Inbox: That bodes well no matter who's at quarterback

Mike from Rosholt, WI

"Same old defense, different couch"? I had to double check to see if that submission came from Davenport, IA.

Please see yourself out.

Josh from Seattle, WA

On to the Colts! Who do they have that the "couches" can watch out for?

Big plays. Of Anthony Richardson's 212 passing yards vs. Houston, 171 came on three completions. Defensively, Indy didn't stop the Texans' ground game very well but had four sacks of Stroud, and those didn't include pass-rush impact of the rookie first-rounder Latu, who had five pressures in just 31 snaps.

CJ from Kinderhook, NY

Hey II, with Malik Willis' ability as a "dual-threat" QB, will we see ML design some runs for him?

I would imagine so. I don't think you want to get too crazy with it, but used smartly it can be a weapon.

John from Heber, UT

Mike, just a gentle ribbing that in describing Jordan Love's injury, you missed a chance to use "antepenultimate," one of my favorite words.

Ha, words like that make my head spin. I also don't think in an important straight news story the reporter should use a fancy word almost nobody would understand, even if it's accurate. If I were editorializing or writing something more lighthearted, I get your drift.

Darrel from Pueblo, CO

II, Which knee has the MCL, left or right? Since JL10 throws righthanded, right knee MCL would seem to be worse since he pushes off of that knee with throwing.

It's his left knee. While I agree with you to an extent, it's not just about being able to throw the ball. He needs to be able to move to avoid pass rushers and protect himself. Until he can do that, the Packers aren't putting him out there.

Bill from Forest Park, OH

Loved Mike’s WYMM on the run game. Very informative seeing what didn't work, the adjustments made and the impact those had. Right when I think the zone run game maybe just doesn't work as well there's an example of it being executed slightly differently and working just fine. Very informative!

Glad you found it so. I left that game Friday night intensely curious as to how the run game was so stymied early on and so productive thereafter. After Josh Jacobs was held to just four yards on his first six carries, Jacobs and Emanuel Wilson combined for 126 yards on just 14 carries, a robust 9.0 average per tote. I think that bodes well no matter who's at quarterback this week or next.

Thomas from Cedar Rapids, IA

I forgot how much I appreciate WYMM. On play 2, had Morgan come off the combo block just a half second earlier, he blocks Dean and Jacobs has a hole to score. A TD there changes the entire game. I'm guessing the rookie has learned and will make that block next time. Thanks for the insight, Mike.

Watching the game film is so enlightening, and a constant reminder of how slim the margins are at any given moment. On the play you just referenced, the hole to score is there. The play right before that, Romeo Doubs' catch and slide on a slant for 10 yards sets up third-and-1. But if the throw is just a tad higher, or if he can reach down to snag it without losing his feet, it's a walk-in touchdown. On Barkley's receiving TD, Xavier McKinney slips out of his break to help on the wheel route or he almost certainly would've broken up the pass, which then makes it third-and-11 from the 18 for the Eagles. On the long TD to Brown, Kenny Clark loses his footing and faceplants right in front of Hurts, which totally clears his vision and throwing lane to hit Brown in stride. We all know the ticky-tack defensive hold on Jaire Alexander wiped out what would've been third-and-12 and a huge chance for the defense to get off the field with seven minutes left. So many games decided by one score, so many plays throughout that could go either way to influence the outcome.

Josh from Playa Majagual, Nicaragua

Did Rashan Gary's sack on Friday earn him a fine from the league? That sure looked like the definition of a "hip drop" tackle, to a QB in the pocket no less.

We'll find out at the end of the week. I looked at it on film and it's close. It appeared to me Gary was trying not to land with his full body weight on the QB – also a penalty – which resulted in the awkward finish to the tackle. I hope the league would allow a little grace to a pass rusher who's restricted in how he can tackle a stationary target. The hip-drop tackle is more of a moving-target violation based on league videos explaining the new rule. But what do I know.

Wayne from Stevens Point, WI

Does Philly have a good defense? We outgained them in total yards. They couldn't stop our run second half. We had a higher average yards per play. If Philly had lost, even by just one point, wouldn't the press be gushing over our RBs?

That's why the overall stats don't really matter. Philly stopped the Packers three out of four times in the red zone. Green Bay allowed the Eagles to kill 7:25 of the last 7:52 on the clock. They had the better defense in the moments that mattered most. That's what decided the game.

Aaron from Fort Wayne, IN

Why do I get the sense that the fans complaining about the defense are also the ones who have been saying a switch to 4-3 from 3-4 was the fix that would solve it all. They've been begging for the switch since Vic started the column. A young defense, in a new scheme is going to have its hiccups, no? The opening performance wasn't amazing but I saw enough positives to know this defense can be good. Let's just give them the time to make the adjustments.

Three takeaways should've been enough to win the game. Against a really talented offense, the only things that truly bothered me about the defensive performance were the beginning and end of the second half, with the big TD to Brown and drive that consumed 7:25. The rest I can pretty much live with, because as I said the other day I expect the tackling (and field conditions) to improve.

