NFL Week 3 roundup: Bills rally to beat Rams 35-32 after blowing 25-point lead

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Josh Allen completed a 3-yard touchdown pass to tight Tyler Kroft with 15 seconds remaining, and the Buffalo Bills survived to beat the Los Angeles Rams 35-32 after squandering a 25-point lead on Sunday.

The Rams (2-1) were poised to match the third-largest comeback in NFL regular season history after Jared Goff led the team to touchdowns on four straight drives, capped by Darrell Henderson’s 1-yard run with 4:30 remaining.

Allen responded by marching the Bills (3-0) on an 11-play, 75-yard drive, which was extended by a pass interference penalty against Darious Williams on fourth-and-7 from the Rams 12. Williams interfered with intended receiver Gabriel Davis at the 3.

One play later, Allen rolled to his left and lobbed a pass over a Rams defender. Kroft made a leaping catch and secured the ball before tumbling to the ground, his second TD of the game. He earned additional playing time with starter Dawson Knox sidelined by a concussion.

Allen finished with four touchdown passes and scored on a 1-yard run. The third-year starter, however, contributed to the Rams’ comeback bid, with an interception and a lost fumble leading to Los Angeles touchdown drives.

Allen now has had a hand in 12 touchdowns, the most in team history through the first three games of the season. Hall of Famer Jim Kelly held the record of 10, set in 1991.

Lee. Smith. ?#BillsMafia | ?: FOX pic.twitter.com/51DSREbxpq

— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) September 27, 2020

Buffalo has won its first three games in consecutive seasons, the first time the franchise has done that since 1991-92 and the third time overall.

49ers 36, Giants 9

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The San Francisco 49ers didn’t need quarterback Jimmy Garopollo and a slew of missing starters on the dreaded MetLife Stadium turf.

They controlled the ball on offense, took it away from the winless New York Giants on defense and had another easy day on the East Coast.

Nick Mullens threw for 343 yards and a touchdown to lead the 49ers to their second win at MetLife in as many weeks with a 36-9 victory over the error-prone and winless Giants on Sunday.

Jerick McKinnon, Brandon Aiyuk and Jeff Wilson scored on runs on a near flawless day for the Niners (2-1), who stayed in West Virginia to prep for the game. Robbie Gould added three field goals for San Francisco, which last week beat the Jets 31-13 here and denied Giants coach Joe Judge a chance for his first win this week.

The Niners had Garoppolo (ankle), defensive linemen Nick Bosa and Solomon Thomas (knees) and running backs Raheem Mostert and Tevin Coleman hurt against the Jets. They complained about the new turf after the game, saying it was “sticky” and led to injuries.

The NFL, the players association, the Jets and Giants and Field Turf, who installed the surface, re-examined the field and said it meet all standards.

The Niners’ play on Sunday made it a non-issue as Mullens hit 25 for 36 passes and finished with a rating of 108.9. San Francisco outgained New York 420-231, held the ball for 39:44 and forced three turnovers without giving the ball up.

Mullens led San Francisco to scores on seven of its first eight possessions. It would have been all eight if not for a snap-hold problem that caused Gould to miss a 55-yarder. He connected from 52, 32 and 26 yards. The Niners’ ninth possession coincided with the end of the game.

New York, which came into the game as the NFL’s lowest-scoring offense, got three field goals from Graham Gano, the second of which tied the game at 6-all midway through the second quarter.

A 10-yard touchdown run by McKinnon with 1:13 left in the half and a 26-yard field goal by Gould pushed the lead to 16-6 at the half. The field goal was set up by a interception by linebacker Fred Warner at the New York 32.

Titans 31, Vikings 30

MINNEAPOLIS — Stephen Gostkowski made his career-high sixth field goal of game, a 55-yarder with 1:48 left that lifted undefeated Tennessee to a 31-30 victory over the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday after Derrick Henry and Ryan Tannehill carried the Titans on another comeback.

Henry rushed for 119 yards and two third-quarter touchdowns for the Titans, who improved to 3-0 for the first time since 2008 after trailing for most of the game. Tannehill passed for 321 yards, guiding the Titans on a go-ahead drive in the fourth quarter or overtime for the sixth time in 16 games since becoming the starter. The Titans are 12-4 behind Tannehill, including the playoffs, and they’re 15-0 when Henry hits the 100-yard mark.

