SCOREBOARD
Monday, Sept. 23
Chicago at Washington, 8:15 p.m. EDT. Mitchell Trubisky has won his past four road starts for the Bears (1-1), but the Chicago quarterback has struggled in the first two games while going 42 of 72 for 348 yards with an interception and no TDs. The Redskins (0-2) also have recent history on their side, having won the past seven meetings. Case Keenum is off to a solid start, throwing for 601 yards and five TDs with no INTs through his first two games.
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STARS
Passing
- Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs, threw for 374 yards and three touchdowns and Kansas City held on for a 33-28 victory over Baltimore.
- Daniel Jones, Giants, threw for 336 yards and two touchdowns in his first NFL start and also ran for two TDs, including the go-ahead score with 1:16 remaining, to help New York rally from an 18-point halftime deficit to beat Tampa Bay 32-31.
- Kyle Allen, Panthers, passed for 261 yards and four touchdowns in place of the injured Cam Newton in Carolina’s 38-20 win over Arizona.
- Dak Prescott, Cowboys, threw two touchdown passes to Amari Cooper before running for another score, and Dallas cruised past Miami 31-6.
- Deshaun Watson, Texans, passed for 351 yards and hit Jordan Akins with two of his three touchdown tosses in Houston’s 27-20 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers.
- Jacoby Brissett, Colts, went 28 of 37 for 310 yards and two TDs in Indianapolis’ 27-24 win over Atlanta.
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Rushing
- Mark Ingram, Ravens, ran for three touchdowns, finishing with 103 yards rushing on 16 carries, and caught four passes for 32 yards in a losing cause as Baltimore fell 33-28 at Kansas City.
- Christian McCaffrey, Panthers, had 153 yards rushing, including a 76-yard touchdown, on 24 carries in Carolina’s 38-20 win at Arizona.
- Ezekiel Elliott, Cowboys, had 125 yards rushing on 19 attempts in Dallas’ 31-6 win over Miami.
- Dalvin Cook, Vikings, had 16 carries for 110 yards and a score in just three quarters as Minnesota topped Oakland 34-14.
- Frank Gore, Bills, had two touchdown runs, including a go-ahead 1-yard score with 1:50 remaining, in Buffalo’s 21-17 win over Cincinnati.
- Phillip Lindsay, Broncos, ran for two touchdowns in Denver’s 27-16 loss at Green Bay.
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Receiving
- Mike Evans, Buccaneers, caught three touchdown passes and finished with eight receptions for 190 yards in a losing cause as Tampa Bay fell 32-31 to the New York Giants.
- Cooper Kupp, Rams, had a career-high 11 receptions for 102 yards and two touchdowns in Los Angeles’ 20-13 win at Cleveland.
- Keenan Allen, Chargers, caught 13 passes for a career-high 183 yards and two touchdowns in Los Angeles’ 27-20 loss to Houston.
- Darren Waller, Raiders, had 13 receptions for 134 yards in Oakland’s 34-14 loss at Minnesota.
- Tyler Lockett, Seahawks, caught 11 passes for 154 yards and a score in Seattle’s 33-27 loss to New Orleans.
- Julio Jones, Falcons, had 128 yards receiving and a touchdown on eight receptions in Atlanta’s 27-24 loss at Indianapolis.
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Special Teams
- Jamal Agnew, Lions, returned a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown - the first in the NFL this season - to help Detroit edge Philadelphia 27-24.
- Deonte Harris, Saints, took a punt back 53 yards for a score in New Orleans’ 33-27 win at Seattle.
- Malcolm Jenkins, Eagles, blocked Matt Prater’s 46-yard field goal try in Philadelphia’s 27-24 loss to Detroit.
- Arthur Maulet, Jets, recovered a muffed punt return by Gunner Olszewski in the end zone for a touchdown in New York’s 30-14 loss at New England.
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Defense
- Shaquil Barrett, Buccaneers, had four of Tampa Bay’s five sacks and forced a fumble in a 32-31 loss to the New York Giants.
- Preston Smith, Packers, matched a career high with three sacks in Green Bay’s 27-16 victory over Denver.
