Pats hand Dolphins first loss
The New England Patriots’ losing streak is over. So is the Miami Dolphins’ undefeated start.
Tom Brady threw for 274 yards and three touchdowns and the host Patriots handed the Dolphins their first loss in a 38-7 rout on Sunday. It denied the Dolphins their first 4-0 start since Hall of Fame coach Don Shula’s last season in 1995.
“I thought we got what we needed from our team today,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said.
Brady improved to 15-1 as a starter at home against the Dolphins.
“We hadn’t played well in the last weeks,” Brady said. “This game’s great. But you’ve gotta turn the page.”
The Patriots might be doing that without one of their best players. Tight end Rob Gronkowski, one of Brady’s favorite targets, left the game in the third quarter with a right ankle injury and did not return.
It put a slight damper on an afternoon in which the Patriots showed the kind of consistency on both sides of the ball that had been missing in back-to-back losses to the Jaguars and Lions.
Running back James White finished with a rushing and receiving touchdown. Rookie running back Sony Michel also rushed 25 times for 112 yards and his first career touchdown.
Titans 26, Eagles 23 (OT)
Marcus Mariota hit Corey Davis with a 10-yard touchdown pass just before the end of overtime and host Tennessee nipped Philadelphia for its best start since 2013. The Titans trailed by 14 in the third quarter and also trailed 23-20 in overtime before coming back again behind Mariota, who in his first start since being knocked out of the opener with an injured elbow threw for 344 yards and two touchdowns while also running for a score.
Texans 37, Colts 34 (OT)
Ka’imi Fairbairn took advantage
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of his second chance on a 37yard field-goal attempt, making it as time expired in overtime to give Houston a victory over host Indianapolis. Fairburn had missed the first kick wide left. The Texans ended a nine-game losing streak.
The loss spoiled Adam Vinatieri’s record-breaking day. The 45-year-old kicker became the league’s career leader in field goals when he made a 42-yarder with two seconds left in the first half and he extended the mark to 567 with a 44-yarder to give the Colts a 34-31 lead in overtime.
Raiders 45, Browns 42 (OT)
Derek Carr threw four touchdown passes and a game-tying two-point conversion with 30 seconds left in regulation before Matt McGrane’s 29-yard field goal in overtime gave host Oakland the victory, its first since Jon Gruden returned as coach.
Seahawks 20, Cardinals 17
Sebastian Janikowski, who had missed twice earlier in the game, kicked a 52-yard field goal as time expired to give visiting Seattle a victory over winless Arizona. Seahawks safety Earl Thomas gave a parting middle finger to his team’s side of the field while being carted off with broken left leg. Thomas has been engaged in a back-and-forth with the Seahawks over a long-term commitment, missing multiple practices this season to prevent putting his future at risk.
Bengals 37, Falcons 36
Andy Dalton threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Green with 7 seconds remaining, lifting visiting Cincinnati to a nail-biting victory over Atlanta. Bengals tight end Tyler Eifert suffered a gruesome lower right leg injury early in the third quarter and was carted off the field.