Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams had an abbreviated rookie season as he recovered from a torn anterior cruciate ligament suffered in his final game at Alabama.

His second season got off to a late start as he served an NFL-imposed suspension for violating the league’s gambling policy.

Williams started his third season on time on Sunday night, and he was ready out of the gate.

Williams had five receptions for 121 yards and one touchdown and a 13-yard run in the Lions’ 26-20 overtime victory against the Los Angeles Rams.

“I never got a game ball,” Williams said while holding one after the victory. “Not at Bama, not a nowhere. I ain’t even going to lie, this thing right here might not leave my hands. I might sleep like this.”

Williams caught a 52-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Jared Goff as Detroit took a 17-3 lead with 10:29 left in the third quarter.

Williams recorded the first 100-yard receiving game of his career. His previous high had been 69 yards.

“Me, personally, I expected to have a big game,” Williams said. “I guess it’s just big to the world because it’s my first one. But I plan to have a lot more. I don’t plan on this being the best game of my career. I plan on this just being the start of me being me.”

Williams was among the 40 former Alabama players who got on the field on the first Sunday of the NFL’s 105th season.

Four other former Alabama players were involved in the Los Angeles-Detroit game:

· Terrion Arnold started at cornerback for the Lions. Arnold made eight tackles in his NFL debut. Arnold joined Detroit in the first round of the NFL Draft on April 25.

· Brian Branch started at safety for the Lions. Branch made seven tackles, recorded one tackle for loss and broke up three passes.

· Rams tight end Miller Forristall is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs ran for 40 yards and one touchdown on 11 carries and caught four passes for 34 yards. Gibbs scored on a 1-yard run as Detroit took a 10-3 lead with 1:57 left in the first half.

In the other Sunday games:

Pittsburgh Steelers 18, Atlanta Falcons 10

· Steelers cornerback Anthony Averett is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Minkah Fitzpatrick started at safety for the Steelers. Fitzpatrick led Pittsburgh with seven tackles, including six solo stops.

· Najee Harris started at running back for the Steelers. Harris ran for a game-high 70 yards on 20 carries and had a 9-yard reception.

· Falcons safety DeMarcco Hellams is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Falcons running back Jase McClellan was designated as a game-day inactive.

Buffalo Bills 34, Arizona Cardinals 28

· Bills safety Kareem Jackson is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Bills wide receiver Tyrell Shavers in on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Jonah Williams started at right offensive tackle for the Cardinals. Williams left the game in the second half with a knee injury and did not return.

· Mack Wilson (Carver-Montgomery) started at inside linebacker for the Cardinals. Wilson matched his career high of nine tackles, first achieved on Dec. 29, 2019, in the Cleveland Browns’ 33-23 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. Wilson also had one tackle for loss and one pass breakup in his first game with Arizona. Wilson joined the Cardinals in the offseason as a free agent.

Chicago Bears 24, Tennessee Titans 17

· J.C. Latham started at left offensive tackle for the Titans in his first NFL game. Latham joined Tennessee as a first-round selection in the NFL Draft on April 25.

· Calvin Ridley started at wide receiver for the Titans. Ridley had three receptions for 50 yards in his first game for Tennessee. He joined the Titans as a free agent during the offseason.

New England Patriots 16, Cincinnati Bengals 10

· Patriots wide receiver Javon Baker was designated as a game-day inactive.

· Patriots defensive tackle Christian Barmore is on the non-football illness list and not eligible to play. A problem with blood clots has sidelined Barmore.

· Bengals safety Jordan Battle did not record any stats.

· Bengals wide receiver Jermaine Burton did not record any stats in his NFL debut.

· Anfernee Jennings (Dadeville) started at outside linebacker for the Patriots. Jennings made one tackle

Houston Texans 29, Indianapolis Colts 27

· Will Anderson Jr. started at defensive end for the Texans. Anderson made two tackles and recorded one tackle for loss.

