Chiefs strike late, edge Panthers

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Ten yards into a scramble, Patrick Mahomes could have easily slid for a first down or simply ducked out of bounds and moved on to the next play.

Instead, the three-time Super Bowl MVP cut back inside and raced another 23 yards up the field, helping to set up Spencer Schrader’s 31-yard field goal as time expired as the Chiefs held on to beat the Carolina Panthers 30-27 on Sunday.

“At that point, yards are more important than getting out of bounds,” Mahomes said. “With three timeouts, I just tried to just cut through and Justin Watson had a great block and was able to get down the field and get out of bounds.”

The game-winning drive was the 21st of Mahomes’ career, and the Chiefs won a game decided in the final seconds for the fifth time this season. Eight of the Chiefs’ wins have come by one-score margins.

“You always want to have some blowouts and be a little calmer in the fourth quarter, but I’ve always said it could be a good thing when you get to the playoffs later in the season knowing that you have been in those moments before, and knowing how to attack it play by play not making it too big of a moment,” Mahomes said.

Then he smiled and said: “But I would say this more than anybody, I would love to win a game not by the very last play.”

Mahomes completed 27 of 37 passes for 269 yards and three touchdowns in his first game at Bank of America Stadium and ran for 60 yards — including 33 on that last-minute play — as the Chiefs (10-1) scored on six of their eight possessions.

Noah Gray caught four passes for 66 yards and scored two touchdowns for the second straight week, and DeAndre Hopkins also found the end zone for the two-time defending Super Bowl champions. Kareem Hunt ran for 68 yards on 16 carries and caught three passes for 19 yards.

Bryce Young played well for Carolina (3-8), finishing 21 of 35 for 262 yards and a touchdown while leading the Panthers back from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter to tie the game on Chuba Hubbard’s 1-yard touchdown run and 2-point conversion with 1:46 remaining.

Panthers coach Dave Canales, who benched Young earlier this season for veteran Andy Dalton, said last year’s No. 1 overall draft pick “absolutely” will remain the team’s starting QB next week. That’s a break from Canales’ recent pattern of waiting a few days to name a starter.

“Bryce is certainly making the most of his opportunities,” Canales said. “And he is making a statement to all of us. Showing us he can make plays in critical areas. He did a great job extending today.”

Said Young: “For me, I just want to focus on what I can control. Regardless, I always have the same mindset and preparation, wanting to be better throughout the week. I am definitely grateful for confidence.”

Still, there is room for improvement.

The Panthers moved the ball well but struggled in the red zone, resulting in field goals of 30, 32, 29 and 33 yards for Eddy Pineiro, the most accurate kicker in NFL history.

The Chiefs wasted no time setting the tone as Samaje Perine returned the opening kickoff 56 yards and Mahomes found Gray for a 35-yard touchdown strike on the third play of scrimmage for a 7-0 lead. Gray went nine games without a TD catch before hauling in two last week against Buffalo. His 11-yard score late in the second quarter gave him two more against the Panthers.

Chiefs coach Andy Reid praised Mahomes’ poise but said he was concerned about his team’s nine penalties for 90 yards.

Moving on up

Kansas City’s Travis Kelce had six catches for 62 yards and moved into third place in career yards receiving by a tight end. He ranks behind only Tony Gonzalez and Jason Witten. However, Kelce failed to find the end zone for the ninth time in 11 games this season.

Brooks’ debut

Running back Jonathan Brooks made his NFL debut for Carolina, but the second-round pick was limited to 7 yards on two carries.

Injuries

Panthers: Rookie TE Ja’Tavion Sanders was taken to a hospital, where he was evaluated for a neck injury and released. He landed awkwardly on his head after making a catch near the end of the second quarter.

Up next

Chiefs: Host Las Vegas on Friday.

Panthers: Host Tampa Bay next Sunday.

LIONS 24, COLTS 6

INDIANAPOLIS — Jahmyr Gibbs rushed for two scores and David Montgomery added a third touchdown run, leading Detroit to a victory over Indianapolis.

Gibbs finished with 21 carries for 90 yards as the Lions (10-1) extended their league-high winning streak to nine straight. Detroit has its been 11-game record since the franchise’s inaugural season in 1934.

