JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Brock Purdy threw three touchdown passes, including a 66-yarder to George Kittle, and the San Francisco 49ers seemingly fixed all their woes with a cross-country trip and a 34-3 drubbing of the Jacksonville Jaguars that ended a three-game skid Sunday.
Deebo Samuel returned from a three-game absence and added a 23-yard scoring run for the 49ers (6-3), who stopped Jacksonville's five-game winning streak and re-established themselves as a Super Bowl contender following a bye week.
San Francisco dominated both lines of scrimmage and controlled the game from the opening drive. The Niners ran for 147 yards against one of the league's top run defences and sacked Trevor Lawrence five times. Nick Bosa was a menace all game, and newly acquired defensive end Chase Young got in on one of the sacks.
The Jaguars (6-3), meanwhile, embarrassed themselves at every turn and looked nothing like a legit playoff contender. They had a five-possession stretch in which they fumbled, kicked a field goal, threw an interception, fumbled and threw another interception. Lawrence was responsible for three of the team's four turnovers.
It was Jacksonville's worst home loss since a 45-10 blowout to the Los Angeles Chargers in 2019.
COWBOYS 49, GIANTS 17
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Dak Prescott threw for 404 yards and four touchdowns while running for another score, and the Dallas Cowboys routed the New York Giants for the second time this season, extending their home winning streak to 12 with a 49-17 victory Sunday.
The Cowboys (6-3) won 40-0 in the opener in New Jersey, and the 72-point margin was their largest in a sweep of an NFC East opponent, topping their 66-point edge against Philadelphia in 1969.
The Giants (2-8) were outgained 368-27 in the first half with Tommy DeVito as the first undrafted rookie to start for them at quarterback in the common draft era, save for a strike-replacement game in 1987.
DeVito, who replaced Daniel Jones last week when the franchise QB sustained a season-ending knee injury, was 14 of 27 for 86 yards with two TDs and an interception.
The Cowboys — whose 640 total yards were 12 shy of the franchise record — had a 54-0 combined first-half margin in the two games, this time without any help from defense or special teams after those units scored a TD apiece early in the first rout.
Receiver CeeDee Lamb scored on 14-yard run before Prescott's touchdown tosses to Jake Ferguson (1 yard) and Brandin Cooks (10 yards). Prescott made it 28-0 with a 10-yard run 16 seconds before the break.
After DeVito's 19-yard scramble sparked a New York scoring drive in the third quarter, including his second career TD pass, Prescott connected with Michael Gallup on a 41-yard touchdown for a 35-7 lead.
Lamb had a spectacular one-handed grab among 11 catches for 151 yards as he became the first Dallas receiver with at least 10 catches for at least 150 yards in three consecutive games.
RAIDERS 16, JETS 12
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Josh Jacobs rushed for 116 yards, rookie Aidan O'Connell connected with Michael Mayer for the game's only touchdown, and the Las Vegas Raiders improved to 2-0 under interim coach Antonio Pierce, beating the New York Jets 16-12 on Sunday night.
The Raiders (5-5) turned away two late attempts by the Jets to rally. Robert Spillane intercepted Zach Wilson's pass at the Las Vegas 15 with 1:22 left, and after the Raiders punted, Wilson's heave to the end zone fell incomplete on the game's final play.
Jacobs ended a 14-game streak of failing to gain 100 yards, getting 27 attempts as Pierce committed to a run-first attack, but his fumble late in the fourth quarter gave the Jets (4-5) a chance.
O'Connell became the second Raiders rookie quarterback to win two of his first three starts — Mike Rae in 1976 was the other — by passing for 153 yards with one interception.
It was 9-9, with each team having made three field goals, when O'Connell scrambled and found Mayer in the end zone early in the fourth quarter. Las Vegas' defense took care of the rest.
LIONS 41, CHARGERS 38
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Jared Goff threw for 333 yards and two touchdowns, Riley Patterson kicked a 41-yard, game-winning field goal as time expired, and the Detroit Lions prevailed in a 41-38 shootout over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.
The Chargers (4-5) tied it at 38-all with 3:34 remaining when Justin Herbert threw his fourth touchdown pass of the day, a 38-yarder to Keenan Allen on fourth-and-1.
Goff responded by leading the Lions (7-2) on a nine-play, 53-yard drive, culminating in Patterson's kick. The key play was Goff's 6-yard completion to rookie tight end Sam LaPorta on fourth-and-2 from the LA 26-yard line.
