‘ A hungry group’: Dolphins win fifth straight game
Tua Tagovailoa had help from a lessheralded rookie while Justin Herbert struggled against a blitzhappy defense as the surprising Miami Dolphins earned their fifth consecutive victory, 2921 over the visiting Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.
Salvon Ahmed, making his first career start, ran for 85 yards on 21 carries and had a 1yard touchdown run on Miami’s first play. Ahmed, undrafted out of Washington, filled in with two other running backs hurt and sparked a ground game ranked fourth worst in the league.
Herbert threw a costly interception and was outplayed in the matchup of high draft picks by Tagovailoa, who passed for 169 yards with two scores and improved to 30 since taking over for Ryan Fitzpatrick. Herbert struggled against Miami’s blitzing defense and threw for a seasonlow 187 yards.
The Dolphins ( 63) have their best ninegame record since 2001, and under secondyear coach Brian Flores they’ve won more games than in all of 2019.
“This is a hungry group,” Flores said. “They fight for each other.”
The Chargers ( 27) dropped their third game in a row and have their worst record at this point in a season since 2015.
“We got outplayed in all three phases,” coach Anthony Lynn said. “I was disappointed in the special teams and some of the things that went on there. None of us played well enough today.”
Packers 24, Jaguars 20: Aaron Rodgers threw two touchdown passes and ran for a score as host Green Bay overcame mistakes to rally past Jacksonville ( 1- 8). Rodgers put the Packers ( 7- 2) ahead for good with 9: 11 left by throwing a 6- yard TD pass to Davante Adams.
Patriots 23, Ravens 17: Cam Newton threw a touchdown pass — his first since Week 3 — and ran for another score, and host New England ( 4- 5) fought through rain and wind to hold off Baltimore ( 6- 3). Damien Harris ran for a careerhigh 121 yards to help the Patriots win consecutive games for the first time this season. Newton was 13 of 17 for 118 yards. Quarterback Lamar Jackson was 24 of 34 for 249 yards and two touchdowns for the Ravens.
Steelers 36, Bengals 10: In Pittsburgh, Ben Roethlisberger threw for a seasonhigh 333 yards and four touchdowns despite being forced to stay away from the team facility all week due to COVID- 19 protocols. Roethlisberger completed 27 of 46 passes on a blustery afternoon for Pittsburgh ( 9- 0) against Cincinnati ( 2- 6- 1).
Buccaneers 46, Panthers 23: Tom Brady threw for 341 yards and was involved in four touchdowns, Ronald Jones had a franchise- record 98- yard touchdown run, and visiting Tampa Bay ( 7- 3) beat Carolina ( 3- 7). Lions 30, Washington: Matt Prater made a 59- yard field goal as time expired for host Detroit ( 4- 5). Washington ( 2- 7) pulled into a tie by scoring touchdowns on three straight series in the second half in Alex Smith’s first start in nearly two years. Giants 27, Eagles 17: Daniel Jones threw for 244 yards and ran for a touchdown, and Wayne Gallman Jr. had two TD runs for host New York ( 3- 7). The Eagles ( 3- 5- 1) still lead the NFC East. Carson Wentz and Philadelphia’s offense were out of sync after a bye, going 0- for- 9 on third downs.
Browns 10, Texans 7: In Cleveland, Nick Chubb returned from a stint on injured reserve for the Browns ( 6- 3) and scored a touchdown early in the fourth quarter, topping 100 yards rushing along with teammate Kareem Hunt. Chubb reeled off a 59- yard run with 1: 07 left and then smartly ran out of bounds at the 2- yard line instead of scoring so the Texans ( 2- 7), who were out of timeouts, wouldn’t get the ball back. Chubb had 126 yards on 19 carries in nasty weather. Hunt ran for 104 yards.