- Tre’Davious White, Bills, sealed Buffalo’s 21-17 win over Cincinnati with the second of his two interceptions - picking off Andy Dalton’s tipped pass on third-and-5 from Buffalo’s 28 with 12 seconds remaining.
- Vonn Bell, Saints, returned a fumble 33 yards for a touchdown in New Orleans’ 33-27 win at Seattle.
- Jamal Adams, Jets, returned an interception thrown by Jarrett Stidham - who replaced Tom Brady for one series - 61 yards for a touchdown in New York’s 30-14 loss at New England.
- Donte Jackson and Mario Addison, Panthers. Jackson had two interceptions and Addison three sacks in Carolina’s 38-20 victory at Arizona.
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MILESTONES
With his touchdown throw to Phillip Dorsett in the first quarter of New England’s 30-14 win over the New York Jets, Tom Brady passed Drew Brees for second place on the NFL’s career list for touchdown passes. It was Brady’s 523rd TD pass. Peyton Manning is first with 539. … Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers tied Fran Tarkenton for the ninth-most touchdown passes in NFL history with 342. Next up for Rodgers is Eli Manning, who has 362. … Kansas City coach Andy Reid won his 210th game, breaking a tie with Chuck Knoll for sixth-most in NFL history. … Atlanta’s Matt Ryan passed John Elway for ninth on the league’s career completion list - he has 4,143 - and broke a tie with Elway for No. 11 on the career TD passes list - he has 303. … Philip Rivers made his 209th consecutive start, tying Eli Manning for the second-longest streak in NFL history. Brett Favre started 297 straight, meaning the 37-year-old Rivers would have to play five more seasons after this one to catch him.
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STREAKS & STATS
Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes has 13 games of at least 300 yards passing, breaking Kurt Warner’s mark for the most in the first 20 games of a career. … The Chiefs have scored 26 or more points in an NFL-record 24 straight regular-season games. … Denver fell to 0-6-1 all-time on the road against Green Bay. … Miami has been outscored 133-16, the largest point differential through three games in league history since 1950. … New England won its seventh straight over the New York Jets and earned its ninth consecutive regular-season win at home over its AFC East rival. … Seattle’s 33-27 loss to New Orleans was its first at home in the month of September under coach Pete Carroll. The Seahawks had been 15-0 at home in September since 2010.
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STARTS
With a 21-17 victory over Cincinnati, Buffalo improved to 3-0 for the first time since 2011 and only the third time in 26 years. … Bengals rookie coach Zac Taylor, who took over after Marvin Lewis was fired this offseason, became the fifth of Cincinnati’s 10 coaches to open his first season 0-3, and third in a row. The worst start by a first-year Bengals coach was Sam Wyche, who lost his first five in 1984. … The New York Jets are off to their first 0-3 start since 2003. … Miami is 0-3 for the first time since losing its first seven in 2011. … Dallas is 3-0 for the first time since 2008.
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TURNING IT AROUND
After missing the playoffs last season, Buffalo (3-0), Detroit (2-0-1), Green Bay (3-0) and San Francisco (3-0) are all off to undefeated starts. It marks the fourth time since 1990 - when the current playoff format began - that at least four teams have started the season without a loss in their first three games after missing the postseason the previous year. It also happened in the 2013, 2003 and 2002 seasons.
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DOMINANT D
With a 30-14 victory over the New York Jets, the New England Patriots became the first team in the Super Bowl era to not allow a rushing or passing touchdown in their first three games. The Patriots are also the first team to hold opponents scoreless in the first half of five consecutive games, including the postseason, the longest such streak in the Super Bowl era.
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MR. JONES
Rookie quarterback Daniel Jones threw for 336 yards and two touchdowns and also ran for two TDs, including the go-ahead score with 1:16 remaining as the New York Giants rallied from an 18-point halftime deficit to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 32-31. Jones, making his first NFL start in place of benched two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning, also led the Giants with 28 yards rushing on four attempts. He is the first rookie with at least 300 passing yards, two passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns in a single game since 1970.
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PASSING PAT
Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes threw for 374 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions for a 132.0 rating in the Chiefs’ 33-28 win over Baltimore. Through 20 NFL games, Mahomes has the highest marks in yards passing (6,576), TD passes (60) and passer rating (115.3) in NFL history. His 13 games of at least 300 yards top Kurt Warner’s previous mark of 12 through a player’s first 20 games. Mahomes is also the first player with at least 350 yards passing, three touchdown passes and no interceptions in three consecutive games in NFL history.
