NFL Week 3: Dolphins halt Josh Allen, survive 'butt punt' to beat Bills

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The Miami Dolphins’ defense stopped Josh Allen and the Bills at the goal line late, then held again after punter Thomas Morstead bizarrely kicked the ball off a teammate and out of bounds for a safety in a 21-19 win over Buffalo on Sunday.

Tua Tagovailoa and the Dolphins improved to 3-0 in an AFC East thriller that ended with Allen and the Bills attempting to spike the ball near midfield, the clock just running out on their chance to try a long-distance, go-ahead field goal.

Tagovailoa briefly left the game in the second quarter, returning after halftime despite appearing to be disoriented by a head injury. Allen also may have been injured, heading to the X-ray room after the game. He had his throwing hand checked by trainers late.

Miami took the lead with about 10 minutes left in the game, scoring a touchdown to go up 21-17. It was the Bills’ first deficit of the season.

Despite being sacked and flagged for unnecessary roughness on the next drive, Allen drove Buffalo down the field with a 17-play, eight-minute drive. Miami’s defense held, though, nearly intercepting a pass and forcing a turnover on downs from the 2-yard line.

Tagovailoa and the Dolphins went three-and-out, leaving little room for Morstead to try punting out of the end zone. His kick hit blocker Trent Sherfield in the backside and caromed out of bounds, a play immediately dubbed the “butt punt” on social media.

give the photographer his Pulitzer now pic.twitter.com/e304i7bWDl

— Christian D'Andrea (@TrainIsland) September 25, 2022

Allen had about a minute to guide Buffalo into field goal range, and did so, but the Bills ran out of time. Isaiah McKenzie tried for extra yards on a completion from Allen, costing precious seconds. Dolphins players started celebrating when the clock hit zero with Allen just stepping under center.

Bills offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey slammed his headset and began throwing paper and notebooks in the coaches’ box when time ran out.

Allen was 42 of 63 and passed for 400 yards after completing his first 11 passes for the first time in his career. He had touchdown passes to running back Devin Singletary and receiver Isaiah McKenzie.

Incredible effort between these two ‼️@Tua @JoshAllenQB pic.twitter.com/wDulDlBvOt

— NFL (@NFL) September 25, 2022

The Bills were without several defensive starters, including starting safety Micah Hyde, who on Saturday went on injured reserve with a neck injury, and cornerback Dane Jackson, who suffered a neck injury against the Titans last week. The Dolphins’ 21 points was the most Buffalo has allowed all season.

Tagovailoa slammed his head on the turf after a late hit from linebacker Matt Milano. He stumbled and fell to the ground trying to walk it off and was taken to the locker room immediately, but he returned to begin the third quarter.

Tagovailoa completed 13 of 18 passes for 186 yards, one touchdown and no turnovers.

The Bills scored on their opening drive for the eighth straight game. It was a two-yard touchdown throw from Allen to Singletary, set up by 28- and 19-yard catch and runs by Diggs and Singletary earlier in the drive.

Bills OC Ken Dorsey was not happy at the end of the game. pic.twitter.com/F7Jp5IMlFP

— Field Yates (@FieldYates) September 25, 2022

In the fourth quarter, Miami’s Jaylen Waddle caught a 32-yard pass along the right sideline, then added a 45-yard reception on third-and-22 to set up Chase Edmonds’ eventual 2-yard touchdown run.

Edmonds also had a 1-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.

The Dolphins’ other touchdowns were a 1-yard run by Edmonds in the first quarter and a 2-yard catch by undrafted rookie receiver River Cracraft.

Vikings 28, Lions 24

MINNEAPOLIS — Kirk Cousins connected with a wide-open K.J. Osborn for the go-ahead, 28-yard touchdown with 45 seconds remaining, and the Minnesota Vikings rallied to beat the Detroit Lions 28-24 on Sunday.

