NFL Week 13 roundup: Derek Carr's TD pass with 5 seconds left lifts Raiders past Jets

Derek Carr threw a 46-yard touchdown pass to Henry Ruggs III with 5 seconds left, lifting the Las Vegas Raiders to a wild 31-28 victory over the still-winless New York Jets on Sunday.

The Jets took a 28-24 lead with 5:34 remaining on Ty Johnson’s 1-yard touchdown and the defense came up with a big fourth-down stop that appeared to end New York’s agonizing wait for its first win of the season.

But New York went three-and-out with a chance to seal it — and Carr and the Raiders had 35 seconds left to try for what appeared an unlikely comeback. Four plays later, Carr found Ruggs streaking downfield — beating rookie cornerback Lamar Jackson — and delivered the ball perfectly for the winning score.

The Raiders (7-5) celebrated wildly, and the deflated Jets (0-12) could only imagine what could — and maybe should — have been.

After a squib kick by Las Vegas, the Jets had one final chance but Sam Darnold’s Hail Mary throw was batted down in front of the end zone.

Carr finished with three touchdown passes, including two to Darren Waller, and ran for another score. Waller had 13 catches for 200 yards, becoming the 12th tight end since the 1970 merger with 150 or more yards receiving and two or more TD catches in a game.

welp pic.twitter.com/RMLlARYko6

— New York Jets (@nyjets) December 6, 2020

Clelin Ferrell had two strip-sacks in his return from the covid-19 list as Las Vegas bounced back from a blowout loss to Atlanta last week to stay in the middle of the AFC playoff hunt.

Barely.

On the drive before the winning possession, it appeared the Raiders had the go-ahead touchdown on fourth down when Hunter Renfrow caught a pass in the end zone — but the teams had offsetting penalties. Given one more chance, Carr’s pass to Nelson Agholor fell just short in the end zone and the defense raced off the field, arms raised in celebration.

But it was only momentary jubilation.

The lowly Jets lost their 12th straight and tied the team mark for longest overall skid, which spanned the 1995 and ‘96 seasons under Rich Kotite. New York remains on pace to join the 2008 Detroit Lions and 2017 Cleveland Browns as the only NFL teams to go 0-16.

Darnold ran it in from 4 yards to cap a run-heavy — eight of nine plays — 96-yard touchdown drive that began the Jets’ fourth-quarter comeback. A pass-interference penalty gave the Jets another chance at a 2-point conversion, and Darnold threw to Denzel Mims to get the Jets within 24-21 with 10:22 left.

Jets fans rooting for the Trevor Lawrence tank. ??

(via @Aloisiojoe6) pic.twitter.com/VTJWGSpXQl

— House of Highlights (@HoHighlights) December 6, 2020

The Jets got the ball right back three plays later when Javelin Guidry forced the ball out of Ruggs’ hands after a 12-yard catch and Marcus Maye recovered.

New York took advantage with an 18-yard catch by Griffin sandwiched by a few runs — and a personal foul on Ferrell — to put the ball at the 1. Johnson pushed his way up the middle for the go-ahead score, tossing the ball into the air after giving the Jets a 28-24 lead with 5:34 left.

Lions 34, Bears 31

CHICAGO — The Detroit Lions won their first game under interim coach Darrell Bevell, rallying to beat the slumping Chicago Bears 34-30 on Sunday.

Adrian Peterson scored from the 5 after Romeo Okwara strip-sacked Mitchell Trubisky with about two minutes left, capping a big comeback. Matthew Stafford threw for 402 yards and three touchdowns for the Lions (5-7), who came away with a wild win following a major shakeup after a Thanksgiving loss to Houston. They fired general manager Bob Quinn and coach Matt Patricia while elevating Bevell, their offensive coordinator.

Detroit trailed 30-20 early in the fourth period after Trubisky threw an 11-yard touchdown to Cole Kmet on a bootleg. Chicago’s Bilal Nichols then intercepted a short pass intended for Jesse James.

But the Lions turned things around down the stretch, sending the Bears (5-7) to their sixth straight loss.

Detroit cut it to 30-27 with 2:18 left on Stafford’s 25-yard pass to Marvin Jones Jr. Then Bears had a third down at their 17 when Okwara stripped Trubisky. John Penisini recovered and the Lions took over at the Chicago 7.

Peterson ran it in two plays later for his second touchdown of the game, and the Lions came out on top after losing four of five. Peterson ran for 57 yards, and the Lions snapped a five-game losing streak to Chicago.