Dalvin Cook rushed for a career-high 181 yards and a score for the Vikings, who are 0-3 for the first time since 2013. Kirk Cousins threw for 251 yards and three touchdowns, hitting Kyle Rudolph for a one-handed, toe-tapping grab in the back of the end zone for a 30-25 lead with 10:22 left. The depleted Vikings defense didn’t do enough to hold it, though, as Tannehill moved the Titans just close enough for Gostkowski to go to work. The last three of his makes were all from 50-plus yards.

Patriots 36, Raiders 20

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Rex Burkhead scored three touchdowns and Bill Belichick became the third coach in NFL history to reach 275 regular-season victories in the New England Patriots’ 36-20 win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.

Sony Michel finished with nine carries for 117 yards. Burkhead had two rushing scores and an 11-yard TD reception.

Cam Newton was 17 of 28 passing for 162 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Shilique Calhoun had two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery for a score.

The Patriots have won the last six meetings with the Raiders and improved to 47-9 in regular-season games following a loss. Raiders coach Jon Gruden dropped to 0-3 against Belichick.

Derek Carr finished 24 of 32 for 261 yards and a two TDs for Las Vegas. But he had two fumbles which led to a New England field goal and a late touchdown when he lost the ball in the end zone and it was recovered by Calhoun. Josh Jacobs also had a fumble.

Las Vegas opened the season by scoring at least 34 points in its first two games with six red zone touchdowns. The Raiders were also second in the NFL, converting on 57 percent of third downs.

They went just 2 for 5 in the red zone and 3 of 9 on third down Sunday.

The offenses were stagnant early as both teams struggled to get into a groove because of turnovers and poor performance on third down.

Things changed for the Patriots on their first drive of the third quarter when Michel, who struggled in the first two games, broke free for a 38-yard run.

A 15-yard pass from Newton to Burkhead got the Patriots into the red zone. Three plays later Burkhead capped the drive with a spinning 5-yard TD run to stretch New England’s lead to 20-10.

Bears 30, Falcons 26

ATLANTA — Chicago’s Nick Foles threw three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to hand the Atlanta Falcons another humiliating defeat, rallying the Bears from a 16-point deficit for a 30-26 victory on Sunday.

The Bears, improving to 3-0 for the first time since 2013, became the second straight team to overcome a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter to beat the Falcons (0-3).

This one could spell the end for sixth-year coach Dan Quinn, who desperately needed a good start after two straight losing seasons.

A week ago, Atlanta became a national laughingstock after failing to pounce on an onside kick, allowing the Dallas Cowboys to finish off their comeback from a 39-24 deficit to win 40-39 on a field goal as time expired.

Under Quinn, the Falcons also blew a 28-3 lead in the Super Bowl after the 2016 season and lost to the New England Patriots.

This time, it was Foles who guided the improbable comeback after taking over for Mitchell Trubisky in the third quarter. The former Super Bowl MVP had two apparent touchdown passes overturned by official reviews — and still managed to pull out the victory.

Foles threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Jimmy Graham to make it 26-16 with 6:24 remaining. The Falcons still appeared in good shape after the Bears failed on a 2-point attempt.

But Chicago got the ball back and moved quickly down the field. Foles connected with Allen Robinson on a short pass that turned into a 37-yard touchdown when Isaiah Oliver and Blidi Wreh-Wilson both missed tackles, allowing the receiver to scoot down the sideline.

After the Falcons went three-and-out on their third straight possession, Foles connected with Anthony Miller for a 28-yard touchdown with 2 minutes remaining.

The Falcons still had a shot, but Matt Ryan was intercepted by Tashaun Gipson to seal it.

Foles finished 16 of 29 for 188 yards.

Lions 26, Cardinals 23

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Matt Prater made a 39-yard field goal as time expired, Matthew Stafford threw two touchdown passes and the Detroit Lions snapped an 11-game losing streak dating to last season by beating the Arizona Cardinals 26-23 on Sunday.

The Lions looked like they would take the lead with about two minutes left when Stafford completed a spectacular deep pass to Marvin Hall at the 1-yard line, but the play was called back when offensive lineman Halapoulivaati Vaitai was flagged for holding.

