Patriots thump Bengals in Brady’s home debut; Cowboys take down Packers

Tom Brady, playing in his first game in Foxborough, Mass., since the end of his “Deflategate” suspension, had three touchdown passes and went over 5,000 completions for his career to lead the Patriots to a 35-17 victory over Cincinnati Bengals 35-17.

Brady completed 29 of 35 passes for 376 yards. Tight end Rob Gronkowski had seven receptions for a career-high 162 yards and a touchdown.

Cincinnati drops to 2-4 for the first time since 2010, when it finished 4-12 — its worst season under Coach Marvin Lewis.

The Bengals had their moments offensively, scoring on a two-yard touchdown run by Andy Dalton and five-yard pass from Dalton to Brandon LaFell. Dalton completed 21 of 31 passes for 254 yards and the touchdown.

But New England (5-1) bounced back from some sluggish drives early with several big plays in the third quarter.

Cowboys 30, Packers 16

Rookie Dak Prescott threw for 247 yards and three touchdowns and the Dallas defense forced four turnovers in a win over host Green Bay and its dysfunctional offense.

Prescott was 18 of 27, shaking off two fumbles and an interception, to lead the Cowboys (5-1) to their fifth straight win.

He showed poise in the fourth quarter while marching the Cowboys on a seven-play, 75-yard drive that ended with a four-yard touchdown pass to Cole Beasley for an 18-point lead with 10:26 left.

The score left Packers fans stunned at Lambeau Field. They were booing at times following another choppy game for the offense. The four turnovers were a season high for Green Bay (3-2).

Even two-time NFL MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers wasn’t immune from the jeering. Rodgers finished 31-of-42 passing for a season-high 294 yards.

Seahawks 26, Falcons 24

Steven Hauschka’s 44-yard field goal with 1:57 remaining capped the 20th career fourth quarter or overtime comeback for quarterback Russell Wilson as Seattle pulled out a wild win over visiting Atlanta.

After watching Matt Ryan blitz the Seahawks for 21 third-quarter points, it was Wilson’s turn in the fourth quarter. He led a 70-yarddrive that was capped by Christine Michael’s one-yard run with 4:47 left, but a blocked extra point by Ra’Shede Hageman still had Seattle trailing 24-23.

Seattle then got a needed big play from its defense. Ryan’s pass slipped through Julio Jones’ hands, was tipped in the air by Richard Sherman and eventually landed in the arms of Earl Thomas, giving Seattle possession at midfield with 3:48 remaining. It was the first time in the game that Jones was targeted and didn’t make the catch.

Seattle stalled at the Atlanta 26. This time Hauschka was perfect after missing a 29-yard attempt earlier in the fourth quarter, the result of a bad snap.

Ryan was incomplete on his last four throws, including a breakup by Sherman on a long pass to Jones on which the Falcons screamed for a pass interference flag.

Wilson was 25-of-37 passing for 270 yards. Michael had two touchdown runs and rookie Alex Collins added his first NFL touchdown on a two-yard run.

Texans 26, Colts 23 (OT)

Nick Novak made a 33-yard field goal in overtime to give Houston a comeback victory over visiting Indianapolis.

Brock Osweiler threw a 36-yard pass to Jaelen Strong to get Houston to the 12 and Novak’s field goal came two plays later.

Indianapolis (2-4) got the ball first in overtime, but Benardrick McKinney sacked Andrew Luck on third down to force a punt.

Osweiler shook off a tough start to throw two touchdown passes in less than 2 minutes in the fourth quarter as Houston (4-2) erased a 14-point deficit to tie it at 23 with 54 seconds left. He found Lamar Miller on a 10-yard catch-and-run TD with 2:47 remaining and, after a stop by the defense, connected with C.J. Fiedorowicz on a 26-yarder that tied it.

Houston’s defense forced a punt by Indianapolis to send it to OT.

Luck had a 22-yard touchdown throw in the first quarter and pushed the lead to 20-9 when he dashed into the end zone untouched on a 14-yard run early in the fourth.

