The NFL season is back, and Week 1 already has a little bit of everything: a new starting quarterback in Atlanta, a high-profile NFC matchup in Philadelphia, and a Monday night showdown in Kansas City that could set the tone for the AFC West.
For Alabama fans, there’s even more to lock in on. Three games on the opening slate feature some of the program’s biggest names, and each one comes with its own storyline.
The first of those comes early Sunday when the Atlanta Falcons visit the Pittsburgh Steelers at noon on Fox. It’s a notable stage for former Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who is set to make his first start for Atlanta after the offseason move.
The Falcons spent the summer sorting through their quarterback situation, with first-year head coach Kevin Stefanski keeping the battle between Tua and incumbent Michael Penix Jr. alive into the regular season. Penix is coming back after tearing an ACL at the end of the 2025 season, but Tua’s availability has become uncertain after an oblique injury he first dealt with in training camp flared up again in practice.
As of now, his status for Sunday has not been made official.
Later in the day, the Washington Commanders head to Philadelphia for a 3:25 p.m. kickoff on Fox against the Eagles. Jalen Hurts and the Eagles are back after coming up short of a second straight Super Bowl title, and they’re aiming to reach their third Super Bowl in five seasons.
There’s some turnover around Hurts again, though, with former NFL quarterback Sean Mannion stepping in as the new offensive coordinator. The Eagles also enter the year with plenty of outside noise still hanging around the team, as fans, media, and maybe even some people inside the organization continue to question whether Hurts and head coach Nick Siriani can finish the job, even with all they’ve already accomplished.
Washington, meanwhile, is trying to take a huge step from NFC hopeful to legitimate Super Bowl contender with Jayden Daniels at quarterback.
The nightcap brings the biggest spotlight of the week. Denver travels to Kansas City for a 7:15 p.m. kickoff on ESPN/ABC in a game that now flips the script from where things stood a year ago.
Last season, the Broncos were chasing the Chiefs, who had owned the AFC West for nearly a decade. By the end of the year, Denver had knocked Kansas City off the throne.
Now the Broncos are the team being hunted, and the Chiefs are the ones trying to chase them down. That makes this Monday night matchup more than just a division game; it could be a season-long measuring stick for both teams’ Super Bowl hopes.
The quarterback storyline adds another layer. Patrick Mahomes is back after a major knee injury, while Bo Nix returns after leading the Broncos to the AFC’s top seed before a fractured ankle ended his Super Bowl run in the AFC playoffs. With no healthy concerns and a new target in former Dolphins receiver Jaylen Waddle, the window for Nix may stay open for a few more seasons.
In Other News...
Auburns Offensive Line Faces An Early Test Fans Cant Ignore
Auburn spent its season opener at Baylor sorting through the kind of offensive line issues that tend to linger if they are not cleaned up quickly. The staff rotated multiple players at guard, and the shuffling showed up in the ground game, leaving the Tigers with some obvious work to do before the season settles into a rhythm.
Alex Golesh said he liked the way the group has responded to coaching and kept working, which matters with Southern Mississippi next on the schedule. The official depth chart still shows several players in the mix at guard, so Auburn is clearly trying to find the right combination without letting the early-season uncertainty spill into another week. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn Fans Just Got A Reminder What Saraland Keeps Producing
SEC Media Days gave Auburn fans one more reminder of the talent pipeline coming out of Saraland, where Alabama wide receiver Ryan Coleman-Williams took time to praise former teammate DeShawn Spencer and credit the work ethic that developed during their high school days. It was the kind of comment that fits neatly with what Saraland has built under coach Jeff Kelly, a program that has turned itself into a steady source of college and pro players and takes obvious pride in that lineage.
Kelly folded Coleman-Williams words into Saralands pregame video, which already features highlights of former Spartans now playing in college and the NFL. The video, produced by Saraland graduate Jeremy Haney, plays before home games and serves as another reminder of how tightly the school ties its current team to the players who came before it, with Spencer and Coleman-Williams just the latest names to keep that reputation alive. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn Tried To Ease One Big Fear About Losing A Home Game
Auburns decision to shift its 2026 football season opener against Baylor from Jordan-Hare Stadium to Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta raised a familiar worry around town: what happens when a home date disappears from the fall calendar? The move, part of the Aflac Kickoff, leaves the Tigers with six home games, and it immediately prompted questions about the economic ripple effect for a city that leans heavily on game-day traffic.
Auburn athletics has since tried to ease that concern by pointing to a broader picture of how the city benefits when big events come to town. The school released a report comparing the impact of the Baylor game change with past football dates, and city officials have already cited the international soccer friendly between Argentina and Iceland in Auburn as proof that the local economy can absorb and even benefit from major events beyond football, with Camp War Eagle also helping shape hotel occupancy during that week. [Read more 🡒]