Five rookie quarterbacks started their careers on Sunday. Only one looked really good. From the start of the game, Robert Griffin III looked in control of Washington’s game against New Orleans. Despite the Saints having a chance to tie the game with a final drive, there really wasn’t a point during which it seemed like Washington was in any real trouble. That’s a huge credit to Griffin, who does appear to be the best quarterback the Redskins have had since … Joe Theismann?

There will be rough patches as teams gather film on this composed rookie, but I may have been wrong predicting another season in the cellar of the NFC East for the Redskins. This guy looks good.

None of the other rookies fared well in their debuts. Andrew Luck got beat up by Chicago. I still think he’s going to be fine, but when the Colts fell behind the Bears and the run game provided little support, Luck was out of … luck.  It is important to note the similarities between the first games of Luck and one Peyton Manning, however. CBS put up the linked graphic during the game broadcast. Colts fans can take solace in the likelihood that better days are ahead.

Russell Wilson showed glimpses that he’s going to be alright, though he ended up not able to pull the Seattle game out in the end against Arizona. Cleveland’s Brandon Weeden and Miami’s Ryan Tannehill both had forgettable debuts. A statistical breakdown of their performances can be found at RealRedskins.com.

Fitzpatrick struggles continue: Buffalo quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick has had a rough run in the 11-plus months since he signed a lucrative contract extension. The contract was announced during the Bills’ bye week in late October 2011. At that point, Buffalo was 4-2 and Fitzpatrick had thrown for 1,477 yards, 12 touchdowns and six interceptions, for a 95.2 quarterback rating.
In the last 10 games of last season, Fitzpatrick threw for 2,355 yards with 12 touchdowns and 17 interceptions, or a 70.1 rating.

His struggles continued yesterday against New York. Against the Jets, he didn’t reach 200 yards passing and he threw three interceptions along with three touchdown passes. More important than the stats, since Fitzpatrick signed his extension the Bills are 2-9.

Replacement refs: For the most part I thought replacement referees acquitted themselves fairly well. At a minimum they did not cost any team games and from what I could tell they made mostly correct calls.

There were some questionable and heavily-debated calls in the San Francisco/Green Bay game, but they went against both teams. Most of the calls I saw were defensible. Pass interference was inconsistent, but again, the calls went against both teams – and that rule has proven difficult in recent years for the permanent refs to enforce consistently too.

There are a lot of Packers’ pundits out there complaining about the officiating of that game. There may be some relevance to saying the officiating wasn’t great, but anyone whining that the officials cost the Green Bay that game is doing just that — whining. San Francisco won because it played better defense and because the 49ers exposed a couple of big flaws in the Packers’ game: lack of a run game and a couple of really, really bad defensive backs. Plus the Packers appeared to start losing their composure in the second quarter when some of the close calls went against them. That’s not a good sign.

Far more egregious on the officiating front was allowing Seattle to call a fourth timeout at the end of its game against Arizona. The officials went into conference for several minutes before deciding the Hawks did, in fact, have a timeout remaining. But the Fox broadcaster who happened to be the former head of officials said that was based on an incorrect rule interpretation. By the time they got the game restarted, Seattle had gotten the equivalent of a fourth and fifth timeout. Arizona’s defensive stand at the end made it a moot point, but that was the worst game management I saw Sunday.

Another situation in Denver, where Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin waved and waved his flag but didn’t throw it until almost the same time the ball was snapped, strikes me more as an effort to see what the coach could get away with rather than anything that should reflect negatively on the officials.

Peter King at Sports Illustrated agrees. Deadspin disagrees. But all in all, given the nuances in the NFL rules, I think the replacements are handling themselves well. The game will be better when the regulars return, but major problems have not arisen with the subs.

Change in Pats attack: Much has been made about the decrease in Wes Welker’s role in New England’s offense on Sunday. I’m sure he’ll have some bigger games this season and some where he’s less of a factor. Of bigger note to me were two things: The role of second-year running back Stevan Ridley and the impact two first-round rookies had right out of the gates.

