3 NFL storylines to watch during first full slate of Sunday games
The National Football League is back in full swing Sunday after Thursday night's opener between the Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Texans. Here are three storylines to watch as the 2020 regular season gets under way.
Playing amid the pandemic — There's no getting around the coronavirus pandemic. It will make this NFL season, as has been the case for every other major sport, the strangest season in a long time, if not ever. Teams will mostly play in front of empty stadiums, although some franchises are allowing limited attendance (the Jacksonville Jaguars will be the only team to do so Sunday), but health and safety will be the biggest question marks, as the risk of a potential outbreak will likely loom over the league throughout the season. The NFL opted not to play in a bubble like the NBA, but so far league-wide test results have been encouraging.
Master and apprentice — Tom Brady, at 43 years old, will don a new uniform for the first time in 20 years when he leads a talented Tampa Bay Buccaneers team against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, while his old coach Bill Belichik will try to keep the New England Patriots' winning ways going without the Hall of Fame quarterback under center against the Miami Dolphins. It'll be worth watching how the once seemingly inextricable duo will operate without each other.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Game 1 for No. 1 — Joe Burrow, the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NFL draft who comes armed with a college national championship and the Heisman Trophy, will take his game to the pro level Sunday when he starts for the Cincinnati Bengals against the Los Angeles Chargers. Cincinnati has high hopes for the quarterback, but because the pandemic led to the cancellation of preseason games and shortened training camp, he'll really have to learn on the fly.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Today's political cartoons - May 5, 2024
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - annoying noises, gag orders, and more
By The Week US Published
-
5 highly educational cartoons about student protests
Cartoons Artists take on apolitical camping, the National Guard, and more
By The Week US Published
-
French schools and the scourge of teenage violence
Talking Point Gabriel Attal announces 'bold' intervention to tackle rise in violent incidents
By The Week UK Published
-
Caitlin Clark the No. 1 pick in bullish WNBA Draft
Speed Read As expected, she went to the Indiana Fever
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
South Carolina ends perfect season with NCAA title
Speed Read The women's basketball team won a victory over superstar Caitlin Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Iowa's Caitlin Clark breaks NCAA scoring record
speed read College basketball star Caitlin Clark set the new record in Iowa's defeat of Ohio State
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Eight-year-old Brit Bodhana Sivanandan makes chess history
Speed Read Sivanandan has been described as a 'phenomenon' by chess masters
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Watch Simone Biles win her record 8th US gymnastics championship
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Spain beats England 1-0 to win its first Women's World Cup
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
US knocked out of Women's World Cup in stunning exit
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Katie Ledecky surpasses Michael Phelps for most world championship titles
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published