Jared Goff continued his sensational season, too, completing 26 of 36 throws for 269 yards.

The Colts (5-7) lost their second straight home game and for the fourth time in their past five games. Anthony Richardson was 11 of 28 with 172 yards while rushing 10 times for 61 yards.

While Indy managed to hold the NFL’s highest-scoring offense largely in check Sunday, it was doomed by its inability to finish drives with touchdowns.

BUCCANEERS 30, GIANTS 7

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Baker Mayfield catapulted into the end zone on a spectacular 10-yard scramble for one of Tampa Bay’s four rushing touchdowns, and the Buccaneers beat the Giants and new starting quarterback Tommy DeVito, snapping a four-game losing streak and extending New York’s skid to six.

The Giants’ decisions this week to bench and then release quarterback Daniel Jones did nothing to help the NFL’s lowest-scoring offense. DeVito threw for 189 yards, mostly in the second half with New York well on its way to its sixth straight loss at home, where it is winless.

Meanwhile, the Buccaneers dominated in every phase in a near-perfect perfect performance that featured TD runs of 1 yard by Sean Tucker, 6 yards by Bucky Irving and 1 yard by Rachaad White. After recent losses to the Ravens, 49ers and Chiefs, Tampa Bay (5-6) moved within one game of idle Atlanta in the NFC South.

Tampa Bay scored on five of its on first six possessions to open a 30-0 lead, and none was more exciting than Mayfield’s TD run with 12 seconds left in the first half. On a second-and-goal from the 10, he avoided pressure and went for the end zone. He was hit by Cor’Dale Flott low and Dru Phillips high around the 2-yard line, and he was airborne when he crossed the goal line. The ball came loose when he hit the turf but he jumped up and flexed — seemingly mocking DeVito’s go-to celebration — as the Bucs took a 23-0 lead.

DOLPHINS 34, PATRIOTS 15

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Tua Tagovailoa threw for 317 yards and four touchdowns, including two scores to running back De’Von Achane, and Miami routed New England.

The Dolphins (5-6) have a thin margin for error the rest of the season but have kept themselves afloat with a three-game winning streak. With their win at New England (3-9) in Week 5, the Dolphins have swept their division rivals in consecutive seasons for the first time since 1999-2000.

Tagovailoa, who moved to 7-0 in his career against New England, entered the game with a league-high 73.4% completion rate and went 29 for 40.

Backup Skylar Thompson replaced Tagovailoa with about 11 minutes left in what was already a blowout, but a bad handoff on his first play resulted in a fumble that was recovered by cornerback Christian Gonzalez and returned 63 yards for a touchdown. It cut New England’s deficit to 31-15, and Tagovailoa returned the next drive.

TITANS 32, TEXANS 27

HOUSTON — Will Levis threw for 278 yards and his 70-yard touchdown pass to Chig Okonkwo put Tennessee on top in the fourth quarter and the Titans held on for a win over the Texans.

Okonkwo grabbed a short pass and rumbled for the touchdown to put the Titans (3-8) up 30-27 with 9½ minutes remaining. Safety Eric Murray missed a tackle that would have stopped him near midfield.

The Texans (7-5) had a chance to tie it with less than two minutes remaining, but Ka’imi Fairbairn’s 28-yard field-goal attempt sailed wide left. He fell to the ground after the miss before getting up and slamming his helmet on the field.

Titans coach Brian Callahan held both hands in the air and smiled after watching the miss that allowed his team to win on a day it had three turnovers.

The Texans forced a three-and-out, but couldn’t move the ball after that and Harold Landry sacked C.J. Stroud in the end zone for a safety to make it 32-27 and allow Tennessee to snap a two-game skid.

VIKINGS 30, BEARS 27, OT

CHICAGO — Sam Darnold threw for 90 of his 330 yards in overtime to set up Parker Romo’s game-ending 29-yard field goal, and Minnesota outlasted Chicago after giving up 11 points in the final 22 seconds of regulation.

Darnold threw two touchdown passes, Jordan Addison caught eight passes for a career-high 162 yards and a touchdown, and T.J. Hockenson had 114 yards receiving for the Vikings (9-2), who remained one game behind Detroit in the rugged NFC North.

Caleb Williams threw for 340 yards and two touchdowns for the Bears (4-7), who lost their fifth straight.