Osborn blew by former Vikings cornerback Mike Hughes on a corner route to snag the in-stride pass and cruise across the goal line to give Minnesota (2-1) the lead for the first time.

As Osborn and Justin Jefferson — who was blanketed by rising star Jeff Okudah and had just three catches for 14 yards — flapped their arms to fire up the crowd while standing on the bench, the Vikings didn’t let Jared Goff and the Lions cross midfield.

Dalvin Cook rushed for 96 yards and a score before leaving with a shoulder injury for the Vikings, who fell behind 14-0 and 24-14. Their final push against an extra-aggressive Lions team that frequently sent multiple extra pass rushers at Cousins and went for it six times on fourth down proved to be just enough to give them a winning record at the end of September for the first time since they were 3-0 in 2016.

After going 3-13-1 in coach Dan Campbell’s first season, Detroit (1-2) looks like a much more dangerous opponent. The Lions are still seeking their first road win since Dec. 6, 2020, at Chicago, though. Their NFL-record streak of starting a season with a touchdown in 11 straight quarters ended inconveniently in the fourth.

On the Lions’ sixth fourth-down attempt of the game, with 1 yard to go from the Vikings 30, Jamaal Williams ran off right tackle and was slammed to a stop for no gain by a swarm of Vikings.

After Minnesota also turned the ball over on downs, a stiffened Vikings defense steered Campbell into calling for a 54-yard field-goal try that Austin Seibert missed with 1:10 left.

That gave the Vikings the ball at their 44 to start the winning drive, and Osborn accounted for all 56 yards. Cousins connected with him on second-and-10 for 28 yards. After a Detroit timeout, he caught the winning score on the next play.

Greg Joseph missed two 56-yard field goal attempts for the Vikings. Seibert had a 48-yarder bounce off the right upright to end Detroit’s first drive.

Williams had 20 carries for 87 yards and two touchdowns for the Lions, who gave limited action to D’Andre Swift after he was listed as questionable with an ankle injury.

Colts 20, Chiefs 17

INDIANAPOLIS — Matt Ryan threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to rookie Jelani Woods with 24 seconds left Sunday to give the Indianapolis Colts a 20-17 comeback victory over the Kansas City Chiefs.

Ryan earned his first win with the Colts in their home opener by hooking up with Woods for both Indianapolis touchdowns, one week after they were shut out at Jacksonville.

But it took a 16-play, 76-yard drive — aided by a personal foul call on Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones following a third-down sack — for Indy (1-1-1) to snap a four-game winless streak that included two losses late last season.

They sealed it with Rodney McLeod Jr.’s interception with 2 seconds to play.

Ryan finished 27 of 37 for 222 yards in his 225th career start. He was sacked five times and lost two fumbles.

For the Chiefs (2-1), it was a rare September misfire. Mahomes fell to 13-3 in the opening month while going 20 of 35 for 262 yards, one TD and his first interception of the season.

Kansas City had chances.

Matt Amendola missed an extra point in the first half and a 34-yard field goal with 8:38 remaining. Tommy Townsend also threw an incompletion on a fake field goal early in the fourth.

Panthers 22, Saints 14

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Laviska Shenault caught a 67-yard touchdown pass from Baker Mayfield, Marquis Haynes returned a fumble 44 yards for a touchdown and the Carolina Panthers defeated the New Orleans Saints 22-14 on Sunday to snap a nine-game losing streak.

Mayfield threw for 170 yards and Christian McCaffrey ran for 108 as the Panthers (1-2) won at home for the first time since beating the Saints 26-7 on Sept. 19, 2021.

Jameis Winston, playing with an injured back, completed 25 of 41 passes for 353 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions, while rookie Chris Olave had nine catches for 147 yards for a Saints wide receiver corps that lost Michael Thomas, Jarvis Landry and Tre’Quan Smith to injuries in the second half.

Carolina’s defense held Winston and the Saints scoreless for three quarters before Mark Ingram cut the lead to 13-7 with a 5-yard TD run.

