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2021 Alabama Crimson Tide in the NFL Tracker: Week 1

Originally posted on FanNation Bama Central
By Kristi F. Patrick | Last updated 9/8/21

That National Football League will kick off the 2021 season on Thursday, and even though made it through 2020 and the subsequent Super Bowl, the same issue is still overshadowing the league, Covid-19.

On Tuesday, the Seattle Seahawks became the third NFL team to require proof of full vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test inside the 72 hours prior to kickoff in order to enter the stadium on gameday.

It was the first outdoor stadium to mandate the protocol, the others being the domed venues of the Las Vegas Raiders and New Orleans Saints.

This is an issue's that's only going to get hotter each week, especially considering that the league has made it clear it won't extend the season to accommodate a Covid-19 outbreak among unvaccinated players.

If a game has to be canceled and can't be rescheduled during the new 18-week regular-season, the team will forfeit and be credited with a loss

Per SI.com, NFL Players Association president J.C. Tretter also called out the NFL on Tuesday for testing vaccinated players only weekly .

"Despite our vaccination rates being extremely high, we have seen that the delta variant can infect and spread among vaccinated people," Tretter wrote. "That means, at the moment, we are in a worse spot this year than last year because the NFL has backed off a key component of our previous success: daily testing."

He noted that the Titans "recently" had 14 positive COVID-19 tests even though the team was 97 percent vaccinated at the time.

The NFL is returning as Covid cases in the U.S. have dramatically risen over the summer months due to the more-transmissible delta variant.

The U.S. passed 40 million cases since the start of the pandemic over the weekend, and more than 650,000 people in the country have died.

Now on with the season!

Matchup of the Week

Mac Jones vs. Tua Tagovailoa. Need we say more?

Ok, we will, if only a little.

Nick Saban's last two starting quarterbacks at Alabama will square off in New England on Sunday (3:25 p.m. CT CBS) when the Patriots rookie Jones (No. 15 draft selection overall) opens his NFL career against the Dolphins and Tagovailoa, the fifth-overall pick in the 2020 draft. Both players joined the Crimson Tide in 2017, won national championships and finished in the top three of voting for the Heisman Trophy.

The AFC East showdown is also expected to feature the debut of former Crimson Tide wide receiver Jaylen Waddle the sixth-overall selection in the 2021 draft, and both defenses have Alabama players as well.

NFL Schedule: Week 1

Thursday, September 9

All times CT

Dallas at Tampa Bay, 7:20 p.m., NBC

Sunday, September 12

Philadelphia at Atlanta, noon, Fox

Pittsburgh at Buffalo, noon, CBS

Minnesota at Cincinnati, noon, Fox

San Francisco at Detroit, noon, Fox

Arizona at Tennessee, noon, CBS

Seattle at Indianapolis, noon, Fox

Los Angeles Chargers at Washington, noon, CBS

New York Jets at Carolina, noon, CBS

Jacksonville at Houston, noon, CBS

Cleveland at Kansas City, 3:25 p.m., CBS

Miami at New England, 3:25 p.m., CBS

Green Bay at New Orleans, 3:25 p.m., Fox

Denver at New York Giants, 3:25 p.m., Fox

Chicago at Los Angeles Rams, 7:20 p.m., NBC

Monday, September 13

Baltimore at Las Vegas, 7:15 p.m., ESPN

Notes

• Amari Cooper has been telling people in Dallas that he wants to be the best wide receiver in the NFL. He led the Cowboys with career-high 92 catches and had 1,114 receiving yards in 2020. Dallas opens against reigning-champion Buccaneers and he had 12 catches for 173 yards and a touchdown during his only career game at Tampa Bay (Oct. 30, 2016, when he was still with the Raiders).

• A fun matchup for Alabama fans will be the Falcons at the Eagles. Not only will it be a wide receiver showdown between Clavin Ridley and DeVonta Smith, but also between Falcons tight Kyle Pitts and Smith. Pitts, out of Florida, was the No. 4 pick in the draft, six spots ahead of Smith, the Heisman Trophy winner. Quarterback Jalen Hurts will be aiming for this third-straight 300-yard game as a starter. Last season he passed for 919 yards and had eight touchdowns (five passing and three rushing) in four starts as a rookie.

• Going back to Tua vs. Mac, all four starting quarterbacks in the AFC East are under the age of 26. Both Tagovailoa and Jones are 23. Josh Allen is 25, and Zach Wilson is 22. It will mark the first time in 36 years that four starting quarterbacks in the same NFL division were under the age of 26 at the start of a season. Strangely enough, it was the AFC East in 1985 with Tony Eason (25) of the Patriots, Dan Marino (23) of the Dolphins, Ken O'Brien (24) of the Jets, and Art Schlichter (25) of the Colts. The Dolphins, Jets and Patriots reached the playoffs that season, and New England played in Super Bowl XX.

• Among other former Alabama players who were first-round draft picks and are expected to make their rookie debuts include Steelers running back Najee Harris (No. 24), Raiders tackle Alex Leatherwood (No. 17), and Broncos cornerback Patrick Surtain II (No. 9).

• Yes, cornerback Levi Wallace held off the competition and is still starting for the Buffalo Bills. He's now into his fourth NFL season.

• Julio Jones is expected to make his debut with the Titans. For his career, he averages 95.5 rec. yards per game, the most in NFL history (min. 100 games). He also ranks fourth all-time with 58 games with 100+ receiving yards. ... Some other debuts to keep an eye on are running back Mark Ingram II, who is expected to start in his first game with the Houston Texans, linebacker C.J. Mosley with the Jets (he opted out last season), and defensive lineman Dalvin Tomlinson with the Minnesota Vikings.

• Alabama heads into the season with no players on four NFL teams, the most in a while: Chargers, Seahawks, Packers and Saints. All four have had a Crimson Tide player on the team this year.

This report will be continually updated as necessary, and through the final game on the schedule.