Minnesota appeared to have the game in hand, leading 27-16 with 1:56 left after Romo kicked a 26-yard field goal. But the Bears weren’t finished.

Deandre Carter made up for a muffed punt that led to a touchdown in the third quarter with a 55-yard kickoff return to the 40. Williams took it from there, capping an eight-play drive with a 1-yard touchdown pass to Keenan Allen. A 2-point conversion pass to DJ Moore made it 27-24 with 22 seconds remaining.

The Bears recovered the onside kick and Williams hit Moore over the middle for a 27-yard gain to the 30 before spiking the ball. Cairo Santos made a 48-yard field goal as time expired.

BRONCOS 29, RAIDERS 19

LAS VEGAS — Bo Nix passed for 273 yards and had two touchdown passes to break the team’s rookie record, and the Denver finally won in Las Vegas with a victory over the reeling Raiders.

The Broncos (7-5) took another step toward an unexpected playoff spot with their second victory in a row.

Las Vegas (2-9) has lost seven consecutive games, its longest skid since the 2017-18 seasons.

Nix finished 25 of 42, and his 18-yard touchdown pass to Sutton in the third quarter broke the club rookie record of 14 set by Marlin Briscoe in 1968. Nix and Sutton later hooked up for a 2-yard TD with 5:30 left to give the Broncos a two-possession lead.

Denver lost its previous four games at Allegiant Stadium. This also was the Broncos’ first road win in this series since defeating the then-Oakland Raiders on Oct. 11, 2015.

PACKERS 38, 49ERS 10

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Josh Jacobs rushed for 106 yards and matched a career high with three touchdowns and Green Bay trounced short-handed San Francisco.

This marked the first time in the past 55 regular-season games that any individual had rushed for 100 yards against the 49ers. That represented the longest a team had gone without allowing a 100-yard rusher since at least 1955.

Justin Fields had rushed for 103 yards for the Chicago Bears against the 49ers on Oct. 31, 2021. Aaron Jones had rushed for 108 yards in the Packers’ 24-21 NFC divisional playoff loss to San Francisco last season.

All three of Jacobs’ touchdowns came from 1 yard.

The 49ers team that took the field Sunday bore only a passing resemblance to the squad that ended the Packers’ 2023 season.

SEAHAWKS 16, CARDINALS 6

SEATTLE — Coby Bryant returned an interception 69 yards for a touchdown and Leonard Williams had 2 1/2 sacks as the Seahawks tormented Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray, and Seattle beat Arizona to move into a tie for the NFC West lead.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba had six catches for 77 yards and the first offensive touchdown against the Cardinals (6-5) in three weeks. But it was the defense that made the difference for the Seahawks (6-5) against their division rivals, who had their four-game winning streak snapped.

Seattle has won six straight and seven of eight over Arizona. The teams play again in two weeks.

The Cardinals averaged more than 29 points per game in their previous three, but the Seahawks held them to 298 total yards and 49 yards rushing while sacking Murray five times. Williams also had four hurries and a pass deflection.

Geno Smith threw for 254 yards with a touchdown pass and an interception for Seattle. Murray threw for 285 yards, and tight end Trey McBride had 12 catches for 133 yards.

EAGLES 37, RAMS 20

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Saquon Barkley ran for touchdowns of 70 and 72 yards in the second half and finished with an Eagles-record 255 yards rushing in streaking Philadelphias’ seventh consecutive victory over Los Angeles.

Barkley racked up the ninth-most yards rushing in a game in NFL history largely thanks to his huge TD runs bookending the second half. He sprinted for a 70-yard score on the opening snap of the third quarter, and he added another huge run up the middle with 2:44 to play.

Barkley had 302 total yards while becoming the first NFL player with two 70-yard TD runs in a game since Maurice Jones-Drew in 2009. Barkley leads the league with 1,392 yards rushing, including a league-best seven 100-yard rushing games in his seismic first season with Philadelphia.

While averaging 9.8 yards per carry, Barkley obliterated the Eagles franchise record of 217 yards rushing by LeSean McCoy in 2013. He also had the biggest rushing performance ever against the Rams, exceeding DeMarco Murray’s 253 yards for Dallas in 2011.