NFL roundup: Chiefs, Broncos, Lions and Ravens get key wins while Chargers fall to Bucs

Eric Berry returned an interception for a touchdown, and then brought back another pick for a two-point conversion that gave the Kansas City Chiefs an improbable 29-28 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.

The Falcons, rallying from a 27-16 deficit, went ahead 28-27 on Matt Ryan’s five-yard touchdown pass to Aldrick Robinson with 4:32 remaining. Atlanta decided to go for two points, but Berry stepped in front of Ryan’s pass and ran 99 yards the other way to give the Chiefs (9-3) their winning margin. It came after Denver won a game in similar fashion last month, returning a blocked PAT for the winning points at New Orleans.

Berry had another huge play with less than a minute to go in the first half, picking off Ryan’s pass over the middle and bringing it back 37 yards for a touchdown. After reaching the end zone, the suburban Atlanta native handed the ball to his mother sitting in the stands at the Georgia Dome.

Alex Smith completed 21 of 25 passes for 270 yards, including a three-yard touchdown to Spencer Ware. Travis Kelce was Kansas City’s top receiver, hauling in eight passes for 140 yards.

Ryan was 22-of-34 passing for 297 yards, but his two huge mistakes cost the Falcons (7-5). Julio Jones hauled in seven passes for 113 yards, while Devonta Freeman had a couple of one-yard touchdown runs.

Broncos 20, Jaguars 10

Bradley Roby returned an interception 51 yards for a touchdown, helping visiting Denver beat mistake-prone Jacksonville to gain ground in the AFC playoff picture without injured quarterback Trevor Siemian.

Roby picked off Blake Bortles’ wobbler across the middle in the third quarter and went untouched the other way. Star linebacker Von Miller hit Bortles as he released the ball.

It was the 11th pick-six of Bortles’ three-year career and his third in the last four games. Houston and Detroit also returned interceptions for touchdowns in games the Jaguars lost by less than seven points.

The latest one resulted in a seventh consecutive loss for Jacksonville (2-10) and secured another miserable milestone for the small-market franchise. The Jaguars became the fifth team in NFL history to post double-digit losses in six consecutive seasons, joining Tampa Bay (1983-94), Detroit (2001-06), Oakland (2003-09) and Cleveland (2008-13).

Jacksonville had a chance to tie in the final minutes, but Bortles fumbled trying to make a play in the pocket.

The Broncos (8-4) rebounded from an overtime loss against Kansas City, and with Miami’s loss at Baltimore, moved into position to get one of the conference’s wild-card spots.

Lions 28, Saints 13

Matthew Stafford passed for 341 yards and two touchdowns to lead Detroit to the victory in New Orleans over the mistake-prone Saints.

Golden Tate exploited a coverage breakdown on third-and-long for a 66-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter when Detroit (8-4) was clinging to a six-point lead. The Lions, who’ve won seven of eight, dominated statistically, but four opportunities inside the New Orleans 20 ended with Matt Prater field goals, allowing the Saints (5-7) to stay close until the fourth quarter.

This time, however, the Lions pulled away for their most comfortable victory of the season after seven previous victory margins of one to seven points.

The Lions also became the first team in 60 Saints home games to stop Drew Brees from completing a touchdown pass, although tight end Coby Fleener had a pass bounce off his hands at the goal line. Brees finished 31 of 44 for 326 yards and was intercepted three times, once each by Glover Quin, Tavon Wilson and Miles Killebrew.

Tate finished with eight catches for 145 yards. Stafford’s other touchdown was a one-yarder to running back Theo Riddick.

Ravens 38, Dolphins 6

Joe Flacco threw for 381 yards and four touchdowns, and the Ravens overwhelmed the Dolphins in the first half for a victory in Baltimore that ended Miami’s six-game winning streak.

Baltimore (7-5) led 24-0 at halftime behind Flacco and a dominant performance from the league’s second-ranked defense. Flacco went 27 for 34 for 258 yards and three scores over the first 30 minutes, and the Ravens yielded only 115 yards and intercepted a Ryan Tannehill pass.

That was enough to provide the Ravens with their fourth win in five games and at least a share of first place in the AFC North.

Flacco finished with a franchise-record 36 completions in 47 attempts, by far his most impressive outing in an uneven season. He entered with 11 TD passes and 10 interceptions.

Miami (7-5) didn’t score until Tannehill threw a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter following a fumble recovery that started the drive at the Baltimore 8. Tannehill went 29 for 40 for 226 yards and three interceptions. He was picked off only once during Miami’s six-game streak.

Buccaneers 28, Chargers 21

Jameis Winston threw a go-ahead, 12-yard touchdown pass to Cameron Brate midway through the fourth quarter and Keith Tandy intercepted a pass by Philip Rivers in the end zone with 2:56 left to giveTampa Bay the win at San Diego, the Buccaneers’ fourth consecutive victory.

Rivers had the Chargers on the move in the final minutes before Tandy got in front of a pass to Dontrelle Inman and picked it off. Tandy’s momentum carried him into the end zone, giving the Bucs the ball on their 20. They were able to run out the clock.

The Bucs (7-5), who pulled into a tie with Atlanta atop the NFC South, benefited from a short punt by Drew Kaser to start the winning drive on their 46. Winston found Brate for the TD on the fourth play of the drive, and then hit Mike Evans on a conversion pass for a 28-21 lead.

