Week 1 NFL winners: Josh Allen dominates, coaching debuts result in wins

Jerod Mayo, head coach, New England Patriots. If the New England Patriots are going to have a chance to compete under first-year head coach Jerod Mayo, this is going to have to be the recipe. Run the ball well, do not turn it over and play strong defense. 

All of that clicked on Sunday in a stunning 16-10 upset win over the Cincinnati Bengals. Pretty successful head coaching debut. 

Sam Darnold, quarterback, Minnesota Vikings. When the Vikings lost rookie quarterback J.J McCarthy for the season it painted a pretty bleak picture for the offense. But veteran Sam Darnold was able to step up on Sunday and deliver a strong performance in a dominant 28-6 win over the New York Giants. He completed 19-of-24 passes for 208 yards and a touchdown. 

Chicago Bears defense. The Bears offense had some early growing pains with No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams at quarterback, generating just 150 total yards of offense. The defense was there to pick up the slack in a 24-17 comeback win. 

The game-winning score was pick-six from Tyrique Stevenson. 

Jim Harbaugh, head coach, Los Angeles Chargers. The Chargers needed direction and credibility at the head coaching position this season, and they hope to have found it in Jim Harbaugh. 

Harbaugh has had success at both the NFL (taking the San Francisco 49ers to the Super Bowl) and college (winning a national championship with Michigan) levels and now he might have his most difficult task yet — turning the Chargers into winners. He helped them do something on Sunday they have not done much over the past decade — win a close game. 

Dak Prescott, quarterback, Dallas Cowboys. Prescott was a huge winner on and off the field on Sunday. Before the game, he signed a new contract extension that makes him the highest-paid player in football. During the game, he helped the Cowboys to a 33-17 win over the Cleveland Browns. Prescott had mostly pedestrian numbers in the win (19-for-32, 179 yards and a touchdown) but they did not need more from him. 

Derek Carr, quarterback, New Orleans Saints. Carr had a slow start to the 2023 season with the Saints before getting better as the season went on. There was no slow start on Sunday as he completed 19-of-23 passes for 200 yards and three touchdowns (with no interceptions) in a 47-10 win over the Carolina Panthers.