NFL Today-Week 7

Updated Oct. 25, 2020 9:16 p.m. ET

Associated Press

SCOREBOARD

Monday, Oct. 26

Chicago (5-1) at Los Angeles Rams (4-2), 8:15 p.m. EDT, ESPN — The Los Angeles Rams host the Chicago Bears in a meeting between these big-city NFC rivals for the third straight season. The Bears lead the NFC North at 5-1 despite a less-than-impressive offense. The Rams are 4-2 coming off a loss at division rival San Francisco. The clubs boast two of the NFL’s elite defenses through the first six weeks of the season. The game is a reunion for Rams linebacker Leonard Floyd, who spent his first four NFL seasons in Chicago.

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STARS

Passing

— Baker Mayfield, Browns, started 0 for 5, including an interception on his first attempt of the game. He then completed 22 of 23 passes, the last a leaping 24-yard grab by Donovan Peoples-Jones to clinch a 37-34 victory over the Bengals. Mayfield threw for 297 yards. Cincinnati rookie Joe Burrow hit 35 of 47 passes for a season-high 406 yards and three touchdowns.

— Justin Herbert, Chargers, got his first NFL win, throwing for 347 yards and three touchdowns as well as running for a score in a 39-29 victory over the Jaguars. The rookie completed 27 of 43 passes and rushed for 66 yards, a single-game high for a Chargers QB.

— Tom Brady, Buccaneers, threw four touchdown passes to move past Drew Brees for the most in NFL history with 559, and ran for another in a 45-20 win at Las Vegas Raiders. Brady finished 33 for 45 for 369 yards.

— Aaron Rodgers, Packers, threw for 283 yards and four touchdowns, hitting on 23 of 34 passes in a 35-20 victory at Houston. In the same game, the Texans' Deshaun Watson went 29 of 39 for 309 yards and two TDs.

— Drew Brees, Saints, passed for 287 yards and two touchdowns without his two top receivers, targeting eight players in a 27-24 victory over the Carolina Panthers.

— Matthew Stafford took the Lions 75 yards to the winning TD pass with no time remaining, and finished 25 of 36 for 340 yards in a 23-22 victory at Atlanta. Matt Ryan was 31 of 42 for 338 yards and a touchdown for the Falcons.

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Rushing

— Jeff Wilson Jr., 49ers, rushed for a career-high three touchdowns and 112 yards before leaving with an ankle injury in a 33-6 romp at New England.

— Rookie Antonio Gibson, Washington, had 72 yards and a TD by the end of the first quarter and finished with 128 on 20 carries in the 25-3 rout of Dallas. As a team, Washington picked up 208 yards on the ground while allowing 83.

— James Robinson led Jacksonville with 119 rushing yards on 22 carries and a touchdown in its 39-29 loss at the Chargers.

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Receiving

— Cole Beasley, Bills, led them with 11 catches for 112 yards in an 18-10 win over the Jets.

— Tyler Boyd, Bengals, had 11 catches for 101 yards and a touchdown in a 37-34 defeat against Cleveland. Rashard Higgins made six catches for 110 yards for the Browns.

— Kenny Golladay, Lions, had six catches for 114 yards in their 23-22 victory at Atlanta. For the Falcons, Julio Jones had eight receptions for 97 yards.

— Diontae Johnson and JuJu Smith-Schuster, Steelers. Johnson made nine receptions for 80 yards and two touchdowns, while Smith-Schuster had nine catches for 85 yards in a 27-24 win at Tennessee. A.J. Brown had six receptions for 153 yards and a score for the Titans.

— Rookie Brandon Aiyuk, 49ers, had six catches for 115 yards in a 33-6 romp at New England.

— Keenan Allen, Chargers, had 10 receptions for 125 yards in a 39-29 victory against Jacksonville.

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Special Teams

— Byron Pringle, Chiefs, returned a kickoff 102 yards in a 43-16 victory in the snow at Denver.

— Tyler Bass tied a franchise record with six field goals to help Buffalo snap a two-game skid with an 18-10 victory over the winless New York Jets. He hit from 40, 53, 48, 46, 37 and 29 yards.

— Joey Slye, Panthers, attempted an NFL-record 65-yard field goal on fourth-and-19 in the fourth quarter of a 27-24 loss at New Orleans. The kick fell just short of the crossbar.

— Daniel Thomas, Jaguars, blocked Ty Long’s punt and returned it 16 yards for a touchdown in a 39-29 loss to the Chargers.

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Defense

— The Steelers held Tennessee star running back Derrick Henry to 75 yards on 20 rushes in a 27-24 victory.

— DE Myles Garrett, Browns, the NFL's sacks leader, had two on Cincinnati's Joe Burrow in a 37-34 victory.

— As Washington’s defense finally clamped down on a struggling opponent, Montez Sweat had two of six sacks, and the hosts had an interception and a forced fumble that became a safety in a 25-3 blowout of Dallas.

— Safety Daniel Sorensen, Chiefs, went for a 50-yard interception off Drew Lock in a 43-16 win at Denver.

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FLOPPING IN FOXBOROUGH

The Patriots’ 27-point loss to San Francisco was their largest at home under Bill Belichick, according to Elias Sports Bureau. They had gone 286 games without a three-game losing streak, the longest span between three-game slides in NFL history. New England fell to 2-4 for the first since coach Belichick’s first season in 2000, when the Patriots went 5-11.

