The New Orleans Saints had the biggest win in week 1 of the 2024 NFL season as they outclassed the Carolina Panthers 47-10, so it is unsurprising that Alvin Kamara, who is of Liberian descent, was Africa's standout player across the league.
His touchdown -- a result of a sustained spell of pressure where the Panthers defense had few answers to him -- was one of the memorable moments of the NFL's return, but far from the only one by an African player.
African Player of the Week: Alvin Kamara (New Orleans Saints)
Kamara, whose mother is Liberian, gained his team a combined total of 110 yards (83 rushing yards and 27 receiving yards). He chipped away at the Panthers defense with 15 carries over the course of the game.
In the second quarter, he had his longest run of the match - 17 yards - which equalled his best for the whole of last season. That play ended in a field goal.
In the third quarter, Kamara had a touchdown chalked off due to a holding call against the Saints, but he responded by once again chipping at the Panthers until they finally caved in as he maneuvered through a tight-spot for a one-yard touchdown. Ultimately, however, he had gained 26 yards over multiple plays to finally get into the end zone.
Although he showed flashes of excellence, last season was not Kamara's best, but if he maintains the form he showed against the Panthers, there is not a defense in the league that will not have to be at their best to avoid being worn down by attrition when they come up against the Saints.
African Moment of the Week: Segun Olubi & Dayo Odeyingbo (Indianapolis Colts)
The Baltimore Ravens' David Ojabo made a strong case for this award when he came back from injury to sack Patrick Mahomes in the 27-20 defeat to the Kansas City Chiefs.
However, he was pipped by Dayo Odeyingbo and Segun Olubi, who in two plays demonstrated just how important Africa is to the Colts' ambitions this season.
They were involved in one of the most thrilling games of week 1 as the Colts ultimately went down a narrow 29-27 to fierce rivals the Houston Texans. Along with Guinea-born Liberian defensive end Kwity Paye, American-Nigerian duo Odeyingbo and Olubi made telling contributions.
Midway through the third quarter, Odeyingbo led the charge together with several D-line colleagues as they effectively cornered and brought down CJ Stroud. Now on fourth down as a result, the Texans tried to punt the ball under pressure, but Olubi blocked the clearance kick from Tommy Townsend and the Colts recovered the ball.
All of a sudden, the Colts had 1st & goal and Jonathan Taylor finished off the hard work that was started by Odeyingbo and Olubi, strolling in for a touchdown made in Nigeria to reduce the deficit from 15-7 to 15-13. Although the Colts ultimately did not see out the win, it was largely due to that passage of play that it turned into a thriller.
Honorable Mentions:
It was not all heartbreak for Nigeria in the NFL this week. The Detroit Lions got off to a winning start as they beat the LA Rams 26-20 and Levi Onwuzurike, who is of Nigerian descent, contributed half a sack.
Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, also of Nigerian descent, got a win with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and a sack in their 37-20 triumph over the Washington Commanders.
Boye Mafe set a Seattle Seahawks franchise record for most consecutive games with a sack last year and picked up where he left off in week 1 this season, notching his first sack of the season in a 26-20 triumph over the Denver Broncos.
Foyesade Oluokun (Jacksonville Jaguars) and Nnamdi Madubuike (Baltimore Ravens) were not as fortunate. Oluokun was the top tackler in the all-Florida showdown between the Jags and the Miami Dolphins, but ended up on the losing side. Madubuike got half a sack for the Ravens against the Chiefs, but he and Ojabo lost the game despite their heroic individual displays.
Chigoziem Okonkwo was another player of Nigerian heritage who had a heroic moment but ended up on the losing side as the Tennessee Titans lost 24-17 to the Chicago Bears despite his touchdown.
Elsewhere, Matt Judon, who is of Burundian descent, got half a sack for the Atlanta Falcons although they were beaten 18-10 by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Africa-born player watch:
Nate Landman, who was born in Zimbabwe, made seven tackles for the Falcons in the Steelers loss.
However, Paye and Emmanuel Ogbah were the African-born players of the week. Paye sacked Stroud in the titanic tussle between the Colts and Texans, while Nigeria's Ogbah not only got a sack for the Dolphins, but also the win against the Jaguars.