Late field goal from 44 and Lions hand Vikings first loss of the season

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Jake Bates kicked a 44-yard field goal with 15 seconds left and the Detroit Lions beat Minnesota 31-29 on Sunday, handing the Vikings their first loss in a back-and-forth game befitting of the NFL’s strongest division.

Jahmyr Gibbs rushed for 116 yards and two of Detroit’s three second-quarter touchdowns. He also helped Jared Goff guide the Lions 48 yards in four plays to get in range for their rookie kicker while forcing the Vikings to burn their timeouts. Bates is 10 for 10 on field goals this season.

Goff went 22 for 25 for 280 yards with two touchdowns and no turnovers in his third straight game with a 140-plus passer rating, joining Aaron Rodgers (2011), Kurt Warner (1999) and Roger Staubach (1971) as the only quarterbacks in NFL history to accomplish the feat.

Gibbs had 150 total yards to spearhead a commanding performance by the Lions (5-1) at the line of scrimmage against the defense that entered the week with a rushing average per play (3.6) allowed that was the second-best in the league.

JAGUARS 32, PATRIOTS 16

LONDON (AP) — Tank Bigsby rushed for 118 yards and two touchdowns and Parker Washington returned a punt 96 yards for a score in Jacksonville’s comeback win over New England at Wembley Stadium.

Rookie receiver Brian Thomas Jr. caught a touchdown pass as the Jaguars (2-5) erased an early 10-0 deficit.

In his second start, Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye led one fourth-quarter scoring drive but couldn’t muster a second one as New England (1-6) lost its sixth straight game.

Bigsby scored on a 4-yard run after the Patriots turned the ball over on downs after the two-minute warning.

The win should at least temporarily ease some pressure off Jaguars coach Doug Pederson.

SEAHAWKS 34, FALCONS 14

ATLANTA (AP) — Geno Smith passed for two touchdowns and Derick Hall returned a fumble 36 yards for a clinching score as Seattle snapped a three-game losing streak with a victory over Atlanta.

The Seahawks (4-3) ended Atlanta’s run of three straight victories, shutting down a Falcons offense that averaged 37 points the two previous weeks.

Smith completed 18 of 28 passes for 207 yards, his second-lowest output of the season but more than enough to throttle the Falcons. He connected with Kenneth Walker on a 17-yard touchdown and a huge 31-yard scoring play to DK Metcalf just before halftime.

After Walker’s TD catch made it 24-14 late in the third quarter, Seattle’s defense clinched the victory.

EAGLES 28, GIANTS 3

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Saquon Barkley made a memorable return to MetLife Stadium, rushing for 176 yards and a touchdown and turning early jeers to cheers as he led Philadelphia to a victory over offensively inept New York.

Jalen Hurts scored on two tush-push quarterback sneaks and threw a 41-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Brown as the Eagles (4-2) beat the Giants (2-5) for the sixth time in seven games and 14th in 17. Philadelphia’s defense was just as good, recording eight sacks and limiting New York to 119 yards.

What was different this time was Barkley was wearing an Eagles uniform. The second pick overall by New York in 2018, he left as a free agent after last season and signed a three-year, $37.5 million contract in March. He was greeted by boos but they didn’t last.

Barkley was worth every penny on Sunday, waking up the Eagles with a 55-yard run around left end to set up his 3-yard TD that put Philadelphia ahead 7-0 in the second quarter. Hurts then connected with Brown on a go route on fourth down to increase the margin to 14-0.

PACKERS 24, TEXANS 22

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Brandon McManus kicked a 45-yard field goal as time expired in his debut performance with Green Bay, lifting the Packers past the Texans.

Green Bay (5-2) overcame three turnovers to win its third straight and snap the Texans’ three-game winning streak.

Green Bay’s Jordan Love was 23 of 31 for 214 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions.

Houston’s Joe Mixon rushed for 115 yards and two touchdowns. Ka’imi Fairbairn was 3 of 3 on field-goal attempts and put the Texans (5-2) ahead by making a 35-yarder with 1:44 left.

C.J. Stroud was just 10 of 21 for a career-low 86 yards and was sacked four times.

BENGALS 21, BROWNS 14

CLEVELAND (AP) — Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson suffered a possible season-ending Achilles tendon injury in the first half of Cleveland’s loss to Cincinnati on Sunday as Joe Burrow got his first road win against the Bengals’ in-state AFC North rival.

Watson’s leg crumpled on a non-contact play as he dropped back to pass with 1:26 left before halftime. As he planted, Watson’s calf appeared to quiver before he gave himself up and dropped to the turf.

The embattled Watson, whose tenure with Cleveland has been marked by off-field problems, injuries and poor play, covered his head with a towel as he was carted off the field. While he was down, players from both teams came off the sidelines to surround him and offer support.

The Browns only announced Watson injured his Achilles tendon and didn’t provide any other specifics. There’s a strong chance he won’t play again this season, and it’s possible Watson’s days with Cleveland are over.