· Colts defensive tackle Raekwon Davis did not record any stats in his first game with Indianapolis. Davis joined the Colts as a free agent in the offseason.

· Texans linebacker Christian Harris is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Ryan Kelly started at center for the Colts.

· Texans wide receiver John Metchie III was designated as a game-day inactive.

· Henry To’oTo’o started at linebacker for the Texans. To’oTo’o led Houston with seven tackles, recorded one tackle for loss and broke up one pass.

Miami Dolphins 20, Jacksonville Jaguars 17

· Dolphins guard Lester Cotton (Central-Tuscaloosa) did not record any stats.

· Dolphins defensive tackle Da’Shawn Hand made two tackles.

· Jaguars quarterback Mac Jones dressed for the game but did not play.

· Cam Robinson started at left offensive tackle for the Jaguars.

· Jaguars running back Keilan Robinson is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Tua Tagovailoa started at quarterback for the Dolphins. Tagovailoa completed 23-of-37 passes for 338 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions and had an 11-yard run. Tagovailoa threw an 80-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Tyreek Hill as Miami cut Jacksonville’s lead to 17-14 with 2:08 left in the third quarter.

TUA TAGOVAILOA SPEAKS UP, MIAMI DOLPHINS COME BACK

· Jaylen Waddle started at wide receiver for the Dolphins. Waddle had five receptions for 109 yards, including a 63-yarder. He also had a 3-yard run. Waddle recorded the 11th 100-yard game of his NFL career.

New Orleans Saints 47, Carolina Panthers 10

· Saints cornerback Ga’Quincy “Kool-Aid” McKinstry (Pinson Valley) made two tackles in his NFL debut. McKinstry joined New Orleans in the second round of the NFL Draft on April 26.

· Panthers defensive lineman LaBryan Ray (James Clemens) was designated as a game-day inactive.

· A’Shawn Robinson started at defensive end for the Panthers. Robinson reached a career high with nine tackles in his first game for Carolina. He joined the Panthers as a free agent this offseason. Robinson previously had five games with eight tackles.

· Bryce Young started at quarterback for the Panthers. Young completed 13-of-30 passes for 161 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions and ran four times for 12 yards and one touchdown. Young’s 3-yard run with 4:45 left in the third quarter was the first rushing touchdown of his career.

BRYCE YOUNG’S SECOND NFL SEASON STARTS WITH AN INTERCEPTION

Minnesota Vikings 28, New York Giants 6

· Giants offensive tackle Evan Neal dressed but did not play. Sunday’s game was the first in Neal’s career for which he was active, but he did not start. Neal missed nine games last season because of ankle injuries.

· Vikings kicker Will Reichard (Hoover) made four extra-points in his NFL debut. Reichard joined Minnesota as a sixth-round pick in the NFL Draft on April 27. He did not attempt a field goal in his first game.

· Vikings outside linebacker Dallas Turner made three tackles and recorded one sack in his NFL debut. Turner joined Minnesota in the first round of the NFL Draft on April 25. Turner registered his first NFL sack when he took down New York quarterback Daniel Jones for a 4-yard loss on a first-and-10 snap from the Giants 41-yard line with 14 seconds left in the first half.

Los Angeles Chargers 22, Las Vegas Raiders 10

· Bradley Bozeman (Handley) started at center for the Chargers.

· Chargers defensive tackle Justin Eboigbe was designated as a game-day inactive.

· Chargers offensive lineman Alex Leatherwood is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Chargers punter JK Scott had a 47.4-yard average on seven punts, with a 37.7-yard net. Scott had a 28-yard punt out of bounds at the Las Vegas 21-yard line, a 51-yarder for a fair catch at the Las Vegas 32, a 52-yarder for a fair catch at the Las Vegas 9, a 55-yarder for a touchback, a 56-yarder with a 7-yard return to the Las Vegas 34, a 49-yarder for a touchback and a 41-yarder with a 21-yard return to the Las Vegas 48.