Bills 45, 49ers 16

LeSean McCoy scored three times and the Buffalo Bills extended their winning streak to four games with the victory over visiting San Francisco.

McCoy had 140 yards rushing and shook off what appeared to be a frightening injury to his right knee late in the second quarter. Tyrod Taylor threw two touchdown passes in helping Buffalo win four straight for the first time since the start of the 2008 season.

Kaepernick tried to provide the 49ers a spark in his first start in nearly a year. Blaine Gabbert was benched following a 33-21 loss to Arizona. Kaepernick finished 13 of 29 passes for 187 yards, including a 53-yard touchdown pass to Torrey Smith.

But San Francisco (1-5) couldn’t finish drives, settling for three field goals by Phil Dawson, in losing its fifth straight game.

Kaepernick was the target of numerous boos and chants when he kneeled during the national anthem in continuing his protest against racial oppression and police brutality.

The 49ers run defense continued to prove porous, giving up 312 yards. The Bills blew the game open by scoring 21 points over a span of 7:02 straddling the third and fourth quarters.

Saints 41, Panthers 38

Drew Brees passed for 465 yards and four touchdowns, Will Lutz kicked a 52-yard field goal with 11 seconds left and New Orleans pulled out the win after visiting Carolina had rallied from a 21-point deficit.

With his 15th 400-yard game, Brees broke a tie with Peyton Manning for the most all time in the regular season. Brees also led the Saints (2-3) to a second straight victory while Carolina (1-4) lost its fourth straight despite the return of quarterback Cam Newton, who missed last week’s loss to Tampa Bay because of a concussion.

Newton passed for 322 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for a two-yard score that tied the score at 38 with 2:58 left. However, he also had a pass intercepted by Sterling Moore in the back of the end zone, stalling a promising drive in the first half.

Tight end Josh Hill scored the Saints’ final TD on a difficult, leaping eight-yard catch that was initially ruled incomplete. But Coach Sean Payton challenged the call and officials ruled on review that Hill had possession long enough for a completion.

Coby Fleener ran for a two-yard touchdown on his first career carry — an end-around on a fourth-and-one play that capped New Orleans’ opening drive. He also caught a 50-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter and finished with six catches for 74 yards.

Saints receiver Brandin Cooks had an 87-yard touchdown catch to highlight his career-high 173-yard outing on seven catches while rookie Michael Thomas caught his third touchdown pass in as many games.

Dolphins 30, Steelers 15

Miami left Ben Roethlisberger limping and the rest of his Pittsburgh teammates didn’t look much better in the loss at Miami Gardens, Fla. Roethlisberger missed one series because of a left knee injury and was held to 189 yards passing.

Jay Ajayi rushed for 204 yards and two scores on 25 carries for the Dolphins, who improved to 2-4.

The Steelers (4-2) had scored 74 points in their previous two games, but were outgained in yards, 474-297. Pittsburgh’s Antonio Brown, the NFL’s leading receiver, was held to four receptions for 39 yards. Teammate Sammie Coates, playing with a hand injury, didn’t have a catch.

Roethlisberger, who completed 19 of 34 attempts, had only 83 yards passing with 5 minutes left before he drove the Steelers 97 yards for a touchdown that made it 23-15. Miami recovered the ensuing onside kick to seal the victory, and on the next play Ajayi scored on a 62-yard run.

The Steelers’ only other touchdown came in the first quarter when Darrius Heyward-Bey scored on a 60-yard end around . Reshad Jones and Isa Abdul-Quddus had interceptions for the Dolphins, their first since the season opener.

Giants 27, Ravens 23

A banged-up Odell Beckham Jr. turned a short fourth-and-one pass into a winning 66-yard catch and run with 1:24 to play to help New York snap a three-game losing streak with a stunning victory over hurting Baltimore at East Rutherford, N.J.

The win was the 700th in franchise history. Beckham gave it to the Giants with a career day despite going to the locker room with a hip pointer in the second quarter. Beckham returned before the half and made the Giants (3-3) a winner with a spectacular second half that featured a 75-yard touchdown catch and a 43-yard reception that set up one of Josh Brown’s two field goals.

