Winless Lions get a tie, 16-16 in rainy Pittsburgh
PITTSBURGH — Playing without star quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who entered the COVID-19 protocol on Saturday night, the Steelers slogged their way to a 16-16 tie with the Detroit Lions on Sunday in an ugly nearly four-hour marathon that produced more comedy than highlights.
Mason Rudolph completed 30 of 50 passes for 242 yards with a touchdown and an interception, but struggled with consistency while making a spot start. Najee Harris ran for 105 yards and at times appeared to be Pittsburgh’s only legitimate offensive weapon as the Steelers (5-3-1) saw their four-game winning streak halted in the dank mist at rainy Heinz Field.
De’Andre Swift ran for a career-high 130 yards for the Lions (0-8-1), who relied heavily on the run to avoid a ninth straight loss with quarterback Jared Goff rendered almost completely ineffective.
TITANS 23, SAINTS 21
NASHVILLE, Tennessee — Ryan Tannehill ran and threw for touchdowns as the Tennessee held off the Saints for their NFL-best sixth straight victory.
The Saints still had a chance to tie late. Trevor Siemian, the Titans’ designated survivor QB for part of last season, threw a 15-yard TD pass to Marquez Callaway with 1:16 left, pulling the Saints within 2321. But Adam Trautman was flagged for a false start, pushing the Saints back to the Titans 7 on the 2-pointer. Siemian’s pass to Mark Ingram at the right edge of the end zone was incomplete. That was the Saints’ eighth straight failed 2-point conversion over several seasons.
FOOTBALL TEAM 29, BUCCANEERS 19
LANDOVER, Md. — Tom Brady threw two interceptions in the first quarter as part of an implosion by the reigning Super Bowl champions.
Washington lost Chase Young, last season’s Defensive Rookie of the Year, to a potentially serious injury.
Brady threw two picks just like in the loss to New Orleans two weeks ago and finished 23 of 34 for 220 yards and two touchdown passes.
COWBOYS 43, FALCONS 3
ARLINGTON, Texas — Ezekiel Elliott
ran for two touchdowns, Nahshon Wright recovered a blocked punt for a score a week after touching one kept Dallas from getting the ball, and the Cowboys routed the Falcons.
Plenty of things that went wrong for the Cowboys in a blowout loss to Denver that ended a six-game winning streak a week ago went right to help the NFC East leaders get back on track. Offensive execution was among them.
PACKERS 17, SEAHAWKS 0
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Aaron Rodgers was uneven in his return from COVID-19 but did more than enough to support a standout Green Bay defense.
A.J. Dillon rushed for two fourth-quarter touchdowns for the Packers, who handed the Seahawks their first shutout loss in a decade.
The Packers got their first shutout since a 22-0 victory over the Bills on Sept. 30, 2018. The Seahawks hadn’t been shut out since falling 24-0 to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sept. 18, 2011.
PANTHERS 34, CARDINALS 10
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Cam Newton provided
a flashback to his Superman days in his second debut with the Panthers, throwing for one touchdown, running for another.
Newton, the 2015 NFL MVP who was signed by the quarterback-thin Panthers earlier in the week, made his presence felt on his first play of the game, entering on third down and screaming “I’m back!” after barreling into the right corner of the end zone for a 2-yard touchdown.
EAGLES 30, BRONCOS 13
DENVER — Cornerback Darius Slay returned a fumble 83 yards for a touchdown and rookie DeVonta Smith hauled in two TD passes from Jalen Hurts.
The Broncos had trouble punching it in all afternoon, stalling at the Eagles 3, 10 and 11 before Melvin Gordon III took the handoff on fourth-and-1 from the Eagles 23 with the Broncos trailing 20-13 late in the third quarter. He gained the 2 yards necessary for the first down, but he coughed up the football before going down.
PATRIOTS 35, BROWNS 7
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Mac Jones threw three touchdown passes, rookie
Rhamondre Stevenson rushed for a career-high 100 yards and two scores, and the Browns lost quarterback Baker Mayfield to a knee injury.
Jones finished 19 of 23 for 198 yards. Hunter Henry added a pair of TD receptions. Playing without star running back Nick Chubb, who missed the game after a positive COVID-19 test, the Browns were held to 217 total yards and were 1 of 11 on third downs.
COLTS 23, JAGUARS 17
INDIANAPOLIS — Jonathan Taylor rushed for 116 yards and a touchdown and Indianapolis returned a blocked punt for a score.
After taking an early 17-0 lead, the Colts struggled to seal it — again. All they could muster was Michael Badgley’s short field goal near the end of the first half and his 37-yarder with 2:22 left in the fourth quarter. It turned out to be just enough against a Jacksonville offense that finished with 331 total yards.
BILLS 45, JETS 17
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Josh Allen threw two touchdown passes, Buffalo ran for four scores and the Bills’ top-ranked ranked defense intercepted Mike White four times.
Allen was 21 of 28 for 366 yards with TD passes to Matt Breida and Stefon Diggs and an interception. Breida added a scoring run, as did Devin Singletary, Zack Moss and wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie as Buffalo’s offense looked alive and well.
CHIEFS 41, RAIDERS 14
LAS VEGAS — Patrick Mahomes threw five touchdown passes and returned to his usual form after a surprisingly shaky stretch this season, and Kansas City moved into first place in the AFC West with a victory over Las Vegas.
Mahomes and the Chiefs (6-4) showed little resemblance to the team that overpowered the AFC the past three seasons over the first nine weeks, raising questions about whether they could make it back to a third straight Super Bowl.
But they used a dominant performance over the Raiders (5-4) on a day everyone else in the division lost to return to the top of the standings.