking quarterback then threw three touchdowns in each of his first three starts. No other NFL quarterback has matched that feat.
St. Louis finished 13-3. Warner led the league with 4,353 passing yards and 41 touchdowns. His 109.2 passer rating also led the NFL.
He won the NFL MVP award. The Rams then beat Tennessee 23-16 in Super Bowl XXXIV. Warner threw for a what was then a Super Bowl-record 414 yards and won Super Bowl MVP.
One injury opened the door. One Week 1 performance made it clear that Warner belonged there. The Rams never looked back.
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