Brees throws 3 TDs as Saints dominate Panthers
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Drew Brees did not want to head across the Atlantic Ocean three games behind the Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers in the NFC South.
The veteran quarterback made sure the Saints could rest a little easier on their eighthour flight to London for next week’s game against the Miami Dolphins.
Brees shredded the league’s top-ranked defense, throwing for 220 yards and three touchdowns as the Saints beat the previously undefeated Panthers 34-13 on Sunday for their first win of the season.
Brees led six scoring drives and threw TD passes to Michael Thomas, Brandon Coleman and ex-Panthers wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr. Rookie Alvin Kamara put the game away with a 25-yard TD run with 4:42 left.
Carolina had only allowed six points in its previous two games.
“We know they’re a contender and that defense was one of the best in the league,” Brees said. “We knew we needed to be efficient today — and we were.”
Brees completed 22 of 29 passes. The Saints (1-2) piled up 149 yards rushing as part of a balanced attack and didn’t turn the ball over.
The Saints’ defense, which came in ranked 32nd in the league, intercepted Cam Newton three times and sacked him four times before he was replaced late in the fourth quarter. Many of Newton’s throws were either too hard or high as the seventh-year quarterback continued to struggle with his rhythm following offseason shoulder surgery.
“We showed that we can be a great defense,” said Saints linebacker A.J. Klein. “This is momentum for London next week. We just need to keep this thing rolling.”
Newton said he was ready to play de- spite not throwing much in practice last week while resting his shoulder. But he left the stadium frustrated with what he called “a lackluster performance.”
“I feel like if I play better the outcome is different,” Newton said. “The onus is on me.
The Panthers (2-1), who were already without injured Pro Bowl tight end Greg Olsen, lost wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin in the first quarter to a knee injury; his leg got bent back awkwardly after being dragged down from behind. Benjamin tore his ACL in the same knee two years ago. Coach Ron Rivera offered no indication on the seriousness of the injury, saying Benjamin will be re-evaluated by doctors on Monday.
Carolina’s only real offense was essentially limited to rookie running back Christian McCaffrey, who had 101 yards receiving on nine catches.
“We can’t keep letting teams off the hook by having a long drive and getting in the red zone and coming away with three points,” Newton said.
Falcons 30, Lions 26
DETROIT — Matthew Stafford’s pass to Golden Tate was ruled to be just short of the goal line in the final seconds, overturning the call on the field and allowing the Atlanta Falcons to hold on for a 30-26 win over the Detroit Lions on Sunday.
Stafford threw a slant to Tate and a video review determined he was down just inside the 1 with 8 seconds left. By rule, 10 seconds had to run off the clock, and that ended the game because the Lions didn’t have any timeouts.
Former NFL officiating chief Dean Blandino, now a Fox analyst, explained the call in a tweet:
“To recap in DET: ruling on the field was a TD which stops the clock. After review, Tate was short which would have kept the clock running … This carries a 10-sec runoff. Had the call on the field been correct initially, the clock would have run out. That’s the spirit of the rule.”
The defending NFC champion Falcons (3-0) overcame Matt Ryan’s three interceptions and many other mistakes, including on Detroit’s last drive.
Detroit (2-1) never led in the game and failed to pull off another comeback in the fourth quarter.
Eagles 27, Giants 24
PHILADELPHIA — Jake Elliott kicked a
61-yard field goal as the clock expired. Eli Manning threw three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, including a
77-yard score to Sterling Shepard, but Philadelphia (2-1) rallied twice.
Carson Wentz tossed a 19-yard pass to Alshon Jeffery to set up Elliott’s kick. The rookie was a fifth-round pick by the Bengals
and joined the Eagles after Caleb Sturgis was injured in Week 1. He was carried off the field by two teammates.
Elliott hit a 46-yard field goal to tie it with 51 seconds left after Aldrick Rosas kicked a 41-yarder to put the Giants ahead.
The Giants (0-3) hadn’t scored 20 points in eight straight games before Manning led them to 21 in a span of 5:21. He tossed TD passes of 10 yards and 4 yards to Odell Beckham Jr. to tie it at 14. Manning then connected over the middle to Shepard, who broke a couple tackles and sprinted all the way for a 21-14 lead.
But Philadelphia (2-1) answered quickly. A 36-yard penalty for pass interference on Eli Apple put the ball at the 15 and rookie Corey Clement ran in on the next play for his first career TD to make it 21-21.
Patriots 36, Texans 33
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Tom Brady connected with Brandin Cooks for a 25-yard touchdown pass with 23 seconds left, his fifth TD throw of the game.
Brady finished 25 of 35 for 378 yards as New England (2-1) won its fifth straight regular-season meeting with Houston (1-2) and seventh of eight overall.
Cooks caught five passes for 131 yards and pair of scores. It was the fifth multi-touchdown game and eighth 100-yard game of his career.
Texans rookie Deshaun Watson was strong in his second career start. The Patriots were thin on the edge without linebacker Dont’a Hightower for the second straight week, and Watson took advantage, completing 22 of 33 passes for 301 yards and two touchdowns.
But he did have two interceptions, including one that set up a New England first-half touchdown.
The Patriots extended their halftime lead to 28-20 in the third quarter before Houston used a 12-yard TD pass from Watson to Ryan Griffin, and a 31-yard Ka’imi Fairbairn field goal to edge back in front 30-28 early in the fourth quarter.
The Texans forced New England to punt with just over seven minutes to play, but had to settle for a 36-yard Fairbairn field goal with 2:24 left. Houston failed on a third-and-1 at the Patriots 18.
That left Brady room.