In the end, it didn’t matter. Stafford calmly led the Lions downfield, Prater connected on his fourth field goal of the afternoon and the Lions finally got to celebrate a victory. It was Prater’s 15th game-winning kick with less than 2 minutes to play in the fourth quarter or overtime.

Arizona’s Kyler Murray threw for 270 yards and two touchdowns and ran for a score, but he also had three interceptions. DeAndre Hopkins caught 10 passes for 137 yards and Andy Isabella had two TD receptions.

Arizona (2-1) pushed ahead 23-20 near the end of the third quarter when Murray connected with Isabella from 4 yards out for the pair’s second score. The 5-foot-9, 188-pound Isabella had a slow start last season as a second-round pick out of UMass but has become an important piece of the offense this year.

Duron Harmon, Jamie Collins and rookie Jeff Okudah had Detroit’s three interceptions.

Detroit (1-2) took a 17-13 lead on Kenny Golladay’s 15-yard TD catch with 31 seconds left before halftime. Golladay, who led the NFL with 11 receiving touchdowns last year, missed the first two games of this season with a hamstring injury.

Golladay’s catch capped an entertaining first half that saw the teams trade the lead five times. Arizona’s Murray had another highlight-reel touchdown run, juking past Detroit’s Okudah for a 1-yard score and a 13-10 lead.

Murray completed 13 of 17 passes for 156 yards but also threw two interceptions, including one that gave Detroit the ball at the Arizona 27. Six plays later, the Lions took a 10-7 lead when Stafford hit Jesse James for a 5-yard score.

Adrian Peterson had a 27-yard run on his first carry of the game to push Detroit into Arizona territory, leading to a field goal. The 35-year-old Peterson, who is in his 14th NFL season, played six games for the Cardinals in 2017.

Murray’s perfectly placed, high-arcing throw went over two Detroit defenders and into Isabella’s hands for a 7-3 lead.

Bucs 28, Broncos 10

DENVER — Tom Brady threw three touchdown passes and Shaq Barrett celebrated his homecoming with a pair of sacks, one for a safety, in Tampa Bay’s 28-10 victory over the winless Denver Broncos on Sunday.

With his first road win for the Bucs (2-1), Brady evened his career record against the Broncos at 9-9 with just his fifth win in a dozen trips to Denver.

Before Sunday, the Broncos were the only team in the NFL with a winning record against the six-time Super Bowl champion.

This also marked the first time since in almost a decade — Nov. 14-21, 2010 — that the Buccaneers won back-to-back games by 14 or more points.

The Broncos (0-3) completed a second straight winless September under head coach Vic Fangio, who donned a face shield a la Andy Reid after getting fined $100,000 for failing to wear a face mask last week.

Barrett, who led the league last year with 19½ sacks in his first season in Tampa, picked up his first sacks of this season in the city where he played from 2014-18 after starring at Colorado State.

His second sack of Jeff Driskel, who started in place of Drew Lock (shoulder), came in the end zone for a safety that pushed the Bucs’ lead to 25-10.

Afterward, Barrett performed the signature sack dance of Bradley Chubb, a friendly jab at the 2018 first-round pick whose selection helped Barrett decide to leave Denver after that season.

With his full complement of receivers finally available, Brady looked like the methodical QB he was for two decades in New England, driving the Buccaneers on scoring drives on four of five first-half drives.

Chris Godwin caught a 10-yard touchdown pass in his return from a concussion before leaving in the second half with a hamstring injury and Mike Evans had two 1-yard TD grabs as the Bucs took a 23-10 halftime lead.

And just days after insisting he was in Tampa to serve as “a blocking tight end,” Rob Gronkowski caught six passes for 48 yards after getting shut out last week and coming into the game with just two receptions for 11 yards.

Denver special teams coach Tom McMahon, who described his unit’s play at Pittsburgh as “one word: terrible,” won’t need a Thesaurus for this one.

Panthers 21, Chargers 16

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Carolina’s defense forced three Los Angeles turnovers, Joey Slye kicked five field goals and the Panthers beat the Chargers 21-16 on Sunday, giving coach Matt Rhule his first NFL victory.

The Panthers had not recorded a sack and allowed 65 points in their first two games but looked like a different unit. They sacked Justin Herbert twice and converted three turnovers into 12 points.

