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NFL roundup: Bills hand Steelers second straight defeat

[December 14, 2020] Josh Allen passed for 238 yards and two touchdowns Sunday night as the Buffalo Bills handed the Pittsburgh Steelers their second straight loss, 26-15 at Orchard Park, N.Y.

Buffalo (10-3) spotted the Steelers (11-2) a 7-0 lead, then scored 23 straight points.

Pittsburgh was the NFL's only undefeated team at 11-0 before losing to Washington 23-17 on Dec. 7 and then Buffalo on Sunday.

Allen was 24 of 43, with touchdown passes to Stefon Diggs (10 catches, 130 yards) and Gabriel Davis. Taron Johnson had an interception return for a touchdown.

Eagles 24, Saints 21

Rookie Jalen Hurts threw a touchdown pass and rushed for 106 yards in his first NFL start as host Philadelphia ended New Orleans' nine-game winning streak. The Eagles prevailed after leading 17-0 and 24-14.

Hurts, a second-round draft choice from Oklahoma, started in place of struggling Carson Wentz and completed 17 of 30 for 167 yards as the Eagles (4-8-1) ended a four-game losing streak.

Taysom Hill passed for 291 yards and two touchdowns but threw an interception and lost a fumble as the Saints (10-3) lost for the first time in his four starts in place of injured Drew Brees.

Chiefs 33, Dolphins 27

Tyreek Hill scored touchdowns on his first two touches, leading Kansas City to a division-clinching comeback win at Miami. Hill scored on a 32-yard end-around and on a 44-yard reception as the Chiefs (12-1) clinched the AFC West championship for a fifth straight season.

Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who had thrown just two interceptions in his first 52 quarters this season, was picked off twice in Sunday's first 14 minutes. However, Mahomes recovered to pass for 393 yards and two touchdowns (with a career-high-tying three interceptions). Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce caught eight passes for 136 yards and one touchdown.

Miami (8-5) was led by rookie quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who passed for a career-high 316 yards and two touchdowns -- both to tight end Mike Gesicki, who left the game in the fourth quarter due to a shoulder injury.

Colts 44, Raiders 27

Philip Rivers passed for 244 yards and two touchdowns and rookie Jonathan Taylor rushed for a career-high 150 yards and two touchdowns to lead Indianapolis past host Las Vegas.

It was the 19th career victory against the Raiders for Rivers, who broke a tie with Hall of Famer John Elway for most career starts (29) against the franchise. Rivers, who completed 19 of 28 passes, also increased his touchdown passes to 49 and passing yards to 7,347 against the Raiders, already the most among them.

Indianapolis (9-4) moved up to the sixth seed in the AFC playoff race with its fifth road win in seven tries this season. T.Y. Hilton caught five passes for 86 yards and two touchdowns for the Colts, who had 456 yards in total offense against Las Vegas (7-6).

Packers 31, Lions 24

Aaron Rodgers passed for 290 yards and three touchdowns -- including a record-setting score to Davante Adams -- and ran for another TD as visiting Green Bay clinched its second straight NFC North title with a victory against Detroit.

Green Bay (10-3) vaulted into possession of the top seed in the NFC with the New Orleans Saints' loss at Philadelphia. The Packers, who own the tiebreaker against the Saints, play two of their final three regular-season games at home.

Detroit (5-8) saw its flickering NFC playoff hopes take a hit as quarterback Matthew Stafford exited the game with a rib injury late in the fourth quarter. Stafford was shaken up on a hit by Kenny Clark and later was replaced by Chase Daniel.

Washington 23, 49ers 15

Chase Young and Kamren Curl scored defensive touchdowns as Washington overcame a minor injury to quarterback Alex Smith in the first half to claim first place in the NFC East by defeating host San Francisco in Glendale, Ariz.

Dustin Hopkins kicked three field goals and the Washington defense stopped the 49ers (5-8) on four potential game-tying, fourth-quarter possessions to secure a fourth straight win. Washington (6-7) sits alone atop its division with three games remaining after the New York Giants lost on Sunday.

Washington used Dwayne Haskins at quarterback in the second half after Smith, bothered most of the game by a sore calf, didn't return after the break. After the game, Washington coach Ron Rivera said Smith strained the calf muscle in his right leg, the same leg that was repaired with 17 surgeries after he suffered a gruesome knee injury in 2018. Rivera said X-rays on Smith's calf were negative and that the 36-year-old quarterback could have returned to the game if Washington had needed him.

Bears 36, Texans 7

Mitch Trubisky tossed three touchdowns passes to three different receivers in a first-half eruption as host Chicago parlayed a dominant defensive performance into a victory over Houston.

Trubisky helped the Bears (6-7) snap a six-game losing streak by thriving in his matchup against Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, who was taken 10 spots after Trubisky in the 2017 NFL Draft. Trubisky closed the first half 18 of 21 for 178 yards with scoring strikes to Jimmy Graham, Darnell Mooney and Allen Robinson II as the Bears raced to a 23-point halftime advantage.