BILLS 34, TITANS 10

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Amari Cooper scored the go-ahead touchdown in his debut with Buffalo and Josh Allen overcame a sluggish first half to throw two touchdown passes in his 100th career start to help the Bills rally from a 10-point deficit and beat the Titans.

Cooper’s 12-yard TD catch was his first reception for the Bills and came five days after being acquired in a trade with the Cleveland Browns. Ty Johnson also scored on a 4-yard catch, and James Cook and Ray Davis rounded out the rout with touchdown runs.

After being limited to 4 of 11 for 65 yards in the first half, Allen finished 21 of 33 for 323 yards. It marked his 26th career 300-yard game and first this season. And Allen did so against a Titans defense that entered ranked first against the pass and had yet to allow 200 yards passing this season.

Allen improved his career record to 68-32 as a starter, matching four players — Joe Montana, Terry Bradshaw, Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers — for the sixth-most wins in a quarterback’s first 100 starts.

COLTS 16, DOLPHINS 10

Tyler Goodson ran for one touchdown and Anthony Richardson led Indianapolis on two fourth-quarter scoring drives to clinch a victory over Miami.

Matt Gay’s 22-yard field goal with 8:41 left in the game gave Indy its first lead, and a defensive stop at the Indianapolis 33-yard line in the final minute sealed the victory over the NFL’s lowest-scoring team.

The Dolphins (2-4) had a chance to tie the score on a 54-yard field goal with 5:14 to go, but Jason Sanders’ kick hit the left upright and bounced harmlessly into the end zone.

Indy (4-3) has won four of its past five and three straight home games since a loss to Houston in its opener.

Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell, left, talks with Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell after an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 20, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

MILAN (AP) — Shortly after Inter Milan president Giuseppe Marotta lamented that the fixture list needed to be cut in order to safeguard the players, the Nerazzurri lost two key members of its team to injury on Sunday.

Hakan Çalhanoğlu and Francesco Acerbi were both forced off with muscular issues in the first half of Inter’s match at Roma.

Inter went on to win 1-0, thanks to a 60th-minute strike by Lautaro Martínez, to move back to within two points of Serie A leader Napoli, which had earlier beaten Empoli 1-0.

The match was the first of seven in 21 days in an intense period for Inter, which will also play more games than almost any other club this season. As well as the Italian league, Inter is involved in the Champions League, the Italian Cup and Italian Super Cup, and has qualified for the newly expanded Club World Cup.

“We have to live with the constant stress of so many games that the players are struggling to handle … we need to safeguard their health,” Marotta said before Sunday’s match.

“It is not an easy situation … but we need to sit around a table and recognize that the fixture list has to be cut back.”

Less than 12 minutes into the match, Çalhanoğlu asked to come off after experiencing discomfort in his left thigh and he was followed 15 minutes later by Acerbi who also appeared to have an injury to a muscle in the same place.

Both sides hit the woodwork in the first half. A cross from Lorenzo Pellegrini bounced out of the arms of Yann Sommer and onto the post but the Inter goalkeeper managed to catch the rebound.

Former Roma midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan sent a powerful effort off the crossbar shortly afterward.

Inter broke the deadlock when Davide Frattesi raced down the right flank on the counterattack and his low cross was deflected to Lautaro to thump into the back of the net.

Whatever Antonio Conte told his players at halftime must have worked as Napoli was much improved after the break.

Empoli was far the better team in the first period but it was to regret its missed opportunities as it was Napoli that took the lead in the 63rd minute after Tino Anjorin fouled Matteo Politano in the area.

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia kept his cool and took a stuttering run-up, waiting for the goalkeeper to make his move before rolling the ball into the middle of the net.

That was the first goal the Empoli home fans had seen this season as all three previous league matches at the Stadio Carlo Castellani had ended 0-0.

Napoli has won six of its past seven Serie A matches since an opening day loss to Hellas Verona in Conte’s debut. The other match was a 0-0 draw at Juventus.

It was a second straight loss for Empoli, which had been unbeaten until it lost at Lazio before the international break.

Albert Guðmundsson and Moise Kean also had to come off injured as Fiorentina romped to a 6-0 win at Lecce.

Danilo Cataldi and Andrea Colpani both scored twice before Lucas Beltrán and Fabiano Parisi completed the rout. It was the first time Fiorentina had scored six goals away from home in Serie A since 1966.

Despite an increasingly longer injury list, Atalanta eased to a 2-0 win at bottom club Venezia. Cagliari fought back to beat Torino 3-2.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Empoli's Mattia Viti is chased by Napoli's Matteo Politano during the Serie A soccer match between Empoli and Napoli at Carlo Catellani Stadium, Sunday Oct. 20, 2024. (LaPresse via AP)

Napoli's head coach Antonio Conte looks on during the Serie A soccer match between Empoli and Napoli at Carlo Catellani Stadium, Sunday Oct. 20, 2024. (LaPresse via AP)