Stafford completed 27 of 42 passes. The 12-year veteran has 3,278 yards, the ninth time he has surpassed the 3,000 mark.

Jones had eight catches for 116 yards and a touchdown. Quintez Cephus caught a 49-yard touchdown pass.

The Bears are on their worst skid since they dropped eight in a row in 2002. And the latest loss figures to fuel more speculation about coach Matt Nagy’s future. He lit into his team following a blowout at Green Bay last week, then watched a 10-point lead disappear in the final moments.

Saints 21, Falcons 16

ATLANTA — The New Orleans Saints finally gave up a touchdown but the defense stood tall at the end to preserve their ninth straight victory, 21-16 over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.

The Saints (10-2) also clinched a playoff berth with Chicago’s 34-30 loss to Detroit.

Making his third straight start in place of Drew Brees, Taysom Hill threw the first two touchdown passes of his career. But his fumble deep in Atlanta territory sparked a Falcons comeback.

Atlanta drove 85 yards against the Saints, capped by Matt Ryan’s 10-yard touchdown pass to Russell Gage with 7:43 remaining. New Orleans hadn’t allowed a touchdown since the opening drive of a game against San Francisco on Nov. 15, a span of 14 quarters without one.

The Falcons (4-8) got the ball back and again pushed deep into New Orleans territory. On second-and-2 at the Saints 13, Todd Gurley was stuffed for no gain. He got the ball again on third down, trying a sweep around the left end, but Demario Davis caught him for a 7-yard loss.

The Falcons threw into the end zone on fourth down, but the pass feel incomplete to finish off the home team’s best chance at pulling off an upset.

Atlanta got a desperation heave on the final play of the game, but the Saints batted it down.

Hill threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to Tre’Quan Smith in the opening quarter — the quarterback’s first scoring throw since his senior year at Brigham Young in 2016. He added another before halftime on an 11-yard toss to tight end Jared Cook.

New Orleans extended the lead to 21-9 on Alvin Kamara’s 11-yard TD run in the third quarter and had a chance to wrap up the game after Ryan fumbled on a play that was initially ruled an incompletion but changed to a fumble after Saints coach Sean Payton challenged the call.

Hill gave it right back. Under heavy pressure, he tried to throw the ball away but wound up fumbling it, giving the Falcons renewed hope.

It was a solid game otherwise for the Saints’ fill-in starter. Hill finished 27 of 37 for 232 yards. He also rushed for 83 yards on 14 carries, including a 43-yard scamper that was the longest run of his career, setting up his first TD pass.

Ryan was 19 of 39 for 273 yards. He was sacked three times — a far cry from the combined 17 times he went down in the last two games against the Saints.

Still, he faced heavy pressure much of the game. The running game wasn’t much help, managing just 70 yards and 3.3 yards per carry.

Michael Thomas becomes the fastest player to reach 500 catches in NFL history ?

It only took 69 games. @brgridiron pic.twitter.com/Yh7H91Dqaq

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 6, 2020

Younghoe Koo kicked three field goals for the Falcons, extending his streak to 24 in a row since his lone miss of the season in Week 3.

New Orleans swept the season series with the Falcons, winning 24-9 two weeks ago at the Superdome in Hill’s first career start.

Colts 26, Texans 20

HOUSTON — Philip Rivers threw two touchdown passes in the first half and the Indianapolis defense dominated in the second half, lifting the Colts to a 26-20 victory over the Houston Texans on Sunday.

The Texans had a chance to take the lead with about 90 seconds lef. They were at the Colts 2 when Deshaun Watson fumbled a low snap and Anthony Walker pounced on it to seal Indy’s win.

The Colts (8-4) led 24-20 at the break after Rivers threw TD passes of 21 and 39 yards. Their offense didn’t score after that, but the defense held Houston (4-8) scoreless in the second half and Justin Houston added a safety.

The safety was Indy’s third this season and the fourth of Houston’s career, tying him for the most in NFL history. Houston also had three sacks, three QB hits and forced a fumble.

Watson threw for 341 yards and ran for a score in the first half. But he did not have a touchdown pass for the first time this season and threw an interception after not being picked off in the last six games.

He seemed stunned after the fumble and sat alone on Houston’s bench for several minutes after the game ended.

The Colts had a chance to add to their lead with about seven minutes left, but Jonathan Taylor was stopped for no gain on fourth-and-1 from the Houston 5.

Indianapolis added to its lead three plays later when Houston sacked Watson in the end zone to make it 26-20.

