Running back Jerick McKinnon threw for one touchdown and ran for another, and Patrick Mahomes passed for 305 yards and two scores to help Kansas City beat the New England Patriots 27-17 on Sunday in front of Chiefs superfan Taylor Swift.
With the pop star – and a whole bunch of Swifties – in the crowd, the defending Super Bowl champions snapped a two-game losing streak and maintained control of the AFC West race. Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce, who is in a relationship with Swift, caught five passes for 28 yards, but also had a potential touchdown bounce off his hands.
Bailey Zappe, making his third straight start in place of benched first-round draft pick Mac Jones, completed 23 of 31 passes for 180 yards for the Patriots. New England (3-11) lost for the sixth time in seven games and remains in contention for one of the top two picks in next year’s NFL draft.
In what could be the penultimate home game of coach Bill Belichick’s tenure, the six-time Super Bowl champions took a 10-7 lead before allowing 20 straight points.
Flexed out of Monday Night Football because of their ineptitude – an NFL first – the Patriots seemed to have third billing on the day, behind Swift and her beau’s team, which has won two of the past four NFL titles and has all of the star power New England once claimed.
Fans filed in carrying posters shouting out to Swift; others lined up along the ramps and walkways hoping she would pass by on her way to the luxury boxes. Kelce himself walked past a Swift banner that was hanging under the seats commemorating top acts that have come to Gillette Stadium.
Swift, who is on a break from her Eras Tour, was shown on the scoreboard early in the second quarter, wearing a Chiefs knit cap and sweatshirt. The crowd shrieked; she stuck out her tongue playfully, waved and blew the fans a kiss.
The Chiefs (9-5) improved to 5-2 with Swift in attendance. The best the Patriots could offer was Belichick friend Jon Bon Jovi, who rang the lighthouse bell before the game and was greeted with tepid applause when he was shown on the scoreboard during the game.
Houston Texans 19-16 Tennessee Titans (OT)
Ka’imi Fairbairn kicked a 54-yard field goal as time expired in overtime and the Houston Texans rallied from a 13-point deficit without CJ Stroud to beat the Tennessee Titans 19-16 Sunday.
The Texans (8-6) entered the day one spot outside of the AFC’s seven-team playoff field. They kept pace by winning without several key players, including Stroud – their standout rookie quarterback – along with top receiver Nico Collins, right tackle George Fant and a pair of defensive starters out injured.
Case Keenum made his first start since Week 17 of the 2021 season for Cleveland. He filled in for Stroud, the No 2 overall pick who didn’t practice all week while in the concussion protocol and didn’t travel. Keenum threw for 229 yards and helped Houston outgain the Titans 340-204.
Titans (5-9) rookie quarterback Will Levis left with 1:49 left in overtime after being sacked for the seventh time with his left leg caught underneath him in the pile. He didn’t put pressure on the leg as he was helped off initially, then walked off. He was jogging on the sideline after a check in the medical tent.
Fairbairn, in his first game back after missing the last five with an injured quadriceps muscle, helped the Texans claw back. He made field goals of 23, 27 and 53 yards as the offense stalled close to the goal line.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 34-20 Green Bay Packers
Baker Mayfield threw for 381 yards and four touchdowns, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won their third straight 34-20 over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday.
Mayfield went 22 of 28 and threw touchdown passes to Mike Evans, Rachaad White, Ko Kieft and David Moore to help the Buccaneers (7-7) keep pace with New Orleans (7-7) atop the NFC North. Mayfield’s passer rating was a perfect 158.3.
Chris Godwin had 10 catches for 155 yards for the Bucs.
Green Bay (6-8) lost their second straight to deal their playoff hopes a major blow. Jordan Love was 29 of 39 for 284 yards with touchdown passes to Tucker Kraft and Jayden Reed.
This marked the third straight season in which Mayfield had faced the Packers at Lambeau Field in December – each time for a different team. He threw four interceptions in Cleveland’s 24-22 Christmas Day loss to the Packers in 2021 and was Los Angeles’ starter when the Rams fell 24-12 last 19 December.
Atlanta Falcons 7-9 Carolina Panthers
Eddy Pineiro kicked a 23-yard field goal as time expired and the Carolina Panthers defeated Atlanta 9-7 in a steady downpour Sunday, dealing the Falcons playoff hopes a huge blow.
Atlanta (6-8) entered the game tied with New Orleans and Tampa Bay for first place in the NFC South, but now find themselves needing help to get into the postseason after the Saints and Buccaneers both won to improve to 7-7.
Bryce Young threw for 167 yards in his second NFL win and Chuba Hubbard ran for 87 yards for Carolina (2-12), which snapped a six-game losing streak.
The Falcons led 7-6 and were driving for more points when Desmond Ridder threw into traffic and was intercepted at the Carolina 5 by safety Xavier Woods. Young, who had struggled all afternoon, led the Panthers on a 17-play, 90-yard drive that took all 7:35 off the clock.
On the final drive, interim coach Chris Tabor took a chance when the Panthers reached the Atlanta 2 by having Young take a knee on three straight plays before sending Pineiro on the field with :01 showing on the clock.
New York Giants 6-24 New Orleans Saints
Derek Carr passed for 218 yards and three touchdowns, New Orleans sacked Tommy DeVito seven times, and the Saints defeated the New York Giants 24-6 on Sunday.
It was one of the more redemptive performances of the season for Carr, who was booed while struggling in recent home games. Not this time as he connected on 23 of 28 passes without a turnover in one of his most efficient outings of his first season with New Orleans (7-7).
And he did it without top receiver Chris Olave, who was scratched because of an ankle injury.
Carr’s scoring passes went for seven yards to Keith Kirkwood, 24 to Juwan Johnson and one to Jimmy Graham, who caught his third scoring pass in three games.
