Weekend Preview: Week 1 NFL Action and BYU Takes On Baylor

September 9, 2022 Eric Jensen CFB, Nfl, Uncategorized 0

The weekend preview is here as a big week of football lies ahead in the United States. Here we will take a look at some of the biggest matchups in the state of Utah, the country and the NFL. Let the weekend preview begin!

Utah and USU Take On Non-FBS Opponents

A combined blurb in this weekend preview for the Utes and the Aggies. Utah will take on Southern Utah this weekend and Utah State will take on Weber State.

For Utah the formula for week two is simple, when Kyle Whittingham teams come off a loss they go back to fundamentals, run the ball. This Utah line dominated Florida up front offensively last week and Tavion Thomas put up big numbers. The recipe in this game will be to control the clock, stay healthy, avoid showing too much offensively and get a dominating win on the ground. All of which are possible outcomes with a run-first gameplan.

Whittingham mentioned in his weekly press conference that Jaylon Glover will see more touches as the season goes on, expect to see his debut Saturday morning.

Utah State on the other hand faces a challenge, Weber State is consistently a top ten FCS school. The Aggies often start slow, and they are coming off a mentally draining beatdown against the Alabama Crimson Tide. Their is an outcome in which Utah State suffers from a hangover in this game.

Logan Bonner said earlier this week that he is dealing with a knee injury, and that it will be something he has to continue dealing with throughout the season. The news and vibes around Utah State are bad right now, especially defensively, look out for a tight game in Logan this weekend.

BYU Takes On Baylor

The public, vegas, and the national media all love BYU in this game. I am not so sold. Offensively even if Puka Nacua does not play I believe the Cougars have enough talent up front and are deep enough in the receiving core to remain competitive. The offense is not what I am worried about.

What stands out for me is something I mentioned in the weekend recap, BYU only got one sack against Southern Florida last week. Baylor returns almost everyone on their offensive line from a year ago, and the offensive line that whipped the Cougs from start to finish a year ago. (Check out the below videos from good friend of mine, and trench warfare master Hans Olsen.)

 

A team that went at Max Tooley as the point of attack and completely neutralized the Cougar pass rush. The fact the team didn’t generate as much pressure as they should have a week ago against a middling USF line is already a red flag. The Cougar defense is unproven and don’t deserve the benefit of the doubt quite frankly until we see them stop somebody.

This game will likely be a shootout, and while Jaren Hall can lead the Cougars to victory, Baylor could also win by ten or more points if BYU is unable to stop a Dave Aranda team that loves to run the football.

This is a statement game for the Cougs, are you ready to compete with the best of the best in the trenches in the Big-12? Because if you aren’t Kalani needs to go back to the drawing board and focus his recruiting on his defensive line and offensive line, or next year could be an unpleasant surprise for BYU’s first year in the Big-12.

NFL Weekend Preview

A few games, with a few blurbs. Here is what I am excited to see in week 1.

Niners @ Bears: Two young unproven QB’s square off, if Justin Fields can keep the Bears competitive this year with a limited offense the team has found its QB of the future. If he can’t they will have a top-five pick in next year’s draft. Meanwhile, is Trey Lance actually good is a very real question that we still need the answer to. I am also unsold on all the defensive hype the Niners keep getting, again, who exactly is your shutdown corner? The secondary looks like swiss cheese on paper to me.

Eagles @ Lions: Here is a take for you, I believe Jalen Hurts will be a top ten QB by the end of the year. Hell, he might be in my top five. The Eagles will make an effort to throw and throw a lot on week one. Meanwhile on the other side, how good are the Lions, Hard Knocks sweethearts are nice in August but what do they look like in October? Amon Ra St. Brown has star potential and the offensive line might be the best in the division on paper, what does it all look like on Sunday?

And for those asking… in the weekend preview,

Here Are My Top Ten QBs Entering The Season

  1. Josh Allen
  2. Patrick Mahomes
  3. Tom Brady
  4. Justin Herbert
  5. Joe Burrow
  6. Aaron Rodgers
  7. Lamar Jackson
  8. Derek Carr
  9. Russell Wilson
  10. Dak Prescott

(Deshaun Watson not listed until his return, but would slide in at 7)

Tampa Bay @ Dallas: What exactly do both these teams look like? There is major mystery surrounding Tom Brady right now, I truly do belive that, will an off season full of distractions cause the all time greatest QB in NFL history to get off to a slow start. Meanwhile, national media figures continue to hype up the Cowboy’s defense but I don’t know if I see it in their secondary. How big a day might Micha Parsons have against a Bucs line ravaged by injuries? Wil the Cowboys minus Amari Cooper find another under-the-radar star on the roster to replace him? Intrigue abounds.

Broncos @ Seahawks: This more of a personal plea, I will write about the Broncos every week, they are my favorite team. Now, the plea: Dear Denver Broncos, please do not be bad this year. All I want is for my NFL team to be competitive, I want a watchable offense, I want a fiesty defense. Please provide those things for me, if you do not, know, that I will come after you on this blog, endlessly and mercilessly. Russ, please, you corny SOB, do not let me down. I just want to find a new favorite QB, you could be him, please be him. With love, Eric.

CFB

Just one musing and then off to next week, what is Quin Ewers? Will he be good? Can he cover? All big questions that will be answered against an Alabama team that looks like the best in the country. I also want to see how a new look ND offense looks against Marshall, plus Kentucky and Florida, I need more Anthony Richardson in my life. Ah, so much good football ahead. LIfe is not so bad now, football is back.