Elliott, Prescott lead Cowboys past Eagles
PHILADELPHIA — Ezekiel Elliott had 151 yards rushing and the go-ahead one-yard touchdown run Sunday in the fourth quarter of Dallas’ 27-20 victory over Philadelphia.
The defending Super Bowl champion Eagles fell to 4-5 with their third straight loss at home, while the Cowboys improved to 4-5.
Dak Prescott had 270 yards passing with a touchdown and also ran for a score. Elliott also had a scoring reception.
Carson Wentz threw a pair of TD passes to Zach Ertz, but his pass to Ertz on fourth down fell a yard short of a first down at the Cowboys 29 with 1:09 left. The Eagles got the ball back at their 32 with 40 seconds left and drove to the Cowboys 32 for the final play. Wentz completed a pass to Ertz inside the Dallas 10. Ertz lateraled to Golden Tate, but he was tackled to end it.
The Eagles also lost another key player for the season as cornerback Ronald Darby tore his
ACL in the second half, leaving Philadelphia without half of their starting secondary. Safety Rodney McLeod sustained a season-ending knee injury in September.
Starting cornerback Jalen Mills and starting nickel cornerback Sidney Jones did not play against the Cowboys because of injuries. Rookie free agent Chandon Sullivan filled in for Darby. Mills is not expected to return this week, but Jones is a possibility.
New Orleans Saints 51, Cincinnati Bengals 14
CINCINNATI — Drew Brees threw three touchdown passes in the first half, moving ahead of Brett Favre for second place on the career list, and the Saints rolled to their eighth straight victory.
Brees led the Saints (8-1) to touchdowns on all five firsthalf possessions with a nearly perfect performance — only two incompletions. His 17-yard TD to Michael Thomas with two seconds left in the half gave him 509 career touchdown passes, one more than Favre.
Up next is Peyton Manning’s record of 539.
Brees had his way with the Bengals’ historically bad defense , even diving over the pile to score a one-yard touchdown. Cincinnati (5-4) became the first team in the Super Bowl era to give up 500 yards in three consecutive games; New Orleans finished with 509.
The Bengals matched the most lopsided defeat in franchise history and gave up the second-most points in club history. In the first half alone, the Saints piled up 311 yards and had 21 first downs on 40 plays. Brees was 18 of 20 for 214 yards with three touchdowns.
Mark Ingram and Alvin Kamara recognized Dez Bryant by crossing their arms after scoring touchdowns. The former Cowboys receiver signed with the Saints on Wednesday but tore an Achilles tendon in his second practice.
Kansas City Chiefs 26, Arizona Cardinals 14
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Patrick Mahomes threw for 249 yards and two touchdowns, outplaying Arizona counterpart Josh Rosen in a matchup of two of the NFL’s bright young quarterbacks. Mahomes threw both TD passes to Tyreek Hill, the second giving the Chiefs’ first-year starter 31 for the season. That broke the franchise record set by Len Dawson in 1964 — with plenty of games to go.
Not to mention the playoffs, with the Chiefs (9-1) barreling toward the No. 1 seed.
Rosen had 195 yards passing with a touchdown and two picks, taking several brutal hits in the fourth quarter. David Johnson ran for 98 yards, with TDs on the ground and through the air, while Larry Fitzgerald passed Terrell Owens for No. 2 on the NFL’s career receiving yardage list late in the game.
Fitzgerald finished with six catches for 50 yards to give him 15,952 for his brilliant career.
Hill had seven catches for 117 yards, and Kareem Hunt pounded his way for 71 yards rushing, as the Chiefs kept the Cardinals (2-7) winless in six meetings at Arrowhead Stadium.
Green Bay Packers 31, Miami Dolphins 12
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Aaron Jones ran for career highs of 145 yards and two scores, Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams connected for two touchdown passes.
The Packers (4-4-1) pulled away in the second half, sandwiching scoring drives around cornerback Bashaud Breeland’s interception deep in Miami territory. Green Bay went ahead 28-12 on Adams’ 25-yard touchdown catch with 7:24 left in the third quarter.
Maybe this is the game that will get the Packers going in the tight NFC North race following a choppy first half of the season.
Rookie Jason Sanders tied a Dolphins franchise record with four field goals, but Miami (5-5) couldn’t find the end zone. The Dolphins squandered another opportunity on the game-opening drive after Brock Osweiler fumbled away a shotgun snap.
