The Los Angeles Chargers survived a late scare to defeat the Cleveland Browns 30-28 on Sunday afternoon thanks to a massive performance from running back Austin Ekeler.
Ekeler finished with two of the Chargers' three touchdowns, rushing for 173 yards and a score from 16 carries, and adding 26 yards and a touchdown from four catches.
Both times Ekeler scored he put the Chargers back into the lead in a rollercoaster of a game, where the Browns jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter through touchdowns to focal points Amari Cooper and Nick Chubb.
Chubb's second rushing touchdown gave the Browns a 17-14 lead at half-time, and they were up 28-27 going into the fourth quarter after Kareem Hunt converted a goal-line carry for a touchdown of his own.
Taylor Bertolet's field goal put the Chargers back in front with nine minutes to play, finishing three-for-three with his kicks for the day, and the game looked to be sealed when Browns quarterback Jacoby Brissett threw an interception with under three minutes on the clock.
Needing a couple of first downs to put on the finishing touches, the Chargers were presented with a fourth-and-one at their own 46-yard line, and instead of punting and playing it safe, they went for it and failed.
A short completion gave the Browns a 54-yard field goal opportunity to win the game in the final seconds, but it drifted wide right, with kicker Cade York missing both of his attempts for the game.
Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert completed 22 of his 34 passes for 228 yards and a touchdown with no turnovers, with his top receiver Mike Williams catching 10 for 134 yards.
Chubb was the offensive star for the Browns, carrying 17 times for 134 yards and two touchdowns.
Bills blow away the Steelers
The Buffalo Bills took their foot off the gas in the second half to coast to a dominant 38-3 victory against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Wide receiver Gabriel Davis was the star of the show along with quarterback Josh Allen, combining on a 98-yard passing touchdown just 64 seconds into the game. It was the longest touchdown in the NFL this season.
They were not finished there, linking up again to begin the second quarter with a 62-yard touchdown.
Allen added two more touchdown passes in the first half – one to Stefon Diggs and one to Khalil Shakir – to open up a 31-3 lead at the long break, and from there they were never tested.
Another Dolphins quarterback leaves with concussion
Making his first start of the season after Tua Tagovailoa was sidelined with his concussion last week, Miami Dolphins quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was pulled after the first play in a 40-17 loss to the New York Jets.
Bridgewater was evaluated for a concussion and could not return, handing rookie Skylar Thompson his first snaps as a professional.
Neither team threw for a touchdown in the game, with the Jets rushing for five scores as exciting rookie Breece Hall finished with 18 carries for 97 yards and a touchdown, adding two catches for 100 yards, and goal-line back Michael Carter pushed his way in for two touchdowns.
Adding to the great day for Jets fans was the fourth overall pick from this year's NFL Draft, cornerback Sauce Gardner, recording his first career interception.
Browns score late touchdown to end Steelers' streak in snowy contest
Nick Chubb ran for a 2-yard touchdown in heavy snow with 57 seconds left, and the Cleveland Browns stunned division rival Pittsburgh 24-19 on Thursday night, ending the Steelers' five-game winning streak.
Chubb's score came in his first game against the AFC North-leading Steelers (8-3) since the running back sustained a season-ending left knee injury on a carry last year at Pittsburgh.
The Browns (3-8) had blown a 12-point lead in the fourth quarter and were down 19-18 before getting the ball back with 3:22 remaining after Pittsburgh punter Corliss Waitman shanked a 16-yarder.
With snow piling up and covering the yard lines on the field, Cleveland's Jameis Winston completed a third-down pass to Jerry Jeudy to the Pittsburgh 9. Two plays later, Chubb barrelled into the end zone.
The Steelers had one last chance, but quarterback Russell Wilson's Hail Mary on the final play was knocked down by Browns safety Grant Delpit in the end zone, touching off a wild celebration at Huntington Bank Field.
NFL: Texans bounce back, extend Cowboys' woes
Joe Mixon's 109 rushing yards and three touchdowns helped get the Houston Texans back on track with Monday's 34-10 win over the floundering Dallas Cowboys.
Houston (7-4) snapped a two-game losing streak behind Mixon's powerful running and a defence that sacked Cowboys' fill-in quarterback Cooper Rush five times and forced two turnovers, including a fumble Derek Barnett returned 28 yards for a touchdown that gave the Texans a 27-10 lead in the fourth quarter.
Dallas (3-7) has now lost five straight, its longest skid since dropping seven in a row in 2015, and fell to 0-5 at home. The Cowboys have been outscored by 118 points (187-69) at AT&T Stadium, the third-largest negative differential through five home games in a season in NFL history.
Rush did throw a 64-yard touchdown pass to KaVontae Turpin in his second straight start subbing for an injured Dak Prescott, and finished with a career-high 354 passing yards with one interception while completing 32 of 55 attempts.
C.J. Stroud threw for 257 yards with an interception for Houston, which extended its lead over the second-place Indianapolis Colts to two games in the AFC South.
The Texans never trailed after Mixon ripped off a 45-yard touchdown run on the game's opening drive, and the veteran running back added a 1-yard scoring plunge late in the first quarter to give Houston a 14-0 lead.
Turpin got Dallas on the board by taking a short pass from Rush and breaking free from the Houston defence nine seconds into the second quarter, but the Cowboys were shut out in the second half after pulling to within 17-10 on Brandon Aubrey's 53-yard field goal with just under six minutes left before half-time.
Burnett's strip sack of Rush and return of the resulting fumble helped put the game away with 12:31 left, and Mixon tacked on his final touchdown of the night with 3:16 remaining to cap a 35-yard drive that began after the Texans stopped the Cowboys on downs.
Mahomes to use Chiefs' first loss of 2024 as 'spark'
Patrick Mahomes said the Kansas City Chiefs will use their first loss since Christmas Day 2023 as fuel after the Buffalo Bills halted their unbeaten start to the season.
Josh Allen scrambled for a stunning 26-yard touchdown with just over two minutes to play as the Bills improved to 9-2 with a 30-21 win over the reigning Super Bowl champions.
The result ended the Chiefs' 15-game winning streak, a run that began after they lost to the Los Vegas Raiders on Christmas Day last year and included their dramatic triumph over the San Francisco 49ers at Super Bowl LVIII.
The Chiefs had started this season 9-0 to take control of the race for the AFC's top seed, but they could have few complaints about Sunday's result.
The Bills outgained the Chiefs by 366 yards to 259, also recording 24 first downs to Kansas City's 19 and enjoying almost nine more minutes in possession.
Mahomes, however, was relaxed about the end of his team's winning streak, saying: "The undefeated thing was cool, but that's not our ultimate goal.
"It's a good football team, so there's nothing to hang your head about. We feel like we can play better, so we will get back to work and try to use this as a spark so that we can be a better football team in the end."
The Chiefs rank just 16th in the NFL for yards per game (337.9) and 11th for points per game (24) in 2024, with many of their victories – including against the Denver Broncos in Week 10 and the Baltimore Ravens in Week 1 – coming via last-gasp defensive or special teams plays.
Mahomes actually feels the team could benefit from a reality check, adding: "I'm hoping that [losing] is a benefit.
"I'm not going to say I or we are relaxed, but at the same time I feel like we were just coming away with these wins at the end of the games.
"I think it's going to spark us to have more urgency, especially at the start of football games, especially with the offense, and that comes from me and turning the ball over on the first drive. It's something you can't do in big games like this."
No quarterback has thrown more interceptions than Mahomes' 11 (level with Geno Smith and Jordan Love) this season, while a passer rating of 90.3 ranks him a lowly 20th among all players at the position.
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