Eagles hand Vikings first defeat, Cards Seahawks tie
LOS ANGELES: The Philadelphia Eagles used a ballhawking defense and a back-breaking kickoff return to upset the Minnesota Vikings 21-10 on Sunday, handing the NFL’s final undefeated team its first defeat. Neither team’s offense was effective and both team’s quarterbacks struggled. Philadelphia rookie Carson Wentz completed 16 of 28 passes for 138 yards. Minnesota’s Sam Bradford, who was traded from the Eagles before the season opener, was even worse for most of the game. He completed 24 of 41 passes for 224 yards.
DOLPHINS 28, BILLS 25
Jay Ajayi became the fourth player in NFL history to rush for more than 200 yards in consecutive games, leading the Miami Dolphins to a 28-25 upset win over the Buffalo Bills. Ajayi, a second-year running back from Boise State, ran 29 times for 214 yards and one touchdown as the Dolphins (3-4) ended Buffalo’s fourgame win streak. Ajayi joined O.J. Simpson (1973 and 1976), Earl Campbell (1980) and Ricky Williams (2002) as the only players to have consecutive 200-yard games.
LIONS 20 REDSKINS 17
Matthew Stafford connected with Anquan Boldin on an 18-yard touchdown pass with 16 seconds left, lifting the Detroit Lions to a 20-17 win over the Washington Redskins. Stafford, making his 100th career start, engineered a six-play, 75-yard drive after Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins scored on a 19-yard run with 1:05 remaining. Stafford completed 18 of 29 passes for 266 yards as Detroit (4-3) won its third straight, all at home. The Redskins (4-3) had a fourgame winning streak snapped.
CHIEFS 27, SAINTS 21
Led by the efforts of running back Spencer Ware on offense and a defense that forced two turnovers, the Kansas City Chiefs beat the New Orleans Saints 27-21. Ware touched the ball 19 times for 132 yards. He caught a short pass from quarterback Alex Smith and turned it into a 46-yard touchdown play in the first quarter. The Kansas City (4-2) defense allowed New Orleans (2-4) quarterback Drew Brees to throw for 348 yards and three touchdowns.
GIANTS 17, RAMS 10
Landon Collins and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie each had two interceptions, fueling a strong defensive effort in the New York Giants’ 17-10 win over the Los Angeles Rams at Twickenham Stadium in London. The Giants (4-3) intercepted Rams quarterback Case Keenum four times. New York had only three takeaways all season before Sunday.
JETS 24, RAVENS 16
Matt Forte generated 155 yards in total offense and scored two touchdowns as the New York Jets snapped a four-game losing streak with a 24-16 win over the Baltimore Ravens. The Jets (2-5) lost starting quarterback Geno Smith in the second quarter but pulled away in the second half thanks to Forte, who had 103 total yards in the final two quarters. New York’s opportunistic defense picked off Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco twice to set up a pair of scoring drives.
BENGALS 31, BROWNS 17
Jeremy Hill rushed for a career-high 168 yards and Andy Dalton passed for 308 yards and two touchdowns, one of which was a ‘Hail Mary’ to A.J. Green at the end of the first half, to lift the Cincinnati Bengals to a 31-17 victory over the Cleveland Browns. It was another rough afternoon for Cleveland (0-7), which lost quarterback Cody Kessler to a concussion in the second quarter. Kessler had just completed an 11-yard shovel pass when he was thrown hard to the turf by Bengals defensive end Carlos Dunlap.
COLTS 34, TITANS 26
The Indianapolis Colts might have saved their season with a 34-26 win over the Tennessee Titans. A week after blowing a two-touchdown lead in the fourth quarter and losing in overtime, the Colts scored two touchdowns in an eight-second span. Quarterback Andrew Luck hit Jack Doyle with a 7-yard touchdown pass with 1:55 left to give the Colts (3-4) a 27-23 lead, his third scoring strike of the day.
RAIDERS 33, JAGUARS 16
The Oakland Raiders continued their sizzling road form with a 33-16 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Oakland (5-2) is now 4-0 on the road this season. The last time it accomplished that came when the franchise advanced to the AFC Championship Game in 2000.
PATRIOTS 27, STEELERS 16
LeGarrette Blount ran for two touchdowns and 127 yards against his former team, and the New England Patriots turned to their old reliables Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski to hold off the Ben Roethlisberger-less Pittsburgh Steelers 27-16. The near-perfect-as-usual Brady was 19 of 26 for 222 yards and no interceptions. Brady has eight touchdown passes and no interceptions in three games since returning from his fourgame suspension-and the Patriots (6-1) have won all three. Steelers backup quarterback Landry Jones, making only his third NFL start, was more than adequate in replacing Roethlisberger, who is expected to be out three to six weeks with a knee injury.
CHARGERS 33, FALCONS 30 (OT)
The San Diego Chargers came from 17 points down to beat the Atlanta Falcons 33-30 in overtime, posting consecutive wins for the first time in nearly two years. Josh Lambo kicked the winning 42-yard field goal as the Chargers (3-4) sent the Falcons (4-3) to a second straight narrow loss. The Falcons had a chance to avoid overtime but Matt Bryant hit the left upright on a 58yard field goal attempt at the end of regulation.
BUCCANEERS 34, 49ERS 17
Running back Jacquizz Rodgers rushed for 156 yards, Jameis Winston threw three touchdown passes, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers came from behind to defeat the San Francisco 49ers 34-17. Wide receiver Mike Evans caught eight passes for 96 yards and two touchdowns for the Buccaneers (3-3). Quarterback Colin Kaepernick started his second straight game and threw for 143 yards and one touchdown for the 49ers (1-6).
CARDINALS 6, SEAHAWKS 6 (OT)
In a game featuring two blocked kicks and missed field goals that would have won the game for both teams on what essentially were chip shots, Arizona and Seattle wound up settling for a tie. Cardinals kicker Chandler Catanzaro had a chance to win the game with a second field goal in overtime, but his 24-yard attempt with 3:19 remaining bounced off the left upright. The Seahawks took over, and after two long pass plays from Russell Wilson to Doug Baldwin, Seattle kicker Steven Hauschka shanked a 28-yard field goal wide left with seven seconds left to play in the extra period. — Reuters