15 key questions for NFL Week 1

After a very long offseason, the 2018 NFL season is finally upon us with a full slate of games to kick off the season. There is no shortage of storylines and excitement as kickoff approaches, with the stage set for the surprises and disappointments that the NFL season will inevitably bring.

So what are we watching for as the season gets underway? Here are 15 big questions to keep in mind as the season kicks off.

1) How will Oakland fans respond to Jon Gruden?

Gruden managed to end his honeymoon period with Raiders fans before the season could even begin. The trade of Khalil Mack, for which he will be blamed, was a real shock to the system on the eve of the season, and that wound will still be fresh when the Raiders take the field at the Coliseum on Monday evening. It’s been a decade since Gruden roamed an NFL sideline, and the game has changed. Nobody’s really expecting Gruden to get booed by the Black Hole, but the reception may not be as rapturous as it could have been anymore.

2) What will Sam Darnold look like in his NFL debut?

The Jets committed to Darnold quite early, and he looked generally solid during the preseason. He’ll make his regular season debut on the road in Detroit on “Monday Night Football.” The Jets probably aren’t going to be a great offensive team, so he’ll have to figure out a lot himself, but as the only member of the class of first-round rookie quarterbacks to get a Week 1 start, all eyes will be on him.

3) What do the Jaguars have in store for act two?

The Jaguars really were remarkably close to a Super Bowl appearance — they led the Patriots for the bulk of the AFC title game and only fell behind inside the final three minutes. They’re being somewhat overlooked, in part because a lot of people still don’t really believe in Blake Bortles. They’re on the road against the New York Giants to start 2018 in what is definitely a winnable game. All eyes will still be on their defense — that unit will have to perform at an elite level once again.

4) Can the new-look Browns stay competitive against the division favorites?

Yes, there is some reason to believe the Browns will merely be bad-to-mediocre as opposed to historically awful. The schedule isn’t very forgiving to start them off, but an immediate opportunity to test themselves at home against AFC North favorites Pittsburgh can actually serve as a good measuring stick. Tyrod Taylor will be entrusted with the quarterback position, and they will expect the offense to improve under his watch. Can they stay in the game against a highly-touted Pittsburgh team?

5) How rusty will Andrew Luck look?

Luck is set to play in his first NFL game since New Year’s Day of 2017. He got 11 series under his belt in preseason, but the home opener against the Cincinnati Bengals will be an entirely different proposition. It’s easy to imagine that Luck won’t be at his sharpest when the game kicks off, and given the nature of his shoulder injury, it will be interesting to see how willing he is to absorb some contact. He is all set to go, though, and it will be interesting to see if there’s any rust after missing an entire season of action.

6) What will Jimmy Garoppolo look like facing a real test?

Jimmy G still hasn’t lost a game since starting for the San Francisco 49ers. After a rather eventful offseason, he’s set to begin his first full season as a starter, and he could hardly face a tougher test to open it. Aside from Jacksonville last season, Garoppolo will not have faced a defense like that of the Minnesota Vikings before. They’re capable of putting pressure on the quarterback and forcing turnovers. How he responds to it will tell us a lot about where he’s really at as a quarterback.

7) Will Saquon Barkley get off to a good start against a very stern test?

Barkley may be the most anticipated rookie making his NFL debut on Sunday. The first-year running back is being identified as an instant star, but he’ll have a tough defense to debut against in the Jacksonville Jaguars. Jacksonville didn’t have an elite run defense a year ago, but they stuff the passing game so well that you have to figure the Giants will be heavily reliant on Barkley to get them moving. It’s a lot to put on a rookie, but he certainly looks like he could be up to the challenge.

8) Can Patrick Mahomes keep the Chiefs competitive against quality opposition?

We still haven’t seen a whole lot of Mahomes at the NFL level, but he’ll be thrown right into the fire on the road against a Los Angeles Chargers team that many are expecting big things out of. All Mahomes will have to cope with is one of the league’s most terrifying pass rushes, though he’s getting a break with Joey Bosa out. Expectations are a bit tempered for Kansas City, but this is a team coming off consecutive AFC West titles. They won’t want to give that up easily.

