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It's just Week 1 of the NFL season, but that doesn't mean the trolls are starting out slow.
The New York Giants defeated the Dallas Cowboys 28-20 on "Sunday Night Football." New York enjoyed a wire-to-wire win behind a stellar performance from quarterback Jaxson Dart.
He had 230 passing yards and three passing touchdowns, plus 54 yards rushing. Dart is the third quarterback in Giants history with three passing touchdowns and 50 rushing yards in a game, according to ESPN Research. New York's defense had a say in the victory, too, holding Dallas to just 244 total yards of offense -- the fewest for the Cowboys versus the Giants since 2008. In his debut with the team, Giants tight end Isaiah Likely had eight catches for 78 yards and two touchdowns.�
New York's win didn't come without a petty post on social media aimed at its rivals. The Giants shared a video of "SpongeBob SquarePants" character Sandy Cheeks, who is from Texas, playing "Sandy's Texas Song." The track ends with Sandy going down into her tree dome while singing the lyrics: "I want to go home."
In this case, it's presumably the Cowboys who want to go home.�
Here are more of the top trolls from Week 1 of the NFL season.
In an early-season matchup between two AFC favorites, the Buffalo Bills defeated the Houston Texans�on Sunday. The high-scoring affair came to an end when Buffalo linebacker Greg Rousseau had a sack fumble on Houston quarterback�C.J. Stroud�with 16 seconds left in the game.
Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen had 334 passing yards and four total touchdowns -- two on the ground and two in the air. Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid led the team with 130 receiving yards, while wide receiver DJ Moore had five catches for 100 yards and a touchdown. Stroud threw for 274 yards and two scores.
The big victory came with simple trolls from Buffalo. First, it posted an image of someone doing a horns down motion to the Texans' mascot, Toro. Then, the Bills put a spin on the city of Houston's famous blue tiles, creating their own sign that read: "Bills Win," with the Houston skyline in the background.
The first game of the Mike McCarthy era in Pittsburgh began with a W as the Steelers defeated the Falcons at home.
Pittsburgh's defense showed out with two forced turnovers, including a pick-six by linebacker T.J. Watt, and four sacks. Watt had two of those sacks, becoming the first Steelers player with at least two sacks and an interception return for a touchdown in a game since LaMarr Woodley in 2010, according to ESPN Research.
The victory came with a postgame jab aimed at the Falcons' namesake. Pittsburgh posted a viral TikTok audio and meme with a bird hopping up and down when exiting a cage with the caption: "Feather in our cap."
Even from down under, the trolls hit the same. San Francisco made sure to poke fun at its division rival after a dominant win in Australia.
The 49ers' statement victory against the Rams on Thursday night included 24 unanswered points to close it out. Los Angeles had just 290 offensive yards plus two turnovers, while San Francisco hummed all game. 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy threw for 205 passing yards and three touchdowns to three different players -- wide receivers Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel Sr.�and Demarcus Robinson.
While in Australia, San Francisco seemingly picked up on trends of the Oceanic country. One of them became the theme of its troll: Vegemite, a thick Australian spread made from brewer's yeast. It has a strong, salty and meaty-rich flavor, according to Food Network. The 49ers spread it out on a piece of bread to spell out "W," presumably served up for the Rams.
Seattle's championship-defending season began with a victory against New England last Wednesday.
The Seahawks lost quarterback Sam Darnold on the first drive due to a hip injury. Drew Lock stepped up under center and threw for 187 yards and a touchdown. However, Seattle's defense made the plays of the game, picking off Patriots quarterback Drake Maye three times in the fourth quarter to help secure the win.
No different from last season, a Seahawks victory came with a comic trolling of the other team, this time the Patriots.
