Big day for Chiefs’ Barry and Pats’ Brady
Eric Berry returned an interception for a touchdown, and then brought back another pick for a two-point conversion that gave the Kansas City Chiefs an improbable 29-28 victory over the Atlanta Falcons Sunday. The Falcons (7-5), rallying from a 27-16 deficit, went ahead 28-27 on Matt Ryan’s fiveyard TD pass to Aldrick Robinson with 4:32 remaining.
Atlanta decided to go for two, looking to stretch the margin to a field goal. But Berry stepped in front of Ryan’s pass and ran 99 yards the other way to give the Chiefs (9-3) their winning margin.
Berry had another huge play in the final minute of the first half, picking off a Ryan pass, bringing it back 37 yards for a TD. After reaching the end zone, the Atlanta native handed the ball to his mother sitting in the stands at the Georgia Dome.
CARDINALS 31, SKINS 23
GLENDALE, ARIZ. — Carson Palmer threw for 300 yards and three touchdowns and David Johnson scored twice. The loss by the Redskins (6-5-1) clinched a playoff spot for the 11-1 Dallas Cowboys.
STEELERS 24, GIANTS 14
PITTSBURGH — Ben Roethlisberger passed for 289 yards and two TDs, and Pittsburgh’s resurgent defence harassed Eli Manning into a flurry of mistakes. Manning completed just 24 of 39 passes for 195 yards with two touchdowns and two picks in the red zone for the Giants (8-4), whose sixgame run ended with a thud. Beckham was largely a nonfactor despite a game-high 10 receptions for 100 yards.
BUCS 28, CHARGERS 21
SAN DIEGO — Jameis Winston threw a go-ahead, 12-yard TD to Cameron Brate midway through the fourth quarter and Keith Tandy intercepted Philip Rivers in the end zone with 2:56 left to give the Buccaneers their fourth straight victory.
PACKERS 21, TEXANS 13
GREEN BAY, WIS. — Aaron Rodgers threw for 209 yards and two TDs, as the Packers (6-6) pulled away with two fourth-quarter TDs in snowy conditions at Lambeau Field. Brock Osweiler connected with DeAndre Hopkins for a 44-yard touchdown pass with 1:51 left to get within eight for Houston. Nick Novak missed the extra point, with slippery footing at Lambeau.
LIONS 28, SAINTS 13
NEW ORLEANS — Matthew Stafford passed for 341 yards and two TDs as the Lions pulled away for their most comfortable victory of the season after seven previous victory margins of one to seven points. The Lions also became the first team in 60 Saints home games to stop Drew Brees from completing a TD pass, although tight end Coby Fleener had a pass bounce off his hands at the goal-line.
RAVENS 38, DOLPHINS 6
BALTIMORE — Joe Flacco threw for 381 yards and four TDs, as the Ravens overwhelmed the Dolphins in the first half to end Miami’s sixgame winning streak.
PATRIOTS 26, RAMS 10
FOXBOROUGH, MASS. — Tom Brady became the NFL’s career leader in victories by a quarterback, earning his 201st by throwing for 269 yards and a TD. Brady, who was 33 of 46, had tied Peyton Manning last week in a win over the New York Jets. His lone touchdown came on a 14-yard pass to Chris Hogan in the first quarter. The Patriots (10-2) have won seven of their last eight. On the same day that Los Angeles coach Jeff Fisher and GM Les Snead were given contract extensions, the recently relocated Rams (4-8) proved they still have a long way to go after losing for the seventh time in eight outings.
BRONCOS 20, JAGUARS 10
JACKSONVILLE, FLA. — Bradley Roby returned an interception 51 yards for a TD, helping the Broncos gain ground in the AFC playoff picture. Roby picked off Blake Bortles’ wobbler across the middle in the third quarter and went untouched the other way. Star linebacker Von Miller hit Bortles as he released the ball. It was the 11th pick-six of Bortles’ three-year career and his third in the last four games. Jacksonville had a chance to tie in the final minutes, but Bortles fumbled trying to make a play in the pocket. The Broncos (8-4) rebounded from an overtime loss against Kansas City, and with Miami’s loss at Baltimore, moved into position to get one of the conference’s wild-card spots.
BENGALS 32, EAGLES 14
CINCINNATI — Andy Dalton threw a pair of TD passes and Cincinnati finally got its depleted offence moving without receiver A.J. Green. The Eagles (5-7) opened the season with three straight wins, but have dropped seven of nine.
BEARS 26, 49ERS 6
CHICAGO — Jordan Howard ran for 117 yards and a career-high three TDs and the Bears handed San Francisco its 11th straight loss. The 49ers (1-11) extended their franchise-record losing streak and set a club low with 6 yards net passing on a day when Colin Kaepernick got lifted for Blaine Gabbert. Matt Barkley, making his second start with Jay Cutler sidelined by a season-ending shoulder injury, went nearly the entire first half without a completion. But he led a TD drive near the end of the second quarter and finished 11 of 18 for 192 yards.