The Colts had two penalties on the ensuing drive and punted to give the Texans that last chance.

T.Y. Hilton had a season-high 110 yards receiving and a touchdown. Taylor ran for 91 yards after missing a game because of covid-19 contact tracing. Rivers threw for 285 yards.

Keke Coutee had 141 yards receiving and Chad Hansen 101. Both players set career highs in Houston’s first game since star receiver Will Fuller received a six-game suspension for violating the NFL’s policy on performance enhancers.

The Texans were driving late in the third quarter when Kenny Moore ripped the ball out Brandin Cooks’ hands as he was falling to the ground. The play was reviewed and upheld as an interception, the first pick off Watson since Oct. 11.

Indy couldn’t take advantage of the mistake and had to punt.

The Colts led 7-0 after a 21-yard TD catch by Hilton on their first drive. Houston tied it when Watson scrambled 11 yards for a score later in the first quarter. That score was set up when Watson wriggled out of the grasp of a defender and completed a 64-yard pass to Coutee.

#Colts QB Phillip Rivers has been playing through a toe injury over the last few weeks that will require surgery following the season. It's reportedly a significant turf toe injury, which means the ligaments in the main joint of the big toe are damaged. Very painful.

— Inside Injuries (@InsideInjuries) December 6, 2020

A 52-yard field goal by Kaʻimi Fairbairn gave Houston a 10-0 lead late in the first quarter. Nyheim Hines put the Colts up 14-10 on a 5-yard run with less than a minute left in the first.

Fairbairn missed a 53-yard field goal attempt before Indianapolis made it 21-10 on a 39-yard catch-and-run by Taylor. Then Houston got within 21-17 on a 6-yard run by David Johnson, and both teams added field goals to leave Indianapolis up 24-20 at halftime.

Packers 30, Eagles 16

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Aaron Jones rushed for 130 yards and delivered a game-clinching 77-yard touchdown run with 2:36 left as the Green Bay Packers withstood a fourth-quarter comeback attempt to defeat the Philadelphia Eagles 30-16 on Sunday.

Aaron Rodgers connected with Davante Adams on two of his three touchdown passes and reached a couple of career milestones to help Green Bay (9-3) hand the Eagles (3-8-1) their fourth consecutive loss. Kingsley Keke had two of the Packers’ seven sacks.

Green Bay owned a 23-3 lead in the fourth quarter when the Eagles scored two touchdowns in a span of just over a minute. Rookie quarterback Jalen Hurts, who took over for an ineffective Carson Wentz midway through the third quarter, started it by throwing a 32-yard touchdown pass to Greg Ward on fourth-and-18. Jalen Reagor then delivered a 73-yard punt return to cut the lead to 23-16 with 6:30 left, though Jake Elliott missed the extra point.

The Eagles forced a second straight three-and-out, but couldn’t move the ball and punted. That’s when Jones put away the game.

Jones ran through a big hole in the middle of the line, broke an attempted ankle tackle and headed downfield as a second defender made an unsuccessful diving attempt to bring him down. He raced down the left sideline and eluded a third defender inside Philadelphia’s 30-yard line, worked his way through traffic before heading into the end zone.

Rodgers, who went 25 of 34 for 295 yards, increased his career touchdown passes to 400, the seventh NFL player to join that fraternity. The others are Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, Dan Marino and Philip Rivers.

Rodgers got to No. 400 in his 193rd career game, faster than any other player. He now has 36 touchdown passes this year and is the first player to throw at least 35 in five separate seasons. He also did it in 2011 (45), 2012 (39), 2014 (38) and 2016 (40).

Rodgers put the Packers ahead for good with a 1-yard pass to Adams on fourth down in the second quarter. Rodgers and Adams connected again on a 9-yarder to cap a 99-yard drive in the third period.

Adams, who caught 10 passes for 121 yards, has scored in seven straight games to tie Hall of Famer Don Hutson’s franchise record. Hutson had a pair of seven-game TD reception streaks in 1941-42 and 1943-44.

Rodgers also threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Robert Tonyan in the final minute of the second quarter.

Philadelphia’s offense couldn’t do much most of the day as the Eagles used their 11th different starting offensive line combination. Philadelphia has given up a a league-high 53 sacks, at least three sacks in 10 straight games.

The Eagles showed some signs of life after Hurts took over for Wentz, who signed a $128 million, four-year contract extension in 2019 that starts next year. Hurts was 5 of 12 for 109 yards with an interception to go along with his touchdown pass. Wentz was 6 of 15 for 79 yards.