Rivers had two pass intercepted in the second half, including Lavonte David’s pick-six. The Chargers (5-7) were trying to get back to .500 for the first time since Week 2. They remain buried in the AFC West basement.

Steelers 24, Giants 14

Ben Roethlisberger passed for 289 yards and two touchdowns, Le’Veon Bell rolled up 182 yards of total offense, and Pittsburgh’s resurgent defense harassed Eli Manning into a flurry of mistakes in a dominant win over visiting New York.

Antonio Brown edged good buddy Odell Beckham Jr. in their personal showdown, catching six passes for 54 yards and an acrobatic scoring grab at the back of the end zone. Tight end Ladarius Green added six receptions for 110 yards, both career highs, and a touchdown as the Steelers (7-5) won their third straight to keep pace with Baltimore atop the AFC North.

Manning completed 24 of 39 passes for 195 yards with two touchdowns and two picks in the red zone for the Giants (8-4), whose six-game run ended with a thud. Beckham was largely a non-factor despite a game-high 10 receptions for 100 yards.

New York managed just 56 yards rushing and couldn’t convert on it few opportunities. Both of Manning’s interceptions came near the Pittsburgh goal line and the Giants missed on all three of their fourth-down attempts.

Cardinals 31, Redskins 23

Carson Palmer threw for 300 yards and three touchdowns, David Johnson scored twice and Arizona clinched a playoff spot for Dallas with the win over visiting Washington.

Palmer’s 25-yard touchdown pass to Johnson with 11:09 to play put Arizona ahead 24-20, the fourth lead change of the second half. After a field goal by Washington (6-5-1), Palmer’s 42-yard touchdown pass to J.J. Nelson with 1:56 padded gave the Cardinals (5-6-1) a 31-23 lead.

Washington drove to the Arizona 28-yard line before Patrick Peterson’s interception of Kirk Cousins’ pass with 41 seconds left sealed the victory.

Johnson, who also scored on a one-yard run, became the second player in NFL history to top 100 yards from scrimmage in the first 12 games of a season. Edgerrin James was the other. Johnson carried the ball 18 times for 84 yards and caught nine passes for another 91. Larry Fitzgerald caught 10 passes for 78 yards, moving past Cris Carter into third on the NFL career receptions list.

Cousins completed 21 of 37 passes for 271 yards and a touchdown. His 59-yard pass to DeSean Jackson on the first series of the second half set up his 1-yard touchdown sneak.

Packers 21, Texans 13

Aaron Rodgers threw for 209 yards and two touchdowns, and Green Bay pulled away from the visiting Houston with two fourth-quarter touchdowns.

The Packers (6-6) weathered snowy conditions at Lambeau Field, making just enough plays on the cold turf to even their record for the first time since they were 4-4 after losing to Indianapolis on Nov. 6.

Brock Osweiler connected with DeAndre Hopkins for a 44-yard touchdown pass with 1:51 left to get within eight for Houston. Nick Novak missed the extra point, with footing slippery at Lambeau.

The Texans (6-6) had one last shot after the Packers failed to run out the clock. But Osweiler’s last-ditch pass-and-lateral play from Houston’s 12 with four seconds left failed, handing Houston its third straight loss.

Bengals 32, Eagles 14

Andy Dalton threw a pair of touchdown passes as Cincinnati finally got its depleted offense moving without receiver A.J. Green to send visiting Philadelphia to its most lopsided loss of the season.

The Bengals (4-7-1) got their first win since Oct. 23, beating a team that’s in a swoon of its own. The Eagles (5-7) opened the season with three straight wins, but have dropped seven of nine.

Dalton had completions of 50, 44, 29, 23 and 21 yards as the Bengals scored on each of their first six possessions for a 29-0 lead, reinventing themselves with Green and running back Giovani Bernard sidelined by injuries. The previous time they scored on their first six possessions was 2009 against the Bears.

The only bad moment: Mike Nugent missed another point-after-touchdown kick wide to the right, his fourth miss in a span of five PAT tries. Nugent made field goals from 32, 33, 26 and 38 yards, the last one deflecting off the left upright.

The Eagles extended Cincinnati’s drives with personal fouls and leaky pass coverage. Dalton finished 23 of 31 for 332 yards without an interception or a sack.

Bears 26, 49ers 6

Jordan Howard ran for 117 yards and a career-high three touchdowns and the Bears handed visiting San Francisco its 11th consecutive loss on a snowy day in Chicago.

The 49ers (1-11) extended their franchise-record losing streak and set a club low with six yards net passing on a day when Colin Kaepernick got lifted for Blaine Gabbert.

The Bears (3-9) finished with a season high in points and picked up a rare win in a matchup between two of the NFL’s worst teams. Matt Barkley, making his second start with Jay Cutler sidelined by a season-ending shoulder injury, went nearly the entire first half without a completion.

But he led a touchdown drive near the end of the second quarter and finished 11 of 18 for 192 yards. Howard’s three rush TDs are tied for the second-most by a Bears rookie in a game.

Kaepernick completed just one of five passes for four yards and was sacked five times. He also ran for 20 yards in six carries before Gabbert replaced him in the fourth quarter. Gabbert was four-of-10 passing for 35 yards and sacked for a safety near the end of the game. Carlos Hyde ran for 92 yards.