Tom Brady completed 30-of-37 passes for 339 yards and three touchdowns
Sunday to spark the defending NFL champion New England Patriots over
Oakland 33-8 at Mexico City for their sixth consecutive victory.
The 40-year-old quarterback, a five-time Super Bowl champion, connected
with Brandin Cooks on a season-long 64-yard touchdown toss. Stephen
Gostkowski also kicked four field goals, including a team-record
62-yarder, in the game before a sellout crowd of 77,357 at Estadio
Azteca.
“It was just a fiesta all over the field,” said Patriots right end Rob Gronkowski.
Brady’s sixth 300-yard game of the season, one more than he managed all of last season, was the 82nd of his career.
“We played from ahead, which is kind of the way we wanted to,” Brady
said. “We didn’t turn it over and that’s a good formula for winning.”
It was New England’s club-record 13th consecutive road game, the
second-longest streak in NFL history behind the 1989-90 run of 18 by
the Joe Montana-led San Francisco 49ers.
The NFL and Mexico’s tourism ministry also announced a deal for one
regular-season game in Mexico annually from 2019-2021 after the current
contract ends next year.
Eagles, Saints streak on
Carson Wentz threw for 168 yards and two touchdowns and the Philadelphia
Eagles improved to an NFL-best 9-1 with their eighth consecutive
triumph, a 37-9 win at Dallas that boosted their NFC East lead over the
Cowboys to four games.
New Orleans also captured an eighth consecutive victory. Wil Lutz kicked
a 28-yard field goal in over-time to defeat Washington 34-31,
completing a rally from 15 points down in the last six minutes of
regulation time.
“From where this started to where it is now, we’ve grown in leaps and
bounds. The sky’s the limit for this group,” Saints quarterback Drew
Brees said.
“We’re playing with a ton of confidence and when you win games like this
you feel like you can win anywhere, anytime, any way. That’s a good
feeling.”
Case Keenum was 27-of-38 passing for 280 yards and a touchdown against
his former team, while Latavius Murray ran for 95 yards and two
touchdowns as the host Minnesota Vikings beat the Los Angeles Rams 24-7.
The victory stretches their win streak to six games.
“It’s going to be hard to yank him out of there right now,” Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said of Keenum. “He’s playing good.”
Keenum was asked if he should remain the starter even with Teddy Bridgewater back after missing a year with a knee injury.
“If it is not broke, don’t fix it,” Keenum said. “Let’s keep doing what we’re doing.”
Minnesota’s defenders kept the NFL’s top-scoring attack to its season
low in points and only 261 total yards in the showdown of division
leaders.
Stafford powers Detroit win
Detroit’s Matthew Stafford completed 21-of-31 passes for 299 yards and
two touchdowns as the visiting Lions outlasted Chicago 27-24.
Matt Prater’s 52-yard field goal with 95 seconds remaining provided the victory margin.
Blake Bortles threw a 10-yard touchdown pass and Telvin Smith recovered a
fumble in the end zone to spark Jacksonville over winless Cleveland
19-7.
Aldrick Rosas kicked four field goals, the last from 23 yards in
over-time, to give the New York Giants a 12-9 home victory over Kansas
City. The Giants (2-8) snapped a three-game losing streak. The Chiefs
fell to 6-4.
Patrick Murray kicked a 35-yard field goal with seven seconds remaining
and Tampa Bay added a fumble recovery touchdown on the final play in a
30-20 win at Miami.
Andy Dalton threw for three touchdowns and the Cincinnati Bengals edged
Denver 20-17 for their first road victory over the Broncos since 1975.
Denver’s six-game losing streak is its longest since 1990.
Baltimore forced five turnovers in a 23-0 romp at Green Bay, inflicting
the first shutout on the Packers since 2006. Rookie D’Onta Foreman ran
for two touchdowns and the Houston Texans downed visiting Arizona 31-21.
Philip Rivers threw for 251 yards and two touchdowns while Buffalo
rookie Nathan Peterman tossed five interceptions in his NFL debut as the
Los Angeles Chargers ripped the visiting Bills 54-24.
New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady throws a pass under pressure from Oakland Raiders defensive end Khalil Mack during their NFL game at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. PICTURE: USA TODAY Sports