Garrett from Lake Elmo, MN

I swear, there are fans who would blame the defense if the Pack lost 0-2. I thought the D looked like everything it's been spoken of. Aggressive. I also think our four-man front did an excellent job limiting Hurts and his rushing ability. Mobile QBs have decimated us in the past, but we contained him. I guess all I'm saying is I wanted to see a noticeable shift in defensive philosophy, and I did.

Hurts had 13 carries for 33 yards, not including the two sacks. That'll play. The focus on containing him impacted the overall consistency of the pass rush, though. It's a game of give and take.

Rob from Springfield, IL

Glad to see that I am not the only person who doesn't know what constitutes an intentional grounding call these days. In all of the commotion of the game Friday and watching the fronts, I lost track of Eric Stokes. I guess not seeing or hearing his name much is a good sign. I am curious as to how he looked after the injuries he's dealt with the past few years. I'm sure he was happy to be back on the field. I am really rooting for the guy.

Stokes played 67 snaps (88%) and seemed to hold up fine. I'm sure he's being highly self-critical of his play, as he always is. But that was the kind of workload Stokes needed to just feel like he's all the way back.

Jon from Lynn, MA

Hi guys, I know how everyone feels about more reviews. And I think we can all agree the pass interference experiment was a debacle. However, humor me this idea: I propose making penalties that result in an automatic first down reviewable (called down by the booth, not via coach's challenge) when they occur in the fourth quarter. That phantom hold on 23 really swung that game in my opinion, despite the early missed chances.

Sounds great in theory, but it's a slippery slope the league would never head down. If I were a coach or player in this league, I would just expect bad calls to happen, all the time. Mentally, you just have to summon the fortitude to overcome them.

Theresa from Sylvania, OH

With all the concerns on officiating the first week, what type of information do the teams get in follow-up for the officials? Does the league send out points of emphasis each week? Does the team receive any feedback if they submitted a concern or clarifying question about how something was called? I know I saw some head-scratching calls and would love to understand the interpretation going forward!

Teams get explanations for plays/calls they submit for clarification, but those communications are expected to remain private.

Kerry from Lakewood Ranch, FL

Hard not to be impressed with the physicality that the 49ers, Lions, Eagles and Cowboys showed in Week 1. Especially the way the 49ers, Lions and Eagles ran the ball when they needed to. It may be a passing league, but teams that can run it showed if you can't stop it you will be in for a long night when you play them. Did you see it the same way?

Yes and no, because I don't subscribe to simple narratives. Dallas' offense didn't particularly impress me. After the two TD drives in the first half, the Cowboys didn't have a drive longer than 20 yards over the last 35 minutes of the game. To your point on the Lions, not being able to run it when you need to can be just as costly. The Rams had a three-point lead and a first down with 2½ minutes left, but a run that lost two yards followed by a false start set the stage for the Lions to retake command of the action and make everyone forget how they blew a 17-3 second-half lead.

Steve from Hurricane, UT

I heard Herm Edwards say on the radio, "If teams aren't going to play starters in the preseason, which I can understand, the NFL should schedule inter-conference games for the first couple weeks. You may win or you may lose, but at least it won't affect head-to-head tiebreakers." Does that make more sense to you also? Is this too easy to be a good idea?

It makes a ton of sense, but the league eschews a lot of things that do. Six of the 16 games in Week 1 were NFC vs. AFC matchups, and only three were divisional clashes. Last year in Week 1, it was four NFC-AFC tilts and eight division games. Baby steps perhaps.

Ethan from La Crosse, WI

"More than 14 million people watched the game on Peacock." I only read one article, but it said the numbers included regular programming on NBC in Milwaukee and Philadelphia markets, too. Is there any definitive proof that 14 million people watched exclusively on Peacock? And just because people are watching it, doesn't mean it's right to take away the opportunity to watch from fans who can't afford it. Streaming games is fine, exclusively streaming games is not.

I think the larger issue is the NFL's arcane determination of a team's home market being within a 75-mile radius, which is ludicrous in Wisconsin with both Green Bay and Milwaukee residing along the state's eastern seaboard. If the league did a better job of defining each team's "home market" for local availability of cable-only or streaming-only broadcasts, rather than use an arbitrary mileage measurement, the whole thing would make a lot more sense. But again, what do I know.

Dustin from Kansas City, MO

I'm probably being silly here, but I still don't like the fact the NFL played a game on a Friday night in September. Friday nights in the fall are for high school football. They aren't for college or professional. I know the NFL is a business and if there's money to be made on Friday nights, then they will go after it. I really wish they could just leave that one thing alone though and let the kids have Friday to themselves.

As someone who began his career covering nine seasons of high school football, I couldn't agree more.

Bill from San Antonio, TX

New season, new couch. I'm going to sit back, relax, and enjoy this new couch while I let it get broken in.

Happy Wednesday.