Minnesota Vikings quarterback Joshua Dobbs (15) runs for a first down past an Atlanta Falcons' defender during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 5, 2023, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
ATLANTA (AP) – Newly acquired Joshua Dobbs threw two touchdown passes, including a go-ahead six-yarder to Brandon Powell with 22 seconds remaining, and also ran for a major, and the Minnesota Vikings rallied to beat the Atlanta Falcons 31-28 on Sunday for their fourth straight National Football League victory.
Minnesota (5-4) overcame the loss of rookie quarterback Jaren Hall to a concussion in the first quarter.
Dobbs led the go-ahead drive after Tyler Allgeier’s five-yard scoring run gave Atlanta (4-5) the lead with 2:08 remaining.
Dobbs was acquired from the Arizona Cardinals on Tuesday. The 28-year-old started all eight games for the Cardinals as a fill-in while Kyler Murray recovers from a knee injury. Murray’s imminent return made Dobbs available for a trade.
Only five days after the trade, Dobbs made his case to keep the starting job for Minnesota. He completed 20 of 30 passes for 158 yards and two touchdowns and had seven carries for 66 yards and another score.
Taylor Heinicke threw a 60-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jonnu Smith in his first Atlanta start to give the Falcons a 21-13 lead in the third quarter. Dobbs’ 18-yard scoring run and two-point pass to Trishton Jackson tied the game.
Elsewhere in the NFL on Sunday:
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TEXANS 39 BUCCANEERS 37
HOUSTON (AP) – Rookie C.J. Stroud threw for 470 yards and five touchdowns, and his 15-yard touchdown pass to Tank Dell with six seconds remaining lifted Houston over Tampa Bay in a wild finish.
Baker Mayfield put the Buccaneers on top with a 14-yard TD pass to Cade Otton with 46 seconds left.
But the Texans (4-4) drove down the field and Stroud found Dell in the end zone to give the Texans the lead.
Stroud kneeled instead of attempting the two-point conversion with kicker Kaʻimi Fairbairn out with a quadriceps injury. The Buccaneers fumbled on the final play to give Houston the victory.
A 26-yard reception by Dell, who had 114 yards receiving, got the Texans within striking distance before Stroud found Dell again to complete the come-from-behind victory.
Mayfield threw for 265 yards and two touchdowns and the Buccaneers (3-5) dropped their fourth straight game.
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EAGLES 28 COWBOYS 23
PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Jalen Hurts braved a direct hit on his injured left knee to throw for 207 yards and two touchdowns, and he ran for another tush push score to lead Philadelphia. The Eagles are the only 8-1 team in the NFL.
The Eagles did all they could on Dallas’ final drive to cough up the game. Dak Prescott needed to move the Cowboys 86 yards in 46 seconds for the potential winning score – and promptly got 56 yards of Eagles’ penalties to reach the 6-yard-line.
On the cusp of a stunning comeback, Prescott instead was sacked by Josh Sweat for an 11-yard loss.
After a penalty on the Cowboys (5-3) moved them to the 27, Prescott hit CeeDee Lamb for 22 yards, but the wideout was tackled by Darius Slay at the five to end the game.
Prescott threw for 374 yards and three scores. Lamb had 11 catches for 191 yards.
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BENGALS 24 BILLS 18
CINCINNATI (AP) – Joe Burrow threw for a season-high 348 yards and had two touchdown passes as Cincinnati beat Buffalo for its fourth straight victory.
Burrow was 31 for 44 while completing passes to eight receivers, with tight ends Irv Smith Jr. and Drew Sample making the touchdown grabs. Tee Higgins had eight receptions for a season-high 110 yards for the Bengals (5-3).
Meanwhile, Cincinnati’s defence kept Josh Allen and the Bills (5-4) playing from behind throughout. Allen had a respectable night, going 26 for 38 and 258 yards, but he also threw an interception for the fifth straight game. Stefon Diggs had six catches for 86 yards.
The game marked the return of Bills safety Damar Hamlin to Cincinnati, where he nearly died after going into cardiac arrest before being resuscitated on the field on Jan. 2. Hamlin didn’t play as he was one of Buffalo’s inactive players and watched the game from the sideline.
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CHIEFS 21 DOLPHINS 14
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) – Patrick Mahomes threw two touchdown passes, safety Bryan Cook scored on a 59-yard fumble return and Kansas City held on to beat Miami.
The Chiefs (7-2) did just enough to slow the NFL’s top-ranked offence in the first-ever regular season game in Frankfurt, but they nearly blew a big lead.
Miami’s comeback fell short when quarterback Tua Tagovailoa couldn’t handle a snap on fourth-and-10 from the Kansas City 31 with 1:03 to play.
Mahomes connected on first-half scoring passes to Rashee Rice and Jerick McKinnon as Miami (6-3) kept getting stuck in third-and-long situations. The Dolphins also fell to 0-3 on the season against teams with winning records.
Mahomes finished 20 of 30 for a season-low 185 yards in his European debut, but the Chiefs’ offence struggled in the second half. Tight end Travis Kelce had just three catches for 14 yards.
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RAVENS 37 SEAHAWKS 3
BALTIMORE (AP) – Keaton Mitchell ran for 138 yards and his first NFL touchdown, Odell Beckham Jr. scored for the first time since the Super Bowl two seasons ago, and Baltimore routed another first-place team.
