It's not really possible to watch all the game every Sunday. You can watch the RedZone channel and see pieces of everything, or you can focus on a couple of early and a couple of late games, then watch the primetime game and yet another one after that. There is no perfect system.
I mix it up, usually spending most of my time on RZC, but occasionally getting reeled into one particularly compelling game and sticking with that one. This Monday column will be one composed of what I was able to pick up from the previous day -- full games, highlights, and those awesome DirecTV Short Cuts that compress three hours of TV into about 25 minutes of actual football (think about that for a minute, and weep softly). If I completely skip a game, well, I haven't had a chance to watch a noteworthy amount of it yet and don't want to make stuff up.
Colts at Bills: The Bills are going to be pretty good this year. Defense will be tough on just about everyone, and their offense has some players. Not going to panic about LeSean McCoy's quiet game, but it's clear that Karlos Williams is a viable No. 2 who needs to be owned everywhere. Very nice game for Tyrod Taylor, too. Sweet TD throw to Harvin, some nice running yards. But let's see what Bill Belichick cooks up for him next week. ... T.Y. Hilton out multiple weeks with a knee injury. Grab Donte Moncrief, if available. Rough day for Andre Johnson, including an end-zone drop. Glad I didn't draft Frank Gore anywhere. Not to be negative, but not a great start for Indy.
Packers at Bears: It's just one week, but maybe beliefs of Matt Forte's demise in Chicago's offense were exaggerated. Pretty much the same guy in Week 1. He's awesome. Chicago's passing game looked about the same, too, for good and ill. Nice game, ultimately, for Martellus Bennett. So-so for Alshon Jeffery, but at least he was out there. ... OK, so James Jones had the big game yesterday. I will still happily start Davante Adams, who will make things up to us all starting next week. ... Awesome TD catch by Cobb, what with the bum shoulder and all.
Kansas City at Texans: I wanted to get Travis Kelce this year, but kept missing him, league after league. Uh, because I didn't draft him high enough. Guess I will have to use him in daily fantasy leagues or the Super League, 'cause that's all I got. Anyway, he's great, so is Jamaal Charles, and Jeremy Maclin looks OK, too. Alex Smith benefits. ... Big game for DeAndre Hopkins. Houston's passing game has nothing else going for it, but Hopkins is for real. Hurry back, Arian! Saw a report that said maybe Week 2. Probably not, but Week 3 or 4, at least, seems reasonable.
Browns at Jets: Those who picked the Jets in survivor pools, those who picked Jets in fantasy drafts, and those who avoided the Browns entirely are all happy today. Chris Ivory, Brandon Marshall and the Jets Defense all did their thing in this game. Next week they play the Colts, and it won't be surprising if their offense has another solid game. Defense, too. Too late to draft the likes of Ivory and Marshall, so I hope you didn't discount them too much on draft day just because they were Jets. ... Josh McCown getting knocked out in Week 1, who saw that coming. Oh right, most of us did during the preseason. More pain coming for Cleveland, it seems.
Seahawks at Rams: What a game. Pretty funny to see the Seahawks get a chance to pick up a yard on fourth and one in overtime, give the ball to Marshawn Lynch, and have him get stuffed 3 yards behind the line. Also funny, the League season-opener that riffed on that Super Bowl call. As for the game, well, the Rams always play Seattle tough. Not as big a shocker as you might think. Nick Foles is a capable passer, Rams got Tavon Austin in space and good things happened, their two tight ends caught lots of passes, Benny Cunningham didn't kill you if you picked him up and started him. Seattle now faces Green Bay in Week 2, should be another classic.
Dolphins at Washington: I feel bad for saying negative things about Alfred Morris, basically ever. Guy is a great running back; imagine if the team was any good at quarterback or defense. DeSean Jackson, hamstring injury, we'll see. Jordan Reed, when healthy, is quite a nice fantasy tight end. He won't stay healthy forever, but enjoy it while you can. A workmanlike win for the Dolphins, they may have some wins (and losses) like that this season. Not a terribly exciting offensive team. Hope you got credit for Jarvis Landry's return touchdown, the difference between a good day and a great one.
