The resistance crumbles in the AFC West

Confetti from an NFL weekend.

Kansas City 30, L.A. Chargers 27

– Remember when the AFC West promised to be a four-way wrestle royal for 17 games? Scratch that. The Chiefs opened up a 3-game lead Sunday night in search of their eighth consecutive division title. They are 8-2 and the rest of the division is 11-19.

– Travis Kelce’s third touchdown catch from Pat Mahomes was a 17-yarder with 0:31 left. It was the 68th touchdown of Kelce’s career. He was a third-round draft pick from Cincinnati, which outrecruited Eastern Michigan and Miami of Ohio to get him.

– Mahomes’ first NFL start was a win at Denver in the final game of 2017. Since then the Chiefs are 14-0 in road AFC West games, in five different enemy stadiums.

New England 10, N.Y. Jets 3

– There were 11 three-and-outs, 16 punts, 10 sacks and only 19 first downs in this time-machine visit to the leather-helmet era. They were headed for a 3-3 tie when rookie Marcus Jones took a punt at his own 16 yard line and ran around and through the Jets for a game-winning, 84-yard touchdown as :05 remained in the fourth quarter.

– Jones was a 3rd-round pick from Houston whose 100-yard kickoff return beat SMU last season. This one, the first punt return touchdown in the NFL this season, clinched New England’s 14th consecutive win over the Jets, who gained two net yards in the second half. Coach Robert Saleh likened the Jets’ offense to dog waste, and rookie receiver Cedric Wilson criticized the play-calling and preparation. Quarterback Zach Wilson, when he wasn’t pressured, completed only five of 13.

– The win bunched up the AFC East, football’s best division. Miami and Buffalo are 7-3 and New England and the Jets are 6–4. The Patriots play at Minnesota Thursday and still have two Buffalo games left. They have won three consecutive games after an embarrassing 33-14 loss to Chicago at home.

Atlanta 27, Chicago 24 

– Cordarrelle Patterson’s remarkable career took a new turn when he returned a kickoff 103 yards for Atlanta.. That was an NFL record ninth kickoff return touchdown, breaking a record he had shared with Joshua Cribbs and Leon Washington  He remains the only NFL player to enjoy a 100-yard kickoff return, a 75-yard TD catch and a 50-yard TD run from scrimmage in the same season (2013 as a Minnesota rookie).

– The Falcons are Patterson’s fifth NFL team. He was known as a receiver/kick returner at the other stops, but in Atlanta he has become a primary ballcarrier. Patterson has rushed for 5.3 yards per carry this year and for 11 touchdowns the last two seasons. He also had eight kick return touchdowns at Hutchinson (Ks.) Community College and Tennessee.

– Younghoe Koo’s 53-yard field goal was the difference, along with a late interception by Jaylinn Hawkins. Atlanta (5-6) became the first team in three weeks to hold Chicago QB Justin Fields below 100 yards rushing.

Dallas 40, Minnesota 3

– This was one of those days when the Cowboys seemed a good Super Bowl bet. They sacked Kirk Cousins seven times, and Dak Prescott hit 22 of 25 passes. Tony Pollard continued his dynamic year by catching six passes for 109 yards and a 68-yard touchdown, and running 15 times for 80 yards. Pollard, a fourth-round pick who redshirted at Memphis, has 701 yards rushing and gains 5.9 yards per pop.

– Dallas also kept Justin Jefferson from dominating the highlights as he did last week in Buffalo, as Trevon Diggs helped hold him to three catches for 33 yards. Thus, Dalas broke Minnesota’s seven-game win streak. In six of those, the Vikings won by eight or fewer points, and their total margin of victory in the streak was 56 points.

– Both teams have a quick turnaround and a strenuous Thanksgiving. The Cowboys (7–3) play host to the Giants, and the Vikings (8-2) are home against New England.

Philadelphia 17, Indianapolis 16

– The Colts led 13-3 after three quarters, and had a chance to go up by 10 points with 4:52 left. But Haason Reddick sacked Matt Ryan on third and five in the red zone, forcing a field goal and a 16-10 Indianapolis lead. 

– The Eagles responded with an 11-play drive, which Jalen Hurts prolonged with a  three-yard run on fourth-and-two. He then ran seven yards for the game-winner.

– The difficult win boosted Philadelphia to 9-1, after Monday night’s loss to Washington. Coach Nick Sirianni, whom the Eagles hired in 2021 from the Colts’ staff, was passionate in praising Frank Reich, the coach the Colts fired two games ago. “He is one of my biggest mentors,” Sirianni said later, after he had broken down while addressing the team postgame. “You don’t want to know what I think of whether he should be here or not, but you guys can probably imagine.”

Las Vegas 22, Denver 16 (OT)

– United in their misery, the Raiders and Broncos are both 3-7 after this one. But there is a difference. Davante Adams plays for the Raiders. He caught a 35-yard TD pass in overtime, the third of his career in extra time, and also had a 31-yard score in the first half.

–  The Raiders procured Adams from Green Bay, and he has given them six 100-yard games and, in the past three weeks,  26 catches for 413 yards. In this game the defense also pitched in, with Maxx Crosby blocking a field goal at the end of the first half. Las Vegas allowed a season-low 16 points.

– Derek Carr had 1:43 to direct the game-tying drive because Denver’s Russell Wilson threw on third down instead of going down and sliding, and the Broncos were forced to punt. Wilson’s decision stopped the clock when the Raiders had run out of time outs. Carr found it easier to get downfield for Daniel Carlson’s field goal with :16 left. 

 

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