New England was outgained 467-241 in total yards.

MILESTONES

Cleveland's 37-34 win at Cincinnati was the first game in NFL history with five go-ahead touchdown passes in a fourth quarter. The Browns won it on Donovan Peoples-Jones' reception from Baker Mayfield with 15 seconds remaining. ... Matthew Stafford became the second player in the Super Bowl era to throw two game-winning touchdown passes with no time on the clock. The other was Tim Couch. ... The Bills' 18-10 victory at the Jets was their first without getting a touchdown since they beat Washington 17-16 in 2007 on a safety and five field goals by Rian Lindell. Tyler Bass kicked six on Sunday. ... The Chargers' Justin Herbert joined Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow as the only rookie quarterbacks in NFL history with 300 yards, at least three passing TDs, and one rushing score in a game. Herbert did it in a 39-29 victory over Jacksonville. Burrow did that earlier Sunday in the Bengals’ 37-34 loss to the Browns. ... TE Donald Parham became the first Chargers player in 42 years to get touchdowns on each of his first two NFL catches.

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STREAKS & STATS

The Steelers improved to 6-0 for their best start since 1978, when Pittsburgh won its first seven on the way to the Super Bowl. ... Pittsburgh scored at least 26 points for a sixth straight game to tie a stretch in 2015 for the longest in franchise history. ... Jacksonville (1-6) tied an NFL record by allowing 30 or more points in six consecutive games and has lost six in a row. ... Kansas City got its 10th consecutive victory over Denver, 43-16. ... Patrick Mahomes extended his NFL-leading streak to 17 consecutive games with a touchdown throw when he hit Tyreek Hill from 10 yards in frigid, snowy conditions at Denver. ... Drew Brees completed 29 of 36 passes and helped the Saints convert 12 of 14 third downs. ... The Jets dropped to 0-7 for the first time since the 1996 team opened 0-8 en route to a 1-15 season. .. Washington's victory over the Cowboys snapped a five-game skid. Washington allowed 142 total yards and put up 397 to win a game by double digits for the first time since November 2018.

TB AND GRONK

Tom Brady connected with Rob Gronkowski for the second straight week with a 5-yard TD, the 92nd time those two teamed up on a TD pass in the regular season or playoffs, tying the duo of Steve Young and Jerry Rice for second behind Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison at 114.

NEW WAYS TO LOSE

Atlanta (1-6) found yet another strange way to lose.

Matthew Stafford connected with T.J. Hockenson on an 11-yard touchdown pass as time expired and Matt Prater booted a 48-yard extra point to give Detroit an improbable 23-22 victory. Trailing 16-14, the Falcons were positioned to run down the clock and kick a chip-shot field goal for the win. Detroit had used all its timeouts on the drive. Knowing their only chance was to allow a quick TD, the Lions allowed Todd Gurley to burst through an intentionally gaping hole. Gurley realized what the Lions were doing but fell on the goal line.

The Falcons converted a 2-point conversion to make it 22-16, but the Lions still had a chance. They cashed in with a 75-yard drive.

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EJECTED

Raiders offensive lineman Gabe Jackson was ejected for apparently throwing a punch during a scrum. Jackson was one of four Raiders offensive linemen who missed most of practice this week for having “high risk” contact with teammate Trent Brown after he tested positive for the coronavirus. The four were cleared to return just hours before kickoff.

Washington LB Jon Bostic was ejected for his hit that concussed Dallas QB Andy Dalton. Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy was disappointed players didn’t go after Bostic.

“We speak all the time about playing for one another, protecting one another,” McCarthy said. “It definitely was not the response you would expect.”

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SIDELINED

Dallas quarterback Andy Dalton was knocked out of a loss at Washington after brutal hit by linebacker Jon Bostic. Dalton was evaluated for a concussion and ruled out. Bostic was ejected. ... Cleveland receiver Odell Beckham and Washington safety Landon Collins will have more tests Monday to determine the extent of what could be season-ending injuries. Beckham hurt his left knee while attempting to make a tackle after Baker Mayfield threw an interception on the team’s opening pass play. Collins injured his left ankle/Achilles tendon in noncontact fashion early in the second quarter against Dallas. ... Jets defensive end Kyle Phillips will miss the rest of the season after sustaining an ankle injury. Phillips was carted off the field early in the second quarter. Safety Bradley McDougald left in the second half with a shoulder injury. Receiver Breshad Perriman (concussion) left in the fourth quarter. ... Cincinnati’s offensive line took two hits, with tackle Jonah Williams (neck) and center Trey Hopkins (concussion) exiting. ... Carolina left tackle Russell Okung (calf) left in the second half against New Orleans, while Saints OT tackle Terron Armstead (arm) left in the second quarter. ... Washington DE Montez Sweat was evaluated for a concussion. ... Patriots WR N’Keal Harry left with a head injury and LG Joe Thuney departed with an ankle injury. ... Broncos RB Phillip Lindsay (concussion) didn’t return after halftime.

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SPEAKING

“I’m frustrated. I’m angry. It sucks. I don’t know what else I’m supposed to feel.” — Texans DE J.J. Watt after the team fell to 1-6, losing 35-20 to Green Bay.

“We can be right in the thick of what’s going on in our division. Who knows? We’ll see. We’ll compete and we’ll work hard and try and get things done.” — Washington coach Ron Rivera on his 2-5 team being a half-game out of first place in the NFC East.

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