It was the third consecutive loss for the Ravens (3-3) .

Beckham finished with eight catches for 222 yards, while Eli Manning completed 32 of 46 passes for 403 yards. Beckham’s late heroics saved the Giants, who were on the verge of a fourth straight loss after Terrance West scored on a two-yard run with a 2:04 to play, giving the Ravens a short-lived 23-20 lead.

West’s second short touchdown run came three plays after Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie was flagged for a questionable pass interference at the New York 8. He had inside position on Breshad Perriman on a long pass from Joe Flacco and the Ravens receiver seemed to commit offensive interference.

Flacco, who complete 26 of 48 passes for 307 yards, drove the Ravens to the Giants 24 in the waning seconds thanks to a shaky fourth-down roughing-the-passer call. But his final pass was knocked down in the end zone.

New York’s defense also stopped the Ravens on a fourth down inside the one-yard line earlier in the quarter.

Redskins 27, Eagles 20

Kirk Cousins threw for 263 yards and two touchdowns and the Washington Redskins ran roughshod over one of the NFL’s top defenses in the at Landover, Md.

The three-headed running attack of Matt Jones, Robert Kelley and Chris Thompson combined for 231 yards and a touchdown as the Redskins (4-2) won their fourth consecutive game. After starting the season 0-3, Washington has its best record through six games since 2008.

The Redskins put up 493 offensive yards against the Eagles (3-2), who came in allowing an average of 266.8 yards and 12.6 points as the league’s second-best defense. Malcolm Jenkins intercepted Cousins and returned it 64 yards for a touchdown, but Philadelphia struggled to stop Washington for most of the day.

Cousins, who was 18 of 34 and not at his best, connected with Jamison Crowder on a 16-yard touchdown and with Vernon Davis on a 13-yard touchdown. Davis started at tight end in place of Jordan Reed, who was out with a concussion.

Jaguars 17, Bears 16

Blake Bortles threw for 271 yards and hit a slipping Arrelious Benn for a 51-yard touchdown in the closing minutes, lifting Jacksonville to the win in Chicago.

The Jaguars (2-3) wiped out a 13-0 deficit in the fourth quarter in a matchup of last-place teams. And the go-ahead touchdown might have been helped by the oft-criticized turf at Soldier Field.

Benn slipped as he caught a slant and so did Tracy Porter as he tried to tag the receiver. That allowed Benn, who spent the past three seasons on injured reserve, to get up and run untouched for his first touchdown in five seasons.

That gave the Jaguars a one-point lead with 2:49 left and sent the Bears (1-5) to another loss after they dropped the previous game to Indianapolis on a late TD pass by Andrew Luck. Chicago came up short despite racking up 389 yards.

The Bears’ Brian Hoyer threw for 302 yards — his fourth straight 300-yard game filling in for the injured Jay Cutler (sprained right thumb).

Cameron Meredith had 11 catches for 113 yards. Alshon Jeffery added 93 yards receiving.

Titans 28, Browns 26

Marcus Mariota threw for 284 yards and three touchdowns before Tennessee held off a late Cleveland rally in Nashville, Tenn., for a second straight victory — the first time the Titans won consecutive games since the end of the 2013 season.

Tennessee (3-3) matched its win total for all of last season when they went 3-13 and wound up with the No. 1 draft pick overall. They also beat a team other than Jacksonville on their own field for the first time since the 2013 season finale and improved to 3-16 in Nashville.

Cleveland (0-6) now is mired in its worst start since 1999 when the Browns lost their first seven as an expansion franchise.

The Browns trailed by 15 points, 28-13, when Cody Kessler hit Terrelle Pryor Sr. for a 5-yard TD with 2:07 left, but his pass on the 2-point conversion failed. The Browns recovered the onside kick, and Duke Johnson Jr. scored. The Browns kicked another onside kick, yet Andre Johnson recovered the ball for Tennessee.