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Axios PM
By Mike Allen, 9/11/2023!
Good Monday afternoon. Today’s PM — edited by Noah Bressner — is 493 words, a 2-min. read.
Thanks to Sheryl Miller for the copy edit.
1 big thing: Football’s ugly start
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow is hit as he throws during a 24-3 loss to the Cleveland Browns.
Photo: Sue Ogrocki/AP
The beautiful game, it was not.
- On the first full day of NFL action this season, sloppy play was everywhere.
What’s happening: Quarterbacks were brutalized, offenses stuttered and defense dominated.
- Some of the league’s most prominent players and teams were upset, and scoring was down, The Wall Street Journal’s Andrew Beaton writes.
- Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow — whose new contract makes him the league’s highest-paid player at $55 million a year — threw for a career-low 82 passing yards.
The New York Giants — led by newly re-signed QB Daniel Jones — were embarrassed by the Cowboys last night. Jones passed for just 104 yards, with two interceptions.
- “The final was 40-0,” New York Post columnist Mike Vaccaro wrote. “In truth, it could have been anything the infidels from Dallas wanted it to be. It was that bad. It was that brutal.”
- Passing touchdowns were down. Sacks and fumbles increased.
- Teams averaged just 196.4 passing yards in games through Monday. Passing hasn’t been that low over a full season in three decades.
- Teams that were trialing young QBs — with few exceptions — were drummed.
The other side: It was only Week 1.
- Keep reading (subscription).
The beautiful game, it was not.
- On the first full day of NFL action this season, sloppy play was everywhere.
What’s happening: Quarterbacks were brutalized, offenses stuttered and defense dominated.
- Some of the league’s most prominent players and teams were upset, and scoring was down, The Wall Street Journal’s Andrew Beaton writes.
- Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow — whose new contract makes him the league’s highest-paid player at $55 million a year — threw for a career-low 82 passing yards.
The New York Giants — led by newly re-signed QB Daniel Jones — were embarrassed by the Cowboys last night. Jones passed for just 104 yards, with two interceptions.
- “The final was 40-0,” New York Post columnist Mike Vaccaro wrote. “In truth, it could have been anything the infidels from Dallas wanted it to be. It was that bad. It was that brutal.”
- Passing touchdowns were down. Sacks and fumbles increased.
- Teams averaged just 196.4 passing yards in games through Monday. Passing hasn’t been that low over a full season in three decades.
- Teams that were trialing young QBs — with few exceptions — were drummed.
The other side: It was only Week 1.
- Keep reading (subscription).
