We’re just past the first wave of games in the NFL’s opening week, but the year’s first big upset has already eliminated nearly half of all entrants from the survivor pool.
The New England Patriots stunned Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday afternoon at Paycor Stadium in Ohio, claiming a 16-10 victory. The Bengals were the heavy favorites entering the game at BetMGM.
But with the Patriots’ victory, 43.59% of entries in Yahoo Sports’ survivor groups were removed.
The Patriots took a 10-0 lead at halftime on a 3-yard run by Rhamondre Stevenson early in the second quarter. They extended their lead to 13-0 in the second half after Joey Slye made a 35-yard field goal, which followed a 32-yard field goal he made just before halftime.
While the Bengals finally found the end zone late in the third quarter, running back Zach Moss breaking through with a 5-yard touchdown run to cap a nine-play, 90-yard drive, their drive came too late. The Patriots fought back the Bengals to take the six-point win and pull off the biggest upset of the survivors’ group.
Joe Burrow completed just 21 of 29 passes for 164 yards in Cincinnati’s loss. Moss had 44 rushing yards and a touchdown on nine carries, and Ja’Marr Chase, who played despite not having his new contract in place after a pause this fall, had 62 yards on six receptions.
Stevenson had 120 rushing yards and a touchdown on 25 carries for the Patriots. Quarterback Jacoby Brissett completed 15 of 24 passes for 121 yards in what was the first win for head coach Jerod Mayo, who replaced veteran coach Bill Belichick this season.
This post will be updated with more information shortly.