But then Shenault, acquired in a trade with Jacksonville late in the preseason and activated for the first time Sunday, caught a pass in the flat, juked a defender and raced along the left sideline for a touchdown to give the Panthers some cushion.

Carolina’s defense took it from there, intercepting Winston twice in the fourth quarter to put the game away.

Cornerback Jaycee Horn got a hand on Winston’s pass on a blitz and defensive tackle Derrick Brown reached out to grab the ball with one hand for the interception, setting up Eddy Pineiro’s third field goal to give Carolina a 22-7 lead. Winston answered with a 4-yard TD pass to Marquez Callaway, but Horn intercepted Winston on a Hail Mary at midfield as time expired to seal the victory.

Winston fell to 4-7 against the Panthers during his career, with 18 interceptions and 10 touchdown passes.

The Panthers entered Week 3 as the only NFL team without a takeaway.

But they got a big one early as Frankie Luvu reached his arm in and ripped the ball away from Alvin Kamara at the line of scrimmage. Haynes picked up the loose ball and rambled 44 yards for a touchdown with an entourage by his side.

Saints kicker Wil Lutz missed one field goal and had another blocked.

Titans 24, Raiders 22

NASHVILLE — Ryan Tannehill threw for 264 yards and a touchdown and ran for another score and the Tennessee Titans never trailed Sunday, holding off the Las Vegas Raiders 24-22 for their first victory this season.

Derrick Henry also ran for 85 yards and a touchdown. Henry also added 58 yards more receiving as the Titans (1-2) avoided their worst start since 2009 when they lost the first six games that season.

The Raiders (0-3) are off to their worst start since 2018. A week after blowing a 20-point lead in losing to Arizona in overtime, the Raiders had every chance to get back in this game in the second half as they blanked Tennessee after halftime.

Two-time All-Pro safety Kevin Byard celebrated his 100th regular-season game by picking off a Derek Carr pass in the end zone with 9:22 left.

Kristian Fulton broke up a pass to Raiders receiver Mack Collins in the end zone with 3:33 left.

Trailing 24-16, the Raiders converted a fourth-and-15 and a fourth-and-10 to keep their final drive alive. Carr then hit Mack Hollins with a 9-yard TD pass on fourth-and-goal from the Titans 9. But Carr’s 2-point conversion pass to tie the game was broken up by linebacker Dylan Cole.

Austin Hooper then recovered the onside kick for Tennessee, which knelt down for the win.

Carr was 26 of 44 for 303 yards and two touchdowns. Hollins finished with eight catches for 158 yards, and five-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Davante Adams was held to five catches and 36 yards with a TD.

Coach Mike Vrabel said the Titans would get back to their bread and butter on offense. They made sure their two-time NFL rushing champ touched the ball six times on a 12-play drive to open the game. Henry ran four times for 16 yards, including 19 on back-to-back carries. He also had two catches for 26 yards.

The Titans also got the ball to some of their other top players. As a result, they scored touchdowns on each of their first three possessions with drives of at least 75 yards for just the third time since 2000 and led 24-10 at halftime.

It also was the first time the Raiders allowed three straight such TDs since a 44-7 loss to the New York Giants on Oct. 11, 2009.

The Raiders tried switching gears in the third quarter. But they had to settle for a second field goal by Daniel Carlson, this a 32-yarder after using up 8:03 of the third. Even after safety Duron Harmon picked off the pass and returned it 11 yards to the Titans 31, the Raiders wound up punting.

A holding call on right tackle Jermaine Eluemunor wiped out a 29-yard pass by Carr to Darren Waller. Adams couldn’t get both feet down on a catch, then they were flagged for delay backing them up even more. Carr’s pass to Brandon Bolden was stopped for a 2-yard loss.