Seattle Seahawks 26, Denver Broncos 20

· Seahawks cornerback Josh Jobe is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Jarran Reed started at defensive end for the Seahawks. Reed did not record any stats.

· Broncos linebacker Drew Sanders is on the physically-unable-to-perform list and not eligible to play.

· Patrick Surtain II started at cornerback for the Broncos. Surtain made six tackles and broke up one pass.

· Broncos cornerback Levi Wallace did not record any stats in his first game with Denver. Wallace joined Denver as a free agent in the offseason.

Dallas Cowboys 33, Cleveland Browns 17

· Browns cornerback Tony Brown is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Browns guard Javion Cohen (Central-Phenix City) was designated as a game-day inactive. Cohen made Cleveland’s roster as an undrafted rookie.

· Amari Cooper started at wide receiver for the Browns. Cooper had two receptions for 16 yards in his first game against his former team. Dallas traded Cooper to Cleveland in 2022.

· Trevon Diggs started at cornerback for the Cowboys. Diggs made five tackles, intercepted one pass and broke up another in his first game since Sept. 17, 2023. A knee injury sustained in practice caused Diggs to miss the final 15 games of the 2023 season. With 19 interceptions, Diggs is tied for ninth among Alabama’s NFL alumni with Pittsburgh Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. On Sunday, Diggs picked off Cleveland quarterback Deshaun Watson at the Dallas 22-yard line with 9:06 left to play.

· Jerome Ford started at running back for the Browns. Ford ran for 44 yards and one touchdown on 12 carries and caught six passes for 25 yards. Ford scored on a 2-yard run with 29 seconds to play.

· Jerry Jeudy started at wide receiver for the Browns. Jeudy had three receptions for 25 yards and one touchdown in his first game with Cleveland. Jeudy joined the Browns in an offseason trade with the Denver Broncos. He scored on a 6-yard pass from quarterback Deshaun Watson with 8:42 left in the third quarter.

· Browns tight end Cameron Latu is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Dalvin Tomlinson started at defensive tackle for the Browns. Tomlinson made three tackles and recorded one sack.

· Browns offensive tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. was designated as a game-day inactive. Wills is recovering from a knee injury that caused him to miss the final nine games of the 2023 season, and he has been a limited participant in practice.

Washington Commanders 37, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 20

· Jonathan Allen started at defensive tackle for the Commanders. Allen made two tackles and registered one quarterback hit.

· Buccaneers safety Marcus Banks is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Buccaneers outside linebacker Chris Braswell made one tackle in his NFL debut. Braswell joined Tampa Bay in the second round of the NFL Draft on April 26.

· Commanders defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis made one tackle.

· Daron Payne (Shades Valley) started at defensive tackle for the Commanders. Payne made one tackle.

· Brian Robinson Jr. (Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa) started at running back for the Commanders. Robinson ran for 40 yards and one touchdown on 12 carries and caught three passes for 49 yards. Robinson scored on a 7-yard run as Washington cut Tampa Bay’s lead to 13-7 with 7:17 left in the first half.

Week 1 started on Thursday night, when the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Baltimore Ravens 27-20. On Friday night in Brazil, the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Green Bay Packers 34-29.

EAGLES QUARTERBACK JALEN HURTS: ‘WE WEATHERED THE STORM AS A TEAM’

Week 1 concludes on Monday, when the New York Jets and San Francisco 49ers square off at 7:15 p.m. CDT at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California. ABC, ESPN and ESPN2 will televise the game.

FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.

Alabama pulled away in the fourth quarter, but Saturday night’s 42-16 win over South Florida was anything but pretty. But head coach Kalen DeBoer is all about the “1-0 mindset,” and on a week where there were multiple upsets around the country, the Crimson Tide did indeed go 1-0 to stay unbeaten early in the 2024 season.

The Crimson Tide stayed at No. 4 in both polls. The SEC has six of the top seven teams in the AP Poll.

