Vikings 42, Falcons 21
Sam Darnold threw for 347 yards and five touchdowns, both career highs, in a 42-21 Minnesota victory over the Atlanta Falcons to stretch their winning streak to six games.
Darnold passed for 250 yards after halftime to help the Vikings (11-2) break a 21-all tie early in the fourth quarter and stay one game behind NFC North-leading Detroit with a final-week matchup looming with the Lions. Jordan Addison had eight catches for 133 yards and three scores and Justin Jefferson racked up seven receptions for 132 yards and two touchdowns after going the past six games without scoring.
Kirk Cousins threw two more interceptions without a touchdown in this unhappy homecoming following a mixed six-year run with the Vikings.
Cousins went 23 for 37 for 344 yards for the Falcons, who crossed midfield on all nine of their possessions and finished with 496 total yards.
Bijan Robinson had 22 carries for 92 yards and a touchdown and Tyler Allgeier rushed nine times for 63 yards and a score for the Falcons against the NFL’s leading run defense.
Dolphins 32, Jets 26 OT
The Miami Dolphins kept their slim playoff hopes alive, overcoming 8- and 3-point fourth-quarter deficits, as well as one of Aaron Rodgers’ best games in years, to beat the New York Jets 32-26 in OT.
Tua Tagovailoa sealed it with a 10-yard touchdown pass to Jonnu Smith in overtime to help the Dolphins spoil Rodgers’ first 300-yard passing game in nearly three years and beat the Jets for the ninth straight time in Miami.
After Jason Sanders tied it with 7 seconds left in regulation with a 42-yard field goal, Tagovailoa quickly moved the Dolphins down the field.
That came after Anders Carlson gave the struggling Jets (3-10) the lead with a 42-yarder with 52 seconds remaining. But Malik Washington put the Dolphins in great position to help set up Sanders’ field goal with a 45-yard kickoff return to Miami’s 46-yard line.
Tagovailoa was 33 of 47 for 331 yards and two TDs.
Rodgers was 27 of 39 for 339 yards, ending a drought of 34 regular-season games without a 300-yard passing game — dating to Dec. 12, 2021, while with Green Bay — and had a TD pass to Davante Adams.
But Rodgers could only watch from the sideline in overtime as the Jets never got the ball after blowing a second straight second-half lead.
New York was eliminated from postseason contention for the 14th straight year.
Saints 14, Giants 11
The New Orleans Saints hung on to beat the New York Giants 14-11 and stayed alive. Defensive tackle Bryan Bresee preserved the win when he blocked a potential game-tying 35-yard field goal by Graham Gano with 11 seconds left.
Derek Carr injured his left, non-throwing hand when he leapt to try for a first down and crashed to the turf with just under four minutes to play.
The 33-year-old Carr finished 20 of 31 for 219 yards. He was hurt with just under four minutes to play when he dived for a first down near the Saints 40 and landed hard. He was replaced by Jake Haener.
With four games left, the Saints are two games behind first-place Tampa Bay (7-6) and one behind Atlanta.
Steelers 27, Browns 14
Russell Wilson threw for 158 yards and two touchdowns, Cam Heyward recorded two sacks and the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Cleveland Browns 27-14 on Sunday even with leading receiver George Pickens watching from the sideline while missing the first game of his career due to a groin injury.
The Steelers (10-3) moved two games ahead of Baltimore for the AFC North lead with four weeks to go.
Jameis Winston threw two interceptions, Dustin Hopkins missed two makeable field goals when the outcome was still in doubt and a series of ill-time flags added up to the Browns reaching double-digit losses for the 18th time since the franchise returned in 1999.
49ers 38, Bears 13
Brock Purdy threw for 325 yards and two touchdowns and the San Francisco 49ers bounced back from two blowout losses to beat Chicago 38-13 and spoil interim coach Thomas Brown’s debut for the Bears.
The 49ers (6-7) had been outscored by 53 points the past two weeks in losses at Green Bay and Buffalo that left their playoff hopes teetering with several stars such as Christian McCaffrey, Nick Bosa and Trent Williams sidelined by injuries.
But San Francisco delivered a performance more reminiscent of a year ago when the Niners went to the Super Bowl, handing the Bears (4-9) their seventh straight loss after outgaining them by 315 yards on the way to a 24-0 halftime lead.
Purdy delivered his third 300-yard passing game of the season with two TDs to Jauan Jennings, fill-in back Isaac Guerendo gained 128 yards from scrimmage and scored on two TD runs and George Kittle had six catches for 151 yards. That helped deliver the highest-scoring game of the season for the 49ers.
The defense did the rest with strong pressure from the four-man line that led to rookie Caleb Williams getting sacked seven times.
Williams finished 17 for 34 for 134 yards and lost a fumble, but had his seventh straight start without an interception.
Williams’ 56 sacks this season are the most for any Chicago quarterback since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger.
Eagles 22, Panthers 16
Saquon Barkley rushed for 124 yards to break the Philadelphia Eagles season record, and Jalen Hurts threw two touchdown passes and ran for a score in Sunday’s 22-16 win over the Carolina Panthers.
The Eagles (11-2) maintained their position as the No. 2 team in the NFC, behind Detroit (12-1).
Hurts’ passing numbers were a pedestrian 14 of 21 for 108 yards. Brown had four catches for 43 yards — and threw his helmet in anger after a three-and-out — and Smith had four catches for 37 yards.
Bryce Young finished 19 of 34 for 191 yards.
Jaguars 10, Titans 6
Tank Bigsby ran for an 8-yard touchdown with 6:46 left, Jacksonville snapped a five-game skid and ended the Tennessee Titans’ slim playoff hopes by scoring the final 10 points for a 10-6 victory.
