Burrow throws for 525 yards, Bengals take control of AFC North
CINCINNATI » Joe Burrow threw for a franchise-record 525 yards and four touchdowns, and the Cincinnati Bengals took sole possession of first place in the AFC North with a 41-21 win over the depleted Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.
Burrow, the second-year QB who broke Boomer Esiason’s team record of 522 yards, was 37 of 46 and threw two touchdown passes to Tee Higgins and one each to Tyler Boyd and Joe Mixon as the Bengals swept the Ravens for the first time since 2015. Cincinnati won 41-17 at Baltimore on Oct. 24.
Tee Higgins had 12 receptions for a career-high 194 yards. Ja’Marr Chase caught seven for 125 yards, and Boyd had three catches for 85 yards.
With Lamar Jackson out with an ankle injury and backup Tyler Huntley on the COVID-19 list, Josh Johnson — signed as a free agent 10 days ago — started at quarterback for the Ravens. His 4-yard pass to Rashod Bateman put Baltimore up 10-7 in the first quarter, but the Ravens — especially their injury-ravaged secondary — couldn’t keep up with Burrow and the Bengals. BUCCANEERS 32, PANTHERS 6 CHARLOTTE, N.C. » The Tampa Bay Buccaneers won their first NFC South title since 2007 on Sunday when Tom Brady threw for 232 yards and a touchdown and Antonio Brown made a grand return to the NFL in a route of the Carolina Panthers.
In his first game since Oct. 13 after missing eight games, Brown saw a prominent role on offense with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin sidelined by injuries, catching 10 passes for 101 yards while being targeted 15 times by Brady. Brown
has been plagued by an ankle injury and was suspended three games for breaking COVID-19 protocols prior.
Ronald Jones carried 20 times for 65 yards and a touchdown filling in for the injured Leonard Fournette. Tampa Bay also got big offensive contributions from unheralded players Ke’Shawn Vaughn and Cyril Grayson.
TEXANS 41, CHARGERS 29 HOUSTON »
Rex Burkhead ran for a career-high 149 yards and two touchdowns, and the Houston Texans took advantage of three turnovers to beat the Los Angeles Chargers with both teams missing more than a dozen players because COVID-19 protocols.
The Chargers’ playoff chances took a serious blow with the loss to the lowly, if recently improved, Texans. Outside linebacker Joey Bosa, running back Austin Ekeler, receiver Mike Williams and center Corey Linsley were among the major contributors on the
COVID-19 list for LA (8-7), which entered in second place in the AFC West.
Houston had 16 players miss the game on the COVID-19 list — including top receiver Brandin Cooks, center Justin Britt, defensive end Jonathan Greenard and kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn — but managed to win consecutive games for the first time this season.
BILLS 33, PATRIOTS 21 FOXBOROUGH, MASS. » Josh Allen threw for three touchdowns and the Buffalo Bills hung on to beat the New England Patriots to vault themselves back into first place in the AFC East title race.
With the victory, Buffalo now holds tiebreakers over the Patriots and Dolphins, and is in the driver’s seat to win its second straight division title.
Allen finished 30 of 47 passes for 314 yards, and he also rushed 12 times for 64 yards.
FALCONS 20, LIONS 16 ATLANTA »
Matt Ryan threw tie-breaking, 12-yard
touchdown pass to Hayden Hurst early in the fourth quarter and the Atlanta Falcons held on late to beat the Detroit Lions to preserve their slim playoff hopes.
Foye Oluokun’s interception of Lions fill-in quarterback Tim Boyle’s pass at the Atlanta 1 with 33 seconds remaining preserved the win. It was the first interception of the game for Boyle, who made his second career start as Jared Goff remained on the reserve/COVID-19 list.
RAMS 30, VIKINGS 23 MINNEAPOLIS »
Before Brandon Powell joined the Los Angeles Rams last month, his fifth team in four NFL seasons, he read books on the beach near his Florida home while waiting for yet another chance.
This was quite the chapter, helping clinch a spot for the Rams in the playoffs.
Powell returned a punt 61 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter to lift the Rams at just the right time on the way to a 30-23 victory over the Vikings that also secured a postseason berth for Arizona. RAIDERS 17, BRONCOS 13 LAS VEGAS »Josh Jacobs rushed for 129 yards and the Las Vegas Raiders came from behind to defeat the Denver Broncos to stay relevant in the AFC playoff picture.
With the win, the Raiders severely damaged the postseason chances for AFC West rival Denver, which dropped its third game in the last four.
BEARS 25, SEAHAWKS 24 SEATTLE »
Jimmy Graham caught a 15-yard touchdown pass from Nick Foles with 1:01 remaining, Damiere Byrd made an acrobatic reception for the 2-point conversion, and the Chicago Bears beat the Seattle Seahawks.
Making his first start since last season, Foles led the Bears 80 yards in the closing minutes, capping the drive with his TD toss to Graham, who spent three seasons with the Seahawks. Graham posted up a pair of smaller defensive backs to make the catch in the corner of the end zone, his third TD of the season. On the 2-point attempt, Foles threw late, but Byrd got his knee down in the end zone with multiple Seattle defenders trying to push him over the back line.
CHIEFS 36, STEELERS 10 KANSAS CITY, MO. » Patrick Mahomes threw for 258 yards and three touchdowns, Byron Pringle caught two of the TD passes, and the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Pittsburgh Steelers to clinch their sixth consecutive AFC West title.
The Chiefs remained a game ahead of Tennessee for first place in the AFC with their eighth straight win. That would give them the conference’s lone firstround bye and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs.