MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — The Miami Dolphins’ defense stopped Josh Allen and the Bills at the goal line late, then held again after punter Thomas Morstead bizarrely kicked the ball off a teammate and out of bounds for a safety in a 21-19 win over Buffalo on Sunday.
Tua Tagovailoa and the Dolphins improved to 3-0 in an AFC East thriller that ended with Allen and the Bills attempting to spike the ball near midfield, the clock just running out on their chance to try a long-distance, go-ahead field goal.
Tagovailoa briefly left the game in the second quarter, returning after halftime despite appearing to be disoriented by a head injury.
Miami took a 21-17 lead with about 10 minutes left in the game on Chase Edmonds’ 3-yard run. It was the Bills’ first deficit of the season.
Despite being sacked and flagged for unnecessary roughness on the next drive, Allen drove Buffalo down the field with a 17-play, eight-minute drive. Miami’s defense held, though, nearly intercepting a pass and forcing a turnover on downs from the 2-yard line.
Tagovailoa and the Dolphins went three-and-out, leaving little room for Morstead to try punting out of the end zone. His kick hit blocker Trent Sherfield in the backside and caromed out of bounds.
Allen guided Buffalo (2-1) into field goal range, but the Bills ran out of time.
Allen was 42 of 63 and passed for 400 yards after completing his first 11 passes for the first time in his career. He had touchdown passes to running back Devin Singletary and receiver Isaiah McKenzie.
PACKERS 14, BUCCANEERS 12
TAMPA, Fla. — Aaron Rodgers threw for 255 yards and two touchdowns, and Green Bay withstood a late rally led by Tom Brady to beat Tampa Bay.
Rodgers tossed TD passes of 5 yards to Romeo Doubs and 6 yards to Allen Lazard on his team’s first two possessions, while the Bucs’ offense sputtered much of the day without star receivers Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Julio Jones.
For the second straight week, the Bucs (2-1) were held without a touchdown into the fourth quarter. Brady finally got them into the end zone on a 1-yard pass to Russell Gage, capping a 90-yard drive with 14 seconds remaining.
Tampa Bay’s bid to force overtime with a 2-point conversion was thwarted, first by a delay-of-game penalty and then an incomplete pass that allowed the Packers (2-1) to beat Brady for the first time in three tries since the seven-time Super Bowl champion joined the Bucs in 2020.
Rodgers completed 27 of 35 passes and was intercepted once in the first matchup in NFL history in which each starting quarterback has won at least three regular-season league MVP awards.
Brady finished 31 of 42 passing for 271 yards and one touchdown. He was sacked three times.
RAVENS 37, PATRIOTS 28
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Lamar Jackson threw four touchdown passes and ran for another score as Baltimore held off New England.
New England’s Mac Jones suffered a leg injury with less than two minutes to play, hopping off the field and heading straight to the locker room. He completed 22 of 32 passes for 321 yards but threw three interceptions.
Justin Tucker kicked a 56-yard field goal, the 50th of his career from 50 yards or more, as Baltimore (2-1) claimed its first regular-season victory at New England in seven tries.
Despite being under pressure for most of the day and losing another member of his offensive line to an early injury, Jackson completed 18 of 29 passes for 218 yards with an interception. He rushed for 107 yards on 11 carries. Mark Andrews had eight catches for 89 yards and two TDs.
DeVante Parker had five catches for 156 yards for New England.
The Patriots (1-2) had four turnovers on the day — Jones’ three picks and a late fumble by Nelson Agholor.
VIKINGS 28, LIONS 24
MINNEAPOLIS — Kirk Cousins connected with a wide-open K.J. Osborn for the go-ahead, 28-yard touchdown with 45 seconds remaining, and Minnesota rallied past Detroit.
Osborn blew by former Vikings cornerback Mike Hughes on a corner route to snag the in-stride pass and cruise across the goal line to give Minnesota (2-1) the lead for the first time.
The Vikings then didn’t let Jared Goff and the Lions cross midfield.
Dalvin Cook rushed for 96 yards and a score before leaving with a shoulder injury for the Vikings, who fell behind 14-0 and 24-14.
The Lions (1-2) are still seeking their first road win since Dec. 6, 2020, at Chicago. Their NFL-record streak of starting a season with a touchdown in 11 straight quarters ended inconveniently in the fourth.
Jamaal Williams had 20 carries for 87 yards and two touchdowns for the Lions.
COLTS 20, CHIEFS 17
INDIANAPOLIS — Matt Ryan threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to rookie Jelani Woods with 24 seconds left to give Indianapolis the comeback win over Kansas City.
Ryan earned his first win with the Colts in their home opener by hooking up with Woods for both Indianapolis touchdowns, one week after they were shut out at Jacksonville.
It took a 16-play, 76-yard drive — aided by a personal foul call on Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones following a third-down sack — for Indy (1-1-1) to snap a four-game winless streak.
The Colts sealed it with Rodney McLeod Jr.’s interception with 2 seconds to play.
Ryan finished 27 of 37 for 222 yards. He was sacked five times and lost two fumbles.
Patrick Mahomes fell to 13-3 in September while going 20 of 35 for 262 yards, one TD and his first interception of the season for the Chiefs (2-1).
PANTHERS 22, SAINTS 14
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Laviska Shenault caught a 67-yard touchdown pass from Baker Mayfield, Marquis Haynes returned a fumble 44 yards for a touchdown and Carolina beat New Orleans to snap a nine-game losing streak.
Mayfield threw for 170 yards and Christian McCaffrey ran for 108 as the Panthers (1-2) won at home for the first time since beating the Saints 26-7 on Sept. 19, 2021.
Jameis Winston, playing with an injured back, completed 25 of 41 passes for 353 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions, while rookie Chris Olave had nine catches for 147 yards for a Saints wide receiver corps that lost Michael Thomas, Jarvis Landry and Tre’Quan Smith to injuries in the second half.
Carolina’s defense held Winston and the Saints (1-2) scoreless for three quarters before Mark Ingram cut the lead to 13-7 with a 5-yard TD run.
But then Shenault caught a pass in the flat, juked a defender and raced along the left sideline for a touchdown. Carolina’s defense took it from there, intercepting Winston twice in the fourth quarter.
BRONCOS 11, 49ERS 10
DENVER — Melvin Gordon atoned for two fumbles with a late 1-yard touchdown run and safety Kareem Jackson recovered Jeff Wilson Jr.’s fumble with 1:05 left to preserve Denver’s win over San Francisco.
Russell Wilson and the Broncos (2-1) won despite going three-and-out nine times. Their only sustained drive was a 12-play, 80-yarder that included a 12-yard scramble by Wilson. Gordon capped it with a 1-yard run with 4:10 remaining, but Wilson’s 2-point pass was batted down, leaving the Broncos clinging to a one-point lead.
Jimmy Garoppolo, in his first start for the injured Trey Lance, who broke an ankle in Week 2, drove the 49ers (1-2) to midfield but his pass to Deebo Samuel was tipped by Jackson and intercepted by linebacker Jonas Griffith at the Denver 42 just before the 2-minute warning.
The only other game in NFL history that finished 11-10 came on Nov. 16, 2008, when the Steelers edged the Chargers.
EAGLES 24, COMMANDERS 8
LANDOVER, Md. — DeVonta Smith caught eight passes from Jalen Hurts for a career-high 169 yards and a touchdown, Carson Wentz flopped in his first game against the team that drafted him and Philadelphia routed Washington.
Smith made acrobatic catches along the sideline and to the edge of the end zone for respective gains of 45 and 44 yards, and hauled in a TD pass on fourth down to end the first half with no time left on the clock.
His 156 yards were the most by an Eagles player in a half since Kevin Curtis in 2007. And Smith was just one part of another clinical offensive performance by Philadelphia (3-0).
Hurts was 22 of 35 for 340 yards and three touchdown passes, one each to Smith, A.J. Brown and Dallas Goedert.
Wentz, the second pick in the 2016 draft to Philadelphia on his third team in three years, was 25 of 43 for 211 yards with two fumbles. Washington (1-2) had just 50 yards at halftime, and the defense wasn’t much better.
TITANS 24, RAIDERS 22
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Ryan Tannehill threw for 264 yards and a touchdown and ran for another score and Tennessee never trailed against Las Vegas.
Derrick Henry ran for 85 yards and a touchdown. Henry added 58 yards receiving as the Titans (1-2) avoided their worst start since they went 0-6 in 2009.
The Raiders (0-3) are off to their worst start since 2018. Two-time All-Pro safety Kevin Byard celebrated his 100th regular-season game by picking off a pass by Derek Carr in the end zone with 9:22 left.
Trailing 24-16, the Raiders converted a fourth-and-15 and a fourth-and-10 to keep their final drive alive. Carr then hit Mack Hollins with a 9-yard TD pass on fourth-and-goal from the Titans 9. But Carr’s 2-point conversion pass to tie the game was broken up by linebacker Dylan Cole.
Austin Hooper then recovered the onside kick for Tennessee.
Carr was 26 of 44 for 303 yards and two touchdowns. Hollins finished with eight catches for 158 yards.
RAMS 20, CARDINALS 12
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Matthew Stafford threw for 249 yards, Cam Akers and Cooper Kupp both scored touchdowns and Los Angeles used a stellar defensive effort to beat Arizona.
The Rams (2-1) continued their dominance in the series of NFC West rivals, winning 11 of the past 12 games dating to 2017, including last year’s 34-11 win in the playoffs.
Aaron Donald had a sack and two tackles for loss while Jalen Ramsey added two passes defended and a tackle for loss. The Rams gave up 365 total yards but limited the Cardinals (1-2) to four field goals.
Arizona’s Kyler Murray was 37-of-58 passing for 314 yards. Marquise Brown caught 14 passes for 140 yards. The Cardinals have lost seven of nine games dating to last season.
JAGUARS 38, CHARGERS 10
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Trevor Lawrence threw for 262 yards and three touchdowns, James Robinson rushed for 100 yards and a TD and Jacksonville beat ailing Justin Herbert and Los Angeles.
The Jaguars snapped an 18-game road losing streak, which was tied for the eighth-longest in league history. The Jags won in the Pacific time zone for the fourth time in 19 trips and beat the Bolts on the road for the first time in six tries.
Herbert started after being listed as questionable all week with a rib injury. The third-year quarterback passed for 297 yards but turned it over twice, finishing 25 of 45 with a touchdown.
Riley Patterson kicked three field goals as the Jaguars (2-1) went over the 30-point mark for the first time since Week 2 of the 2020 season.
The Chargers (1-2) had the ball for only 22 minutes and were held to 29 rushing yards.
The Jaguars led 16-10 early in the third quarter and dominated from there. Robinson provided the knockout punch with a 50-yard TD run off left tackle on fourth-and-1.
FALCONS 27, SEAHAWKS 23
SEATTLE — Cordarrelle Patterson rushed for a career-high 141 yards and a touchdown, Marcus Mariota threw a 14-yard TD to rookie Drake London in the second half, and Atlanta beat Seattle.
Patterson rumbled for 107 yards in the second half and the Falcons (1-2) avoided their second 0-3 start in three seasons. His 17-yard touchdown run in the second quarter gave Atlanta a 17-10 lead.
Mariota was 13 of 20 passing for 223 yards and his touchdown throw to London in the closing seconds of the third quarter gave Atlanta the lead for good.
Geno Smith threw for 325 yards and two touchdowns for Seattle (1-2), but was intercepted by Richie Grant on a desperation fourth-and-18 from the Atlanta 38 with 1:30 remaining. It was the fourth time in Smith’s career topping 300 yards passing and the first since the 2014 season.
Smith threw touchdown passes to DK Metcalf, his first of the season, and Will Dissly, both in the first half.
BENGALS 27, JETS 12
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Joe Burrow threw three touchdown passes and Cincinnati rolled past New York for its first win of the season.
After a pair of three-point losses, the Bengals (1-2) came out aggressive against the Jets, who fell flat after a stunning comeback win last week at Cleveland.
Burrow finished 23 of 36 for 275 yards with TD throws to Samaje Perine, Tyler Boyd and Ja’Marr Chase.
Joe Flacco struggled in what will likely be his final start with the injured Zach Wilson expected to return next week for the Jets (1-2). He was 28 of 52 for 285 yards and two interceptions, and was under pressure all game.
Meanwhile, Burrow marched the Bengals down the field on a 10-play, 75-yard opening drive, capped by Perine’s 12-yard touchdown catch.
BEARS 23, TEXANS 20
CHICAGO — Roquan Smith set up Cairo Santos’ game-ending field goal when he intercepted Davis Mills deep in Houston territory, and Chicago beat former coach Lovie Smith and Houston.
Khalil Herbert ran for a career-high 157 yards and two touchdowns for Chicago.
The Texans had third-and-1 at their 26 when defensive tackle Angelo Blackson tipped a pass intended for Rex Burkhead. Smith intercepted it at the 30 and returned it to the 12.
Chicago (2-1) had Herbert run, then downed the ball twice before Santos nailed a 30-yarder as time expired.
Justin Fields had another difficult game, and Bears running back David Montgomery exited early with knee and ankle injuries.
The Texans (0-2-1) dropped their second in a row after blowing fourth-quarter leads in a season-opening tie with Indianapolis and loss to Denver. Davis Mills threw for 245 yards, completing 20 of 32 passes with a touchdown and two interceptions. Dameon Pierce ran for 80 yards and a TD.