Four ranked teams lost over the weekend with the biggest shocker coming in South Bend, Indiana where Northern Illinois knocked off No. 5 Notre Dame. Here’s how things shook out in the polls after two full weeks of college football.

(Ranking, team, first-place votes, points received, record)

1. Georgia (54), 1566, 2-0
2. Texas (4), 1492, 2-0
3. Ohio State (5), 1476, 2-0
4. Alabama, 1331, 2-0
5. Ole Miss, 1323, 2-0
6. Missouri, 1125, 2-0
7. Tennessee, 1107, 2-0
8. Penn State, 1090, 2-0
9. Oregon, 1077, 2-0
10. Miami, 1073, 2-0
11. USC, 1022, 2-0
12. Utah, 1010, 2-0
13. Oklahoma State, 734, 2-0
14. Kansas State, 702, 2-0
15. Oklahoma, 672, 2-0
16. LSU, 521, 1-1
17. Michigan, 503, 1-1
18. Notre Dame, 427, 1-1
19. Louisville, 383, 2-0
20. Arizona, 381, 2-0
21. Iowa State, 309, 2-0
22. Clemson, 292, 1-1
23. Nebraska, 142, 2-0
24. Boston COllege, 116, 2-0
25. Northern Illinois, 114, 2-0

Others receiving votes: Illinois 101, Boise St. 77, Texas A&M 68, Syracuse 63, Memphis 38, Washington 27, Iowa 24, Kansas 22, Vanderbilt 18, South Carolina 10, Liberty 9, Wisconsin 9, UNLV 7, North Carolina 7, California 3, BYU 2, UCF 1, TCU 1.

(Ranking, team, first-place votes, points received, record)

1. Georgia (48), 1296, 2-0
2. Ohio State (3), 1233, 2-0
3. Texas (1), 1213, 2-0
4. Alabama, 1113, 2-0
5. Ole Miss, 1094, 2-0
6. Oregon, 947, 2-0
7. Missouri, 920, 2-0
8. Penn State, 918, 2-0
9. Tennessee, 900, 2-0
10. Utah, 840, 2-0
11. USC, 772, 2-0
12. Miami, 767, 2-0
13. Oklahoma, 677, 2-0
14. Oklahoma State, 567, 2-0
15. Kansas State, 556, 2-0
16. Michigan, 485, 1-1
17. LSU, 392, 1-1
18. Arizona, 386, 2-0
19. Notre Dame, 370, 1-1
20. Clemson, 313, 1-1
21. Louisville, 281, 2-0
22. Washington, 170, 2-0
23. Iowa State, 145, 2-0
24. Nebraska, 91, 2-0
25. Memphis, 85, 2-0

Schools Dropped Out: No. 20 Kansas;No. 21 Iowa;No. 23 North Carolina State

Others Receiving Votes: Texas A&M 68;Boston College 36;Syracuse 33;Illinois 33;Northern Illinois 30;Wisconsin 28;South Carolina 25;UNLV 19;Boise State 18;Iowa 17;Kansas 10;North Carolina State 9;UCF 7;Texas State 7;TCU 6;North Carolina 5;California 5;Liberty 4;Pittsburgh 2;Michigan State 2;BYU 2;Tulane 1;James Madison 1;Indiana 1;

Former Alabama head coach Nick Saban showed love to both sides of the ball throughout his 17-year tenure with the Crimson Tide, but it often seemed that defense was slightly closer to his heart. This is mainly due to his experience playing defensive back many many years ago, while also serving as a defensive backs coach and defensive coordinator for several collegiate and NFL teams over the course of 20 years.

The legendary head coach, who won six National Championships at Alabama, earned perhaps the greatest honor in the sports world on Saturday evening as the Crimson Tide’s mecca of a gridiron received a new name: Saban Field at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

In an entire day honoring Saban, his somewhat preferred phase of the sport also gave him flowers that night, as Alabama’s defense was stout against South Florida’s offense from practically start to finish as the Crimson Tide won 42-16.

