NFL roundup
Derrick Henry ran for a 29-yard touchdown with 5:21 left in overtime to cap another memorable performance against the Baltimore Ravens, and the Tennessee Titans rallied for a 30-24 victory Sunday.
Running against a patchwork Ravens defensive line, Henry finished with 133 yards on 28 carries. It was his sixth 100-yard game of the season and put him over 1,000 yards for the third consecutive year.
It was reminiscent of Henry’s outing last January, when he rambled for 195 yards to carry the Titans to a 28-12 upset of the top-seeded Ravens in the AFC Divisional playoff.
After forcing a punt to begin overtime, Tennessee (7-3) moved 73 yards on six plays to get back on track after losing three of its previous four games.
Baltimore (6-4) has lost two straight and three of four. The loss
dropped Baltimore into third place, four games behind unbeaten Pittsburgh and in back of the Cleveland Browns.
Cleveland 22, Philadelphia 17: Kareem Hunt hurdled Philadelphia’s Jalen Mills on a touchdown run, Olivier Vernon stepped up with star Myles Garrett out with COVID-19 by getting three sacks and a safety, and the Cleveland Browns stayed firmly in the playoff picture with a wet 22-17 victory over the Eagles.
Hunt’s leaping 5-yard score came shortly after a dazzling 54-yard run by Nick Chubb as the Browns (7-3) finally found traction in their running game in a constant downpour.
Cleveland also got a 50-yard interception return TD in the first half by second-year linebacker Sione Takitaki. The Browns constantly harassed Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz despite playing without Garrett.
Washington 20, Cincinnati 9: Top pick Joe Burrow was carted off with a left knee injury before Alex Smith rallied Washington past the Cincinnati Bengals 20-9 to keep his team in the thick of the NFC East race.
Burrow, Cincinnati’s franchise quarterback, was injured early in the third quarter when he was hit high and low by two Washington linemen after throwing a pass. He ended the day 22-of-34 passing for 203 yards and a touchdown.
Smith led a go-ahead, 55-yard scoring drive that ended with a 3-yard TD pass to Steven Sims.
Indianapolis 34, Green Bay 31, OT: After allowing three touchdown passes and 28 first-half points, the Colts gave up only three second-half points. They also forced a game-changing fumble less than a minute into overtime for a 34-31 victory over Green Bay.
Rodrigo Blankenship won it with a 39-yard field goal with 7:10 remaining.
Indy (7-3) did it with an old-school combination: The offense that played keep-away, a defense that came up with two three-and-outs and a fourth-down stop late in the fourth quarter, and the key turnover in overtime.
Philip Rivers was 24 of 35 with 288 yards, three touchdowns and one interception in his 234th consecutive start.
New Orleans 24, Atlanta 9: Taysom Hill rushed for two touchdowns and passed for 233 yards in his first NFL start at quarterback, and the New Orleans Saints beat the Atlanta Falcons 24-9 for their seventh straight victory.
With 41-year-old quarterback Drew Brees sidelined at least three games with multiple rib fractures, Saints coach Sean Payton gave Hill the nod over offseason free-agent acquisition Jameis Winston.
Denver 20, Miami 13: Justin Simmons intercepted Ryan Fitzpatrick’s pass in the end zone with 63 seconds left, sealing the Denver Broncos’ 20-13 win over the Miami Dolphins.
The Broncos (4-6) not only prevented Tua Tagovailoa from becoming just the second rookie in the past 40 years to win his first four starts but they sacked him a half-dozen times and knocked him from the game in the fourth quarter.
Dallas 31, Minnesota 28: Andy Dalton returned from a two-game absence to throw three touchdown passes, hitting Dalton Schultz for a 2-yard score with 1:37 left to lift Dallas over the Minnesota Vikings 31-28 to stop the Cowboys’ four-game losing streak.
Dalton went 22 for 32 for 203 yards and one interception after fill-ins Ben DiNucci and Garrett Gilbert started the previous two games. After missing games to a concussion and COVID-19, Dalton directed an 11-play, 66-yard drive down the stretch that was extended with a fourth-and-6 completion to Amari Cooper at the 19.
Houston 27, New England 20: Deshaun Watson threw for 344 yards and accounted for three touchdowns, and J.J. Watt defended a career-high four passes to lead the Houston Texans to a 27-20 win over the New England Patriots.
Watson’s two touchdown passes and scoring run all came in the first half as the Texans (3-7) built a 21-10 halftime lead.
Watson and Houston’s offense slowed down after that to allow the Patriots (4-6) to get back into it. But a 46-yard field goal by Káimi Fairbairn extended the lead to 27-20 with about 3½ minutes to go.
Carolina 20, Detroit 0: P.J. Walker threw for 258 yards and a touchdown in his first NFL start, the much-maligned Carolina defense earned its first shutout since 2015 and the Panthers defeated the Detroit Lions 20-0 to snap a five-game losing streak.
Walker, a former XFL player, was made the starter less than two hours before kickoff when Teddy Bridgewater was officially ruled out with a knee injury.
L.A. Chargers 34, N.Y. Jets 28:
Keenan Allen set a Chargers franchise record with 16 receptions, Justin Herbert threw for 366 yards and three touchdowns and Los Angeles held on for a 34-28 victory over the winless New York Jets to snap a three-game losing streak.