The Jaguars (3-10) came in already eliminated with Trevor Lawrence out for the rest of this season.
The Titans (3-10) came in needing to win out to even have a chance of their first playoff berth since the 2021 season ended with a divisional loss on their home field. Tennessee has fired both a general manager and coach since then.
Mac Jones filled in for Lawrence to get his first win in three starts this season.
He shook off two interceptions and one sack, throwing for 220 yards. In the second half, he connected over and over with rookie Brian Thomas Jr. The first-round draft pick out of LSU finished with career highs with eight catches on 12 targets for 86 yards.
Bucs 28, Raiders 13
Baker Mayfield threw for 295 yards and three touchdowns, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won for the third straight week, a 28-13 win over the reeling Las Vegas Raiders. The Bucs moved ahead of fading Atlanta in the NFC South.
The Falcons, who hold a tiebreaker advantage after sweeping the season series between the rivals, have lost four in a row.
Mayfield tossed scoring passes of 15 yards and 29 yards to rookie Jalen McMillan. Rachaad White scored on a 5-yard reception and a 3-yard run for the Bucs, who pulled away in the second half after the Raiders (2-11) lost quarterback Aidan O’Connell to a knee injury that coach Antonio Pierce said “doesn’t look good.”
O’Connell left the game with 1:23 remaining in the third quarter and was replaced by Ridder. O’Connell finished 11 of 19 passing 104 yards and an interception. He was sacked once.
Rams 44, Bills 42
Matthew Stafford passed for 320 yards and hit Puka Nacua for a 19-yard touchdown with 1:54 to play, and the Los Angeles Rams overcame Josh Allen’s record six-touchdown performance to snap the Buffalo Bills’ seven-game winning streak with a 44-42 victory.
Allen passed for 342 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 82 yards and three more scores for the Bills (10-3). He became the first player in NFL history with three passing TDs and three rushing TDs in a game.
Allen capped his third long touchdown drive of the fourth quarter by scoring on a 1-yard dive with 1:00 left.
But Ronnie Rivers recovered the onside kick and Los Angeles (7-6) ran out the clock on its first win over Buffalo since 2012 and its first at home since 1983.
The Rams and Bills combined for 902 yards of offense without a turnover, while Buffalo’s 42 points were the most scored in a loss in franchise history. A team scored at least 42 points and lost for just the 22nd time in NFL history.
Nacua had 12 catches for 162 yards and also ran for a score, while Kyren Williams rushed for two TDs as the Rams never trailed while moving above .500 for the first time this season.
Seahawks 30, Cardinals 18
Zach Charbonnet ran for a career-high 134 yards and two touchdowns, Geno Smith threw for 233 yards and a score in a 30-18 Seattle victory over the Arizona Cardinals. The Seahawks (8-5) have won four straight games and maintained a one-game lead in the NFC West.
The Seahawks swept the season series from the Cardinals. They have won seven in a row against their division rival.
Seattle shook off an early deficit to take a 24-10 lead by halftime.
Smith completed 24 of 30 passes and wasn’t sacked.
The Cardinals (6-7) could have moved into a share of first place with a win. Instead, they have lost three straight and are fading from the playoff picture.
Kyle Murray threw for 259 yards and two touchdowns, but also threw interceptions on back-to-back passes in the first quarter.
SUNDAY NIGHT: Chiefs 19, Chargers 17
Matthew Wright kicked a 31-yard field goal that banked off the left upright as time expired, and the Kansas City Chiefs survived another close game, beating the Los Angeles Chargers 19-17 on Sunday night to win their ninth straight AFC West title.
Patrick Mahomes led the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs (12-1) on a clock-killing 4 1/2-minute drive to set up Wright’s fourth field goal. It looked routine until the ball clanged off the upright in the latest narrow escape for Kansas City, which has won 10 games by a one-score margin.
Kansas City’s nine straight division titles are two short of the New England Patriots’ NFL record of 11.
The Chiefs led 13-0 at halftime after the Chargers (8-5) punted on their first five possessions, but Justin Herbert and LA woke up in the second half, scoring on each of their three drives. Cameron Dicker’s 37-yard field goal put the Chargers ahead 17-16 with 4:35 left.
Mahomes then went to work, hitting Xavier Worthy for 14 yards on third-and-10 and scrambling for another first down. After the two-minute warning, Mahomes scrambled, dodged a would-be tackle and lobbed a throw to a kneeling Travis Kelce that allowed the Chiefs to run the clock down to zero.
Mahomes was 24 of 37 for 210 yards and threw a 9-yard pass to DeAndre Hopkins late in the first half for Kansas City’s only touchdown.
Herbert went 21 of 30 for 213 yards and a TD.
TONIGHT on MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL:
The (4-8) Cincinnati Bengals are in Big D to take on the (5-7) Dallas Cowboys.
Chiefs kicker Matt Wright doinks his field goal off the left goal post and it manages to bounce through the uprights to give The Chiefs the walk-off win over the Chargers.
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen sneaks in for another rushing touchdown late in the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Rams. He had 3 rushing touchdowns and threw for 3 touchdowns… 6 total touchdowns for the day.
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s pass to tight end Jonnu Smith gives Miami the win vs. the New York Jets in OT
New Orleans Saints defensive tackle Bryan Bresee (bruh-zee) leaves New York in shock with a game-ending field goal block.
Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold fires his fifth touchdown pass of the game, with wide receiver Jordan Addison catching his third against the Atlanta Falcons.
With a 9-yard rush in the fourth quarter, Philadelphia Eagles’ running back Saquon Barkley sets the Eagles’ single-season rushing record, surpassing LeSean McCoy.