Gus Edwards ran for two touchdowns for the Ravens (7-2), who remained tied for the best record in the AFC after holding an opponent to nine points or fewer for the fourth time this season. Lamar Jackson threw for 187 yards and ran for 60 before sitting out the fourth quarter.
The past three weeks in particular, Baltimore has built a compelling case it might be the best team in the NFL. The Ravens thrashed NFC North-leading Detroit 38-6, then won in routine fashion at lowly Arizona. On Sunday, they dominated a Seattle team that remained tied atop the NFC West despite the loss.
The Seahawks (5-3) managed only six first downs and were outgained 515-151.
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COMMANDERS 20 PATRIOTS 17
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) – Sam Howell passed for 325 yards and a touchdown and Jartavius Martin had a late interception to help Washington hold on and beat New England.
It marked the first time in Howell’s career he eclipsed 300 yards passing in consecutive games and gave the Commanders their first victory in New England since 1996. It also snaps a four-game overall losing streak to the Patriots.
Washington (4-5) turned it over twice but wore down the Patriots’ defence by going 9-of-17 on third down. Brian Robinson added a rushing touchdown to help the Commanders end a two-game skid.
New England dropped to 2-7 for the first time since Bill Belichick’s first season as coach in 2000.
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BROWNS 27 CARDINALS 0
CLEVELAND (AP) – Deshaun Watson threw two touchdown passes – one bouncing off an Arizona helmet – in his second start for Cleveland in five weeks due to a shoulder injury and the Browns held the Cardinals to just 58 yards. It was Cleveland’s first shutout since 2007.
Watson looked rusty and indecisive at times in his first full game since Sept. 24, when he sustained a strained rotator cuff in his throwing shoulder. He completed 19 of 30 passes for 219 yards – 139 to Amari Cooper.
But while Watson and the offence struggled to re-establish any rhythm following their time apart, the Browns (5-3) leaned on their top-ranked defence to stifle the Cardinals (1-8), who started rookie quarterback Clayton Tune.
Cleveland’s defence set up both Watson TD passes with turnovers, and the Browns recorded seven sacks, with Dalvin Tomlinson getting Tune 2 1/2 times.
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SAINTS 24 BEARS 17
NEW ORLEANS (AP) – Taysom Hill caught a touchdown pass and threw for another, Paulson Adebo intercepted two passes and also forced a fumble that he recovered, and New Orleans beat Chicago.
The Saints (5-4) forced five turnovers, intercepting rookie QB Tyson Bagent three times and recovering two fumbles. Those plays tipped the balance of a game in which the undrafted Bagent and the Bears (2-7) often had the Saints’ defence off balance, outgaining New Orleans 368-301 in total yards and possessing the ball for just more than half the game.
The final turnover – a fumble caused by Demario Davis’ sack and recovered by fellow linebacker Pete Werner – all but sealed it with 2:05 left. New Orleans needed only one first down – and got it – to run out the clock.
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RAIDERS 30 GIANTS 6
LAS VEGAS (AP) – Josh Jacobs rushed for 98 yards and two touchdowns, rookie Aidan O’Connell passed for 209 yards and Antonio Pierce won in his debut as Las Vegas’ interim coach.
Maxx Crosby had three of the Raiders’ eight sacks. Las Vegas (4-5) held the Giants to 275 yards in the Raiders’ largest margin of victory since beating the Denver Broncos 37-12 on Nov. 15, 2020.
Giants (2-7) quarterback Daniel Jones left one play into the second quarter with a right knee injury. Tommy DeVito played the rest of the game and passed for 175 yards and a touchdown. Saquon Barkley rushed for 90 yards on 16 carries.
This was the Raiders’ first game since coach Josh McDaniels, offensive coordinator Mick Lombardi and general manager Dave Ziegler were fired early in the week and quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was benched.
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COLTS 27 PANTHERS 13
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) – Kenny Moore returned two Bryce Young interceptions for touchdowns, Jonathan Taylor caught a touchdown pass from Gardner Minshew and Indianapolis defeated Carolina to snap a three-game losing streak.
Indianapolis’ much-maligned defence had allowed at least 37 points in each of its past three games and had allowed more points than any team in the league, but had no problem slowing down the No. 1 overall pick and a mostly listless Panthers offence.
Moore became the first Colts (4-5) player in history with two pick-6s in a game and the first NFL player to accomplish the feat since Tampa Bay’s Mike Edwards did it against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 2 of the 2021 season.
Adam Thielen, in the midst of a career season, was limited to 29 yards on five receptions for the Panthers (1-7), who matched their worst start in franchise history.
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PACKERS 20 RAMS 3
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) – Aaron Jones scored Green Bay’s first first-half touchdown since mid-September, and the Packers snapped a four-game skid by beating Los Angeles.
Rookie tight end Luke Musgrave scored his first career touchdown on a 20-yard reception from Jordan Love, and Anders Carlson went 3-of-4 on field-goal attempts for the Packers (3-5). Love went 20-of-26 for 228 yards despite getting sacked four times.
The Rams (3-6) dropped their third straight as they played without quarterback Matthew Stafford, who sprained a ligament in his right thumb last week in a loss at Dallas.
With Brett Rypien starting in Stafford’s place, the Rams failed to reach the end zone. Rypien went 13-of-28 for 130 yards with an interception, and the Rams lost one of his two fumbles.
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