JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Jaguars bounced back from the worst collapse in franchise history by thumping the Los Angeles Chargers 35-6 on Sunday behind rushing touchdowns from Travis Etienne, Trevor Lawrence and rookie Bhaysul Tuten.
Coming off a 36-29 debacle at Houston during which they blew a 19-point lead in the fourth quarter, the Jaguars (6-4) showed no lingering effects from the crushing setback against a division rival.
It might have helped that they faced the Chargers (7-4), who traveled across the country for an early start while potentially looking ahead to their bye.
Coach Jim Harbaugh’s team was a complete no-show, finishing with 135 yards and just eight first downs.
Lawrence’s 1-yard TD pass to Tim Patrick in the fourth gave Jacksonville more cushion than it had against the Texans, and Etienne’s second TD run of the game — this one coming after Antonio Johnson returned an interception 43 yards — sent visiting fans scampering for the exits.
Harbaugh pulled Justin Herbert with the game out of reach, turning to backup Trey Lance for the final 11 minutes.
The Chargers had little room to run and no time to pass, the result of a makeshift offensive line that included recently acquired left tackle Trevor Penning making his debut. Harbaugh also benched right guard Mekhi Becton to start the second half.
Herbert was sacked twice and hurried way more often. He completed 10 of 18 passes for 81 yards and lost his third consecutive start against the Jaguars.
Jacksonville found much more success on the ground, getting 74 yards from Tuten and 73 from Etienne.
Panthers 30, Falcons 27
ATLANTA — Bryce Young passed for a career-high and franchise-record 448 yards and Ryan Fitzgerald kicked a 28-yard field goal in overtime to lift the Carolina Panthers to a 30-27 win over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.
Young’s 54-yard pass to Tommy Tremble set up the winning kick for Carolina (6-5), which completed its sweep of NFC South rival Atlanta.
The Falcons (3-7) suffered their fifth straight loss, including back-to-back overtime defeats.
Young completed 31 of 45 passes with three touchdowns. He threw a go-ahead 12-yard touchdown pass to Tetairoa McMillan with 1:08 remaining to give Carolina a 27-24 lead. But Zane Gonzalez kicked a 45-yard field goal for Atlanta with 16 seconds remaining to force overtime.
Bijan Robinson ran for 104 yards and two touchdowns, but the Falcons couldn’t overcome the loss of Michael Penix Jr. to a knee injury in the third quarter. Backup Kirk Cousins couldn’t move the offense in overtime.
McMillan had eight catches for 130 yards and two touchdowns.
Young’s go-ahead scoring pass was set up by Rico Dowdle’s 28-yard run to the 10. A replay review ruled Dowdle stepped out of bounds on what was initially ruled a 38-yard touchdown run by the officials.
Atlanta’s secondary was short-handed with cornerbacks Dee Alford and Mike Hughes inactive. Young and the Panthers targeted fill-in cornerback Natrone Brooks often, including on Young’s 36-yard scoring pass to Xavier Legette in the third quarter, cutting Atlanta’s lead to 21-16.
Brooks then fumbled the kickoff return, giving the Panthers the ball at the Atlanta 32. Young was stopped by Kaden Elliss on a fourth-down run from the Atlanta 8. Fitzgerald’s 34-yarder late in the third quarter pulled the Panthers to within two.
Penix left in the third quarter with a left knee injury with Atlanta leading 21-16. Penix missed the Falcons’ 34-10 loss to Miami on Oct. 26 with a bone bruise on his left knee.
Penix completed 13 of 16 passes for 175 yards after struggling with accuracy in last week’s 31-25 overtime loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Berlin.
Bills 44, Buccaneers 32
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Josh Allen threw for three touchdowns and rushed for three more, the last on a rugged 9-yard run with 2:35 left that secured the Buffalo Bills’ 44-32 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday.
The eighth-year starter and reigning MVP became the first player with two games of three TDs passing and rushing. He did it last year in a 44-42 loss at the Los Angeles Rams.
This time, Allen outdueled fellow 2018 first-round draft pick Baker Mayfield in a shootout that featured nine lead changes.
The Bills benched struggling receiver Keon Coleman in a bid to spark their passing game, and each of Allen’s three touchdown passes went for 25 yards or more. Running back Ty Johnson scored on a 52-yard catch-and-run, Allen found Tyrell Shavers open deep for a 43-yard touchdown, and James Cook scored on a 25-yard reception.
Allen provided the go-ahead score, a 5-yard TD run with 9:06 left. He finished 19 of 30 for 317 yards, and the Bills overcame his two first-half interceptions.
