Eagles win ninth straight
EAGLES 31 BEARS 3 — At Philadelphia, Carson Wentz tossed three touchdown passes and the NFL-leading Eagles beat Chicago on Sunday for their ninth straight win.
The Eagles (10-1) reduced their magic number to clinch the NFC East to one with their fourth consecutive win by at least 23 points and third in a row by exactly 28. Philadelphia would secure its first division title since 2013 if the Cowboys (5-6) lose or tie Washington on Thursday night.
Wentz had 227 yards passing, LeGarrette Blount ran for 97 yards and Zach Ertz caught 10 passes for 103 yards and one TD.
The defence dominated rookie quarterback Mitchell Trubisky and the inept Bears (3-8), holding them to zero first downs in the first half and 140 total yards in the game.
BILLS 16 CHIEFS 10 — At Kansas City, Mo., Tyrod Taylor threw for 183 yards and a touchdown in his return to the starting lineup, Tre’Davious White intercepted Alex Smith with just over a minute remaining, and Buffalo held off Kansas City.
Zay Jones had the touchdown reception and Stephen Hauschka kicked three field goals for the Bills (6-5), but the story was their defence — or the Chiefs’ complete lack of offence.
Kansas City (6-5) managed only 236 yards while losing for the fifth time in six games.
BENGALS 30 BROWNS 16 — At Cincinnati, rookie Joe Mixon ran for a career-high 114 yards in the Bengals’ best offensive showing since the last time they faced Cleveland.
The Bengals (5-6) won back-toback games for only the second time this season. They hadn’t scored so many points since they won 31-7 at Cleveland on Oct. 1.
At 0-11, the Browns are starting to run out of chances for that breakthrough win. Last year, they waited until their 15th game to get their only victory and avoid the second 0-16 season in NFL history.
FALCONS 34 BUCCANEERS 20 — At Atlanta, Julio Jones hauled in 12 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns in one of the best games of his career, leading the Falcons past Tampa Bay.
Rekindling memories of the Super Bowl, the Falcons (7-4) nearly squandered a big lead to a team playing its third game without injured quarterback Jameis Winston. The Buccaneers (4-7) rebounded from a 27-6 deficit behind backup Ryan Fitzpatrick and drove deep into Atlanta territory after forcing a fumble at the other end of the field.
But Keanu Neal battled down Fitzpatrick’s pass on fourthand-one at the Atlanta 18 with just over seven minutes remaining, and the Falcons drove for a clinching touchdown on Tevin Coleman’s 14-yard run with just under two minutes to go.
PATRIOTS 35 DOLPHINS 17 — At Foxborough, Mass., Tom Brady tossed four touchdown passes — including two to Rob Gronkowski — and New England pushed through injuries and a mistake-filled game to beat Miami.
New England (9-2) posted its seventh consecutive victory and third straight win over Miami. The Dolphins (4-7) have lost five straight for their longest slide since 2011.
It was Brady’s 28th career game with four or more touchdown passes — ranking third all-time. His 26 touchdowns passes are the most ever in a season after turning 40 years old.
TITANS 20 COLTS 16 — At Indianapolis, Tennessee (7-4) got its first win in 10 tries at Lucas Oil Stadium when DeMarco Murray scored on a one-yard touchdown run with 5:59 left for a come-frombehind win over Indianapolis.
The Titans pulled off their first series sweep since 2002. And they did it by rallying from a 10-point third-quarter deficit again — just as they had six weeks earlier against the Colts.
Indy (3-8) has lost three straight home games and five of its last six overall.
PANTHERS 35 JETS 27 — At East Rutherford, N.J., Luke Kuechly returned a fumble 34 yards for a touchdown and Kaelin Clay had a 60-yard punt return for a score, capping a stunning swing in the fourth quarter that lifted Carolina to a comeback win over New York.
It was the fourth straight victory for the Panthers (8-3), who were trying to keep pace with the first-place Saints in the NFC South. The teams meet next Sunday at New Orleans.