9) What will the Dallas Cowboys look like?

Jerry Jones always expects the Cowboys to be Super Bowl contenders, but the roster as it stands simply does nt look like it’s up to meeting that task. There’s no way to spin the departures of Dez Bryant and especially Jason Witten as a positive for the offense or quarterback Dak Prescott. The consolation is a full season of Ezekiel Elliott, but this is a team with several question marks up front and a shallowness in the secondary. Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers will not be an easy first opponent.

10) Does Aaron Rodgers still have the weapons to compete with the league’s best?

Jordy Nelson is no longer a Green Bay Packer, which is an odd and jarring reality to enter into, especially for Aaron Rodgers. Nelson has long been Rodgers’s favorite target, but expect Davante Adams and Randall Cobb to get a lot of looks from Rodgers now that he’s gone. New tight end Jimmy Graham should also be an instant red-zone favorite. Of course, the Packers, who have ruled the NFC North for so long, are no longer the favorites in this division, which is arguably the toughest in football. Can Rodgers still single-handedly lead this team to wins over quality opponents with the weapons he possesses?

11) What will we see from Matt Nagy’s new Chicago Bears offense?

Khalil Mack talk notwithstanding, there are actually some reasons to get excited about the Chicago Bears this season. Matt Nagy is bringing a new offensive scheme in, one that is drawing a lot of praise from around the league. Mitchell Trubisky is firmly entrenched as the starting quarterback and showed flashes of quality last season. The team also added wide receivers Allen Robinson and Taylor Gabriel to give him something to work with. Kevin White may finally be ready to contribute, too. They’ll have a chance to surprise some people when they face the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night.

12) Can Case Keenum return the Broncos to respectability?

It’s no coincidence that the Broncos became a non-factor as soon as Peyton Manning retired. Neither Trevor Siemian nor Paxton Lynch proved to be the answer, so they’ve taken a chance on veteran Case Keenum, who broke out with the Minnesota Vikings in 2017. Keenum will face the Seattle Seahawks to open the season, a weakened defense that is there for the taking. He has to prove that he’s not a fluke. A solid opener would do a lot to convince people that he isn’t.

13) Forget elite — is Joe Flacco still a starting-caliber NFL quarterback?

Joe Flacco is facing a make-or-break season in Baltimore. They didn’t bring Lamar Jackson in to sit on the bench forever, after all. Flacco will get a rather forgiving opener against the Buffalo Bills, but a lot of eyes will be on him early in the season. If he struggles, expect a lot of calls for Jackson — or even Robert Griffin III, who is actually slated to be Flacco’s backup. The pressure is on the veteran like never before. Luckily he looked solid in the preseason. The Ravens are hoping he can continue that trend.

14) Will the Patriots steady the ship early after an offseason of drama?

New England’s drama started before last season could even end, with the question of Malcolm Butler’s Super Bowl benching following them for the start of the offseason. Things did calm down — neither Tom Brady nor Bill Belichick retired. Rob Gronkowski is also back with a reworked contract after flirting with retirement and trade rumors. In other words, after a lot of sound and fury, the status quo reigns in New England. When they host a rising Houston Texans team in Week 1, the expectation will be the start of another successful season, but it’s still worth watching to see if these guys show any sign of age or disharmony.

15) Will Marcus Mariota finally break out?

It’s year four for Mariota, who will be looking to take that long-awaited step forward in 2018. He has the tools, but now he has to make it happen. The Titans were a playoff team last year and can be again, perhaps with an offense better tailored to Mariota’s skillset. He’ll be looking to get off to a good start at the Miami Dolphins. This could be a make-or-break season for him, and he has to show at least some progress after battling knee issues last season and taking a step back. He certainly has the potential to go off against Miami.