GREEN BAY, Wis. — Kirk Cousins threw two touchdown passes to start his second stint with Minnesota and Levi Drake Rodriguez had two of the Vikings’ eight sacks in a 30-10 victory over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday.
Cousins went 21 of 31 for 207 yards just five days after rejoining the Vikings, who acquired him from the Las Vegas Raiders at Tuesday’s trade deadline.
The last time Cousins had played at Lambeau Field or suited up for the Vikings, he tore his Achilles tendon in a 24-10 Minnesota victory on Oct. 29, 2023. Cousins missed the rest of that season and then played for Atlanta from 2024-25 and Las Vegas the first half of this year.
Cousins rejuvenated an offence that had stalled under quarterbacks Kyler Murray and Carson Wentz, scoring 16 points or fewer in each of its last three games. He helped the Vikings snap a two-game skid as they beat the Packers for the fifth time in six meetings. And he reestablished his connection with top receiver Justin Jefferson, who had season highs in catches (nine) and targets (13) while finishing with 74 yards.
Minnesota (7-2) had scored 49 straight points against Green Bay (6-4) before Jordan Love’s 32-yard touchdown pass to J. Michael Sturdivant in the third quarter cut the Vikings’ lead to 20-7. The Vikings scored the final 29 points of a 39-22 season-opening victory.
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BILLS 31, JETS 12
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Josh Allen ran for two touchdowns and threw a TD pass to DJ Moore, and the Buffalo Bills pulled away from the New York Jets for a 31-12 victory Sunday that has them off to their best start in 35 years.
James Cook had a 74-yard TD run in the fourth quarter that helped seal the win and put the Bills at 8-1 for the first time since 1991, when they began 10-1 on the way to a second straight Super Bowl appearance.
Jets quarterback Geno Smith left with an ankle injury in the third quarter after missing a series while being evaluated for a head injury at the end of the first half. Rookie Cade Klubnik made his NFL debut while filling in.
But with what appeared to be at least half the crowd at MetLife Stadium decked out in blue, white and red Bills gear, the Jets (2-8) managed just four field goals by Jason Sanders while dropping their fifth straight.
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BROWNS 27, TEXANS 24
CLEVELAND — Quinshon Judkins barrelled into the end zone from five yards out with 53 seconds remaining, and the resilient Cleveland Browns stunned the Houston Texans 27-24 on Sunday.
The surprising Browns (6-4) ended a two-game skid by rallying from an early 17-point deficit to send the Texans (3-6) to another baffling loss.
Deshaun Watson passed for 312 yards against his former team, rushed for 50 yards — including a high-stepping six-yard touchdown run — and led his sixth game-winning drive in the fourth quarter, continuing a season in which he's revived his career.
Watson, who downplayed his second meeting with the team that traded him away four years ago, completed 25 of 40 passes and overcame a fourth-quarter interception to send Cleveland into its bye week with the franchise's biggest comeback victory in 12 years.
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COLTS 24, DOLPHINS 22
INDIANAPOLIS — Daniel Jones threw a touchdown pass, Seth McGowan scored on a four-yard run and Adetomiwa Adebawore recovered a fumble in the end zone Sunday to help the Indianapolis Colts hold on for a 24-22 victory over the Miami Dolphins.
The Colts (3-7) snapped a five-game losing streak just five days after they shipped away their top two receivers — Keenan Allen and Josh Downs — at the trade deadline.
But they held onto Jones and star running back Jonathan Taylor, who said goodbye to Colts fans last week but suited up again and finished with 103 total yards.
Some fans wore bags over their heads and Jones was booed resoundingly in the second half with each incompletion or offensive miscue. He finished 11 of 22 for 108 yards with two interceptions. The Colts rushed for 172 yards.
JAGUARS 40, TITANS 23
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Trevor Lawrence threw for 352 yards and three touchdowns as the Jacksonville Jaguars beat the Tennessee Titans 40-23 on Sunday for their sixth victory in seven games.
The Jaguars (7-2) also won a franchise-record fifth straight against their AFC South rivals, and this was their eighth win in 11 games in the series.
Lawrence completed passes to nine Jaguars with the fourth-highest passing yardage total of his career.
Parker Washington had a career-high 148 yards receiving by halftime and finished with 152. Cam Little kicked field goals of 46, 48, 36 and 40 yards. Bhayshul Tuten added a six-yard TD run with 1:10 left, padding the score off Tennessee's turnover on downs.
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CHIEFS 35, FALCONS 13
ATLANTA — Patrick Mahomes threw five touchdown passes, including one to newly acquired Josh Downs and two to rookie Emmett Johnson, and the Kansas City Chiefs beat the struggling Atlanta Falcons 35-13 on Sunday to move into a first-place tie in the AFC West.
The Chiefs (7-2) leaned on Johnson at running back after ruling out Kenneth Walker on Saturday because of a groin injury. Johnson had 22 carries for 101 yards and six catches for 70 yards and two touchdowns in his first start.
The Chiefs moved into a first-place tie with Denver, which had its bye week.
Mahomes completed 22 of 35 passes for 348 yards to keep the depleted offence moving. Cyrus Allen and Andrew Armstrong each had his first career touchdown catch.
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LIONS 35, PATRIOTS 10
MUNICH — Amon-Ra St. Brown wore lederhosen, carried a German flag onto the field, and then went out and scored two touchdowns.
Talk about a homecoming.
The German-speaking St. Brown, whose mother is from Leverkusen, said it's been a trip he'll “never forget.”
St. Brown caught two touchdown passes and Jahmyr Gibbs ran for 153 yards and two scores in a 35-10 win over the New England Patriots, who lost quarterback Drake Maye to an ankle injury on their opening drive Sunday.
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