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YOUNG GUNS
Kyle Allen threw for 261 yards and four touchdowns in place of the injured Cam Newton, helping the Carolina Panthers beat the Arizona Cardinals 38-20. The 23-year-old Allen was outstanding in his second career start, making several big throws, finishing 19 of 26, including two touchdowns to Greg Olsen and one each to Curtis Samuel and DJ Moore. He outplayed Arizona’s Kyler Murray, who was his former college teammate at Texas A&M. Murray was 30 of 43 for 173 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. He also ran for 69 yards. But Murray was also sacked eight times.
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TOUCHDOWN TEDDY
Teddy Bridgewater threw two touchdown passes in his first start in place of Drew Brees, leading New Orleans past the Seattle Seahawks 33-27. Bridgewater threw a 29-yard touchdown to Alvin Kamara late in the first half on a screen pass where the talented running back bounced off several tacklers on his way to the end zone. He added a 1-yard TD toss to Michael Thomas on fourth-and-goal on the first possession of the second half, a drive kept alive by an illegal formation penalty against Seattle on a missed field goal attempt. It was Bridgewater’s first win as a starting quarterback since Jan. 3, 2016, the final week of the 2015 season.
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SHAQ ATTAQ
Tampa Bay linebacker Shaquil Barrett had four sacks in the Buccaneers’ 32-31 loss to the New York Giants. He has eight sacks in three games, tying the Jets’ Mark Gastineau (1984) for the most in the first three games of a season since 1982 - when sacks became an official sack.
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IMMEDIATE IMPACT
Pittsburgh safety Minkah Fitzpatrick intercepted a pass in the first quarter of the Steelers’ 24-20 loss at San Francisco and forced a fumble by Raheem Mostert in the red zone in the second quarter that Devin Bush recovered. Fitzpatrick, acquired from Miami this past week in a deal that sent a first-round pick to the Dolphins, became the first Steelers player with an interception and forced fumble in the opening half since James Harrison did it against the Chargers on Nov. 16, 2008.
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COOK-ING WITH GAS
Minnesota’s Dalvin Cook ran for 110 yards and a touchdown in the Vikings’ 34-14 win over Oakland, becoming the fifth player in NFL history with at least 110 yards rushing and a TD run in each of his team’s first three games. Cook joins Jim Brown (1958), O.J. Simpson (1975), Emmitt Smith (1995) and Curtis Martin (2004).
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SIDELINED
Super Bowl MVP Julian Edelman left the Patriots’ win against the Jets with a chest injury. He caught a pass, fell on his right side and was sandwiched by Harvey Langi and Henry Anderson. Edelman got up holding his rib area. … Giants running back Saquon Barkley left his team’s 32-31 win over Tampa Bay with a right ankle injury late in the first half. He was seen on crutches and with a boot on the ankle afterward. … Miami wide receiver Allen Hurns had to be taken off the field after a jarring play at Dallas, just as he did in the playoffs last season when he played for the Cowboys. Hurns stayed down for a couple of minutes after a huge hit from Dallas safety Jeff Heath that resulted in an incompletion. He was ruled out with a concussion. … Atlanta safety Keanu Neal was carted off the field late in the first half at Indianapolis with an Achilles tendon injury. He missed last season after tearing an ACL in the season opener. … Colts receiver T.Y. Hilton aggravated a quadriceps injury. … Chiefs running back LeSean McCoy aggravated his sore ankle on his touchdown catch in the fourth quarter.
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SPEAKING
“I took basically one shot. I hit the ground one time. So, I’m ecstatic. I’ve been at this for a long time. To go home with my body feeling this good is a credit to the offensive line, for sure.” - Green Bay’s Aaron Rodgers, who wasn’t sacked and was barely touched by Denver’s defense in the Packers’ 27-16 victory.
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“I was feeling like everyone was open and I was throwing it to people in my color jersey who were open. It was just one of those days.” - Indianapolis quarterback Jacoby Brissett, who threw for 310 yards and two TDs in Indianapolis’ 27-24 win over Atlanta
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