Teddy Bridgewater was 22 of 28 for 235 yards and a touchdown in his first win with Carolina (1-2). The seven-year veteran helped the Panthers snap a 10-game losing streak dating to last season.

Herbert became the third quarterback since the merger to throw for 300 yards in his first two starts. The rookie was 35 of 49 for 330 yards and a touchdown, but also had a fumble and an interception.

Keenan Allen had 13 receptions for 136 yards and a TD while Austin Ekeler had 159 scrimmage yards (59 rushing, 80 receiving) and a score.

After forcing Carolina to punt, the Chargers (1-2) took over on the LA 1 with 1:43 remaining. They drove to the Carolina 28 before the drive stalled. Herbert had Allen open in the end zone with 6 seconds left but Tre Boston broke it up.

On the final play, Allen caught the ball at the Carolina 15, but his pitch to Ekeler was too high.

After going three-and-out on its opening possession, Carolina scored on five consecutive drives in the first half. Four ended with field goals by Slye.

Tahir Whitehead recovered Herbert’s fumble after a sack by Brian Burns to set up Slye’s second field goal.

The Chargers took a 7-6 lead early in the second quarter when Ekeler ran it from around right end from 12 yards. Carolina regained the lead on the ensuing possession when Slye connected from 30 yards.

The Panthers got their only touchdown after a Chargers turnover. They took over at the Carolina 43 after Shaq Thompson recovered Joshua Kelley’s fumble and scored in eight plays. Mike Davis caught Bridgewater’s screen pass and went 13 yards to the end zone. Nasir Adderley blocked Slye’s extra-point attempt to keep Carolina’s lead at 15-7.

Colts 36, Jets 7

INDIANAPOLIS — Xavier Rhodes delivered the first punch for the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.

T.J. Carrie finished it off on a milestone day for Philip Rivers.

Rhodes and Carrie each returned an interception for a touchdown, Indianapolis recorded its second safety in as many weeks and Rivers added his 400th career TD pass as the Colts routed the New York Jets 36-7. It’s the first time since October 1970 the Colts returned two INTs for scores in one game. The last time it happened also came against the Jets.

Rivers, meanwhile, played like his old self, getting rid of the ball quickly and crisply while avoiding mistakes on a milestone day.

The 38-year-old quarterback was 17 of 21 with 217 yards and played his first turnover-free game since joining Indy (2-1). He became the sixth player in league history to throw 400 career TD passes and the sixth to top 60,000 yards. He also passed Hall of Famer Dan Marino for fifth all-time in completions and broke a tie with Hall of Famer Fran Tarkenton for eighth in league history with his 125th career win.

Rivers now has exactly 400 TDs, 60,065 yards, 4,980 completions.

And with the help of a suddenly high-scoring defense, Rivers & Co. made it look easy against the winless Jets. New York is 0-3 for the second consecutive season under coach Adam Gase.

Rhodes picked off Darnold on the fifth play of the game and returned it 44 yards to make it 7-0. Darnold answered with a 16-yard TD pass to Braxton Berrios to tie it midway through the first quarter.

Then, it was all Colts.

After a pass interference call against the Jets in the end zone, Rivers found Mo Alie-Cox for a 1-yard score to give the Colts a 14-7 lead. Rodrigo Blankenship extended the halftime lead to 17-7 with a 42-yard field goal. Jonathan Taylor’s 1-yard TD run on fourth-and-goal gave Indy a 24-7 lead in the third and Carrie’s 47-yard interception return on the final play of the quarter sealed it.

Darnold was 17 of 27 with 168 yards, one TD and three interceptions.

Seahawks 38, Cowboys 30

SEATTLE —

Russell Wilson threw for 315 yards and five touchdowns without an interception as the Seattle Seahawks edged the Dallas Cowboys 38-31.

Dallas rallied from a 15-point deficit to take a 31-30 lead on Greg Zuerlein’s 42-yard field goal with 4:03 left. Seattle pulled back ahead on Wilson’s 29-yard touchdown pass to DK Metcalf with 1:47 remaining.

The Cowboys drove to the Seattle 22 in the final minute, but Ryan Neal made an interception in the end zone with six seconds left to seal the game.