Round-up of NFL Sunday as Josh Allen inspired the Buffalo Bills to a comeback win while the New England Patriots began life without Bill Belichick; Week One continues Monday night when the New York Jets face the San Francisco 49ers, live on Sky Sports NFL from 1.15am
Monday 9 September 2024 14:47, UK
Josh Allen inspired the Buffalo Bills to a comeback victory over the Arizona Cardinals, while Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears came from behind to beat the Tennessee Titans on the opening Sunday of the 2024 NFL season...
Allen threw for two touchdowns while rushing for two more as the Buffalo Bills overturned a 14-point deficit to beat the Arizona Cardinals 34-28 in Sunday's season opener.
Allen finished 18 of 23 for 232 yards and touchdown strikes to Mack Hollins and Khalil Shakir, while hurdling a defender in one or two rushing scores for the host Bills.
James Conner rushed for a touchdown, Michael Wilson made a touchdown catch and DeeJay Dallas ran back a 96-yard kickoff touchdown return as the Cardinals threatened an upset win on the opening weekend of the season.
Kyler Murray went 21 of 31 passing for 162 yards and his scoring pass to Wilson, while Bills edge rusher Gregory Rousseau finished the day with a career-best three sacks and a forced fumble.
Allen kickstarted the comeback at the end of the first half when he ran in a seven-yard touchdown to cut Arizona's lead to 17-10 at the break.
Jason Sanders kicked a 52-yard buzzer-beating field goal as time expired as the Miami Dolphins edged to a 20-17 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Dolphins had been trailing 17-7 at half-time before Tua Tagovailoa punished Travis Etienne's goalline fumble with an 80-yard touchdown pass to Tyreek Hill to move Miami within three points.
Hill celebrated by imitating handcuffs just hours after the wide receiver had been detained by police officers over a traffic violation a block from the Dolphins stadium.
Tagovailoa finished 23 of 37 passing for 338 yards and a touchdown, while Hill - who led the NFL in rushing yards last year - had seven catches for 130 yards and a score alongside Jaylen Waddle's five catches for 109 yards.
Jags quarterback Trevor Lawrence went 12 of 21 for 162 yards and a touchdown pass to Brian Thomas Jr.
Chris Boswell kicked six field goals while Kirk Cousins threw two interceptions as the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Atlanta Falcons 18-10.
Cousins, making his first start for the Falcons after his high-profile exit from the Minnesota Vikings, finished 16 of 26 for 155 yards and a touchdown pass to Kyle Pitts alongside his two picks.
The second interception would prove decisive as Cousins was picked off by Donte Jackson amid Atlanta's effort to cut the gap with 2.47 remaining in the game.
Justin Fields also made his first start for Pittsburgh after Russell Wilson was ruled out through injury, completing 17 of 23 passes for 156 yards while rushing for 57 yards.
George Pickens led the Steelers through the air with six catches for 85 yards, while TJ Watt remained an unwavering menace before delivering a late sack.
The Chicago Bears overturned a 17-0 deficit as they stunned the Tennessee Titans 24-17 to give No 1 Draft pick Caleb Williams his first win in the NFL.
Titans quarterback Will Levis was guilty of a howler when his desperate under-arm pass while being sacked was picked off by Bears corner Tyrique Stevenson, who ran back a 43-yard interception return touchdown to give Chicago their first lead with 7.35 remaining.
It featured as part of 24 unanswered points from the Bears, who finished with just 148 yards on offense.
The Bears did not score their first touchdown until Jonathan Owens ran back a blocked punt for an 18-yard score with 9.07 remaining in the third.
Tony Pollard had given Tennessee an early lead with a 26-yard rushing touchdown, before Levis floated a 17-yard strike to tight end Chig Okonkwo.
Williams finished his NFL regular-season debut 14 of 29 for 93 yards.
Stefon Diggs made two touchdowns catches on his regular-season debut for the Houston Texans as they held on to beat the Indianapolis Colts 29-27.
Fellow offseason addition Joe Mixon also starred for Houston with 159 rushing yards and a touchdown from his 30 carries.
Reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year CJ Stroud completed 24 of 32 passes for 234 yards and two strikes, with Nico Collins leading the Texans with six catches for 117 yards.
Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson finished nine of 19 for 212 yards, two touchdowns - including a 60-yard dime to Alec Pierce - and an interception as he made his return from a season-ending shoulder injury in 2023.
The 2023 first-round draft pick also ran six times for 56 yards and a three-yard rushing score.
Mike Zimmer's Dallas Cowboys defense tormented Deshaun Watson as they sacked the Cleveland Browns quarterback six times while intercepting him twice on the way to a 33-17 win.
Eric Kendricks and DeMarcus Lawrence each had two sacks apiece while Watson was limited to just 24 completions for a touchdown and two picks.
Dak Prescott, who agreed an NFL record-breaking contract extension before kickoff, went 19 of 32 for 179 yards and a touchdown pass to Brandin Cooks. Ezekiel Elliott also marked his return to Dallas with a three-yard rushing touchdown, with Brandon Aubrey adding four field goals.
The Mike Macdonald era in Seattle began with a win on Sunday as the Seahawks overcame the Denver Broncos 26-20 behind running back Kenneth Walker III.
Denver had led 13-9 at half-time following two earlier safeties, before Walker exploded for 84 yards in the second half on the way to 103 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith threw for 171 yards, a 30-yard touchdown to Zach Charbonnet and an interception as well as running for a 34-yard score.
Rookie Broncos quarterback Bo Nix was 26 of 42 for 138 yards and two interceptions, as well as rushing for 35 yards and a score.
Jim Harbaugh marked his return to NFL coaching with a win as his Los Angeles Chargers beat the Las Vegas Raiders 22-10 in an all-AFC West clash.
Offseason acquisition J.K. Dobbins led the way with 135 rushing yards and a touchdown as the Chargers showed promising signs in their bid to establish a running game they had lacked last season.
Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert went 17 of 26 passing for 144 yards and a 10-yard touchdown pass to rookie Ladd McConkey, while Cameron Dicker provided three field goals.
Gardner Minshew started at quarterback for the Raiders and went 25 of 33 passing for 257 yards, including a 31-yard catch-and-run touchdown from Alexander Mattison. Rookie right end Brock Bowers had six catches for 58 yards.
Baker Mayfield threw for 289 yards and four touchdowns as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won their fourth straight opening-weekend game with a 37-20 victory over the Washington Commanders.
The former No 1 overall pick twice connected with Mike Evans in the end zone, as well as throwing strikes to Chris Godwin and third-round rookie Jalen McMillan.
Rookie Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels enjoyed a steady debut, going 17 of 24 for 184 yards in addition to 16 carries for 88 yards and two rushing scores.
Jerod Mayo celebrated his first win as New England Patriots head coach as the franchise began life without Bill Belichick with a 16-10 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals.
Rhamondre Stevenson produced 25 carries for 120 yards and a touchdown while Joey Slye kicked three field goals and second-year edge rusher Keion White finished with 2.5 sacks.
Joe Burrow was 21 of 29 for 164 yards as he made his return to action having missed much of the 2023 campaign after suffering a year-ending wrist. Zack Moss ran in his first touchdown for Cincinnati after being brought in to replace Joe Mixon during the offseason.
Daniel Jones threw two interceptions, including an ugly pick-six to Andrew Van Ginkel, as the New York Giants suffered a 28-6 defeat to the Minnesota Vikings.
Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold threw 19 of 24 passes for 208 yards and touchdown passes to Justin Jefferson and Jalen Nailor, while Aaron Jones had 14 carries for 94 yards and a score.
Jones, making his return from a year-ending ACL injury in 2023, meanwhile finished 22 of 42 for 186 yards and two picks as a torrid Giants offensive display warranted boos from the crowd.
Derek Carr threw for three touchdowns while Alvin Kamar and Jamaal Williams logged rushing scores as the New Orleans Saints dominated the Carolina Panthers 47-10.
Carr set the tone early when he connected with Rashid Shaheed on a 59-yard touchdown on the opening possession of the game, before later finding Foster Moreau and Juwan Johnson in the end zone to give New Orleans a 30-0 lead.
Panthers quarterback Bryce Young endured a miserable outing as he finished 13 of 30 for 161 yards and two interceptions, while also being sacked three times.
Watch the New York Jets take on the San Francisco 49ers in the first Monday Night Football of the 2024 NFL season, live on Sky Sports from 1.15am in the early hours of Tuesday. Also stream with NOW.
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