Rams 38, Cardinals 28

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Jared Goff threw for 351 yards, Darrell Henderson ran for a crucial 38-yard touchdown and the Los Angeles Rams moved into a tie for the NFC West lead with a 38-28 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.

The Rams (8-4) have won three of four and are tied with the Seahawks, who lost to the New York Giants 17-12.

Los Angeles had a 24-14 lead early in the fourth and looked like it was going to pull away until Nsimba Webster fumbled on a punt return. The Cardinals recovered at the LA 15-yard line and quickly turned the mistake into a touchdown on Kenyan Drake’s 4-yard run that pulled Arizona within 24-21.

The Rams responded on their next drive, moving quickly downfield. Henderson sliced through Arizona’s defense untouched for the 38-yard score that pushed it to 31-21.

The Cardinals (6-6) have lost three straight and four of their past five. Second-year Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray had an inconsistent game, completing 21 of 39 passes for 173 yards and three touchdowns. He also lost a fumble midway through the fourth and threw a pick-6 to LA’s Troy Hill, who ran it back 35 yards for a 38-21 lead.

Arizona opened the game with a 59-yard touchdown pass from Murray to tight end Dan Arnold, who didn’t have a defensive player within 15 yards of him while making the catch. The Rams were distracted by triple-teamed DeAndre Hopkins, which led to Arnold being wide open, and he was able to jog into the end zone.

Los Angeles’ defense, which has been among the NFL’s best this season, tightened in a hurry. The Cardinals didn’t get another first down until late in the second quarter, and Murray finished the first half 3-of-12 passing for 73 yards.

The Rams rallied for a 14-7 halftime lead. They tied it early in the second quarter on a 9-yard touchdown run by rookie Cam Akers and pulled away when Goff hit Tyler Higbee for a 1-yard touchdown with 51 seconds left before halftime.

Goff completed 37 of 47 passes for the day. The Rams also had a big advantage in time of possession, keeping the ball about 39 minutes to Arizona’s 21.

Giants 17, Seahawks 12

SEATTLE — Laughed at and mocked for being on top of the worst division in the NFL, the New York Giants now have an impressive win to validate their spot as NFC East leaders.

Alfred Morris scored a pair of third-quarter touchdowns, the New York defense shut down Russell Wilson and one of the top offenses in the league, and the Giants stunned the Seattle Seahawks 17-12 on Sunday.

Double-digit underdogs, the Giants (5-7) handed Seattle its first home loss of the season, sent the NFC West race into some mayhem, and kept their spot on top of the NFC East for another week.

Following its 0-5 start, New York has won five of its past seven, the last four in a row. New York had been close in tight losses to Tampa Bay and the Rams, but picked the perfect time to get its first victory over a team with a winning record.

And the Giants did it with starting quarterback Daniel Jones (hamstring) a spectator after getting hurt last week against Cincinnati. Colt McCoy was far from spectacular but made key plays and avoided critical mistakes following a first-half interception.

McCoy was 13 of 22 for 105 yards, and Wayne Gallman rushed for 135 yards on 16 carries.

Meanwhile, alarms will be going off all over Seattle (8-4) after a sloppy, uninspired performance. Seattle’s offense that was once unstoppable couldn’t get started until it was too late. Wilson was 27 of 42 for 263 yards and was often hesitant with his decisions.

He was sacked five times, a number of those simply from holding the ball too long. The biggest sack came in the closing seconds when Leonard Williams threw Wilson for an 8-yard loss on third down. A fourth-and-18 desperation throw by Wilson was batted down, and the Giants were left to celebrate.

Seattle seemed poised for another of its late rallies after Wilson hit Chris Carson on a 28-yard TD pass with 6:09 left to pull within 17-12, a drive kept alive by a key third-and-long defensive holding penalty on New York.

But McCoy made two big throws on the Giants’ ensuing drive, converting a third-down with a pass to Evan Engram and hitting Darius Slayton for 14 yards into Seattle territory. New York eventually punted, but the Giants’ defense came through.

Vikings 27, Jaguars 24

MINNEAPOLIS — When Joe Schobert reached the end zone after his 43-yard interception return on the first play of the second half, the Jacksonville Jaguars had their biggest lead of the season at 10 points.

Leading 16-6, the Jaguars were poised to put a big dent in Minnesota’s playoff bid. Then Kirk Cousins led the Vikings on a 75-yard touchdown drive to close the gap.

