Mac Jones' benching in the New England Patriots' 33-14 home defeat to the Chicago Bears was not performance-based, head coach Bill Belichick insists.
It was not the return from a high ankle sprain Jones would have anticipated, with the starting quarterback playing only the first three series and recording a sixth interception of the season.
A disgruntled home crowd started calling for Jones' backup Bailey Zappe, who entered the fray in the second quarter.
The Pats made a couple of quick touchdowns but fizzled out from there as Justin Fields led the Bears to 23 unanswered points and left both teams at 3-4 for the season.
Speaking to the media after the game, Belichick said the plan was always to use both quarterbacks and Jones did not re-enter the field as the game was getting away from the Patriots.
"That's [benching Jones after the interception] not what it was, but you can write whatever you want to write. That's not what it was," Belichick said.
"We had planned to play – I told the quarterbacks that we were going to play both of them, and that's what we did.
"We went through the week of practice. Mac was inactive last week. [Jones] would have gone back in. The score got out of hand. I didn't think that was the right thing to do."
Pushed on whether Jones had enough game time to have the confidence to face the New York Jets next week, a curt Belichick replied "I don't know" and said "I don't see that" when it was suggested he could switch up his quarterbacks week to week.
Belichick also confirmed the thinking to play both quarterbacks was related to Jones' ankle injury but that was not a factor at the time he was pulled from the field.
The stats did not make for kind reading, with Jones going 3-of-6 for 13 yards and the pick. Zappe was 14-of-22 for 185 yards, including a touchdown, two interceptions and a lost fumble.
For Jones' part, the chants for Zappe are not something playing on his mind and he is focused just on improving his own performance.
" I just have to do better at my job, and that's all it comes down to. That's all I can control," he said.
"Honestly, we've got a good chance here to go against the Jets, and that's what I'm focused on. I'm going to do my best to put my best foot forward.
"I've been in this situation before, and just going to try to help the team. Whatever my role is, I'll be ready, and I'll give it 100 per cent."
Asked if he was surprised by the timing of Belichick's decision, he added: "I think coach Belichick had a really good plan for us.
"Obviously, that's kind of internal stuff, but I understood the plan and what was going to happen. I wish we got off to a better start, and I played a little bit better, but I'll have a chance to practice and get back into my routine.
"Something that I want to work on is getting back in my routine. I'm a very routine person, and I'm excited for this week. That's all you can do, right?
"You can't really look back in the past. The game wasn't good by any of us, and that starts with me."
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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