He punctuated his final TD run with a massive spike of the ball. Taking off out of the pocket, Allen was hit at the 4-yard line, and then corralled by Bucs defenders at the 2 before Buffalo’s offensive linemen shoved him across the goal line.
Buffalo (7-3) rebounded from a 30-13 loss at Miami in which Allen and the offense failed to push the ball downfield.
Tampa Bay (6-4) has lost two straight and four of seven.
Bears 19, Vikings 17
MINNEAPOLIS — Devin Duvernay’s 56-yard kickoff return in the final minute for Chicago set up Cairo Santos for his fourth field goal of the game, a 48-yarder as time expired, to push the Bears past Minnesota 19-17 after the Vikings scored the go-ahead touchdown with 50 seconds left.
After J.J. McCarthy ended another erratic performance with five straight completions that culminated with a 15-yard scoring strike to Jordan Addison, Duvernay delivered the clutch response for the Bears (7-3) after nearly blowing a 13-point lead they took into the fourth quarter.
Santos made up for his 45-yard miss with 8:08 remaining by drilling the winner after a critical 7-yard rush by D’Andre Swift, who had 21 carries for 90 yards, pushed the ball into a safer range.
McCarthy, who played with a wrap on his throwing hand after hurting it on a helmet after a follow-through in the previous game, ended consecutive second-quarter possessions with interceptions and had an alarming amount of off-target passes. He finished 16 for 32 for 150 yards and a 47.7 passer rating in his fifth career start.
Caleb Williams, who was drafted by the Bears nine picks ahead of McCarthy last year and is much further down the development road under new coach Ben Johnson, had one of his least effective games this season while going 16 for 32 for 193 yards and scrambling four times for 26 yards.
But Williams logged yet another turnover-free start, letting the defense handle the more meaningful work. Veteran safety Kevin Byard drifted back in his zone with nose tackle Grady Jarrett applying the pressure and picked off McCarthy’s forced throw without set feet for Justin Jefferson to give the Bears the ball at the Minnesota 25 and set up the first kick for Santos.
Then on first down from the Chicago 30, McCarthy threw a fade to the back corner of the end zone for Addison that Nahshon Wright, the former Vikings practice squad player who had an interception return for a touchdown off McCarthy in the season opener, secured with a leaping grab before landing on his back with 35 seconds left before halftime.
After a third-down sack by Andrew Van Ginkel and Myles Price’s 42-yard punt return provided the necessary sparks, the Vikings took over at the 24 early in the fourth quarter and reached the end zone in just two plays without McCarthy doing anything but hand off to Jordan Mason.
The defense kept the Vikings (4-6) in the game the whole way, limiting the Bears to seven of 18 third-down conversions, but the final possession started too deep in their territory to prevent a score.
Rookie Kyle Monangai scored his third rushing touchdown in five games to cap a 15-play, 74-yard drive that put the Bears in front late in the second quarter after three straight punts to start.
Texans 16, Titans 13
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Davis Mills threw for 274 yards and a touchdown, Matthew Wright kicked a 35-yard field goal as time expired, and the Houston Texans beat the Tennessee Titans 16-13 on Sunday to sweep the season series with their AFC South rivals.
Led by their backup quarterback, the Texans (5-5) reached .500 for the first time this season with their third win in four games. They also won their fifth straight over the Titans in Nashville despite playing without quarterback CJ Stroud, safety Jalen Pitre and kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn.
Houston had plenty of time to set Wright up for the winning field goal, his third of the day.
In a game pitting the NFL’s worst offense in Tennessee against the league’s stingiest defense in both yards and points, rookie Cam Ward drove the Titans 95 yards and threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to Van Jefferson with 1:35 left. Interim coach Mike McCoy went for the tie as Joey Slye kicked the extra point.
Mills easily moved the Texans into position to end it, with the big play a 17-yard completion to Nico Collins on third-and-16.
The Texans sacked Ward three times with Will Anderson Jr. also recovering a fumble he stripped from the rookie.
Houston trailed 6-0 before rallying for a second straight game. Mills hit Collins for a 3-yard TD midway through the third quarter to put the Texans ahead to stay. Wright also had field goals of 41 and 43 yards.
The Titans (1-9) lost their fifth straight, and this one clinched a fourth consecutive losing season for the franchise.
Tennessee got back a trio of its starters: three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons, outside linebacker Arden Key and wide receiver Calvin Ridley. But Ridley lasted one play before getting hurt again, and McCoy revealed after the game that Ridley had a broken fibula.
Simmons had one of the Titans’ four sacks, helping give Tennessee a chance with the ball with 4:57 left.
