Kansas City win 5th in a row as defence rises to occasion against division-rival Broncos

The resurgent Kansas City defence shut down Teddy Bridgewater and the Broncos, Daniel Sorenson returned an interception 75 yards for a touchdown, and Kansas City beat Denver 22-9 on Sunday night for their fifth straight win.

Patrick Mahomes had 184 yards passing with a touchdown run and an interception for Kansas City (8-4), who now lead the Chargers by a game and the Broncos and Raiders by two in their race for a sixth straight AFC West championship.

Things went haywire for the Broncos early in the game, when a 20-play drive ended with a failed fourth-down play rather than an easy field goal. And they didn't get a whole lot better when Bridgewater threw a pair of second-half interceptions, including the one that Sorensen picked off with 9 1/2 minutes left to put the game away.

Thanks to his defence, Kansas City coach Andy Reid improved to 20-3 after a bye. The once-maligned bunch stopped Denver on fourth down three times while holding an opponent to fewer than 10 points for the third time in its last four games.

Brady, Bucs cruise past Falcons for 3rd straight victory 

Tom Brady threw for 368 yards and four touchdowns — two of them to longtime favourite target Rob Gronkowski — and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers moved to the brink of clinching the NFC South title with a 30-17 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.

The Bucs (9-3) won their third straight game and pushed their division lead to four games over Atlanta, Carolina and New Orleans (all 5-7) with five games remaining.

Brady improved to 10-0 in his career against the Falcons, including four straight wins over the last two seasons since moving from New England to Tampa Bay.

The 44-year-old Brady completed 38 of 51, including touchdowns of 27 and 11 yards to Gronkowski — their first scoring passes since Week 2 against the Falcons.

The prolific duo has combined for 90 regular-season TDs, passing Phillip Rivers and Antonio Gates for No. 2 in NFL history. Only Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison have more, hooking up for 112 scoring passes.

Ravens fall to Steelers by missed attempt on gutsy call

John Harbaugh went for the win. The gamble cost the Baltimore Ravens and kept the Pittsburgh Steelers in the mix in the AFC North.

Pittsburgh topped Baltimore 20-19 on Sunday, thwarting a 2-point conversion attempt after Lamar Jackson's touchdown pass to Sammy Watkins got the Ravens within one with 12 seconds to go.

Rather than turn to star kicker Justin Tucker for an almost automatic 35-yard extra point, the Ravens (8-4) went for the knockout punch. Baltimore tight end Mark Andrews couldn't haul in a flip by Jackson. The Steelers (6-5-1) recovered an onside kick to seal it.

Pittsburgh ended a three-game winless streak behind the 39th fourth-quarter comeback engineered by Ben Roethlisberger.

The 39-year-old quarterback threw for 236 yards and two second-half touchdowns to Diontae Johnson, the final one a 5-yard catch-and-run with 1:48 to play that gave the Steelers a 20-13 lead.

Lions pick up 1st win of season in dramatic fashion

The Lions finally found a victory when Jared Goff threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Amon-Ra St. Brown as time expired, lifting previously winless Detroit to a 29-27 win over the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.

Not only was the finish dramatic, it was stunning. Goff led the Lions on a 75-yard decisive possession without a timeout after Kirk Cousins threw a go-ahead 3-yard touchdown pass to Justin Jefferson with 1:50 left. The Vikings failed on a 2-point conversion for the third time; those missed opportunities proved costly.

Goff threw two touchdown passes in the first half to put Detroit ahead by 14 points, its biggest lead this season. Then he turned over the ball twice in the second half to help Minnesota rally.

He came through in the end, leading the long drive and delivering a sharp pass to the rookie receiver, who took advantage of the Vikings secondary playing too deep in the end zone.

The Lions (1-10-1) ended a 15-game winless streak that lasted 364 days since winning at Chicago last season, giving first-year coach Dan Campbell his first victory with the franchise.

Seahawks keep 49ers at bay with late goal-line stand

Russell Wilson played his best game since returning from finger surgery throwing for 231 yards and two touchdowns, and the Seattle Seahawks made a late goal line stand to beat the San Francisco 49ers 30-23 on Sunday.

Seattle (4-8) snapped a three-game losing streak but it wasn't easy as a number of mistakes gave the 49ers a chance for a tying touchdown in the final moments.

Gerald Everett fumbled at the San Francisco 2 with 4:03 remaining and Seattle on the cusp of a clinching score. Jimmy Garoppolo led the 49ers 95 yards to the Seattle 3. But his third-down pass for Trent Sherfield was broken up by Sidney Jones, and his fourth- down pass was deflected at the line of scrimmage by Carlos Dunlap.

It was the second big play by Dunlap, who sacked Garoppolo for a safety early in the third quarter.

Newly signed running back Adrian Peterson moved into a tie with Jim Brown for 10th all-time with 126 career touchdowns, scoring on a 1-yard run in the second quarter for Seattle.

Cardinals down Bears in return of Murray, Hopkins

Kyler Murray threw for two touchdowns and ran for two more in his return from an ankle injury, and the Arizona Cardinals beat the struggling Chicago Bears 33-22 on Sunday.

The Cardinals (10-2) got back Murray and three-time All-Pro receiver DeAndre Hopkins after both players missed three games because of injuries, then rolled to an easy victory over Chicago (4-8). The NFC West leaders, who have the NFL's best record, intercepted Andy Dalton four times.

