NFL Winners and Losers from Week 1: Jordan Love owns Bears, Steelers get embarrassed

It's football season, baby!

The NFL is back and better than ever. If Week 1 has been any indication, we're in for a wild season. From stunning upsets to historic performances, Sunday has been the football equivalent of a four-course meal at your favorite dining establishment. Excitement, heartbreak — it's all brewing.

As the first full day of the NFL season winds down, it's important to maintain the long view. Week 1 trends hardly ever hold and it's only natural for jitters and rust to get in players' way at this stage. We will forget most of this ever happened by Week 17.

For now, however, it's just nice to have football back. Fans of every creed have been hyping up their teams all summer. Some of those fans felt a profound sense of vindication today. Others are wearing a paper bag over their heads for the next week.

To the victor goes the spoils. Let's dive into the winners and the not-so-winners.

NFL Week 1 winner: Jordan Love

Few players were under more Week 1 pressure than Jordan Love after his strong preseason. The Green Bay Packers are wading into uncharted waters without Aaron Rodgers and Love is the player tasked with replacing a legend. That can weigh on a player and a fanbase.

Any lingering doubt is out the window now. Love and the Packers went on the road and absolutely stomped the Chicago Bears. Love can work out with Justin Fields all he wants, the bad blood between those franchises will never die. On Sunday, a chippy game reaffirmed the natural discord between two diametrically opposed entities.

The Bears' O-line fell apart and Justin Fields looked positively terrible. Love, on the other hand, dropped 245 yards and three touchdowns on 15-of-27 passing, expertly picking apart Chicago's defense and consistently executing in important moments. The outcome of this game was never in any real doubt.