NFL roundup: Dolphins prevail in shootout with Chargers

 

[September 11, 2023]  Tyreek Hill's 4-yard touchdown catch from Tua Tagovailoa with 1:45 to play served as the game-winner as the Miami Dolphins survived a back-and-forth fourth quarter and prevailed 36-34 over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday in Inglewood, Calif.

Tagovailoa racked up 466 passing yards, three touchdowns and one interception on 28-of-45 passing, and Hill finished with 11 catches for 215 yards and two scores for Miami (1-0) in the thrilling season-opening victory.

The game saw seven lead changes and two ties, but the Chargers (0-1) had control early in the fourth quarter when Joshua Kelley punched it in from 2 yards out for a 31-27 lead with 14 minutes to go.

The Dolphins answered with Jason Sanders' 45-yard field goal, and Justin Herbert led the Chargers on a 13-play, 68-yard drive that ate up 6:10 of game clock but only resulted in Cameron Dicker's 25-yard field goal to make it 34-30.

Herbert went 23-for-33 passing for 228 yards and one touchdown. Los Angeles thrived in the run game, though, as Austin Ekeler took 16 carries for 117 yards and one touchdown, and Kelley added 16 for 91 yards and his score.

Eagles 25, Patriots 20

Jake Elliott made good on three second-half field goals to help Philadelphia ward off a comeback attempt by New England in Foxborough, Mass.

Elliott's final kick came from 51 yards out with 5:33 left in the game. It proved to be critical when Mac Jones found Kendrick Bourne for an 11-yard touchdown just under two minutes later to pull New England within five. The Patriots couldn't convert the two-point conversion, but they ended up getting the ball back twice. Both times, however, New England turned the ball over on downs.

Jalen Hurts completed 22 of 33 passes for 170 yards and a touchdown for Philadelphia. Jones threw for 316 yards, three touchdowns and one interception on 35-for-54 passing. The one interception was returned 70 yards for a score by Darius Slay for a 10-0 lead in the first quarter.

Packers 38, Bears 20

Jordan Love passed for 245 yards and three touchdowns, Aaron Jones tallied 127 total yards and two touchdowns and Green Bay rolled past host Chicago.

Romeo Doubs had two touchdown receptions for the Packers (1-0), who won decisively in their first game since parting ways with franchise icon Aaron Rodgers. Love looked comfortable in his second NFL start as he posted a 123.2 passer rating.

Justin Fields completed 24 of 37 passes for 216 yards, one touchdown and one interception for Chicago (0-1) -- though the interception was returned 37 yards for a score by Packers linebacker Quay Walker.

Cowboys 40, Giants 0

Riding a dominant defense and special teams, Dallas embarrassed New York in East Rutherford, N.J.

Under a driving rainfall, the Cowboys (1-0) returned a blocked field goal and an interception for touchdowns during the first quarter alone. Tony Pollard ran for 70 yards and two touchdowns as Dallas recorded the largest shutout win in franchise history and beat the Giants (0-1) for the 12th time in 13 meetings.

The Cowboys held Giants quarterback Daniel Jones to 15-for-28 passing for 104 yards, sacking him seven times and intercepting him twice. It was Jones' first game since signing a four-year, $160 million contract this past offseason.

Falcons 24, Panthers 10

Behind the rushing duo of Tyler Allgeier and Bijan Robinson and three forced turnovers by safety Jessie Bates III, Atlanta downed visiting Carolina.

Allgeier had 15 carries for a team-high 75 yards and two scores. Robinson, in his NFL debut, had 56 yards on 10 carries. He also recorded six receptions for 27 yards and a touchdown. Bates had 10 tackles, two interceptions and a forced fumble in his Atlanta (1-0) debut after coming over from Cincinnati in the offseason.

Bryce Young, making his first NFL start, completed 20 of 38 passes for 146 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions for the Panthers (0-1).

Ravens 25, Texans 9

Lamar Jackson passed for 169 yards in his first game with a new five-year contract, Justice Hill ran for two touchdowns and Baltimore opened the season with a victory over visiting Houston.

Jackson completed 17 of 22 passes with one interception and a lost fumble. J.K. Dobbins had 22 yards and a touchdown on eight carries before departing early in the second half with a season-ending Achilles injury.

In his first NFL game, Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud passed for 242 yards and was sacked five times. The No. 2 overall draft pick out of Ohio State this past April was 28-of-44 passing and lost a fumble. Houston (0-1) outgained the Ravens (1-0) 268-265.

Browns 24, Bengals 3

Deshaun Watson ran for a score and threw for another as Cleveland beat visiting Cincinnati in a steady rain in both teams' season opener.

Browns star running back Nick Chubb finished with 106 yards on 18 carries. Watson completed 16 of 29 passes for 154 yards, including a 3-yard TD pass to Harrison Bryant, followed by Watson's two-point conversion run, for a 24-3 lead with 9:11 left in the fourth.

It was the sixth straight win for the Browns over the Bengals in Cleveland. Cincinnati quarterback Joe Burrow, fresh from signing his league-record five-year, $275 million extension on Saturday, finished just 14-of-31 passing for 82 yards.