Wright missed a 31-yard field goal that hit the right upright on Houston’s opening drive. The Texans got another chance off a questionable roughness penalty on Simmons. But linebacker Cody Barton sacked Mills on fourth-and-goal from the Titans 1 to end that drive.
The Titans, who have only 12 touchdowns through 10 games, settled for a pair of field goals from Slye.
Packers 27, Giants 20
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Jordan Love returned from a shoulder injury to throw two touchdown passes, backup Malik Willis had one of his own while filling in and the Green Bay Packers ended their losing streak at two by defeating the New York Giants 27-20 on Sunday.
Love provided some heroics on the go-ahead drive in the fourth quarter, connecting with rookie Savion Williams on a 32-yard gain under pressure on third-and-10 and finding Christian Watson in the end zone with 4:02 left to take the lead.
Many of the green-and-gold clad fans in attendance at the Meadowlands chanted, “Go, Pack, Go!” following Love’s successful 2-point conversion toss to Emanuel Wilson.
The victory came at a cost, though, with starting running back Josh Jacobs exiting early in the second quarter with a knee injury. Jacobs was ruled out just after halftime.
Even without him, the Packers (6-3-1) took advantage early of an opposing run defense that ranks 31 out of the NFL’s 32 teams. They had 106 of their 128 rushing yards before halftime, including Wilson’s TD run that ended the drive Willis finished while Love was sidelined.
Love, who hurt his left shoulder taking a big hit at the end of a run in the first, completed 13 of 24 passes for 173 yards and the TD throws to reserve tight end Josh Whyle and Watson. He was on target all afternoon, with several drops making his numbers look worse and threatening to derail Green Bay’s offense.
Instead, the unit put up just enough points to overcome mistakes in all three phases, including two missed extra points and some ill-timed penalties. The defense that had been a strength in recent weeks allowed a first-quarter touchdown for the first time this season and could not stop Jameis Winston and the Giants from going on a 15-play, 85-yard scoring drive to go up 20-19.
Love going down the field in 3:20, finishing with the 17-yard TD to Watson, and Evan Williams intercepting Winston in the end zone with 36 seconds left allowed Green Bay to escape.
Dolphins 16, Commanders 13
MADRID — Jack Jones intercepted Marcus Mariota on the first offensive play of overtime and Riley Patterson kicked a 29-yard field goal to give the Miami Dolphins a 16-13 win over the Washington Commanders in the first NFL regular-season game in Spain on Sunday.
The Commanders (3-8) had a chance to win at Real Madrid’s Santiago Bernabeu Stadium with 15 seconds left in regulation, but Matt Gay’s 56-yard field goal attempt sailed wide right.
The Dolphins (4-7) were twice stopped on fourth-and-goal, including inside the final two minutes after recovering the ball on a muffed punt return by the Commanders.
It was the seventh — and final — international game this season, the most in one year for the NFL as it continues to expand globally.
The game in Madrid saw Puerto Rican superstar Daddy Yankee and Argentine producer Bizarrap perform at halftime in front of a crowd of 78,610 at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.
Mariota had to temporarily leave near the end of the third quarter to be evaluated for a concussion. He went down awkwardly while throwing the ball away in his own end zone. He eventually cleared concussion protocol and was able to return.
The Commanders, still without injured quarterback Jayden Daniels, had lost six straight, including 44-22 to the Detroit Lions at home last week, while the Dolphins were coming off a commanding 30-13 victory over the Buffalo Bills at home.
49ers 41, Cardinals 22
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Brock Purdy threw three touchdown passes in his return from a toe injury, Christian McCaffrey had two rushing touchdowns and a receiving score, and the San Francisco 49ers beat the sloppy Arizona Cardinals 41-22 on Sunday.
McCaffrey extended his NFL record with his 17th career game with at least one running touchdown and a touchdown catch. Purdy completed 19 of 26 passes for 200 yards.
Tight end George Kittle caught two touchdown passes.
Arizona lost for the sixth time in seven games. The Cardinals were called for a franchise-record 17 penalties, which was also the most for any team in the NFL this season. They had 11 penalties in the first half — tied for the most before halftime for any team over the past 20 years.
Arizona’s Jacoby Brissett started his fifth straight game for the injured Kyler Murray and completed 47 of 57 passes for 452 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. The 47 completions set an NFL record in the regular season.
Michael Wilson caught 15 passes for a career-high 185 yards. Tight end Trey McBride had 115 yards receiving and a touchdown.
