The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Carr’s arm powers Saints past Colts
Bryce Young bests C.J. Stroud in battle of rookie QBS.
Derek Carr threw for 310 yards and two touchdowns in a bounce-back performance, Taysom Hill and Alvin Kamara scored two TDS apiece, and the New Orleans Saints beat Indianapolis 38-27 on Sunday in Indianapolis. The Saints (4-4) snapped a two-game skid with their fifth consecutive win in the series — a streak that began with their lone Super Bowl victory after the 2009 season — and moved into a share of the NFC South lead with the Falcons.
Carr, who went 19 of 27, spent this week answering questions about scolding teammates on the sideline and shouting at offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael. Rashid Shaheed caught three passes for a career-best 153 yards and one TD, and for the second time this year, he helped seal the win with a long third-down catch in the final minutes.
Indy (3-5) has lost three straight and four of its five home games.
Bryce Young outdueled C.J. Stroud in a battle of the NFL’S top two draft picks, and Eddy Pineiro made a 23-yard field goal as time expired to send Carolina over Houston for its first win of the season.
Young, the No. 1 overall pick, threw for 235 yards and a touchdown. He led a winning 15-play, 86-yard drive that took more than six minutes off the clock in helping the Panthers (1-6) snap a 56-game losing streak in games they trailed at any point in fourth quarter, the longest in the NFL since at least 1991.
Stroud, the second overall pick, was 16 of 24 for 140 yards and ran for a touchdown for Houston (3-4).
The ending was filled with drama with the Panthers lining up for three different field-goal attempts.
On a 38-yarder, Tavierre Thomas ran into the backfield early in an attempt to block the kick and ran into holder Johnny Hekker. That moved the Panthers 10 yards closer. Then Thomas was flagged again for unsportsmanlike conduct for trying to stop the clock by jumping offsides again, moving the ball another 5 yards closer. Pineiro made his third attempt, even as another flag for offsides was thrown on the Texans.
Young overcame six sacks and three drops by his wide receivers to record his first win since coming into the NFL out of Alabama.
Trevor Lawrence threw for 292 yards with a touchdown and an interception, and Jacksonville slugged its way past Pittsburgh for a fifth straight victory. The Jaguars (6-2) strengthened their hold on the AFC South behind a defense that kept Pittsburgh’s erratic offense in check and more than enough offense to overcome a series of mistakes that let the Steelers (4-3) hang around well into the second half.
Lawrence broke it open with a 56-yard strike to a streaking Travis Etienne with 5:14 left in the third quarter that helped Jacksonville build a 14-point lead as the Jaguars won at Acrisure Stadium for the sixth time in their last seven trips. Etienne ran for 79 yards and caught three passes for 70 yards and the score.
Jalen Hurts threw for four touchdowns while gutting through a knee injury, A.J. Brown had 130 yards receiving and Philadelphia improved to 7-1 this season.
Hurts was limping and reluctant to run because of his gimpy left knee, but that didn’t stop him from completing 29 of 38 passes for 319 yards and the TD passes to Brown twice, Devonta Smith and Julio Jones. Before kneeling twice to end the game, his 7 yards rushing on two attempts were Hurts’ fewest since Dec. 26, 2021.
Washington (3-5) lost for a fifth time in six games despite Howell throwing for a career-high 397 yards and four TDS behind a revamped offensive line.
Dak Prescott threw two of his four touchdown passes to Ceedee Lamb, Daron
Bland recorded his Nfl-leading third interception return for a score and Dallas beat Los Angeles. It was a roughand-tumble homecoming for Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, who was replaced by Brett Rypien late in the third quarter after injuring a thumb on a failed 2-point conversion pass and ending up with a bloody elbow after catching another.
Sam Williams blocked a punt for a safety before Kavontae Turpin returned the ensuing punt 63 yards to set up Lamb’s first TD grab, helping the Cowboys (5-2) to a 33-3 lead late in the first half in their 11th consecutive home victory.
Stafford led scoring drives on either side of halftime to help the Rams (3-5) trim a 30-point deficit to 16. But the former Dallas high school standout, visiting his hometown team for the first time as a Super Bowl champion, sent the Cowboys on their way with an early mistake. Stafford threw behind Cooper Kupp to a waiting Bland for an easy 30-yard return and a 17-3 Dallas lead in the first quarter.
Tua Tagovailoa threw for 324 yards and three touchdowns, Jalen Ramsey intercepted a pass in his Dolphins debut, and Miami beat New England. Miami won for the 16th time in its past 18 home games, and Tagovailoa moved to 6-0 in his career against Patriots coach Bill Belichick. The Dolphins, 6-2 for the first time since 2001, have a one-game lead over Buffalo for the AFC East lead.
Tagovailoa completed 30 of 45 passes and moved his league-leading yardage total to 2,416. Jaylen Waddle had seven catches for 121 yards and a touchdown, and Tyreek Hill had eight receptions for 112 yards and a score, becoming the first player in the Super Bowl era to top 1,000 receiving yards through eight games. Mac Jones had another uneven day for the Patriots (2-6), throwing for 161 yards on 19-of-29 passing with two touchdowns and one interception.
Kirk Cousins threw a pair of touchdown passes before leaving with an ankle injury in the fourth quarter and Minnesota beat slumping Green Bay. This marked the first Packers-vikings matchup since 2006 in which both teams entered with losing records, but Minnesota (4-4) got back to .500 with its third consecutive victory. The Packers (2-5) lost their fourth straight.
Greg Zuerlein kicked a 35-yard field goal on the final play of regulation and added a 33-yarder with 6:09 left in overtime as the Jets (4-3) staged a comeback in a defensive struggle to stun the Giants (2-6).
Tennessee quarterback Will Levis reacts after throwing a touchdown pass against the Falcons during the second half. He finished with four scoring passes in the Titans’ victory.