The result kept the Saints tied atop the NFC South with Tampa Bay and marked the end of a heady run for DeVito, an undrafted rookie who has become a sensation in New York by leading the Giants on a three-game winning streak that briefly pulled them back to the fringe of the NFC playoff picture.
New York Jets 0-30 Miami Dolphins
Raheem Mostert scored two more touchdowns to set Miami’s single-season record with 20, Tua Tagovailoa threw for 224 yards and a score and the Dolphins shut out the New York Jets 30-0 on Sunday without star receiver Tyreek Hill.
Mostert walked into the end zone untouched on a two-yard run that put AFC East-leading Miami (10-4) ahead 7-0 and gave the ninth-year running back his 17th rushing touchdown of the season – one more than Ricky Williams, who set the record in 2002. The score was also Mostert’s 19th overall, which broke the team record of 18 set by Mark Clayton in 1984.
Tagovailoa was 21 of 24 with an 87.5% completion percentage and a 60-yard touchdown pass to Jaylen Waddle. He was replaced by Mike White with 8:32 remaining and the Dolphins up by 30.
A week after Zach Wilson threw for over 300 yards against Houston, the Jets’ third-year quarterback’s day was cut short when he left late in the second quarter with a concussion. New York (5-9) were shut out for the first time since losing 26-0 at Denver in Week 3 of the 2021 season.
The loss, combined with wins by Houston and Cleveland, eliminated the Jets from playoff contention for the 13th straight season – and severely lessened the chances of Aaron Rodgers returning this season from a torn achilles tendon. Rodgers has said one of the conditions of his comeback would be New York remaining in contention.
San Francisco 49ers 45-29 Arizona Cardinals
Christian McCaffrey scored three touchdowns, Charvarius Ward had two interceptions – including a pick-six – and the San Francisco 49ers pushed their winning streak to six games with a 45-29 win over the Arizona Cardinals.
San Francisco’s Brock Purdy – making his first NFL start at State Farm Stadium, which is about 45 miles from where he grew up – completed 16 of 25 passes for 242 yards and tied a career high with four touchdowns. He also shook off a hard hit in the second quarter that caused him to miss a few plays.
During their winning streak, the 49ers (11-3) have won all of their games by at least 12 points. They’ve also won 12 straight against divisional opponents in the NFC West.
McCaffrey scored his second touchdown early in the third quarter, sneaking out of the backfield for a 41-yard score and a 28-13 lead. The running back was so wide open that he leaped for the catch, fell down, and still had enough time to get to his feet and sprint to the end zone.
He made it there a third time later in the third quarter after plowing ahead one-yard for the touchdown and a 35-16 advantage. Deebo Samuel followed with his second touchdown catch in the fourth, a 19-yard reception that made it 42-22.
Washington Commanders 20-28 Los Angeles Rams
Matthew Stafford passed for 258 yards and hit Cooper Kupp and Demarcus Robinson for touchdowns, leading the Los Angeles Rams to a 28-20 victory over the free-falling Washington Commanders.
Kupp’s eight receptions for 111 yards were highlighted by a 62-yard TD catch right after halftime for the Rams (7-7), who have won four of five to push their way into the playoff picture even in a self-described remodeling season.
Kyren Williams overcame the first two lost fumbles of his two-year NFL career to rush for 152 yards and a touchdown while his Rams slid into one of the three NFC wildcard playoff positions alongside fellow 7-7 teams New Orleans and Minnesota.
The Rams’ defense largely shut down the Commanders (4-10) in the first three quarters before Washington backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett made things interesting in his first significant playing time of the season.
Brissett relieved Sam Howell in the fourth quarter and immediately led two touchdown drives for the Commanders, who have lost five straight. Curtis Samuel caught two TD passes, including a three-yard grab with 1:46 to play.
Dallas Cowboys 10-31 Buffalo Bills
James Cook had a career-best 179 yards rushing and scored twice as Buffalo dominated on the ground, and the Bills beat Dallas 31-10, ending the Cowboys’ five-game winning streak.
Josh Allen threw for just 94 yards for the Bills (8-6), who won consecutive games for the first time since a three-game winning streak ended on 1 October. Buffalo gained ground in the AFC playoff race, moving one game ahead of Denver and Pittsburgh.
The Cowboys (10-4) clinched their third playoff berth before kickoff thanks to losses by Green Bay and Atlanta on Sunday and Detroit beating Denver on Saturday. But nothing else went right for Dallas, who fell a game behind NFC-best San Francisco.
The Cowboys, who are 7-0 at home – where they’ve outscored their opponents by a combined 279-108 – dropped to 3-4 on the road, where they’ve been outscored 156-152.
Buffalo rushed for 266 yards, held the ball for 10 minutes more than Dallas and had 28 first downs to the Cowboys’ 14.
The Cowboys, who had scored 40 or more points five times this season and enjoyed eight wins by 20 or more, were held to a season-low 195 yards of offense. Dak Prescott finished 21 of 34 for 134 yards with an interception.
Baltimore Ravens 23-7 Jacksonville Jaguars
Lamar Jackson threw a touchdown pass and made the play of night when he avoided a sack and threw to Isaiah Likely near the goal line, and the Baltimore Ravens clinched a postseason berth with a 23-7 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday night.
Gus Edwards ran for a touchdown for the Ravens (11-3), who won their fourth in a row and moved a step closer to securing the No 1 seed and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs.
The Jaguars (8-6) lost their third straight – all against AFC North teams – and fell into a tie with Houston and Indianapolis atop the AFC South. Self-inflicted mistakes were a common thread in Jacksonville’s skid.
Trevor Lawrence fumbled twice in the latest letdown, including one in the fourth quarter that essentially sealed Baltimore’s eighth victory in their last nine games.
