Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Philadelphia Eagles run over Buffalo Bills in 31-13 win
EAGLES 31, BILLS 13
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Lane Johnson isn’t sure what the Eagles proved except to silence their critics for one week after their run game and defense trampled the Buffalo Bills.
“What are we, 4-4? It looks like we’re average,” the starting right tackle said, injecting a profanity into his comment for emphasis. “We needed a damn win. That’s really what it all boiled down to. It felt good to get one.”
Having spent the past week listening to how awful and soft they were following a 37-10 loss at Dallas, the Eagles responded by snapping a two-game skid with a 31-13 win on the road and against a Bills team that dropped to 5-2.
Rookie Miles Sanders scored on a 65-yard run, one of Philadelphia’s three touchdowns rushing, on a wet and windy afternoon in which the Eagles finished with 218 yards rushing.
Linebacker Brandon Graham keyed a stifling defensive effort by forcing and recovering a fumble, while adding one of Philadelphia’s four sacks.
“It was a lot of stuff that tried to distract us from this game this week. There was a lot of things we were still trying to answer for,” Graham said, referring to former cornerback Orlando Scandrick questioning the team’s leadership after being released on Monday.
“Everybody knows our stuff whatever it is, so let’s go out and change the way people view us,” Graham added. “Now we’ve got a clean slate.”
PATRIOTS 27, BROWNS 13
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Tom Brady threw for 259 yards and two touchdown passes and Bill Belichick earned his 300th career NFL coaching victory in the Patriots’ 2713 win over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.
Belichick sits behind only Don Shula (347) and George Halas (324) on the NFL’s alltime win list.
The Patriots improved to 8-0 for the third time in team history and the first time since 2015, when they started 10-0. The Browns have lost three straight games.
Brady completed 20 of 36 passes, hitting Julian Edelman on eight of them for 78 yards and both TDs.
New England capitalized on three first-quarter turnovers by Cleveland to take a 17-0 lead. Running back Nick Chubb had back-to-back fumbles and quarterback Baker Mayfield had an interception.
The Browns did trim New England’s lead to 17-10 early in the third quarter. But the Patriots struck right back on their next possession, using a 59-yard completion from Brady to James White to help set up a 14-yard touchdown pass from Brady to Edelman.
CHARGERS 17, BEARS 16
CHICAGO — It was ugly and sloppy — and it was also a win for Los Angeles. That’s what mattered most to Philip Rivers and the Chargers.
Chicago kicker Eddy Pineiro missed a 41-yard field goal as time expired and Los Angeles hung on to beat the Bears 17-16 on Sunday.
“We just needed a win, any way — 35-0, 2-0, 3-2 or 17-16,” Rivers said. “It’s just good to win.”
The Bears (3-4) took over at their 35 with 1:33 remaining and had a chance to win it after driving all the way to the 21. Chicago had quarterback Mitchell Trubisky take a knee with about 40 seconds left rather than try to get closer to the goal line because coach Matt Nagy didn’t want to risk a fumble. And Pineiro, who hit an upright on a miss earlier, drove the potential winner wide left as time expired.
“I hit the ball as best I could and tried to play the wind a little bit. I just didn’t make it,” he said.
SEAHAWKS 27, FALCONS 20
ATLANTA — A fast start helped Seattle rule the road yet again.
Russell Wilson threw two touchdown passes to DK Metcalf, Chris Carson ran for 90 yards and a score, and the Seahawks beat the reeling Atlanta Falcons 27-20 on Sunday.
Seattle led 24-0 at halftime, providing the cushion it would need to withstand the Falcons’ comeback behind backup quarterback Matt Schaub.
The Seahawks (6-2) improved to 4-0 on the road.
“Today I think the message myself and other guys tried to send was start fast and be as physical as possible,” said left tackle Duane Brown.
“We started fast and the defense was getting turnovers and getting off the field and we were getting points on the board.”
The Seahawks won the turnover battle 3-0.
Coach Pete Carroll said the team’s record halfway through the season “isn’t the best it could have been, but it’s pretty darn good.”
JAGUARS 29, JETS 15
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Sam Darnold went from seeing ghosts to seeing teal.
Darnold threw three interceptions and was sacked a career-high eight times in Jacksonville’s 29-15 victory over the New York Jets on Sunday.
He was picked off twice in the fourth quarter, including one that set up Gardner Minshew’s game-sealing score to DJ Chark with a little more than 4 minutes to play.
“I know he saw a lot today,” said Jaguars defensive end Yannick Nkagoue, who notched two sacks. “He saw corners picking the ball. He saw defensive linemen in his face . ... This is the standard and what we’re trying to embrace.”