L.A. Chargers 20, Oakland Raiders 6
OAKLAND, Calif. — Philip Rivers threw two touchdown passes, Melvin Gordon gained 165 yards and the Chargers won their sixth straight game.
Rivers bounced back from a first quarter with no completions to throw an 11-yard TD pass to Keenan Allen in the second quarter to give the Chargers (7-2) the lead for good. He hit a 66-yarder to Gordon on the opening drive of the second half.
Los Angeles coasted from there against the Raiders (18), who have lost five straight games by at least 14 points under coach Jon Gruden. They and have been outscored 75-9 in the past nine quarters in what has quickly become a lost season.
Oakland started quickly by controlling the ball for 23 of 29 plays in the first quarter and outgaining the Chargers by 129 yards. But Los Angeles allowed little after Melvin Ingram forced a fumble on a sack of Derek Carr early in the second quarter with the Raiders looking to add to a 3-0 lead.
Rivers found his stride after that.
L.A. Rams 36, Seattle Seahawks 31
LOS ANGELES — Brandin Cooks rushed for a 9-yard touchdown on the first snap after Dante Fowler forced and recovered a fumble by Russell Wilson, and the Rams bounced back from their first loss of the season.
Jared Goff passed for 318 yards and two touchdowns, and Todd Gurley rushed for 120 yards and a score as the Rams (9-1) swept the season series with their division rivals.
Los Angeles moved into commanding position for its second consecutive NFC West title, but only after plenty of late drama in a rivalry that’s never lacking in excitement.
Wilson threw three touchdown passes, rushed for 92 yards and nearly rallied the Seahawks (4-5) all the way back after his fumble.
He hit Mike Davis for a short TD catch to cap a 90-yard drive with 1:56 to play. After the Seattle defense held, he got the Seahawks to the Los Angeles 35 before throwing four straight incompletions in the final minute.
Cleveland Browns 28, Atlanta Falcons 16
CLEVELAND — Rookie Baker Mayfield threw a season-high three touchdown passes and rookie Nick Chubb streaked 92 yards for a TD as Cleveland ended a four-game losing streak.
The Browns (3-6-1) played their most complete game this season under interim coach Gregg Williams, their defensive coordinator who improved to 1-1 since replacing the fired Hue Jackson.
Mayfield outplayed Falcons star quarterback Matt Ryan with a performance that further justifies Cleveland’s decision to take the QB with the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft. Mayfield completed his first 13 passes and finished 17 of 20 for 216 yards. He threw a 28-yard scoring pass to Rashard Higgins, a 13-yarder to Chubb, and 11-yarder to Duke Johnson.
Ryan and the Falcons (4-5) had their three-game winning streak — and any playoff momentum — stopped cold.
And while Mayfield did damage, Chubb’s record run was the backbreaker.
With the Browns backed up at their 8, Chubb, who had 176 yards on 20 carries, took a handoff and headed right. He cut toward Atlanta’s sideline, picked up a block and then showed his surprising breakaway speed while finishing the longest run in team history. Chubb’s run broke the previous team mark held by Bobby Mitchell, who had a 90-yard TD run against Washington on Nov. 15, 1959.
Chicago Bears 34, Detroit Lions 22
CHICAGO — Mitchell Trubisky threw for 355 yards and three touchdowns, and the NFC North-leading Bears snapped a 10-game losing streak against division opponents.
The Bears (6-3) had dropped nine of 10 against Detroit (36) and were seeking their first victory over a division opponent since Oct. 31, 2016, against Minnesota.
Chicago jumped to a 26-7 halftime lead with Trubisky and Allen Robinson leading the way. And the Bears surpassed their win total from last year with their third straight victory.
Trubisky completed 23 of 30 passes against a short-handed secondary, with standout cornerback Darius Slay sidelined by a knee injury.
Allen Robinson caught six passes for 133 yards and two TDs after missing two games with a groin injury.
Rookie Anthony Miller added a career-high 122 yards on five receptions, including a 45yard TD and a 55-yard catch.
Khalil Mack had two of Chicago’s six sacks against Matthew Stafford — both in the second half after missing back-to-back games with an injured right ankle.
Washington Redskins 16, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 3
TAMPA, Fla. — Alex Smith threw for 178 yards and one touchdown, and Dustin Hopkins kicked three field goals for the Redskins (6-3), who forced four turnovers and rebounded from a lopsided loss to Atlanta despite playing with a makeshift offensive line because of mounting injuries.
