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The amazing Scott Hanson will also be returning this season as the host of NFL Redzone. He’ll keep us in the loop, breaking down every single touchdown, every Sunday afternoon during the regular season. Let’s look ahead to the players we’re excited to see on NFL RedZone in Week 1.
Those accustomed to instant gratification were jilted by the unfortunate start of Aaron Rodgers’ tenure with the New York Jets, as the QB tore his Achilles on his fourth regular-season snap. Rodgers last threw a touchdown on January 8, 2023 — some 600+ days ago — and now, he’ll find himself throwing to one of the league’s premiere talents in 2022 Offensive Rookie of the Year, WR Garrett Wilson.
The Jets have a challenging Week 1 matchup on the road against the San Francisco 49ers, but no one wears a revenge-game narrative quite as well as Rodgers, who once famously stated that the Niners would regret not drafting him. He’s scored at least one touchdown in all but one of his games played against the 49ers in his career.
The 2024 Rookie QB Class
How often does the No. 1 overall pick find himself in a situation as ideal as what Caleb Williams is working with? Not often, if ever. Williams will undoubtedly get a warm Week 1 welcome against the Titans at Soldier Field with what is arguably the best receiving corps in the league between DJ Moore, Keenan Allen and fellow rookie, Rome Odunze.
Whether it comes through the air to one of his star wideouts (or even a TE between the likes of Cole Kmet or Gerald Everett) or on the ground, Williams is destined to make an appearance on NFL RedZone. How could he not after the ability he flashed in the preseason?
Commanders rookie Jayden Daniels may have just as much hype to his name, even if he doesn’t come with the same cast of receivers. From the jump, Daniels will have as much rushing upside as any other quarterback in the league, including Anthony Richardson (who is still being drafted about four-to-five rounds earlier over the past week on Yahoo).
Not to be excluded is rookie Bo Nix, who quietly impressed this preseason before Sean Payton named him the starting quarterback for the Denver Broncos. He’s got some sneaky athleticism that could provide viewers with some entertainment right out of the gate in a Week 1 matchup against the Seahawks.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers veteran wideout Mike Evans is really good at a lot of things. For instance, he’s really good at posting 1,000 receiving-yard seasons, looking to tie Hall-of-Famer Jerry Rice’s 11-season streak in 2024. He’s also pretty good at trash talk (cc: Marshon Lattimore), contested catches and scoring touchdowns.
Over the past three seasons, Evans is tied with Raiders star wideout Davante Adams for the most receiving touchdowns with 33 and has just about the most favorable matchup you could imagine in Week 1 against the Washington Commanders. Though they brought in defensive-minded Dan Quinn as head coach this offseason, their options in the pass rush and secondary haven’t improved dramatically. Just last year, the Commanders led the league in both passing yards (3,357) and touchdowns (39) allowed to opposing offenses, and you can bet Evans is lying in wait, ready to take full advantage of the small cornerbacks in Washington’s secondary with his size and physicality from the jump.
To be fair, we could list the entire Falcons offense in an article about players we’re excited to watch on NFL RedZone. However, second-year running back Bijan Robinson feels like the name most worth shouting out on this exciting, new-look offense under QB Kirk Cousins. After all, it’s Robinson who fell victim to Arthur Smith’s shenanigans as a rookie, seeing fewer carries in the red zone and inside the five than his backup, Tyler Allgeier, along with some particularly painful goalline snipes from Cordarrelle Patterson, TE Jonnu Smith and WR KhaDarel Hodge. Ouch.
Robinson is one of the best running backs in the NFL, and though he’ll have a potentially challenging matchup against the Steelers’ run defense in Week 1, expect him to have every opportunity to score on a much-improved offense.
Several rookie wide receivers could make their debut on NFL RedZone in Week 1, but none has us as excited as Marvin Harrison Jr., this year’s fourth overall pick and arguably one of the best WR prospects … ever?
2023 was a lost season for the Arizona Cardinals as veteran QB Kyler Murray made his way back from a torn ACL and played with an unfledged receiving corps, leaning on a combination of Trey McBride, Greg Dortch, Rondale Moore and Emari Demercado to close out the year. This go-around, it’s all different, with MJH offering an elite combination of skill, route running and size (6-foot-4, 205 pounds) that is absolutely unheard of for a rookie.
Murray is a more-than-capable passer who will likely be targeting the rookie as often as he can handle — especially in crucial situations like the red zone. He’ll be among the most fun players to watch in Week 1, particularly considering he played just three total snaps in the preseason.
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