Bears 23, Texans 20

CHICAGO — Roquan Smith set up Cairo Santos’ game-ending field goal when he intercepted Davis Mills deep in Houston territory, and the Chicago Bears beat former coach Lovie Smith and the Texans 23-20 on Sunday.

Khalil Herbert ran for a career-high 157 yards and two touchdowns for Chicago.

The Texans had third-and-1 at their 26 when defensive tackle Angelo Blackson tipped a pass intended for Rex Burkhead. Smith, who missed practice all week because of a hip injury, intercepted it at the 30 and returned it to the 12.

Chicago had Herbert run, then downed the ball twice before Santos nailed a 30-yarder as time expired.

The Bears (2-1) angered their fans with conservative calls at times and were booed loudly at the end of the first half when they opted to run out the clock rather than use any timeouts with Houston (0-2-1) leading by one.

Justin Fields had another difficult game. Running back David Montgomery exited in the early going with knee and ankle injuries, but the Bears came away with the win after losing at rival Green Bay.

The Texans dropped their second in a row after blowing fourth-quarter leads in a season-opening tie with Indianapolis and loss to Denver.

Herbert, whose previous high was 100 yards as a rookie last season, made it 10-0 when he scored from the 11 in the first quarter. He also broke off a 52-yard run early in the third and ran it in from the 1 to give the Bears a short-lived 20-17 lead.

Fields was 8 of 17 for 106 yards. The former Ohio State star threw two interceptions and had a 27.7 rating.

Montgomery walked off the field in pain on Chicago’s second possession after his right leg got rolled up on while he was pass blocking.

Eddie Jackson intercepted a pass in the end zone in the second quarter.

Smith, who led the Bears to an 81-63 record and a Super Bowl appearance from 2004-12, is 0-3 against his former team. That includes losses with Tampa Bay in 2014 at Soldier Field and 2015 at Raymond James Stadium.

Mills threw for 245 yards, completing 20 of 32 passes. He had a touchdown and two interceptions against a defense missing top cornerback Jaylon Johnson because of a hamstring injury.

Dameon Pierce ran for 80 yards and a TD. Chris Moore had a 52-yard reception.

Jalen Pitre became the second rookie in Texans history to record two interceptions in a game, joining Dunta Robinson against the Raiders on Oct. 3, 2004. He also had a sack in the closing minutes.

Eagles 24, Commanders 8

LANDOVER, Md. — DeVonta Smith caught eight passes from Jalen Hurts for a career-high 169 yards and a touchdown, Carson Wentz flopped in his first game against the team that drafted him and the Philadelphia Eagles routed the Washington Commanders 24-8 Sunday to remain unbeaten.

Smith made acrobatic catches along the sideline and to the edge of the end zone for respective gains of 45 and 44 yards, and hauled in a TD pass on fourth down to end the first half with no time left on the clock. The 2020 Heisman Trophy winner out of Alabama surpassed his previous professional high for yards receiving before halftime.

His 156 yards were the most by an Eagles player in a half since Kevin Curtis in 2007. And Smith was just one part of another clinical offensive performance by Philadelphia (3-0).

Hurts was 22 of 35 for 340 yards and three touchdown passes, one each to Smith, A.J. Brown and Dallas Goedert. Coming off a three-TD game with two on the ground, Hurts continued to show he could get the job done with his throwing arm, along with his legs.

The quarterback he replaced as the Eagles starter was completely ineffective and got sacked nine times. Wentz, the second pick in the 2016 draft to Philadelphia on his third team in three years, was 25 of 43 for 211 yards with two fumbles — one lost, which set up Goedert’s 22-yard catch-and-run touchdown.

All but 24 of Wentz’s passing yards came in the second half, long after the outcome had been determined.

Washington (1-2) had just 50 yards at halftime, and the defense wasn’t much better. The troubling trend of giving up big-yardage plays only got worse in the aftermath of a loss at Detroit.

