NFL Week 1 Defining Stats: Record-Setting Scoring, Historic Performances

We waited seven long months for NFL football to return, but a historic Week 1 made the wait well worth it.

Records fell across the league as several of the game’s biggest stars delivered unforgettable performances to begin the season. 

Josh Allen came through when the Bills needed him most, Derrick Henry further cemented his place among the all-time greats and T.J. Watt joined exclusive company. Meanwhile, the Bears and Panthers produced a Week 1 shootout unlike any the NFL had seen before.

From record-breaking individual performances to points coming at a historic pace, the opening week had a little bit of everything. Here are the numbers that put an unforgettable Week 1 into perspective:

• The 791 points scored across 16 games this week tied 2012 for the most points scored in Week 1 NFL history.
• Sunday’s 13 games combined for 693 total points, averaging 53.3 points per game, making it the highest-scoring Week 1 Sunday in NFL history

• The 96 combined points between the Bears and Panthers is the most in a Week 1 game in NFL history; the previous record was 88 points in 2018, between the Saints and Buccaneers.
• The Bears 59 points is the 2nd most they’ve scored in a game in the Super Bowl era (61 points in Week 14, 1980 vs the Packers).
• The Bears 59 points are the most they have ever scored in a regular-season road game.
• The Bears recorded six rushing touchdowns for the second time in franchise history, and for the first time since 1941.
• The Bears and Panthers combined for 96 points, tied for the 12th-most in a game in NFL history.
• Since the start of the 2025 season, the Bears now have three games with 250+ rushing yards. The rest of the NFL only has four in that span.

• T.J. Watt recorded his 10th interception of his career; he joins Julius Peppers as the only players in NFL history to record 100+ career sacks and 10+ interceptions.
• T.J. Watt is the first player in NFL history to have two sacks and an interception in two different season openers; his last one came in 2017 (sacks became an official stat in 1982).

• Josh Allen became the first quarterback in NFL history with 80 career rushing touchdowns.
• Josh Allen recorded his first career road win at the Texans; entering Sunday, he was 0-4 at Houston, including the playoffs, with just two total touchdowns; this was also the Bills’ first road win at Houston since 2006.
• Josh Allen recorded his ninth game with 2+ passing touchdowns and 2+ rushing touchdowns; no player in NFL history has more than four (Steve Young).
• DJ Moore recorded 100 receiving yards in his Bills debut, the second-most by a Bills player in their debut in franchise history (John Brown had 123 in 2019).

• Derrick Henry recorded his 26th career game with 100+ rushing yards and multiple rushing touchdowns, passing Jim Brown (25) for the most such games in NFL history.
• Henry finished with three rushing touchdowns, giving him eight career games with 3+ rushing touchdowns; he is the sixth player in NFL history to reach that mark, joining LaDainian Tomlinson (12), Jim Brown (10), Priest Holmes (nine), Emmitt Smith (nine), Marshall Faulk (eight)
• He is now up to 33 career games with multiple rushing touchdowns, the third-most in NFL history behind Emmitt Smith (36) and LaDainian Tomlinson.
• He passed Marcus Allen for the third-most rushing touchdowns in NFL history, now up to 125.
• Since 2016, Henry now has 125 rushing touchdowns, which is 51 touchdowns more than the next running back in that span (Josh Jacobs and Ezekiel Elliot have 74).

• Gibbs became the fourth player in NFL history to record 14 career games with 2+ rushing touchdowns before turning 25 years old, joining Jim Brown (15), Todd Gurley (15) and Christian McCaffrey (15).
• Gibbs is now the sixth player in NFL history to accumulate 50 touchdowns in his first 50 career games, joining Chuck Foreman, Jim Brown, Steve Van Buren, Larry Johnson, and Marcus Allen.

• John Harbaugh wins his first game as the New York Giants head coach.
• Tonight is just the third Giants win over the Cowboys in their last 19 meetings.
• The Giants have now defeated the Cowboys in consecutive meetings (Week 18 of 2025 and Week 1 of 2026) after Dallas had previously won 8 consecutive games.
• Jaxson Dart completed 23 of 29 passes (79.3%), posting the highest completion percentage of his career. This was also Dart’s 2nd career game with 3+ pass touchdowns.
• Prior to Sunday, the Giants were 0-8 against the Cowboys in Week 1 primetime games. It was their first win over Dallas in primetime in Week 1.
• Jets and Giants have won their openers for the first time since 2009.

• Justin Jefferson is the third-fastest player in NFL history to reach 8,500 career receiving yards (95 games); the only two players ahead of Justin Jefferson (95 games) are Julio Jones and Lance Alworth, who both reached 8,500 career receiving yards in 90 games.
• With two touchdowns on Sunday, Jefferson has already matched his receiving touchdown total from last year.
• Justin Jefferson’s 39-yard touchdown reception from Carson Wentz was Jefferson’s first deep touchdown (20+ air yards) since Week 16, 2024.

• Josiah Trotter became the only player with a sack and a pick six in their NFL debut; prior to Sunday, no player had ever accomplished this in their NFL debut.

• With a 59-yard reception against the Broncos, Travis Kelce passed Jason Witten for the second-most receiving yards by a tight end in NFL history.
• Kelce now trails only Tony Gonzalez, who holds the NFL record for receiving yards by a tight end with 15,127.

• In his Chiefs debut, Kenneth Walker III rushed for a career-high 173 yards, surpassing his previous high of 167 rushing yards against the Chargers on 10/23/22.
• Walker is now the first and only player in Kansas City Chiefs franchise history to record 150+ rushing yards, a 50+ yard rushing touchdown, and a receiving touchdown in the same game.
• Walker had 105 scrimmage yards in the first half, the most in any first half of his career.
• Walker had two rushes of 25+ yards on Monday night, which is already more than any Chiefs running back last season.
• Walker’s 173 rushing yards and 191 scrimmage yards are both the most by a running back in a game started by Patrick Mahomes.
• Walker outgained the entire Broncos offense Monday night, finishing with 191 scrimmage yards compared to Denver’s 176 net total yards.
• Walker generated +101 rushing yards over expected against the Broncos, the most by a Chiefs running back since at least 2018. Walker also forced 14 missed tackles, the most by any Chiefs player in a game over that span.
• Walker has the most rushing yards in a team debut since Michael Turner with the Falcons in 2008 (220).