NFL: Week 1 Takeaways From The AFC East Division

We Don’t Have to Worry About Breece Hall and Garrett Wilson

Fantasy owners were worried about Braelon Allen cutting into Breece Hall’s production and were similarly worried about Justin Fields cutting into Garrett Wilson’s production. It’s only been one week, but those worries seem to be unfounded. Hall looked great in putting up 107 rushing yards, and Wilson put up 95 yards and a touchdown on nine targets. Things can change quickly, but both Hall and Wilson look to be back on track.

Josh Allen Takes the MVP Lead

It took the full 60 minutes, but the Bills were able to escape their opening week matchup against the Ravens with a huge 41-40 win. Buffalo had to overcome a sluggish middle part of the game, but Josh Allen threw for 251 yards in the fourth quarter and took a very early lead for 2025’s Most Valuable Player. While Lamar Jackson (and others) will have something to say about Allen’s early lead in the MVP race, Allen has the top spot for now.

King Henry Still Reigns

One of these days, Derrick Henry will slow down. But he’s still not ready to do that at 31 years old, as he rumbled for 169 yards and two touchdowns against the Bills. While Henry doesn’t offer much in the passing game for his fantasy owners, any concerns about his decline can be put on hold until at least 2026.

New Year, Same Patriots

New head coach Mike Vrabel spoke at length this offseason about taking advantage of bad football. After a solid first half, the Patriots seemingly forgot Vrabel’s lesson and started giving the Raiders some bad football to take advantage of as Las Vegas beat New England 20-13. While the Patriots did some good stuff on Sunday (Kayshon Boutte put up 103 receiving yards), they’re going to have to fix the sloppy play we saw from them in the second half against the Raiders. 

Drake Maye Isn’t There Yet

New England’s 2025 fortunes will be heavily attached to Drake Maye’s development, and the second-year player left us with more questions than answers on Sunday. While he threw for 287 yards and threw a touchdown, he also threw a game-changing interception and looke a bit wild. While Maye is still just 23 years old and has a lot of room to grow – Maye is still just 23 years old and has a lot of room to grow. Patriots fans are going to have to be a little more patient than they would have liked.

Is Mike McDaniel Safe?

Head Coach Mike McDaniel came into the season rumored to be on the hot seat, and Sunday’s 33-8 loss to the Colts won’t do much to dispel those rumors. McDaniel’s 28-25 record with the Dolphins wouldn’t scream “fireable offense”, but Miami looks to be headed in the wrong direction. With the Patriots coming to town next week, McDaniel is facing a must-win game as they have to head to Buffalo for a Week 3 showdown with the Bills.

Fins Offense is Stuck in Mud

The Dolphins have some great talents on offense, but De’Von Achane’s 55 rushing yards were the most output we saw from any of them on Sunday. Tyreek Hill only put up 40 receiving yards, and Jaylen Waddle only registered 30 of his own while dealing with a shoulder injury that forced him to miss almost the entire first half. Things will get better for each of those players, but their fantasy owners should probably lower their expectations a bit as the Dolphins offense tries to figure things out.

Maybe the Jets are finally good?

Many (including myself) had left the Jets for dead this season, but they almost pulled out the upset win against the Steelers on Sunday, falling just a bit short in the 34-32 loss. Justin Fields made limited mistakes and put up three total touchdowns (two on the ground) as he threw for 218 yards and ran for 48 more. If Fields can keep this up all season, the Jets have a chance to fight for second place in the AFC East.

We Don’t Have to Worry About Breece Hall and Garrett Wilson

Fantasy owners were worried about Braelon Allen cutting into Breece Hall’s production and were similarly worried about Justin Fields cutting into Garrett Wilson’s production. It’s only been one week, but those worries seem to be unfounded. Hall looked great in putting up 107 rushing yards, and Wilson put up 95 yards and a touchdown on nine targets. Things can change quickly, but both Hall and Wilson look to be back on track.