Falcons 27, Seahawks 23

SEATTLE — Cordarrelle Patterson rushed for a career-high 141 yards and one touchdown, Marcus Mariota threw a 14-yard TD to rookie Drake London in the second half, and the Atlanta Falcons picked up their first win of the season in beating the Seattle Seahawks 27-23 on Sunday.

Patterson rumbled for 107 yards in the second half and the Falcons were able to avoid starting 0-3 for the second time in three seasons. Mariota used the pass game to pick up chunks of yards in the first half, then it was Patterson churning big plays in the run game.

Patterson had a career-best 120 yards in the season opener against New Orleans and topped it just two weeks later. His 17-yard touchdown run in the second quarter gave Atlanta a 17-10 lead.

Mariota was 13 of 20 passing for 223 yards and his touchdown throw to London in the closing seconds of the third quarter gave Atlanta the lead for good. London had just three catches for 54 yards, while Kyle Pits had five receptions for 87 yards.

Seattle quarterback Geno Smith threw for 325 yards and two touchdowns, but was intercepted by Richie Grant on a desperation fourth-and-18 from the Atlanta 38 with 1:30 remaining. It was the fourth time in Smith’s career topping 300 yards passing and the first since the 2014 season.

Smith threw touchdowns to DK Metcalf, his first of the season, and Will Dissly, both in the first half.

The Seahawks will also question the decision to kick a 25-yard field goal from Jason Myers late in the third quarter when Seattle faced fourth-and-2 at the Atlanta 7. Seattle called timeout before deciding to kick, rather than go for it.

Atlanta seemed poised for a clinching score midway through the fourth quarter when a mistake by Mariota gave Seattle a chance.

Mariota and Tyson Allegier mishandled an exchanged handoff and fumbled with 5:12 remaining. Seattle’s Uchenna Nwosu jumped on the loose ball and Seattle had a chance at driving for a winning touchdown.

Smith made a handful of key throws to get Seattle to the Atlanta 24. A key holding penalty on Damien Lewis erased a screen pass to Rashaad Penny that would have put the Seahawks at the Atlanta 10. Grady Jarrett then sacked Smith on third down, and his fourth-down pass for Tyler Lockett was overthrown and picked off by Grant.

Packers 14, Buccaneers 12

TAMPA, Fla. — Aaron Rodgers threw for 255 yards and two touchdowns, and the Green Bay Packers withstood a late rally led by Tom Brady to hold off the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a 14-12 victory on Sunday.

Rodgers tossed TD passes of 5 yards to Romeo Doubs and 6 yards to Allen Lazard on his team’s first two possessions, while the Bucs’ offense sputtered much of the day without star receivers Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Julio Jones.

For the second straight week, the Bucs (2-1) were held without a touchdown into the fourth quarter. Brady finally got them into the end zone on a 1-yard pass to Russell Gage, capping a 90-yard drive with 14 seconds remaining.

Tampa Bay’s bid to force overtime with a 2-point conversion was thwarted, first by a delay-of-game penalty and then an incomplete pass that allowed the Packers (2-1) to beat Brady for the first time in three tries since the seven-time Super Bowl champion joined the Bucs in 2020.

Rodgers completed 27 of 35 passes and was intercepted once in the first matchup in NFL history in which each starting quarterback has won at least three regular-season league MVP awards.

Rodgers has won four, including the past two, while Brady has three MVPs.

Ryan Succop kicked a pair of 45-yard field goals for the Bucs, the second trimming Green Bay’s lead to 14-6 midway through the third quarter.

Brady, who won three of four previous head-to-head matchups with Rodgers, finished 31 of 42 passing for 271 yards and one touchdown. He was sacked three times.

With Evans serving a one-game suspension for his role in an on-field brawl the previous week at New Orleans and without Godwin and Jones — two of Brady’s other primary receivers — the Bucs struggled to get the offense on track while Rodgers built a 14-3 halftime lead that could have been bigger.

