Football's Back!

It's always great to see the return of football. This year more so than most due to all of the horseshit that filled the offseason.

Here are some thoughts from the opening night of the 2015 season...

After this offseason it was no surprise that the New England Patriots-Pittsburgh Steelers game was impacted by suspensions. It just wasn't the suspension that everyone expected. Patriots quarterback Tom Brady played. Running back Le'Veon Bell and receiver Martavis Bryant of the Steelers didn't. The Patriots may have had Brady under center but they were without running back LeGarrette Blount. Heavy advantage to the Patriots on those suspensions.

Every time that I see defensive coordinator Mike Patricia on the Patriots sideline I can't help but think that Belichick found him in the parking lot grilling brats. He looks more like a lumberjack than a coach.

Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski scored the first touchdown of the 2015 NFL season.

And the second.

And the fourth.

Gronkowski is a very good football player.

Tom Brady played well. He made Julian Edelman happy early. He made Gronkowski happy a little later. And often.

The Patriots defense did a decent job of slowing Steelers excellent receiver Antonio Brown. He was the responsibility of Super Bowl hero Malcolm Butler for most of the game. Shutting out Brown is a damn-near impossible task. He still put up 133 yards and an 11-yard touchdown with two seconds to play. So his biggest play came with the game essentially over.

Defensive end Jabaal Sheard was a terrific offseason addition to the Patriots front seven.

Steelers receiver Darius Heyward-Bey made some big plays for his team. He made some really sad mistakes too. Not knowing where he was on the field took a touchdown off the board at the end of the first half. With Bell suspended for the game the Steelers needed big plays from someone other than Brown. They definitely didn't need those mistakes.

The Steelers didn't have much trouble moving the football. They just had trouble scoring. They missed two field goals. They had to settle for a field goal after several attempts inside the five-yard line. Ben Roethlisberger threw a redzone interception to crush a fourth quarter scoring chance. If they could come up with touchdowns on even a couple of those prime opportunities they probably win the game.

DeAngelo Williams ran well for the Steelers in place of the suspended Le'Veon Bell. Williams collected 127 yards on the ground. They still missed Bell. He tilts the field in the Steelers favor. He's so versatile.

Patriots second-year defensive tackle Dominique Easley left the game early with a hip injury. He missed most of his rookie season recovering from a college ACL tear. This hip injury is some rough luck for a talented football player. Hopefully he can back on the field soon and stay on the field.

The Patriots fans serenaded the viewing audience with "Where is Roger?" Clever. Goodell has been a disaster for well over a year but I'm so sick of all of this crap.

Patriots win game #1 28-21.

Thankfully, football is back!