# Bradley Locker: A PFF Week 1 preview of the 2026 season describing key individual matchups. It notes Luther Burden is Chicago's clear-cut No. 1 receiver and that Joe Brady makes his head-coaching debut with Buffalo, Jesse Minter his with Baltimore, and Tua Tagovailoa starts at quarterback for Atlanta. **Claimed:** Sep 9, 2026 **Pundit:** Bradley Locker — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/bradley-locker **Outlet:** Pro Football Focus — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/pro-football-focus **How it reached us:** published in writing **Original:** https://www.pff.com/news/the-10-best-nfl-player-matchups-to-watch-in-week-1/ 2 checkable claims — 2 depth chart calls — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet. It names 4 players and teams, each linked to their own record. None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in. Of the 2 unsettled calls enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands below the rest of the room on every one. > How well can the burgeoning Burden perform as Chicago's clear-cut No. 1 receiver against a shutdown corner like Jackson? *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Tua Tagovailoa to be 1st on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Tua Tagovailoa, Atlanta Falcons - Verdict: not settled yet - **Luther Burden III to be 1st on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Luther Burden III, Chicago Bears - Verdict: not settled yet ## Who this take is about - Tua Tagovailoa — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/tua-tagovailoa - Atlanta Falcons — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/falcons - Luther Burden III — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/luther-burden-iii - Chicago Bears — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/bears ## What others said about the same people - Nate Tice on Chicago Bears: Tice picked the Bengals over the Texans in a low-scoring game, the Jaguars at Denver, the Bears over the Vikings, the Patriots over the Steelers and the Rams to edge the Giants, and his Hail Mary was the Cowboys scoring 40 on Washington. He also floated Abdul Carter as a possible All-Pro. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/b6211c80-3d1c-46b8-8a0c-151fc0ba92de (scored 0) - Matt Harmon on Chicago Bears: Harmon picked the Bengals to beat the Texans in Week 2, expecting Nico Collins to miss the game with a hamstring injury, and also predicted the Titans would be shut out by the Eagles. He took the Rams over the Giants, the Bears over the Vikings, and the Jaguars at Denver. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/21a71025-ab65-4716-ac2c-e77ad5ce3348 (scored 0) - Tracy Sandler on Chicago Bears: Sandler predicted Caleb Williams would miss two to three weeks with his hamstring injury, and in the picks segment took the Broncos, Ravens, Vikings, Bills and Bears (switching off an earlier Tampa pick). — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/74f12600-9587-488a-af00-2e8c11643531 (scored 100) - Adam Chudwin on Chicago Bears: In his annual game-by-game Bears prediction, Chudwin went through all 17 games and landed on a 12-5 season for Chicago. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/b6e5e93f-2997-4140-881f-3acec911a1f1 (scored 100) - John Breech on Chicago Bears: A CBS Sports piece predicts the week each NFL team will suffer its first loss, effectively picking winners in each of those games, and names the Ravens as the league's final undefeated team after a 7-0 start. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/50eb251e-cf6b-417d-a0d6-bccba95e06fc (scored 100) - Fox Sports on Michael Penix Jr.: Fox Sports states that a healthy Tua Tagovailoa will serve as Atlanta's backup quarterback in Week 3, with Michael Penix Jr. handling the starting duties against Green Bay. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/a90e69a8-707f-43e9-a63e-cdb3e7bd0829 (scored 100) ## More depth chart calls The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Pat Fitzmaurice on Jonah Coleman: In his Week 3 waiver column, Fitzmaurice makes several depth-chart calls around injuries: Jonah Coleman leading Denver's backfield, Marcus Mariota taking over in Washington, Michael Penix Jr. starting once healthy, and Malik Washington serving as Miami's top receiver, plus availability expectations for Detroit's injured safeties. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/2cbd48f6-15ea-4aa5-84bc-bcc50d94d09a (scored 0) - Pat Fitzmaurice on Aaron Jones: In previewing the 10 most intriguing fantasy performers of Week 2, Fitzmaurice expects Atlanta's quarterback problems to persist with Tua Tagovailoa unlikely to play and Michael Penix Jr. not ready to return, flags Falcons slot corner Billy Bowman Jr. as a possible Week 2 returnee, and describes Aaron Jones as Minnesota's lead back and Kaelon Black as the clear backup to Christian McCaffrey in San Francisco. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/31adc8bb-8f15-453f-bbcf-cab44e29b8b3 (scored 100) - Matt Severance on Deshaun Watson: The CBS Sports preview backs Tampa Bay to beat Cleveland in the Bucs' Week 2 home opener, and states that Deshaun Watson — not Shedeur Sanders — will be Cleveland's starting quarterback in Week 2. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/944568ce-7205-409f-8354-a392016fd8bf (scored 100) - Rafael Zamorano on Deshaun Watson: Zamorano reports Watson will start Week 2 at Tampa Bay and suggests there's little reason to expect improvement, raising the possibility Watson's five-year contract never yields more than single-digit wins. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/d7d7e0a2-61e0-4525-970b-b01a2356f11b (scored 100) - Pat Fitzmaurice on Rashod Bateman: In his Week 2 waiver wire column, Fitzmaurice recommends a slate of pickups he expects to outperform their current rostership (Kaelon Black, Deebo Samuel, Tyler Shough, Geno Smith and others), lays out several depth-chart expectations (Black as the 49ers' No. 2 back, Shedeur Sanders eventually taking over in Cleveland, Penix returning for Atlanta), and flags Fool's Gold/drop candidates such as Mike Gesicki, Kendrick Bourne and Rashid Shaheed. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/6218d3c2-61e7-4ace-9976-b51eeefdf22c (scored 0) - Bill Huber on Chris McClellan: Huber's first Packers rookie progress report projects second-round cornerback Brandon Cisse to hold onto his spot with the No. 1 defense, third-round defensive tackle Chris McClellan to start in Week 1, and fifth-round lineman Jager Burton to be the team's top interior backup rather than a starter. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/dcf9daae-b511-490c-b438-173cf91e8597 (scored 0) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. 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