Falcons fall to 05, dismiss coach Quinn and GM
The Carolina Panthers have managed just fine without Christian McCaffrey.
The Atlanta Falcons are about to start life without Dan Quinn.
Teddy Bridgewater threw for 313 yards and two touchdowns, Juston Burris made a huge interception in the end zone and the visiting Panthers held on Sunday for a 2316 victory over the winless Falcons — the final blow to Quinn’s coaching tenure.
The Falcons dropped to 05 for the first time since 1997. Quinn and general manager Thomas Dimitroff were fired hours after the game.
“This is a results business, and I owe it to our fans to put the best product we can on the field,“owner Arthur Blank said. “The results of late do not meet our standard or what I’ve promised our fans.”
The Falcons planned to announce an interim coach Monday.
Carolina ( 32) won its third in a row under firstyear coach Matt Rhule — all since McCaffrey went down with a high ankle sprain. Former 49ers running back Mike Davis has taken advantage of his opportunity, filling in brilliantly for the AllPro McCaffrey.
“The first two weeks, we were just trying to figure out who we are,“said Davis, who rushed for 89 yards and hauled in nine catches for another 60 yards, including a 3yard touchdown. “We just want to be the toughest team you play.”
After falling behind 207 at halftime, the Falcons drove into position for a tying touchdown in the fourth quarter. But, on 3rdand4 from the Carolina 5, Matt Ryan badly underthrew a pass to Russell Gage in the back of the end zone, allowing Burris to make the interception with 8: 49 remaining.
With the Falcons clearly deflated, Carolina drove nearly the length of the field — taking 7: 39 off the clock — to set up Joey Slye’s third field goal of the game, a 22yarder with 1: 10 left. Seahawks 27, Vikings 26: Russell Wilson capped a 94- yard drive with a 6- yard touchdown pass to DK Metcalf on 4th- and- goal with 15 seconds left as host Seattle beat Minnesota. Seattle improved to 5- 0 for the first time in franchise history, with Wilson providing some more prime- time magic and yet another late comeback after trailing 13- 0 at halftime. Wilson finished 20 of 32 for 217 yards and three touchdowns. Seattle’s last drive included a 4th- and- 10 conversion on a 39- yard pass to Metcalf early in the possession. Seattle appeared to get a winning TD to Metcalf on 2nd- andgoal, but he lost the ball as he was hit from behind. Given another chance on 4th- and- goal, Metcalf flashed open cutting across the end zone and Wilson delivered a fastball into a tight window.
Ravens 27, Bengals 3: Host Baltimore
sacked Joe Burrow seven times, forced the Bengals rookie into two turnovers and effectively stuffed Cincinnati’s running game. Baltimore’s stout defensive performance was punctuated by Patrick Queen’s 52yard fumble return in the fourth quarter. It was the first NFL touchdown for Queen, who played with Burrow last year for national champion LSU. Quarterback Lamar Jackson, the 2019 NFL MVP, went 19- for- 37 for 180 yards and two touchdowns for Baltimore, which matched the best start in franchise history at 4- 1. Running back Joe Mixon ( Freedom- Oakley) was limited to 59 yards on 24 carries for Cincinnati ( 1- 3- 1).
Cardinals 30, Jets 10: Kyler Murray ran for a touchdown and threw a TD pass to DeAndre Hopkins as visiting
Arizona snapped a two- game losing streak with a victory over New York, further putting coach Adam Gase’s future in jeopardy after an 0- 5 start. Murray had a 2- yard TD run and hit Hopkins on a 37- yard strike on a day the Cardinals ( 3- 2) had 496 yards in total offense. Playing with Joe Flacco in place of injured quarterback Sam Darnold and with running back Le’Veon Bell in the lineup for the first time since opening day, the Jets stayed close into the second half. They drew within 17- 10 on an 11- yard pass from Flacco to Jamison Crowder, who had eight catches for 116 yards. The Cardinals then scored touchdowns on their next two possessions.
Texans 30, Jaguars 14: Deshaun Watson threw for a season- high 359 yards and three touchdowns and host Houston ( 1- 4) won its first game since head coach Bill O’Brien was fired. The Jaguars ( 1- 4), missing three defensive starters because of injuries, have dropped four in a row since their seasonopening win against Indianapolis. Gardner Minshew threw for 301 yards and two touchdowns in the loss. The Texans were able to overcome two interceptions by Watson by taking advantage of two fumbles by the Jaguars.
Steelers 38, Eagles 29: Rookie wide receiver Chase Claypool, a secondround pick from Notre Dame, scored four touchdowns, including the clincher with 2: 59 remaining, and host Pittsburgh remained unbeaten. The Steelers improved to 4- 0 for the first time since 1979. Claypool finished with seven receptions for 110 yards and three scores and added a 2- yard touchdown run on a sweep. Carson Wentz passed for 258 yards and two touchdowns but threw two interceptions for the Eagles ( 1- 3- 1).
Browns 32, Colts 23: Baker Mayfield passed for 247 yards and two touchdowns against the NFL’s No. 1 defense, Myles Garrett forced a crucial safety in the fourth quarter and host Cleveland improved to 4- 1 for the first time since 1994. Mayfield threw TD passes to Kareem Hunt and Rashard Higgins in the first half while rolling up 228 yards passing. The Colts ( 3- 2) came in allowing the fewest passing yards, points and led the NFL in interceptions.