Jaguars 31, Colts 21

A 14-point fourth quarter flurry helped Jacksonville spoil the debut of rookie Anthony Richardson and escape Indianapolis with a victory.

Jacksonville (1-0) owned the fourth quarter, flipping momentum for good with Tyson Campbell's interception of Richardson to set up Travis Etienne's 26-yard touchdown run. That completed a swing from a 21-17 deficit to a 31-21 lead thanks to 14 points in a span of 66 seconds.

Trevor Lawrence passed for 241 yards and two touchdowns and Etienne had 77 rushing yards. Jaguars defensive end Josh Allen had a career-best three sacks. Richardson, who was sacked four times, had 40 rushing yards and a touchdown along with a TD pass. He completed 24 of 37 passes for 223 yards for the Colts (0-1).

Buccaneers 20, Vikings 17

Chase McLaughlin made a 57-yard field goal to break a tie with 5:10 remaining in the fourth quarter, and Tampa Bay held on to defeat Minnesota in Minneapolis.

Baker Mayfield completed 21 of 34 passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns in his debut for Tampa Bay (1-0), which played its first game since Tom Brady's retirement. Mike Evans and Trey Palmer had one touchdown catch apiece.

Kirk Cousins completed 33 of 44 passes for 344 yards, two touchdowns and one interception for Minnesota (0-1). Justin Jefferson had nine catches for a game-high 150 yards, and Jordan Addison had a touchdown catch in his NFL debut.

Saints 16, Titans 15

Derek Carr passed to Rashid Shaheed for the game's only touchdown and New Orleans intercepted Ryan Tannehill three times in a victory over visiting Tennessee in the season opener for both teams.

Carr, who signed with New Orleans as a free agent in the offseason after nine seasons with the Raiders, completed 23 of 33 passes for 305 yards with one interception and teamed with Shaheed for a 19-yard tiebreaking score in the third quarter. Tannehill completed 16 of 34 passes for 198 yards.

The Saints drove 60 yards on their first possession of the third quarter, and rookie Blake Grupe kicked a 52-yard field goal to tie the score at 9. Carr threw the scoring pass to Shaheed for the Saints' first lead, 16-9, with 1:23 left in the third. Nick Folk kicked two field goals to bring the Titans within one, but New Orleans closed it out.

49ers 30, Steelers 7

Brock Purdy threw two touchdown passes to Brandon Aiyuk, Christian McCaffrey scored on a long run and San Francisco rolled to a 30-7 victory over host Pittsburgh.

Purdy completed 19 of 29 passes for 220 yards and McCaffrey rushed for 152 yards on 22 carries as the 49ers (1-0) controlled the contest. Aiyuk caught eight passes for 129 yards.

Kenny Pickett was 31-of-46 passing for 232 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions for the Steelers (0-1), who were outgained 391-239. The 49ers sacked Pickett five times. T.J. Watt responded by recording three sacks and forcing two fumbles (recovering one) during a standout performance for Pittsburgh.

Commanders 20, Cardinals 16

In its first game with new owner Josh Harris, Washington held off Arizona before a sold-out crowd in Landover, Md., in the season opener for both teams.

Sam Howell, making the second start of his career, completed 19 of 31 passes for 202 yards and a touchdown, giving the Commanders a 17-16 lead on a 6-yard run with 11:48 remaining in regulation.

Cardinals quarterback Joshua Dobbs was starting his third career game after being acquired in a trade from the Browns on Aug. 24. Along with a strip sack that led to the go-ahead touchdown, he fumbled a snap on first-and-15 that was recovered by defensive lineman Abdullah Anderson and resulted in a 33-yard field goal by Joey Slye for the final points of the game.

Raiders 17, Broncos 16

Jimmy Garoppolo passed for two touchdowns in his Las Vegas debut, and the Raiders spoiled Sean Payton's first game as Denver's coach with a one-point win over the host Broncos.

Jakobi Meyers had nine catches for 81 yards and two scores in his first game with the Raiders (1-0), who beat the Broncos for the seventh straight time. Meyers left late in the contest to be examined for a possible concussion.

Payton's squad fell just short, partially due to Will Lutz's missed extra point after the team's first touchdown. Russell Wilson completed 27 of 34 passes for 177 yards and two touchdowns for Denver (0-1).

Rams 30, Seahawks 13

Kyren Williams rushed for the first two touchdowns of his career as visiting Los Angeles scored 23 unanswered points in the second half to defeat injury-riddled Seattle in the opening week of the NFL season.

Cam Akers also rushed for a score and Matthew Stafford completed 24 of 38 passes for 334 yards for the Rams, who went 5-12 last season as the defending Super Bowl champions. Rookie Puka Nacua, a fifth-round pick, made 10 catches for 119 yards.

Kenneth Walker III rushed for a game-high 64 yards and Geno Smith was 16-of-26 passing for 112 yards and a touchdown for the Seahawks, who ran 14 plays from scrimmage for just 12 yards in the second half. That was due in large part to losing both of their starting offensive tackles to injuries.

--Field Level Media

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