NFL roundup: Jags beat Texans despite Stroud record as woeful Pats slump again

Trevor Lawrence threw for 364 yards and a touchdown, and the AFC South-leading Jacksonville Jaguars escaped with a 24-21 victory over the division rival Houston Texans on Sunday when Matt Ammendola’s 58-yard field goal attempt bounced off the crossbar with 34 seconds left.

The Jaguars (8-3) avenged their 37-17 home loss to Houston (6-5) in Week 3 and created some separation at the top of the division.

CJ Stroud, the second overall pick in the draft, threw for 306 yards and two touchdowns as Houston’s three-game winning streak was snapped. He has 3,268 yards passing this season to move past Justin Herbert (3,224) for the most in NFL history by a rookie in his first 11 games.

The Texans led by one after a touchdown run by Stroud midway through the third quarter. Lawrence responded with by throwing a one-yard touchdown pass to Calvin Ridley and hitting Ridley for the two-point conversion to make it 21-14. Brandon McManus tacked on a field goal early in the fourth quarter to pad the lead, and Jacksonville’s defense stopped Houston on fourth down.

But McManus missed from 55 yards with seven minutes left. Stroud then orchestrated a 55-yard drive, capped by a 17-yard touchdown reception by Nico Collins, to cut the lead to 24-21 with just over five minutes to go. The Texans got a stop but couldn’t move the ball and settled for the long field goal attempt on fourth-and-12 instead of giving Stroud and the offense one more shot.

New England Patriots 7–10 New York Giants Xavier McKinney set up Randy Bullock’s go-ahead 42-yard field goal midway through the fourth quarter with New York’s third interception of New England’s struggling pair of quarterbacks, and the Giants won consecutive games for the first time this season, beating the Patriots. New England (2-9) had a chance to win in the final minute, but coach Bill Belichick played for a tie and Chad Ryland was wide left on a 35-yard field goal attempt with three seconds left. Tommy DeVito threw a touchdown pass for New York (4-8), which did more than enough against quarterbacks Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe to send the Patriots to their fourth straight loss.

Pittsburgh Steelers 10–16 Cincinnati Bengals Kenny Pickett threw for a season-high 278 yards and the Pittsburgh Steelers (7-4) showed new life on offense days after firing offensive coordinator Matt Canada, beating the Joe Burrow-less Cincinnati Bengals (5-6). The Steelers totalled 421 yards, snapping a streak of 58 games without gaining 400 yards. Pat Freiermuth had a career-high 120 yards receiving as the Steelers outgained an opponent for the first time this season under. Chris Boswell kicked two fourth-quarter field goals to keep the Bengals at bay. Cincinnati got a field goal from Evan McPherson just before the two-minute warning, but the Steelers recovered the onside kick and ran out the clock.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 20–27 Indianapolis Colts Jonathan Taylor ran for two scores, Gardner Minshew added another and the Indianapolis Colts defense came up with a late turnover to preserve their victory over Tampa Bay. Indy have won three straight to climb above .500 for the first time since the end of September. The Bucs have lost four straight road games, this one in uncharacteristic fashion. Indy gashed the usually stingy Tampa Bay run defense for 155 yards and 5.7 yards per carry. Taylor’s one-yard TD run with 7:30 to play made it 27-17 and the Bucs couldn’t get in the end zone again.

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New Orleans Saints 15–24 Atlanta Falcons Desmond Ridder overcame two interceptions by throwing a touchdown pass to Bijan Robinson in the fourth quarter and the Atlanta Falcons (5-6) moved into a first-place tie in the woeful NFC South by beating the New Orleans Saints (5-6). The Saints were limited by injury problems at wide receiver after losing Chris Olave (concussion) and Rashid Shaheed (thigh). New Orleans still outgained the Falcons 444-397 as Derek Carr passed for 304 yards but had to settle for five field goals by Blake Grupe. Robinson ran for 91 yards with a touchdown.

Carolina Panthers 10–17 Tennessee Titans Derrick Henry ran for two touchdowns and 76 yards helping the Tennessee Titans (4-7) snap a three-game skid as they beat the Carolina Panthers (1-10). This was just the fourth game in Music City this season for the Titans, who played at home only once over the past seven weeks. Tennessee improved to 4-0 when playing at Nissan Stadium this season. Arden Key had a sack and forced fumble recovered by two-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons. The Titans had four sacks. The Panthers remain winless away from home and have lost four straight.