Ridley went for 125 yards and a score, providing some balance to the generally pass-happy Patriots’ offense. Rookies Chandler Jones, a defensive end, and Dont’a Hightower, a linebacker, paid immediate dividends when Jones sacked Jake Locker, causing a fumble that Hightower returned for a touchdown.

Those young guys performing well would have as much of an impact on New England’s efforts to get back to the Super Bowl as anything. The defense has been an Achilles heel the past few seasons. And as Tom Brady ages, Ridley’s ability to balance that offense would be huge.

Bears fans too loud: I would argue this is a better problem to have than the alternative, but Bears quarterback Jay Cutler expressed some frustration following his team’s dismantling of the Colts with fans who wouldn’t quiet down while he was leading a drive in the red zone.

Following a rough 1-10 start, Cutler looked fantastic in leading the Bears to a comfortable win. He picked up right where he left off in Denver with Brandon Marshall as his leading wide receiver too. That pairing is going to be tough to beat this season. It’s just one game, but after watching extensive parts of both teams’ games, I’m a little nervous about having picked the Packers to win the NFC North – though the San Francisco team Green Bay faced will prove to be a far more formidable foe this season than Indianapolis will.

Manning returns: Peyton Manning returned in a real game for the first time since 2010. His passes looked to me like they lacked a little of their typical zip, but the Broncos are still in better shape with him than they were last year with Tim Tebow.

Manning’s cerebral approach to the game was as strong as ever, as noted by the Mile High Report. He didn’t throw as often as he might have a couple seasons ago, but he made it count when he did, going 19-26 for 253 yards and two touchdowns, including the impressive 71-yard pass to Thomas that came after he’d sat on the bench for quite awhile. With Manning at the helm and that defense, Denver is going to be a tough beat for anyone this season.

Misleading stat: Time of possession can be a highly misleading stat. Sometimes it illustrates a team’s dominance in keeping the ball away from the opponent or, in the case of Washington yesterday, in keeping the ball out of the hands of New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees, a strategy that obviously is going to help a somewhat undermanned team like Washington win as it did. Washington controlled the ball for 39:10, compared with 20:50 for New Orleans.

Other times it just doesn’t mean much. NBC announcers said during the third quarter of Denver’s game against Pittsburgh Sunday night that at one stretch Peyton Manning had run one play in 57 minutes (real time, not game clock time). The Steelers had held the ball about 12 straight minutes. When Manning finally did get the ball back, he led a two-play drive that culminated with a 71-yeard touchdown by Demaryius Thomas. The Steelers won the time of possession for the game 35:05 to 24:55, but Denver won the game 31-19.

Vikings rookies pay off early: Blair Walsh, the kicker drafted by Minnesota in the sixth round of this year’s draft, clearly had a first game to remember, nailing a 55-yard field goal to tie the team’s game against Jacksonville and then hitting another to win it in overtime.

Lost in that effort was a blocked extra point contributed by first-round pick Matt Kalil. Had Josh Scobee converted the PAT in the second quarter, it might have made the Vikings’ final drive a moot point. Asked after the game if he had blocked kicks in college, Kalil reportedly said he got seven at Southern California. Kalil also reportedly turned in a solid effort at left tackle, a sign that the number four overall selection may be on his way toward solidifying what was an obvious weak spot for Minnesota in recent seasons.

Modell remembered: Teams around the league recognized the contributions of former Cleveland Browns/Baltimore Ravens owner Art Modell Sunday. The Ravens planned a public remembrance for the man who returned football to the city and they added classy patches to their jerseys.

Baltimore stars Ray Rice and Ray Lewis were among the players most vocal in expressing their thoughts on Modell’s death. Cleveland fans clearly have not let go of losing the original Browns, however, and the Modell family stepped in to ask that team’s current owners not to bother with a tribute.

With his death bringing him back into the public eye, there already has been discussion of Modell’s absence from the Pro Football Hall of Fame, a topic being debated elsewhere on Zoneblitz.

Highest rated game: Hmm. I knew the Manning return would draw a big rating for NBC. It was obvious why that game was selected for a Sunday night audience. But the highest-rated regular season game in 14 years? I guess so, as is spelled out at Deadline.com. Denver will be back in prime time again next week on Monday night at Atlanta.