Smith, who was 19 of 27 with no interceptions, threw six yards to Josh Doctson for the game’s only touchdown early in the fourth quarter. Hopkins kicked field goals of 43, 43 and 26 yards, the last set up by Greg Stroman’s fourth-quarter interception and 24-yard return to the Bucs’ 14.
Ryan Fitzpatrick threw for 403 yards for Tampa Bay (3-6), but was intercepted twice and lost a fumble on a sack inside the Washington 10.
The Bucs, who’ve lost three in a row and six of seven following a 2-0 start, failed to force a turnover on defense for the sixth straight game.
The Redskins were outgained 279 yards to 136 in the first two quarters, yet led 6-3 at halftime after getting two field goals from Hopkins.
Indianapolis Colts 29, Jacksonville Jaguars 26
INDIANAPOLIS — Andrew Luck threw three touchdown passes in the first half and the Colts’ defense forced a late turnover. Indy (4-5) has won three straight.
Tight end Eric Ebron had a career-high three touchdowns, including one on a two-yard run, all in the first half.
Blake Bortles threw for 319 yards and two TDs, but the Jaguars (3-6) came up short when Kenny Moore III stripped the ball from Rashad Greene Sr. and Malik Hooker recovered for the Colts with 1:24 to go. Initially, Greene was ruled down by contact, but it was overturned on a replay review from the booth.
Jacksonville, last year’s AFC runner-up, has lost five straight and six of seven since starting 2-0.
Luck took full advantage of mismatches in the first half as the Jaguars struggled to cover Indy’s tight ends.
Ebron, Jack Doyle and Mo Alie-Cox teamed up to catch eight passes for 133 yards and all three scores. Luck wound up 21 of 29 with 285 yards and one interception but avoided being sacked for the fourth consecutive game — the longest stretch of his pro career.
Tennessee Titans 34, New England Patriots 10
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Tom Brady added another big chunk of NFL history to his resume. The Tennessee Titans made sure the Patriots quarterback didn’t finish his 300th game.
The Titans sacked Brady three times and hit him repeatedly as they beat New England, 34-10, Sunday, snapping a seven-game skid against the Patriots in Mike Vrabel’s first game as head coach against the team he helped win three Super Bowls.
It was the most sacks allowed in a game this season by the Patriots (7-3), and coach Bill Belichick pulled Brady for Brian Hoyer midway through the fourth quarter.
Only Brett Favre (326) has played in more games, both regular season and postseason, as a quarterback than Brady. The three-time NFL MVP also needed only three touchdown passes to tie Peyton Manning (579) for the NFL record for most TD passes all time for both the regular season and postseason. He left having thrown for 254 yards and no TD passes.
Marcus Mariota capped each of the first two drives with TD passes, and Derrick Henry ran for a pair of TDs. Ryan Succop also added two field goals as the Titans (5-4) scored a season high in points after jumping to a 17-3 lead in the first quarter. They now have beaten both of last season’s Super Bowl teams in Nashville.
The loss snaps a six-game winning streak going into New England’s bye. The Patriots, who routed the Titans 35-14 in January, also lost to Tennessee for the first time since Dec. 16, 2002.
Buffalo Bills 41, N.Y. Jets 10
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Matt Barkley stunningly sparked Buffalo’s bumbling offense with two touchdown passes, including one to offensive tackle Dion Dawkins. LeSean McCoy broke out of a season-long slump with 113 yards rushing and a pair of TD runs.
Barkley made his first start in nearly two years, and looked the best of any of the four quarterbacks the Bills (3-7) have trotted out this season. The 28-yearold journeyman was 15 of 25 for 232 yards while helping Buffalo snap a four-game losing streak as the Bills put up 451 yards of total offense.
Barkley got the nod from coach Sean McDermott ahead of the ineffective Nathan Peterman despite having just two weeks of practice with the Bills since signing on Oct. 30. Rookie Josh Allen has missed four straight games with a sprained right elbow, and Derek Anderson is sidelined with a concussion. Barkley’s last start came in the 2016 season finale for Chicago.
Meanwhile, the hot seat under coach Todd Bowles has reached a boiling point as the Jets (3-7) got completely manhandled by a team that entered with a league-low 96 points and had two touchdowns in its previous four games.
The Jets have a bye-week break and the future of Bowles, in his fourth season, is in serious doubt.
New York started 39-yearold Josh McCown in place of injured rookie Sam Darnold. McCown was 17 of 34 for 135 yards with two interceptions.