Goff, playing in SoFi Stadium for the second time since being traded by the Rams to the Lions in 2021, was 23 of 33.
David Montgomery had 116 yards on 12 carries, including a 75-yard touchdown in the second quarter. Jahmyr Gibbs added 77 yards and two touchdowns for the NFC North-leading Lions.
Amon-Ra St. Brown had a career-high 156 receiving yards on eight catches, including a 20-yard TD to put the Lions ahead 31-24 in the third quarter. He is the first Detroit receiver to have six 100-yard games in a seven-game span since Calvin Johnson in 2012.
Herbert completed 27 of 40 passes for 323 yards with the four TDs and an interception. Allen had 11 catches for 175 yards and two touchdowns, including a 29-yard TD in the second quarter.
SEAHAWKS 29, COMMANDERS 26
SEATTLE (AP) — Jason Myers converted his fifth field goal of the game, a 43-yarder as time expired, and the Seattle Seahawks held off the Washington Commanders 29-26 on Sunday.
Seattle quarterback Geno Smith and Washington QB Sam Howell traded big throws and touchdown passes in the final 5 minutes, but it was Smith who had the the final chance at the victory and came through.
Howell pulled Washington even at 26-26 on a 35-yard touchdown pass to Dyami Brown with 52 seconds remaining. Smith took over and made a pair of big throws to DK Metcalf: a 17-yard strike on third-and-4 and a 27-yard pass to the Washington 25. Smith spiked the ball with 3 seconds left and Myers concluded his perfect day for Seattle (6-3), which remained tied with San Francisco atop the NFC West.
Smith was 31 of 47 for 369 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He hit Tyler Lockett for a 5-yard TD with 3:47 remaining, which appeared to be the decisive score at the time.
Howell had an answer, giving Washington (4-6) a chance in the closing seconds. Howell converted a fourth-and-1 at the Seattle 43 with an 8-yard pass to Terry McLaurin. Three plays later, on third-and-10, Howell dropped a pass over the arms of defenders Jordyn Brooks and Devon Witherspoon and into the hands of Brown, who sprinted untouched for the tying score. It was Brown’s first touchdown of the season.
Howell finished 29 of 44 for 312 yards and three touchdowns. He also threw a 51-yard TD pass to running back Brian Robinson Jr. on the fourth play of the game and hit Antonio Gibson for a 19-yard TD with 8 minutes left that tied the game at 19-all.
BUCCANEERS 20, TITANS 6
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Baker Mayfield threw for 278 yards and two touchdowns Sunday to help the Tampa Bay Buccaneers stop a four-game losing streak with a 20-6 victory over the Tennessee Titans.
Rachaad White turned a first-quarter screen pass into a 43-yard TD. Mike Evans redeemed himself from dropping a pass in the end zone with a 22-yard scoring catch and finished with six receptions for 143 yards for the Bucs (4-5).
A week after yielding five TD passes and a NFL rookie record 470 yards through the air to Houston's C.J. Stroud, the Bucs' defense fared much better against another first-year quarterback, Will Levis, who was sacked four times and intercepted once while failing to get his team into the end zone.
Mayfield completed 18 of 29 passes and shrugged off a first-quarter interception to end Tampa Bay's longest skid since 2019.
Tennessee (3-6) lost for the fourth time in five games following a 2-2 start. The Titans have dropped eight straight on the road dating to last season.
STEELERS 23, PACKERS 19
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Jaylen Warren and Najee Harris combined for 183 yards rushing and two touchdowns, and the Pittsburgh Steelers edged the Green Bay Packers 23-19 on Sunday.
The Steelers (6-3) won their ninth straight game decided by eight points or less by following a formula that has become familiar. A little offence. A timely turnover and just enough of everything else to survive.
Pittsburgh used touchdown runs by their two backs — who have become essentially 1A and 1B — and Chris Boswell’s three field goals to head into a pivotal stretch with momentum.
Patrick Peterson blocked an extra point and added a tipped ball that turned into Keanu Neal’s interception in the end zone with 3:20 remaining. Green Bay got the ball back with 59 seconds to go and drove deep into Pittsburgh territory, but Jordan Love’s last-gasp throw to the end zone was picked off by Damontae Kazee.
Kazee returned it 30 yards before stepping out of bounds with time expired. Kazee was pushed by Green Bay lineman Zach Tom, leading to Kazee running over Steelers special-teams coordinator Danny Smith. A brief melee ensued before cooler heads prevailed.
