JAGUARS 23, BENGALS 7
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — With A.J. Green and Jalen Ramsey ejected for fighting, Jaydon Mick-ens delivered the knockout blow by returning a punt 63 yards for a touchdown. The Jaguars (5-3) won consecutive games for the first time in 13 months and were victorious at EverBank Field for the first time since last December. Blake Bortles threw for 259 yards and a touchdown in another efficient performance. Marqise Lee had his first TD reception of the season and responded by punting the ball into the stands. Joe Mixon finished with 31 yards rushing on 13 carries for the Bengals, while Andy Dalton threw for 136 yards and was sacked twice. The Jaguars preferred to talk about their latest defensive gem, one that followed two 10-sack performances (Houston, Indianapolis) and a five-turnover outing (Pittsburgh). “When we’re all working together like that, like we’ve been the past couple of weeks, it’s a scary sight,” linebacker Myles Jack said. “I can feel it on the field. It’s fun.” Jaguars rookie running back Leonard Fournette was inactive for violating a team rule. Jacksonville made the surprise announcement 90 minutes before kickoff. It’s unclear what Fournette did to draw Coach Doug Marrone’s punishment.
TITANS 23, RAVENS 20
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Marcus Mariota threw for 218 yards and two touchdowns, and the Titans got their third consecutive victory. Derrick Henry ran for a 1-yard TD. Safety Kevin Byard also intercepted two passes , giving the second-year pro five interceptions over his past two games. The Titans (5-3) sacked Joe Flacco twice and scored 13 points off Byard’s first interception and a shanked punt to stay atop the AFC South. The Ravens (4-5) have lost three of four going into their bye, but they outgained Tennessee 341-257. Flacco tried to rally the Ravens with two TD passes in the final 8:56, the last a 1-yard pass to Mike Wallace with 46 seconds left. But Justin Tucker’s onside kick attempt didn’t travel 10 yards, skittering almost sideways off the tee before being recovered by Titans linebacker Daren Bates.
SAINTS 30, BUCCANEERS 10
NEW ORLEANS — The Saints extended their winning streak to six when Drew Brees completed 81.2 percent of his passes for 263 yards and two touchdowns. The Buccaneers came in hoping to stem a four-game skid, but instead were not just beaten, but beaten up. Quarterback Jameis Winston left with shoulder soreness after the first half. Starting defensive end William Gholston was carted off the field with a neck injury. And tensions boiled over when Winston, after he had left the game, appeared to instigate a scuffle along the sideline. Brees’ touchdowns went for 33 yards to Alvin Kamara and 36 yards to Ted Ginn. Kamara, who also scored on a 6-yard run, did most of the work on his TD reception, thrilling the Superdome crowd with a waving, tackle-slipping run after his short catch. The Saints also scored on Justin Hardee’s blocked punt, which Hardee recovered in stride and returned for a touchdown.
COLTS 20, TEXANS 14
HOUSTON — T.Y. Hilton had 175 yards receiving with two touchdowns to help the Colts halt a three-game skid by beating a Texans team that struggled without Deshaun Watson. Jacoby Brissett threw for 308 yards filling in for Andrew Luck, who was placed on injured reserve Thursday and will miss the season after having shoulder surgery in January. Watson’s stellar season ended that day, too, when the rookie tore the anterior cruciate ligament in one of his knees in practice. Tom Savage, benched in the opener for Watson, couldn’t move the offense for most of the game, but threw a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to get Houston within six. The Texans had a chance to win it late, but Savage was sacked by Jabaal Sheard and fumbled as time ran out. With Watson running the offense, the Texans (3-5) had set a franchise record by scoring 30 or more points in five straight games. On Sunday, with Watson relegated to an extra coach on the bench, this Houston offense sputtered.
