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NFL roundup: Chiefs down Saints for 9th straight win

[December 21, 2020] Patrick Mahomes threw three touchdown passes and the visiting Kansas City Chiefs won their ninth consecutive game by defeating the New Orleans Saints 32-29 on Sunday in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

Mahomes completed 26 of 47 for 254 yards as the Chiefs improved their NFL-best record to 13-1.

Drew Brees returned from a four-game absence due to rib and lung injuries to complete 15 of 34 passes for 234 yards with three touchdowns and an interception as the Saints (10-4) lost their second straight after a nine-game winning streak.

The Chiefs led at halftime, but Brees threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Latavius Murray on the first possession of the third quarter to give the Saints their only lead at 15-14.

Buccaneers 31, Falcons 27

Tom Brady threw a 46-yard touchdown pass to Antonio Brown with 6:19 remaining and visiting Tampa Bay overcame a 17-point halftime deficit to defeat Atlanta.

Brady completed 31 of 45 passes for a season-high 390 yards with two touchdowns, with most of the production coming in the second half. The winning points came on Brown's first touchdown since joining the team last month as the Buccaneers (9-5) improved to 5-2 on the road.

Matt Ryan threw for three touchdowns, but the Falcons failed to put a dent in the Buccaneers' bid for a playoff spot. Instead, it was another lead that Atlanta (4-10) didn't protect. Ryan hit 34 of 49 passes for 356 yards.

Bears 33, Vikings 27

David Montgomery rushed for a career-high 146 yards and two touchdowns and Mitchell Trubisky had a passing touchdown and 236 yards of offense as visiting Chicago kept its NFC playoff hopes alive with a win over Minnesota.

Chicago (7-7) won for the second straight week on the heels of a six-game skid and is one game behind the Arizona Cardinals for the final NFC wild-card spot. The Vikings, who rallied after starting the season 1-5, fell to 6-8 as their playoff aspirations took a sizable hit with two weeks left in the regular season.

Trubisky was 15-for-21 passing for 202 yards with one touchdown and one interception for the Bears. Allen Robinson finished with four catches for 83 yards. Kirk Cousins was 24-for-35 for 271 yards and two touchdowns for Minnesota. Dalvin Cook had 24 rushes for 132 yards and a touchdown.

Ravens 40, Jaguars 14

Baltimore had little trouble moving one step closer to earning its third straight trip to the playoffs with a dominating home victory over Jacksonville.

The Ravens (9-5) never trailed against the Jaguars (1-13), who lost its 13th consecutive game, tied for the longest losing streak in franchise history. Baltimore won its third straight game.

Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson passed for 243 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 35 yards and another score. J.K. Dobbins finished with 14 carries for 64 yards and a touchdown, which marked his franchise-record fourth straight game in which he found the end zone. Gardner Minshew went 22-of-29 passing for 226 yards and two touchdowns for Jacksonville.

Titans 46, Lions 25

Ryan Tannehill passed for three touchdowns and rushed for two more as Tennessee overwhelmed visiting Detroit in Nashville.

Tannehill completed 21 of 27 passes for 273 yards and rushed for 21 yards on three carries. Derrick Henry rushed for 147 yards and one score on 24 carries as the Titans (10-4) remained tied for first in the AFC South with Indianapolis. Corey Davis caught four passes for 110 yards and a touchdown.

D'Andre Swift rushed for 67 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries, and Matthew Stafford passed for 252 yards and a touchdown for the Lions (5-9). Marvin Jones Jr. caught 10 passes for 112 yards and a touchdown.

Colts 27, Texans 20

Zach Pascal scored his second touchdown with less than two minutes to play and Indianapolis kept pace atop the AFC South with a win over visiting Houston.

The Colts (10-4) stayed tied atop the division with the Tennessee Titans by delivering in the clutch after the Texans (4-10) knotted the score at 20 with Keke Coutee's 9-yard touchdown catch with 7:25 to play.

Pascal capped a 12-play, 75-yard drive with his 5-yard scoring grab with 1:47 left, but the critical play came when Philip Rivers found T.Y. Hilton for a 41-yard gain to the Houston 3-yard line.