The 49ers (7-4) had control from the outset, needing just 16 seconds to take a 7-0 lead. Skyy Moore returned the opening kickoff 98 yards to the Arizona 1, setting up a 1-yard touchdown run by McCaffrey on the next play.
Purdy returned after being sidelined for six straight games because of the toe injury and was playing his first game since Sept. 28.
He didn’t appear to have much rust: The 25-year-old misfired on his first throw, but then completed three straight passes, including a beautifully-thrown 30-yard touchdown to Kittle for a 13-0 lead with 9:51 left in the first quarter.
For the Cardinals, it was an eerily similar start to last week’s debacle against the Seattle Seahawks, when they fell into a 35-0 hole in the first half before losing 44-22.
Arizona (3-7) had a slightly quicker response against San Francisco, cutting the margin to 13-7 later in the first on Bam Knight’s 6-yard touchdown run, but the good times didn’t last very long. The 49ers pushed ahead 19-7 early in the second quarter when Purdy hit a wide open McCaffrey for a 9-yard score.
Rams 21, Seahawks 19
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Kamren Kinchens had two of the Rams’ four interceptions, Matthew Stafford threw two touchdown passes and Los Angeles hung on to beat the Seattle Seahawks 21-19 Sunday for its fifth consecutive victory.
Jason Myers was short on a 61-yard field goal attempt as time expired, allowing the Rams (8-2) to survive the Seahawks’ furious late rally.
Seattle’s defense got a quick stop after Kenneth Walker III dived in for the Seahawks’ first touchdown with 2:23 to play.
Ethan Evans’ superb punt went out of bounds at the Seattle 1 with 1:41 left, but Sam Darnold shook off his rough afternoon and got the Seahawks to midfield. Rashid Shaheed made a catch at the Los Angeles 43 before calling a timeout with 1 second on the clock.
Myers made four earlier field goals, but came up well short on the final kick, which would have matched his career long.
Davante Adams had his 10th touchdown catch and Kyren Williams rushed for 91 yards and a score for the Rams, who made up for an inconsistent offensive performance by forcing Darnold into his first four-interception game since 2019.
Kinchens equaled his two-interception performance in the Rams’ overtime win at Seattle last season, while Cobie Durant and Darious Williams also had picks in the second half.
Darnold passed for 279 yards for the Seahawks (7-3), whose remarkable 10-game road winning streak ended.
Broncos 22, Chiefs 19
DENVER — Wil Lutz kicked five field goals, including a 35-yard game-winner as time expired Sunday, pushing the Denver Broncos past the Kansas City Chiefs 22-19 for their eighth straight victory.
The Broncos (9-2) all but buried the Chiefs (5-5) in the AFC West, which Kansas City has won ever year since 2016. Chiefs coach Andy Reid fell to 27-5 following a bye week, counting the playoffs and his time with Philadelphia.
Bo Nix set up the game-winning kick with a 32-yard pass to Troy Franklin that got Denver to the Kansas City 15 with under a minute remaining.
Patrick Mahomes gave Kansas City its only lead on a 21-yard touchdown toss to Travis Kelce — the veteran tight end’s 84th career TD, one more than previous Chiefs franchise record-holder Priest Holmes. That put the Chiefs up 19-16, but Harrison Butker’s extra point was blocked by Frank Crum.
The Broncos tied it at 19-all on Lutz’s 54-yarder with 4:10 remaining.
Denver’s defense forced Kansas City to go three-and-out when Ja’Quan McMillian sacked Mahomes on third-and-10 from the Chiefs 36.
The Broncos chewed up the final 2:59 by driving 58 yards in 10 plays. They won their 11th straight game at Empower Field, where they haven’t lost since October 2024.
Kelce’s TD followed a 46-yard pass-interference flag at the Denver 29 on cornerback Riley Moss on an underthrown pass from Mahomes to Hollywood Brown. That came on third-and-19 from the Kansas City 29.
The Broncos’ eight-game winning streak is their longest since 2012, when Peyton Manning led Denver to 11 consecutive victories. As a result, the Chiefs’ nine-year reign atop the AFC West is in jeopardy.
Jaleel McLaughlin, playing in place of injured starter J.K. Dobbins, who underwent season-ending foot surgery last week, bullied his way in from 4 yards out to break a 6-6 tie in the third quarter.
The Chiefs seized the momentum, however, when Mahomes found Tyquan Thornton for a 61-yard gain to the Denver 11. That set up Kareem Hunt’s 2-yard run that tied it at 13. That was KC’s first touchdown at Empower Field in 11 quarters.
Both offenses struggled to move the ball against stingy defenses, and the first half featured four short field goals and ended in a 6-6 tie.
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