The Cardinals, who were coming off a bye, improved to 7-0 on the road, with each win by 10 points or more.

Jalen Thompson and Budda Baker picked off passes that deflected off the intended target on Chicago's first two possessions. The Cardinals took advantage, with Murray connecting with Hopkins for a 20-yarder and scrambling 9 yards to the end zone. He also threw a 21-yard TD to James Conner in the second quarter to make it 21-7, sending Chicago to its sixth loss in seven games.

Rams get back into win column with drubbing of Jaguars

Cooper Kupp, Van Jefferson and Odell Beckham Jr. caught touchdown passes from Matthew Stafford, and the Los Angeles Rams snapped their three-game losing streak with a 37-7 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.

Stafford passed for 295 yards while Sony Michel rushed for 121 yards and a score for the Rams (8-4), who rebounded from a winless November with a solid all-around effort against a struggling opponent. Kupp had his 100th reception of a remarkable season among his eight catches for 129 yards.

Stafford also snapped back into form, playing turnover-free football after giving the ball away six times during the three-game skid that threatened to derail the Rams' playoff plans. Los Angeles still has never lost four straight in coach Sean McVay's half-decade in charge.

Rookie Trevor Lawrence passed for 145 yards for the Jaguars (2-10), who have lost four straight.

Herbert leads Chargers to blowout win over Bengals

Justin Herbert passed for three touchdowns and Tevaughn Campbell returned a Joe Mixon fumble 61 yards for a score, helping the Los Angeles Chargers hold off Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals for a 41-22 victory on Sunday.

Herbert was 26 of 35 for 317 yards as Los Angeles (7-5) bounced back nicely after losing 28-13 at Denver last weekend. Mike Williams had five receptions for 110 yards, and Keenan Allen caught two of Herbert's TD passes.

Cincinnati (7-5) stormed back after falling behind 24-0 in the second quarter. Mixon's 7-yard TD run made it 24-22 with 7:10 left in the third. But the Bengals came up empty on the 2-point conversion try and Campbell's fumble return in the fourth helped close it out for Los Angeles.

The Bengals committed four of the game's seven turnovers. Battling a hand injury for much of the day, Burrow threw two interceptions and lost a fumble.

Washington Football Team hold off Raiders late for win

Taylor Heinicke threw two touchdown passes and set up new kicker Brian Johnson's game-winning 48-yard field goal with 37 seconds remaining to lead Washington to its fourth straight win, 17-15 over the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.

Heinicke threw a 7-yard TD pass to Logan Thomas on the opening drive and a 4-yarder to Antonio Gibson early in the fourth quarter after extending the drive with a key third-down scramble.

But Washington (6-6) then allowed the Raiders (6-6) to score on successive drives to take a 15-14 lead on Daniel Carlson's 37-yard field goal that was set up by Nate Hobbs' interception of Heinicke.

But Heinicke responded and drove Washington down the field to set up the kick by Johnson. who was signed earlier this week after Joey Slye went down with an injury.

Dolphins extend win streak to 5 with victory over Giants

Tua Tagovailoa threw a pair of short touchdown passes, and the Miami Dolphins extended their winning streak to five games by topping the New York Giants 20-9 on Sunday.

Isaiah Ford and Mack Hollins had the scoring grabs for Miami (6-7), which has shaken off a 1-7 start. Jaylen Waddle had nine catches for 90 yards for the Dolphins, and rookie Jaelan Phillips had two more sacks — giving him five in his last two games.

Tagovailoa completed 30 of 41 passes for 244 yards and the two scores.

Mike Glennon started at quarterback for the Giants in place of Daniel Jones, who was sidelined with a neck injury. Glennon completed 23 of 44 throws for 187 yards, and Saquon Barkley had 55 rushing yards on 11 carries.

Minshew leads Eagles to win over Jets

Gardner Minshew started in place of an injured Jalen Hurts and led the clock-eating Philadelphia Eagles to scores on their first seven possessions in a 33-18 victory over the New York Jets on Sunday.

With Hurts out with an ankle injury, Philadelphia bounced back from a disappointing 13-7 loss to the Giants last weekend at MetLife Stadium to slice through the Jets' defence drive after drive. The only possession on which the Eagles didn't score was their last.

But the win might have come at a cost as running back Miles Sanders left in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury after running for 120 yards on 24 carries. Centre Jason Kelce also limped off the field at the 2-minute warning.

Colts hold Texans scoreless in victory

Jonathan Taylor ran for 143 yards and two touchdowns and the Indianapolis Colts rolled to an easy 31-0 win over the hapless Houston Texans on Sunday.

The Texans turned the ball over twice in the first quarter and quarterback Tyrod Taylor was benched in the third quarter as Houston (2-10) lost for the ninth time in 10 games.

Jonathan Taylor, who leads the NFL in yards rushing, has 16 rushing touchdowns this season, which ties the franchise record set by Lenny Moore in 1964. It's the 10th straight game where he's ran for a touchdown, the longest streak in the NFL since LaDainian Tomlinson did it in 18 straight in the 2004 and 2005 seasons.

Carson Wentz threw for 158 yards and a touchdown for the Colts (7-6) before being replaced by Sam Ehlinger with five minutes left in the fourth quarter and the game long decided.