UNDATED (AP) β The only unbeaten NFL team in action this afternoon was the New England Patriots, and they needed a fourth-quarter rally to keep their perfect record intact.
Tom Brady hit Danny Amendola and Rob Gronkowski for touchdowns in the final 7:16 as the Pats downed the New York Jets 30-23 to improve to 6-0. The Jets led 20-16 until Amendola scored on an eight-yard reception. Gronkowski’s 15-yard scoring grab put the Patriots in front 30-20 with 1:13 remaining.
Brady finished the game 34 of 54 for 355 yards and two scores. He was 13 of 16 for 135 yards in the fourth quarter alone.
Gronkowski had 11 receptions for 108 yards and the one score as the Patriots moved two games ahead of the Jets in the AFC East.
Elsewhere on the NFL on Week 7:
β A former Cowboy helped the New York Giants beat Dallas at the Meadowlands. Dwayne Harris returned a kickoff 100 yards for the deciding touchdown as the Giants held off the Cowboys 27-20. Harris’ return came immediately after Matt Cassel’s 25-yard TD pass to Devin Street tied the game with 7:14 remaining. Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie had two interceptions for the 4-3 Giants, returning one 58 yards for a touchdown. The Cowboys dropped to 2-4 despite Darren McFadden, who rushed for 152 yards and a TD.
β The Atlanta Falcons bounced back from their first loss of the season to edge Tennessee 10-7. Matt Ryan threw for 251 yards and a touchdown pass, and Devonta Freeman ran for 116 yards as the Falcons improved to 6-1. The 1-5 Titans lost their fifth straight overall and ninth consecutive at home dating to last season. They played without rookie quarterback Marcus Mariota (mar-ee-OH’-tah) and two injured starters in their secondary.
β Teddy Bridgewater threw for a season-high 316 yards and two touchdowns as the Vikings beat the Lions in Detroit 28-19. Adrian Peterson rushed for 98 yards in the win as the Vikings improved to 4-2 by winning an NFC North game on the road for the first time in three years. The 1-6 Lions had an 11-point lead after Matthew Stafford threw TDs on their first two drives, but the Vikings’ defense racked up a season-high seven sacks and Peterson had a season-long 75-yard run.
β The Chiefs snapped a five-game losing streak with a home-field victory over Pittsburgh. Alex Smith threw for 251 yards and a touchdown in the 23-13 win and Cairo Santos added three field goals. Charcandrick West added 110 yards rushing and his first career touchdown for the 2-5 Chiefs and Eric Berry intercepted his first pass since his cancer diagnosis last December.
β Drew Brees (breez) threw for 255 yards and one touchdown and Khiry Robinson ran for two scores in the Saints’ 27-21 win over the Colts. The Saints led the game 27-0, but the Colts clawed back into the game with 21 second-half points. The 3-4 Saints have won three of their last four games, while the Colts have lost two straight to slip to 3-4. Brees finished 28 of 44 and was helped by a running game led by Mark Ingram, who ran for 143 yards and one score. Indy’s Andrew Luck threw TD passes of 87 and 46 yards to T.Y. Hilton and an 8-yard TD pass to Donte Moncrief with 3:46 left to make it 27-21. Luck finished with for 333 yards with two interceptions
β The Rams took advantage of a bad start by the Browns for a 24-6 win. St. Louis scored 10 points off miscues on Cleveland’s first two series, a 17-yard fumble recovery by Rodney McLeod and a field goal after Josh McCown was stripped of the ball. The Rams had four sacks and recovered four fumbles. Beleaguered Johnny Manziel (man-ZEHL’) got mop-up duty for the Browns after McCown left for the locker room favoring his right arm with about four minutes left. The Rams are 3-3 and the Browns 2-5.
β Kirk Cousins threw three second-half touchdown passes, including the go-ahead score with 24 seconds left, to lead the Washington Redskins to the largest comeback in franchise history, a 31-30 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Redskins stormed back to improve to 3-4 after trailing 24-0 in the second quarter. Jameis Winston was 21 of 29 for 297 yards and two touchdowns for the 2-5 Buccaneers, while Doug Martin ran 19 times for 136.
β Derek Carr threw three touchdown passes, including a nifty 52-yarder to Amari Cooper in Oakland’s 37-29 verdict over the Chargers in San Diego. Carr was 24 of 31 for 289 yards, including TD passes of 23 yards to Clive Walford and 25 yards to Michael Crabtree. The Raiders also turned two interceptions of Philip Rivers into 10 points and evened their record at 3-3. Oakland scored on its first seven drives and kept the 2-5 Chargers out of the end zone until the fourth quarter.
β Jacksonville was a 34-31 winner over Buffalo in London as quarterback Blake Bortles threw the game-winning scoring pass to Allen Hurns with 2:16 remaining. The Bills staged a strong comeback after falling behind 27-3. They took the lead in the fourth quarter with 18 points before Bortles connected on his pass with Hurns. T.J. Yeldon had 116 yards on 20 carries, including a 28-yard TD run for the 2-5 Jaguars. EJ Manuel was 24 of 42 for 300 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions as the Bills slipped to 3-4.
β The Dolphins are 2-0 since interim coach Dan Campbell replaced Joe Philbin, and 3-3 on the season after Miami built a 41-0 halftime lead in a 44-26 rout of Houston. Ryan Tannehill completed his first 18 passes while throwing for four scores in the game’s first 16 minutes. Campbell is now the fifth interim coach of 26 since 2000 to win his first two games.
The game this evening has the unbeaten Carolina Panthers at home to the Philadelphia Eagles. The Panthers begin the night with a record of 5-0, in first place in the NFC South. The Eagles are 3-3 and need a victory to remain tied with the Giants for first in the NFC East.