Aaron Jones fumbled into the end zone after a 3-yard reception to the Bucs 2, costing the Packers a chance to add at least three points late in the second quarter. The Green Bay offense was never the same after that.

Rams 20, Cardinals 12

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Matthew Stafford threw for 249 yards, Cam Akers and Cooper Kupp both scored touchdowns and the Los Angeles Rams used a stellar defensive effort to beat the Arizona Cardinals 20-12 on Sunday.

The Rams (2-1) continued their dominance in the series of NFC West rivals, winning 11 of the past 12 games dating to 2017, including last year’s 34-11 win in the playoffs.

LA’s offense had some good moments, but the win was largely due to its defense. Aaron Donald had a sack and two tackles for loss while Jalen Ramsey added two passes defended and a tackle for loss. The Rams gave up 365 total yards but limited the Cardinals to no touchdowns and four field goals.

Arizona’s Kyler Murray was 37-of-58 passing for 314 yards. Marquise Brown caught 14 passes for 140 yards. The Cardinals have lost seven of nine games dating to last season.

The Cardinals (1-2) cut the deficit to 13-9 in the third quarter on Matt Prater’s third field goal of the afternoon, this one from 49 yards.

But the Rams took control on the ensuing drive, with Akers shaking off multiple would-be tacklers to score on a 14-yard run for a 20-9 advantage. It capped an eight-play, 85-yard drive that included a big third-down conversion on 3rd-and-11 when Stafford evaded Arizona’s pressure, spun and delivered a pass to Kupp.

Los Angeles pushed its lead to 10-0 in the first quarter when Kupp ran for a 20-yard touchdown. Kupp was in motion before the play and took a quick handoff from Stafford, which fooled most of the Cardinals defense and allowed the receiver room to sprint to the corner of the end zone.

While the Rams were building a 13-0 lead, the Cardinals had another slow start on offense. Arizona had just 14 yards rushing before the break and settled for two field goals, trailing 13-6 at halftime.

The Cardinals were coming off a thrilling 29-23 overtime win over the Las Vegas Raiders, clawing back into the game after falling behind 20-0 at halftime. The Rams beat the Falcons 31-27 last weekend.

Jaguars 38, Chargers 10

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Trevor Lawrence threw for 262 yards and three touchdowns, James Robinson rushed for 100 yards and a TD and the Jacksonville Jaguars snapped an 18-game road losing streak with a decisive 38-10 victory over ailing Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers.

Herbert started after being listed as questionable all week with a rib injury. The third-year quarterback passed for 297 yards but turned it over twice, finishing 25 of 45 with a touchdown.

Jacksonville’s road skid was tied for the eighth-longest in league history. The Jags won in the Pacific time zone for the fourth time in 19 trips and beat the Bolts on the road for the first time in six tries.

Riley Patterson kicked three field goals as the Jaguars (2-1) went over the 30-point mark for the first time since Week 2 of the 2020 season. It also marks the first time since December of 2000 they have won consecutive games by at least 20 points.

The Chargers (1-2) had the ball for only 22 minutes and were held to 29 rushing yards. Besides Herbert being at less than full strength, they were missing center Corey Linsley, receiver Keenan Allen and cornerback JC Jackson. Two additional starters — linebacker Joey Bosa and offensive tackle Rashawn Slater — were injured during the game.

The Jaguars led 16-10 early in the third quarter and dominated from there. Robinson provided the knockout punch with a 50-yard TD run off left tackle on fourth-and-1 from the 50. It was the longest TD run of Robinson’s career and his second-longest carry overall.

After the Chargers went three-and-out, Lawrence — who completed 28 of 39 passes — directed a 14-play, 60-yard drive that took 8:27 off the clock and was capped by a 4-yard pass to Christian Kirk. Evan Engram scored the 2-point conversion to make it 31-10 with 1:15 remaining in the third quarter.

Lawrence completed his second three-TD game in the NFL with an 11-yard connection to Marvin Jones midway through the fourth quarter.

