By Ben Jenkins, Podcast Manager 

In one of the highest scoring opening weekends in NFL history, the Ohio teams had polar opposite weeks. 

Cincinnati’s defense came out firing, a welcomed change for Bengals fans. On the Tampa Bay Buccaneers second possession of the game, Myles Murphy and Barrett Carter were able to get the Buc’s quarterback, Baker Mayfield, forcing a fumble that was scooped up and returned for six by Demetrius Knight Jr. 

This put the Bengals up 7-3 and on the very next possession they forced yet another fumble. Cincinnati was able to capitalize on the turnover when quarterback Joe Burrow found tight end Mike Gesicki for a two yard touchdown. 

“After those two forced turnovers I felt the front office had finally addressed the defensive issues that have hurt us for years. You could feel the hope that this year might be the year we get back to the standard we expect with Burrow as quarterback in the stadium”, sophomore business major, Brayden Spriggs, who was in attendance, said. 

They were able to take a 24-10 lead into halftime but the Buccaneers were able to rally back to keep the game within reach after a pick six put them within seven late in the game. Kicker Evan McPherson was able to drill two 50 plus yarders and after a late Tampa Bay touchdown Joe Burrow and the rest of the Bengals offense was able to wind the clock down and start the year 1-0. 

Burrow finished 25-35 for 254 yards and touchdown. Outside of the pick six Burrow was exactly what you would expect from a consensus top ten quarterback.  

The day could not have gone more different for the Browns as they lost 34-10 on the road in Jacksonville.  

On the first drive of the game, the infamous Deshaun Watson threw a head-scratching interception, which led to a Jaguars touchdown. Things continued to go downhill from there.  

Jacksonville went on to completely dominate the Browns for the rest of the first half taking a 24-0 lead into the break. Cleveland managed just a single first down through the first two quarters.  

Unfortunately for the Browns, nothing changed in the second half. The Jaguars lead eventually stretched to 31-0, before they pulled their starters. In a game about as bleak as they come, rookie Denzel Boston caught a 53-yard touchdown in garbage time, the lone bright spot of the entire game for the Browns. 

“Being a Browns fan is like watching Sisyphus push the rock up the hill for eternity,” sophomore biomedical science major and lifelong Browns fan Evie Limberg said. 

Throughout the rest of the league there was much excitement with multiple shoot outs and nail biters.  

The Chicago Bears put 552 yards of total offense in a 59-37 point win versus the Panthers. Chicago quarterback Caleb Williams, who is coming off an incredible end to his sophomore season, picked up right where he left off putting up four touchdowns and over 300 yards. 

The Bills and Texans game came down to the wire in Houston finishing as 36-31 Buffalo. Quarterback Josh Allen found Bills receiver Josh Palmer in the endzone to take a lead with just one minute and 41 seconds left on the clock and, after a C.J Stroud fumble, Buffalo came away with the win. 

While week one brought excitement across the entire NFL, it left the Ohio fan bases feeling two very different ways. For Bengals fans there is real optimism that with their new looking defense can bring back to the highs they have seen with Burrow at the helm. In Cleveland it seems like it is going to be more of the same losing Browns fans have grown accustomed to.