Darnold completed 21 of 30 passes for 218 yards with two touchdowns — both to Ryan Griffin — but the turnovers and takedowns overshadowed all the positives.
COLTS 15, BRONCOS 13
INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis Colts coach Frank Reich was so confident in Adam Vinatieri, he opted to play for a long field goal Sunday.
Even after the NFL’s career scoring leader opened the game by missing a 45-yard field goal wide right. Even after the league’s best clutch kicker missed the tying extra point in the third quarter.
Eventually, Vinatieri rewarded Reich’s faith. In his 200th career game with the Colts, Vinatieri made a 51-yard field goal with 22 seconds left to give Indy a 15-13 come-frombehind victory over the Denver Broncos.
“I knew we were inside Vinny’s range,” Reich said. “I knew that was money for Adam. I knew that.”
For most of Vinatieri’s first 23 seasons, every coach in the league would have agreed with Reich’s statement.
This season has made some wonder about Vinatieri’s reliability. He missed five of eight kicks in the first two weeks before seemingly settling with only one miss — a long field goal — in Indy’s next four games.
RAMS 24, BENGALS 10
LONDON — Jared Goff and Cooper Kupp had been waiting more than a month to pull off that trick play.
When the chance finally came, they executed it perfectly.
Goff hit Kupp for a 65-yard touchdown pass on a double reverse flea-flicker on Sunday, treating the London crowd to a highlight-reel play as the Los Angeles Rams beat the winless Cincinnati Bengals 24-10 at Wembley Stadium.
For Kupp, it was one of several highlights on a day when he caught seven passes for a career-high 220 yards. But none had a bigger impact on the game as it put the Rams (53) ahead for good, 17-10 in the second quarter.
“We’ve been trying to run that for a few weeks now,” Goff said of the flea-flicker. “I joke about it (with the coaches), we don’t run any trick plays. That was the first and best one we’ve ever had. And it was a good one. Maybe we can talk Sean (McVay) into doing a few more now.”
McVay, the Rams head coach, said they’ve had the play drawn up since running a double reverse against the Browns on Sept. 23. Goff said McVay called the same play last week during a win over the Falcons, but that they “thought better of it” that time.
LIONS 31, GIANTS 26
DETROIT — The Detroit Lions were waiting for the right time and team to try a trick play they’ve worked on in practice recently.
Early in the fourth quarter Sunday, the New York Giants proved to be the perfect opponent.
Matthew Stafford threw a 41-yard flea flicker to Kenny Golladay to restore a double-digit lead Detroit needed to help them hold on for a 31-26 win over the slumping Giants.
“That was a good one,” Stafford said. “A great call.”
Detroit’s first-year offensive coordinator, Darrell Bevell, called for Stafford to pitch the ball to J.D. McKissic to the right and for the running back to throw a lateral back to the quarterback to connect downfield with Golladay.
“I was holding my breath on that one,” Lions coach Matt Patricia acknowledged.
Bevell used the same play with McKissic taking the pitch from Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson for a 38-yard touchdown Paul Richardson in a win over the Giants two years ago.
The Lions (3-3-1) enjoyed the feel-good moment as part of a much-needed win after
losing three straight games and trading away safety and captain Quandre Diggs to Seattle days before the game.
Stafford finished 25 of 32 for 342 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. He threw a 49-yard TD pass to Marvin Hall late in the first quarter and connected with Golladay for two scores in the second half.
In the last three home games, Stafford has thrown 10 TDs with just two interceptions and is averaging 332 yards passing.
“There’s a bunch of great players around me,” he said, refusing to take credit.
New York (2-6) had chances to come back, but they turned the ball over on downs at the Lions 39 with 6:25 and at their 14 with 3:27 left.
Giants rookie Daniel Jones threw a 4-yard TD pass to Saquan Barkley and an extra point pulled them within five points with 1:19 left to play. The ensuing onside kick went out of bounds, sealing Detroit’s victory.
“They always battle, but
we’ve got to play better and make more plays,” said second-year coach Pat Shurmur, who fell to 7-17 with the franchise.
The Giants have lost four games in a row before the end of October for the second straight season and they’re planning to have a players-only meeting today.
TITANS 27, BUCCANEERS 23
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Titans are very happy their stingy defense came up with four turnovers and another late-game stop.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers leave town ticked off over an inadvertent whistle that cost them a fumble return after stopping Tennessee’s fake punt in the final minutes.
Ryan Tannehill threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Brown with 6:55 left, and the Tennessee Titans rallied to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27-23 Sunday for their second straight win.
“Without that, it’d obviously be a different story,” Titans coach Mike Vrabel said of the turnovers.