VIKINGS 27, SAINTS 19
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Joshua Dobbs kept Minnesota’s injury-thinned offence on track in his first start, throwing for a career-high 268 yards and totalling two touchdowns to help the Vikings build a 24-point halftime lead and hold on to beat the New Orleans Saints 27-19 on Sunday for their fifth straight victory.
T.J. Hockenson outgained the Saints by himself in the first half with 10 catches for 128 yards and a score for the Vikings (6-4), who stalled out after the hot start and turned to Mekhi Blackmon and Byron Murphy for fourth-quarter interceptions of downfield heaves by Jameis Winston that ended consecutive Saints possessions. Winston’s throw into a crowd in the end zone on the final play was knocked down by the Vikings.
After Derek Carr was forced out in the third quarter with a concussion and a shoulder injury, Winston entered with a 27-3 deficit and delivered touchdown passes to Chris Olave and A.T. Perry on highlight-reel, high-degree-of-difficulty catches in the end zone over Murphy. Alvin Kamara contributed the vital 2-point conversion runs, and the Saints (5-5) were poised to pull off a remarkable comeback.
BROWNS 33, RAVENS 31
BALTIMORE — Dustin Hopkins kicked a 40-yard field goal as time expired to cap a furious Cleveland rally in the fourth quarter, and the Browns edged the Baltimore Ravens 33-31 on Sunday.
Cleveland (6-3) trailed 31-17 before Deshaun Watson delivered the type of victory the Browns have been waiting for from their high-priced quarterback.
Watson threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Moore with 8:57 remaining. Then one of Lamar Jackson's passes caromed high into the air and was picked off by Greg Newsome II, and he returned the interception 34 yards for a TD just 41 seconds later.
The Ravens stayed ahead 31-30 because Hopkins missed the extra point, but Cleveland got the ball back and drove 58 yards for the winning kick. The key play was a 17-yard pass to Amari Cooper on second-and-19 that got the drive back on track.
Baltimore (7-3) had a four-game winning streak snapped, and the victory by Cleveland (6-3) tightened the race in the AFC North significantly.
Watson got off to a terrible start — his first pass of the game was picked off and returned for a touchdown — but he finished with 213 yards passing and 37 rushing, and his elusiveness was an issue for Baltimore's vaunted pass rush.
Despite the high score, the defences — ranked No. 1 and 2 in the league entering the game — had their moments. On the second play from scrimmage, Watson's pass was batted into the air by Kyle Hamilton, and the ball came right down to the Baltimore safety, who ran 18 yards for a TD 40 seconds into the game.
COLTS 10, PATRIOTS 6
FRANKFURT, Germany — Jonathan Taylor ran for a first-quarter touchdown and Mac Jones threw a crucial interception in the fourth quarter and the Indianapolis Colts held on for a 10-6 win over New England Patriots in Germany on Sunday.
Indianapolis had not scored fewer than 20 points in any of its first nine games this season. Half of that total was still enough to beat the Patriots' misfiring offence.
The NFL's 50th regular-season game outside the United States, and last of this season, was dominated by defence and Taylor's first-quarter touchdown was the only one of the game. It was the lowest-scoring game in the league this season.
Colts coach Shane Steichen praised his team's "phenomenal'' defence to limit the Patriots to two field goals.
"Our defence stepped up. We moved the ball offensively, but we didn't finish our drives like we normally do, but it was good to get the win,'' he said.
Jones was sacked five times in the first half and was replaced with backup Bailey Zappe late in the fourth quarter.
CARDINALS 25, FALCONS 23
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Kyler Murray threw for 249 yards and ran for a touchdown in his return from a serious knee injury, Matt Prater made a game-winning 23-yard field goal as time expired and the Arizona Cardinals snapped a six-game losing streak by beating the Atlanta Falcons 25-23 on Sunday.
Murray made a pair of important plays on the game-winning drive, providing reminders of why he was the No. 1 overall pick in 2019 and also why the Cardinals (2-8) signed him to a $230.5 million contract before the 2022 season.
His 13-yard scramble on third-and-10 — and evading multiple sack attempts — helped keep Arizona's drive alive. Then he hit tight end Trey McBride on a 33-yard pass that set up the short field goal.
That made it an easy field goal for Prater, who also connected from 56, 51 and 46 yards.
McBride finished with eight catches for 131 yards, James Conner ran for 73 yards and Murray completed 19 of 32 passes. Rookie BJ Ojulari had two sacks for the Cardinals (2-8).
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