The Vikings scored 18 consecutive points, including a safety when Mike Glennon was sacked early in the fourth quarter. Although Jacksonville (1-11) came back to force overtime, it fell 27-24. Another attempt to end a losing streak now at 11 games failed. punctuated by Mike Glennon’s ill-advised deep pass in overtime that was intercepted.

“It’s a young team, and there’s not a lot of experience in games like that or moments like that for a lot of guys on the team yet,” Schobert said of the scene on the sideline after his interception. “Football is a momentum game, and when you have momentum everything seems to be going your way, and when it shifts it’s hard to get it back.”

The Jaguars had four turnovers, a missed extra point and 10 penalties for 83 yards. They’ve held a lead in each of their past six games. Four of the past five losses have been by four points or less.

“We’re trying to build on that momentum and go, on both sides,” Jaguars coach Doug Marrone said. “You got to make plays. We’ve been in situations where we could make plays to tip the game, tip the scales to a more favorable position, but we haven’t been able to do that.”

Jacksonville took control early. On the first drive, Glennon threw a 28-yard touchdown pass to Laviska Shenault Jr. that glanced off Minnesota cornerback Kris Boyd and deflected to Shenault.

“That wasn’t a very good ball. It was just all luck,” Glennon said.

After forcing a three-and-out, the Jaguars capitalized again by going 66 yards for a field goal.

“They were ready to go,” Marrone said of his team that gave legitimate scares to contenders Tennessee, Green Bay and Cleveland after beating Indianapolis in the opener. “We had a problem earlier in the year, remember, coming out early and being able to play. We’ve really been trying to emphasize making sure that we come out and start better, and we did.”

After Minnesota’s rally, the Jaguars still had chances. They drove 75 yards for the tying touchdown with 1:08 left on rookie James Robinson’s 1-yard run, then Glennon found Collin Johnson for the 2-point conversion.

In overtime, Jacksonville’s defense forced a punt on the first possession, but a holding penalty during the return pushed the Jaguars back to their 18. Three plays later, Glennon went deep for D.J. Chark Jr. and was picked off by a diving Harrison Smith.

“In that situation, it’s just not worth it,” Glennon said. “A play that we’re trying to take a shot on. The way the safety played it, I should have just checked it down and looked to punt.”

Glennon, who started his second straight game even with Gardner Minshew now fully healthy, was 28 of 42 for 280 yards passing, two interceptions and a lost fumble. Marrone said Glennon will start again next week against Tennessee for the Jaguars, who fired general manager Dave Caldwell last week.

After Smith’s pick, the Vikings drove down the field and won on a 23-yard field goal by Dan Bailey.

“There’s a point where there’s no moral victories,” Schobert said. “In football, you either win or you lost. It’s not like, ‘Oh, we lost by two. We lost by three.’ I think it just speaks to how hard everybody plays on this team and how hard everybody plays for each other, just with all the stuff we’ve been going through, and getting in these close games. But to be a good football team, you have to win those close games.”

Patriots 45, Chargers 0

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Cam Newton ran for two touchdowns and the New England Patriots scored two TDs on special teams in a 45-0 rout of the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.

Newton has four games this season with multiple rushing touchdowns, breaking the league record for a quarterback. He had three such games in 2011, an achievement he shared with five others, and has 10 in his career, three more than any other QB.

Newton’s 1-yard dive on the game’s opening drive and a 2-yard keeper up the middle in the second quarter gave him 11 rushing scores on the year. His most in a season is 14 as a rookie with the Carolina Panthers in 2011.

The Patriots (6-6) have won two straight and four of five to get back into playoff contention in the AFC.

Los Angeles (3-9) suffered the worst loss in franchise history, eclipsing a 49-6 defeat to Kansas City in 1964. It was the first time since 2014 the Chargers were shut out. LA will finish with a losing record for the second consecutive season.

Gunner Olszewski took Ty Long’s punt 70 yards up the right sideline early in the second quarter, putting New England ahead 14-0. The Patriots’ second special teams score came on the last play of the first half, when Devin McCourty returned a blocked field-goal attempt 44 yards to the end zone. New England led 28-0 at halftime.

The Chargers reassigned special teams coach George Stewart on Nov. 25, but LA’s struggles in that phase continued.

Newton completed 12 of 19 passes for 69 yards, including a 5-yard pass to N’Keal Henry during the third quarter that extended New England’s lead to 35-0.

Jarrett Stidham replaced Newton early in the fourth quarter threw a 38-yard touchdown pass to Olszewski.

Rookie Justin Herbert was 26 of 53 for 209 yards for the Chargers. He was intercepted twice.