Wommack’s Swarm D, which shut out Western Kentucky last Saturday, proved its worth once again, and the players seem to enjoy it. Wommack refers to his 4-2-5 defensive scheme as the “Swarm D.” It’s a physical, fast, aggressive style he wants his defenses to be marked by.

Wommack spent the past three seasons as the head coach at South Alabama and said earlier in the week that one of the things he had missed most and was most looking forward to was calling the defense for Alabama this season. He’s gotten off to a strong start in the first two Saturdays of the season.

South Florida quarterback Byrum Brown gave Alabama’s run defense hell for most of the first half as logged 88 rushing yards on 12 attempts. But some Wommack adjustments and motivation lowered Brown’s pace rapidly declined in the second half as he ran for just 20 yards on 11 carries.

Unlike the run game for Brown, it was all quiet on the passing front in both halves on Saturday night, as the Crimson Tide allowed Brown to complete 15-of-35 attempts (43 percent) for just 103 yards (6.9 yards per completion).

Alabama defensive lineman Tim Keenan III had one of the best games of his Crimson Tide career as he recorded nine tackles, including 2.5 for loss, and 1.5 sacks (the latter two numbers were team-highs). Keenan who hit Brown more than anyone else opened up about the quarterback’s difference between halves.

“We [had to] get hands on that guy,” Keenan said of Brown, one of the better athletes outside the Power Four and one of the best running quarterbacks in college football period. “Kudos to him. He’s a great player, a great athlete… We did what we had to do. We got the best of him.”

Alabama led South Florida 14-13 entering the fourth quarter. Truly eye-popping. While the Tide defense was stout all night, Keenan and his unit wanted to take it to another level.

“[We had] just the mindset of, don’t get stopped, I gotta get home,” Keenan said. “Pressure makes diamonds… I love moments like that, because everybody looking for somebody to be the play, and it’s like, why not me? So, just being able to have that mindset, I’m gonna make something happen, I’m gonna make a play.”

Linebacker Que Robinson was one of those players making diamonds as he flew around the middle of the field and also USF’s backfield on plenty of occasions, despite his stat sheet not being other-worldly: seven tackles, a sack and a tackle for loss. Robinson attributed the game plan and coaching to his performance as well as the rest of the team’s.

“Credit goes to the staff and defensive coordinator coach Wommack,” Robinson said after the game. “He just calls plays to give us an opportunity. He puts me and my teammates in a situation where we can just go out there and play. We don’t have to think too much and we were able to execute.”

Nevertheless, although Robinson was pleased with his team’s performance in Wommack’s system on Saturday, he explained that it was far from perfect.

“We’re nowhere near where we need to be,” Robinson said. We’ve got to create more turnovers. Effort is a huge part of the game and we’ve got to give more effort. Doing our assignments, being fundamentally sound, getting to those gaps and getting the quarterback off his spot.”

Perhaps the word Robinson used most in the interview, in both a good and bad connotation was “effort.” Robinson said multiple times that he needs to do better and mentioned that “multiple guys were out there were screaming, yelling, telling guys to stay focused and locked in.”

But the main positive that he associated with effort was the defense’s performance on third down. Alabama held Western Kentucky to 3-of-18 on third-down attempts and a somehow even more impressive 2-of-18 against South Florida. Truly remarkable and something to keep in mind for the Crimson Tide defense for the next few weeks.

Many of these third-down stops involved Keenan’s efforts trenches. Robinson detailed that Keenan’s personal-top-tier performance from Saturday was a reflection of the entire team, and it’s been that way for quite some time.

“If Tim’s hype, everybody’s hype,” Robinson said. “He’s that person we feed off of. When he’s out there creating plays it makes everyone else hungry.”

Good coaching, leadership, accountability, effort, high standards, in-game improvement…what else could Saban enjoy in a Wommack-led defense on the day the field is named after him?