Saints at Cardinals: Impressive win for the Cardinals, I doubted their defense, but it looked just fine. Sweet route on a touchdown for John Brown, the Cardinals receiver I drafted first in an important league. Didn't do much after that, but I'm still liking the breakout season. And...Andre Ellington goes down with a non-contact knee injury, carted off. Probably bad. Expect a Chris Johnson-David Johnson tandem. ... Terrible game for the Saints, though it wasn't all bad. Great receiving numbers from Mark Ingram, good fantasy game from Drew Brees. Am wishing I hung onto Willie Snead in dynasty, as he might be a factor here eventually. Brandin Cooks had to deal with Patrick Peterson; things will get better. Don't ship him out right away.
Lions at Chargers: Nice to see Ameer Abdullah open the game by rewarding all of us talking him up in August and drafting him everywhere. Definitely the team's best running back, nice deke of the safety on his touchdown run. But...guess the Lions defense will miss Ndamukong Suh, or something, because man they really got lit up by Philip Rivers and Keenan Allen. Stevie Johnson and Ladarius Green good games, which happens when your quarterback throws for 400 yards. Johnson almost scored again, Green looked like a nice fill-in for Gates out there. Danny Woodhead, San Diego's best running back. A little unexpected. Melvin Gordon did have a touchdown called back. ... I will admit to being a little concerned that Eric Ebron had more yards than either Calvin Johnson or Golden Tate, and that Matthew Stafford struggled. Just one week, and it's a nice pair of cornerbacks in San Diego, but still, don't like to see that.
Bengals at Raiders: Hey, Jeremy Hill! Looking good there. Perhaps the Bengals were annoyed that they got trashed all offseason, but you know, if they didn't always lose in the playoffs, that stuff wouldn't happen. Anyway, rough debut for the Raiders and Derek Carr is hurt, but I'm not giving up on this team. Well, unless Matt McGloin has to start much longer. I won't make too much of Marcel Reece catching 2 TDs because the game was over and the Bengals weren't paying attention when those plays occurred. I won't spend my waiver claim there. Latavius Murray did fine (Autocorrect turns his name into "Laxatives," that's not cool) and I still like the guy. ... Big game for Tyler Eifert, We had a hunch but should have gone even stronger, I guess.
Titans at Buccaneers: I suppose the big story is Mariota versus Winston, and if so, advantage Mariota. Winston's 2 interceptions were, uh, really bad. But the real surprise here is that all the friends I ripped for drafting Bishop Sankey can smirk after his 86 yards and 1 TD. Replaced at the goal line twice by Terrance West, who didn't score; later, Sankey stayed in and scored. West also lost a fumble. Not gonna talk up Sankey too much (hey, he fumbled too!), but I guess I can stop trashing him for a week or two. ... Really nice game for Mariota, who seems to be a boon to Kendall Wright. ... Austin Seferian-Jenkins' huge game is ammunition for those who downplay what happens (or doesn't) in the preseason. Looks like he's gonna have a good season. Suddenly the tight end position doesn't look so terrible, does it?
Giants at Cowboys: Costly, crazy win for Dallas, with Dez Bryant out for the next month at least with a foot injury. Terrance Williams is the obvious beneficiary, as is Jason Witten (as seen last night). Nobody wanted to draft him in my FFPC league so I took him a couple of rounds after Martellus Bennett as my second tight end, which worked out great in Week 1. I guess Devin Street is the speculative waiver pickup. Both teams used a committee at running back; fine if games are high-scoring, probably not most weeks. And there won't be a lot of rushing touchdowns for Dallas. Was high on Romo-Bryant-Witten entering season, looks good so far.
Monday, Monday times two: Am expecting a wild shootout from Falcons-Eagles, and that Minnesota will handle San Francisco pretty easily. But San Francisco's defense still has some good players, so maybe I'll be surprised. Carlos Hyde is the Niner to start. And of course, that game begins at 10:30 here on the East Coast. We're all adults here, but you know, that's really kind of late. Nice for those on the West Coast, I suppose.