PANTHERS 20,
FALCONS 17
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Cam Newton ran for 86 yards and a touchdown and the Panthers stormed back from an early 10-point deficit, then held on. The Panthers spotted the Falcons 10 points before Newton and the ground game got rolling. Carolina ran for 201 yards, including a career-high 66 and a touchdown from rookie Christian McCaffrey. The win kept the Panthers (6-3) a half-game behind the Saints in the NFC South. Atlanta is 4-4. Devin Funchess had 86 yards on five catches in his first game as Carolina’s No. 1 receiver after the team traded Kelvin Benjamin earlier in the week. Matt Ryan, last year’s NFL MVP, threw for 313 yards and 2 touchdowns and had 1 costly first-half interception for the defending NFC champions. With 6 catches for 118 yards, Julio Jones became the first receiver to surpass 100 yards receiving against the Panthers this season.
CARDINALS 20,
49ERS 10
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Adrian Peterson carried a career-high 37 times for 159 yards and Drew Stanton threw 2 touchdown passes to lead the Arizona Cardinals over the winless San Francisco 49ers. Peterson, 32, was a workhorse in his third game with the Cardinals (4-4). He posted the most carries ever for a player in his 30s and topped the 100-yard mark for the second time since being acquired in a trade from New Orleans last month. Peterson’s tough running and Stanton’s pair of first-half touchdown passes were enough to help Arizona bounce back from a 33-0 loss to the Rams before last week’s bye. The undermanned 49ers (0-9) extended the worst start in franchise history and have lost 23 of the past 24 games overall. Newly acquired quarterback of the future Jimmy Garoppolo was mostly a spectator as rookie C.J. Beathard got battered once again behind a patchwork line missing injured left tackle Joe Staley. Beathard went 24 for 51 for 294 yards and an interception and also ran for a touchdown. He was also sacked five times and hit 16 times overall, but still managed to stay in the game and not force the 49ers to use Garoppolo just days after he was acquired for a second-round pick from New England.
REDSKINS 17, SEAHAWKS 14
SEATTLE — Kirk Cousins drove Washington 70 yards in 35 seconds, capped by Rob Kelley’s 1-yard touchdown run with less than a minute remaining, and the Washington Redskins rallied late to stun the Seattle Seahawks. Seattle took a 14-10 lead with 1:34 remaining after Russell Wilson found Doug Baldwin for a 30-yard touchdown pass after the Seahawks had scuffled on offense all day. But Cousins had an unexpected answer. Taking over at his 30-yard line, Cousins hit Brian Quick for 31 yards and Josh Doctson for 38 on consecutive throws to get to the Seattle 1 with 1:02 left. Doctson beat rookie Shaquill Griffin down the sideline and made an impressive diving catch. Kelley bulled his way in from the 1 on the next play. Wilson’s desperation toss on the final play in the direction of Jimmy Graham and Tanner McEvoy fell incomplete and Seattle saw its four-game win streak snapped.
RAIDERS 27, DOLPHINS 24
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Derek Carr threw for 300 yards and the Oakland Raiders overcame two fluky plays that cost them possession to beat the Miami Dolphins. Carr went 21 of 30 with 1 touchdown and 1 interception. He helped the Raiders convert 8 for 15 third downs. The Dolphins recovered an onside kick and came up with a takeaway when Oakland fumbled twice on a single play, but failed to convert either opportunity into points. Oakland also overcame 10 penalties for 105 yards, including 3 for unnecessary roughness in the second quarter. The Raiders’ Marshawn Lynch, returning from one-game suspension for shoving an official, scored on a 22-yard run, his longest this year. He added another late score and finished with 57 yards on 14 carries. Oakland (4-5) won for only the second time since Week 2. Miami (4-4) fell to .500 for the third time this season, and lost a close game for the first time in more than a year. In games decided by seven points or less, they had won 12 in a row. Miami’s Jay Cutler, back after missing one game with cracked ribs, completed his first 16 passes and finished 34 for 42 for 311 yards and 3 scores. His touchdown pass with 1:32 left cut the deficit to three points, but Oakland recovered the ensuing onside kick to seal the victory.