Dolphins 22, Patriots 12

Rookie quarterback Tua Tagovailoa ran for a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns as host Miami eliminated New England from the playoffs for the first time since 2008.

Tagovailoa passed for 145 yards with one interception, keeping Miami (9-5) on track for its first playoff berth since 2016. The Dolphins are guaranteed to make the playoffs with wins in their final two regular-season games.

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Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill (17) runs for a touchdown against the Detroit Lions during the second half at Nissan Stadium. Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Nick Folk made four field goals for the Patriots (6-8), who had their streak of 19 consecutive winning seasons snapped. Quarterback Cam Newton passed for 209 yards.

Seahawks 20, Washington 15

Carlos Hyde scored on a 50-yard run and visiting Seattle held off a late rally to clinch a playoff berth while ending Washington's four-game winning streak in a game in Landover, Md.

Russell Wilson threw for a touchdown and rushed for 52 yards for the Seahawks (10-4), who reached the postseason for the ninth time in coach Pete Carroll's 11 seasons. Washington (6-8) limited Wilson to 121 yards on 18-of-27 passing but gave up a season-high 181 yards on the ground.

Washington's Dwayne Haskins Jr., playing in place of the injured Alex Smith, completed 38 of 55 passes for 295 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Logan Thomas made 13 catches for 101 yards.

Jets 23, Rams 20

Sam Darnold threw for 207 yards in his homecoming and New York pulled off its first victory of the season, defeating Los Angeles in Inglewood, Calif.

The Jets' defense held the Rams to just three points and 97 total yards in the first half -- and 303 yards in the game -- to avoid becoming the first team to go winless in a season since the Cleveland Browns in 2017.

The Rams (9-5) were driving for a potential go-ahead score late in the fourth quarter, but Jets safety Marcus Maye knocked down a pass on fourth-and-4 from the New York 37-yard line. The Jets (1-13) ran out the clock from there to win as more than two-touchdown underdogs.

Cardinals 33, Eagles 26

Kyler Murray passed for a career-high 406 yards with three touchdowns to lead Arizona over Philadelphia in a battle of former Oklahoma quarterbacks in Glendale, Ariz.

Murray completed 13 consecutive passes at one point, tying his career high. He completed 27 of 36 attempts with one interception. Eagles rookie Jalen Hurts threw for 338 yards, while completing 24 of 44 passes with three touchdowns and no interceptions. He also rushed for 63 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries.

Arizona (8-6) scored the winning points with 7:17 left in the fourth quarter on a 20-yard pass from Murray to DeAndre Hopkins. Philadelphia (4-9-1) had tied the game at 26 when Hurts scored on a 7-yard run with 55 seconds left in the third quarter.

Cowboys 41, 49ers 33

Andy Dalton passed for 209 yards and two touchdowns and Dallas scored 24 points off turnovers in a victory over San Francisco in Arlington, Texas.

The Cowboys (5-9) won back-to-back games for the first time this year. The 49ers (5-9) committed four turnovers and have lost three straight games and six of their last seven.

Nick Mullens completed 21 of 36 passes for 219 yards and two touchdowns for San Francisco but threw two costly interceptions in the fourth quarter. San Francisco's Robbie Gould made a 31-yard field goal -- the 400th of his career -- with 40 seconds left, but CeeDee Lamb recovered the onside kick and returned it 47 yards for a touchdown.

Browns 20, Giants 6

Baker Mayfield passed for 297 yards and two touchdowns as Cleveland beat New York in East Rutherford, N.J., bolstering its AFC playoff hopes and moving closer to ending a 17-season playoff drought.

Nick Chubb rushed for 50 yards and one touchdown on 15 carries for the Browns (10-4). Jarvis Landry caught seven passes for 61 yards and one touchdown, and Austin Hooper also had a scoring reception as Cleveland won for the fifth time in the past six games.

Graham Gano's two field goals represented all the points for the Giants (5-9), who have lost two straight games after winning their previous four contests. New York's Daniel Jones (hamstring, ankle) was inactive. Colt McCoy started in his place and completed 19 of 31 passes for 221 yards.

--Field Level Media

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