The San Francisco 49ers stretched their winning streak to six games and clinched the NFC West with a 45-29 win over the Arizona Cardinals.
San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy improved upon his MVP credentials with four touchdowns and 242 passing yards in another stellar addition to his breakout season.
Arizona put some pressure on early with a touchdown in the first two minutes, but the 49ers responded with back-to-back touchdowns of their own and never let up from there.
Fellow contenders the Dallas Cowboys were brought back to reality courtesy of a 31-10 demolition at the hands of the Buffalo Bills.
The 10-win Cowboys’ defence looked powerless against Buffalo’s running game, with James Cook, Josh Allen and Latavius Murray all finding the end zone on the ground.
Despite the loss, other results from earlier in the day ensured the Cowboys would be in the playoffs for the third-straight year.
The Cleveland Browns scored 13 fourth-quarter points to snatch a 20-17 victory over the Chicago Bears.
The two sides were level at 7-7 at the break after tight ends Cole Kmet and David Njoku scored touchdowns but the Bears took a 10-point lead into the fourth after Tremaine Edmunds returned an interception 45 yards for a touchdown.
But the Browns saved their best till last and two Dustin Hopkins field goals partnered an Amari Cooper touchdown to give them the win, with 38-year-old Joe Flacco throwing for 374 yards.
Super Bowl champions the Kansas City Chiefs returned to winning ways with a 27-17 victory over the New England Patriots.
Running back Jerick McKinnon caught one touchdown pass and threw another to Rashee Rice while Patrick Mahomes threw for 305 yards, two scores and two interceptions.
Baker Mayfield threw for four touchdowns as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers earned a 34-20 win over the in-form Green Bay Packers.
The 28-year-old quarterback racked up 381 passing yards over the game to four different scorers, David Moore, Mike Evans, Rachaad White and Ko Kieft, to help wrap up a convincing win.
Raheem Mostert rushed for two touchdowns as the Miami Dolphins crushed the New York Jets 30-0.
The 31-year-old opened the scoring in the first quarter but the damage was done in the second when he ran over for his double after Jaylen Waddle’s 60-yard score had already given the home side a healthy advantage and moved them up to second in the AFC.
The New Orleans Saints scored 17 second-half points to secure a 24-6 victory over the New York Giants.
Derek Carr threw for three touchdowns as the Saints took over in the second period without reply from the Giants.
Ka’imi Fairbairn kicked an overtime field goal to help the Houston Texans claim a 19-16 victory over the Tennessee Titans.
The Carolina Panthers scored two field goals in the final quarter to claim just their second win this campaign with a 9-7 win over the Atlanta Falcons.
Elsewhere, the Los Angeles Rams beat the Washington Commanders 28-20, the Detroit Lions cruised past the Denver Broncos 42-17 and the Baltimore Ravens eclipsed the Jacksonville Jaguars 23-7.
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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