NFL Offenses Explode in Week 1, Delivering the High-Scoring Product League Leaders Prize

After a quiet start to the season during the standalone prime-time openers in Seattle and Australia, the NFL’s Sunday slate delivered an offensive outburst that matched exactly what league headquarters likes to see.

The 12 games played in the Sunday afternoon windows produced 645 points — an average of 53.75 per contest. The Giants and Cowboys then tacked on 48 more in the Sunday night showcase, bringing the league’s 15-game Week 1 total to 750 points. That figure is closing in on the all-time Week 1 mark of 791 points, set across 16 games in 2012. With the Broncos visiting the Chiefs Monday night in Kansas City, the record is within reach.

Why Offenses Start Fast

Conventional thinking holds that defenses should have the edge early in the season, given how little starting quarterbacks play in the preseason. But Mike Tomlin, the former Steelers coach now analyzing games for NBC, argued during the Sunday night broadcast that modern practice habits tilt the early-season balance toward offense. Teams tackle and shed blocks far less in practice than in past eras, he noted, leaving defenses less prepared for live game conditions.

The scoring surge aligns with league priorities. NFL leadership has long favored wide-open, high-scoring play as a driver of fan interest and television ratings, and the competition committee has historically adjusted rules — such as restrictions on illegal contact by defensive backs — when passing games needed a jolt. Defensive players have periodically objected that the rulebook favors offenses, though many of the changes they find most frustrating stem from safety-related limits on certain types of hits.

The approach has coincided with strong viewership: the NFL averaged 18.7 million viewers per game during the 2025 regular season, a 10% increase over 2024 and the league’s best figure since 1989 — a metric with direct relevance for broadcast partners like Comcast (CMCSA), whose NBC network carries Sunday night football. Comcast shares closed recently at $25.20, up 0.16% on the day, with a market capitalization of roughly $92.5 billion.

A Record Night in Charlotte

The weekend’s centerpiece came in Charlotte, where the Bears beat the Panthers 59–37. The combined 96 points set an NFL record for a Week 1 game, and the teams’ 1,030 combined yards made it the first contest with 95-plus points and 1,000-plus yards since the Rams’ 54–51 win over the Chiefs in 2018. Chicago’s 59 points matched the second-highest single-team total ever in a season opener, three shy of the record set by the 1973 Falcons.

Bears coach Ben Johnson, the former Lions offensive coordinator hired to revamp Chicago’s attack, praised quarterback Caleb Williams’ preparation while acknowledging there remains plenty to clean up on film. Johnson has spoken openly about aiming for the highest-scoring team in NFL history, and Week 1 did little to temper that ambition.

Source: original release

What to watch

• Monday night’s Broncos–Chiefs game could push Week 1 scoring past the 2012 record of 791 points.
• NBC’s Sunday Night Football ratings, carried by Comcast, will offer an early read on whether high-scoring games translate into viewership gains.
• League competition committee commentary during the season on points-per-game trends and any potential rules discussion.