Watso could not keep pace. He passed for 219 yards and a touchdown but was sacked six times and briefly knocked from the game in the third quarter. Watson was tackled in the end zone for a safety for a second consecutive week as the Texans (4-9) failed to muster much of a competitive effort.

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General view as New Orleans Saints quarterback Taysom Hill (7) passes the ball to tight end Jared Cook (87) during the third quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Cowboys 30, Bengals 7

Andy Dalton was sharp in his return to Cincinnati, and Dallas (4-9) took advantage of three first-half fumbles to snap a two-game skid with the win over the Bengals (2-10-1).

Dalton was a second-round pick in the 2011 NFL Draft with the Bengals before being let go by the club in April. He was 16-of-23 passing for 185 yards and two touchdowns.

Amari Cooper had four catches for 51 yards and touchdown for Dallas, which scored at least 20 points for just the second time in the past eight games. Aldon Smith, Jourdan Lewis and Jaylon Smith each had a fumble recovery for the Cowboys.

Buccaneers 26, Vikings 14

Taking advantage of a late bye week, Tampa Bay emerged refreshed and improved its playoff prospects with a victory over visiting Minnesota.

Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady was 15 of 23 for 196 yards and two touchdowns, including a momentum-changing, 48-yard touchdown pass in the first half to Scotty Miller. Antonio Brown had five catches for 49 yards for Tampa Bay (8-5), while Ronald Jones II had 18 carries for 80 yards and a TD.

The Vikings (6-7) dropped out of playoff eligibility with the loss and the Arizona Cardinals' victory over the New York Giants.

Broncos 32, Panthers 27

Drew Lock threw four touchdown passes and Diontae Spencer returned a punt for a score as Denver beat host Carolina.

It marked the most scoring passes in a game for Lock, a second-year pro. He went 21-of-27 for 280 yards, with two of the touchdown passes going to KJ Hamler.

Lock evened his touchdown-to-interception ratio for the season at 13 apiece as the Broncos (5-8) snapped a two-game skid. The Panthers (4-9), coming off their bye week, lost their second game in a row and fell to 2-5 at home.

Cardinals 26, Giants 7

Haason Reddick set a franchise record with five sacks and Kenyan Drake rushed for 80 yards and a touchdown as Arizona beat host New York in East Rutherford, N.J.

Kyler Murray went 24-of-35 passing for 244 yards and a touchdown for the Cardinals (7-6), who bolstered their playoff positioning with just their second win in the past six games. DeAndre Hopkins caught nine passes for 136 yards, Dan Arnold made a touchdown catch and Mike Nugent kicked four field goals for Arizona, which had eight sacks.

Dion Lewis rushed for a touchdown for New York (5-8), which committed three turnovers and had its four-game winning streak snapped. Daniel Jones went 11-of-21 passing for 127 yards and was sacked six times before Colt McCoy took over for the Giants' final possession and was sacked twice by Reddick.

Titans 31, Jaguars 10

Derrick Henry rushed for 215 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries to lead visiting Tennessee past Jacksonville.

The Titans (9-4) maintained their lead in the AFC South, beating the Jaguars (1-12) for the seventh time in their past eight meetings, and clinched their fifth consecutive winning season.

Henry surpassed 100 rushing yards in a game at Jacksonville for the first time, and Jaguars running back James Robinson finished with 67 yards on 12 carries to become the first undrafted rookie in NFL history to reach 1,000 yards rushing through the first 14 weeks of a season.

Seahawks 40, Jets 3

Russell Wilson threw four touchdown passes as the Seattle offense got untracked in the rout of visiting New York.

The Seahawks (9-4) remained tied with the Los Angeles Rams atop the NFC West. The Jets (0-13) are three losses away from joining the 2008 Detroit Lions and the 2017 Cleveland Browns as the only 0-16 teams in NFL history.

After scoring 27 or more points in each of their first eight games of the season, the Seahawks had reached that mark just once since entering Sunday's game.

Chargers 20, Falcons 17

Michael Davis intercepted a pass in the closing minute and Michael Badgley hit a 43-yard field goal on the final play as Los Angeles eliminated Atlanta from playoff contention at Inglewood, Calif.

Chargers rookie quarterback Justin Herbert was 36 of 44 for 243 yards and two touchdowns, giving him eight games this season with multiple TD passes. Austin Ekeler and Keenan Allen each had nine catches for Los Angeles (4-9), while Ekeler added 79 yards rushing on 15 carries.

Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan was 21 of 32 for 224 yards but was intercepted three times, all in the second half. Calvin Ridley had eight catches for 124 yards for Atlanta (4-9). Todd Gurley, playing in his first game in Los Angeles after being cut by the Rams, had 19 yards on six carries.

--Field Level Media

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