Jacksonville jumped out to a 13-0 lead in the second quarter with 10 points coming off Chargers turnovers. After Patterson was good from 22 yards on the first play of the second quarter, the Jaguars quickly got the ball back when Devin Lloyd picked off a Herbert pass on a deflection and returned it 10 yards to the LA 5-yard line. Jacksonville extended its lead to 6-0 on Patterson’s 23-yarder.

The Jaguars found the end zone on their next possession. Five plays after Foyesade Oluokun recovered a fumble by Herbert at the LA 28, Lawrence rolled left and found Zay Jones in the back of the end zone from 14 yards out.

Broncos 11, 49ers 10

DENVER — Melvin Gordon atoned for two fumbles with a late 1-yard touchdown run and safety Kareem Jackson recovered Jeff Wilson Jr.’s fumble with 1:05 left to preserve the Denver Broncos’ 11-10 win over the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday night.

Russell Wilson and the Broncos (2-1) won despite going three-and-out nine times. Their only sustained drive was a 12-play, 80-yarder that included a 12-yard scramble by Wilson. Gordon capped it with a 1-yard run with 4:10 remaining, but Wilson’s 2-point pass was batted down, leaving the Broncos clinging to a one-point lead.

Jimmy Garoppolo, in his first start for the injured Trey Lance, who broke an ankle in Week 2, drove the 49ers (1-2) to midfield but his pass to Deebo Samuel was tipped by Jackson and intercepted by linebacker Jonas Griffith at the Denver 42 just before the 2-minute warning.

The Broncos went three-and-out for the ninth time in their 13 possessions, and the Niners got the ball back at their 15 with 1:42 left after punt returner Ray-Ray McCloud recovered his own muffed punt.

Bradley Chubb sacked Garoppolo for a 12-yard loss to the San Francisco 3. Then, Wilson hauled in the pass and coughed up the football on a hit from P.J. Locke, and Jackson scooped up the loose ball with 65 seconds left at the 49ers’ 24.

The only other game in NFL history that finished 11-10 came on Nov. 16, 2008, when the Steelers edged the Chargers.

Before Gordon’s score, Garoppolo’s 3-yard strike to Brandon Aiyuk in the first quarter stood as the only touchdown on the night.

For a while it looked like this might be the first 7-5 finish since Washington beat Detroit on Oct. 16, 1938.

Garoppolo and the 49ers may never have been happier for a safety, because he stepped out of the back of the end zone while tossing a pass that Chubb picked off at the 3 and crossed the goal line for what the Broncos thought was a pick-6 that would have erased a 7-3 deficit.

But it was a safety, leaving the 49ers clinging to a 7-5 lead in the third quarter.

Garoppolo isn’t the only NFL quarterback to lose track of where he was on the field and step out of the back of the end zone. It infamously happened to Dan Orlovsky on Oct. 12, 2008, while playing for the Detroit Lions. Orlovsky was trying to get away from Minnesota defensive end Jared Allen when he stepped out of bounds numerous times before the play was stopped.

Immediately after Garoppolo’s blunder, Orlovsky posted on his Twitter account: “IVE NEVER BEEN HAPPIER … FFFFREEEEEDDDOOOMMMM.”

San Francisco star left tackle Trent Williams injured an ankle on the play and walked off the field and through the tunnel to the locker room. He didn’t return.

The Broncos drove into field goal range after the subsequent free kick, but Brandon McManus was wide right on a 53-yard attempt that would have given Denver its first lead.

Robbie Gould’s 51-yarder then gave San Francisco a 10-5 edge with 14 minutes remaining.

Dogged by play-calling problems, penalties and other operational miscues in his first two games as Denver’s head coach, Nathaniel Hackett hired longtime NFL assistant and former Ravens special teams coordinator Jerry Rosburg, 66, to help him manage the game better and get calls into Russell Wilson faster.