NFL Week 7 top plays: Chiefs hammer 49ers; Packers, Bucs stunned
Week 7 of the NFL season continued Sunday night, when the Miami Dolphins held off the visiting Pittsburgh Steelers as Tua Tagovailoa returned from the concussion protocol for Miami.
Earlier, the Kansas City Chiefs hammered the San Francisco 49ers and the surprising Seattle Seahawks romped over the Los Angeles Chargers.
In the early games, the Carolina Panthers shocked the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Washington Commanders surprised the Green Bay Packers, and the New York Giants rallied to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Here are the top plays from Sunday's action.
Pittsburgh Steelers at Miami Dolphins
Making the Mostert it of it
Raheem Mostert took a short pass from a scrambling Tagovailoa to cap an impressive 71-yard drive as the Dolphins struck first.
Feeling comfortable
Kenny Pickett, who was in the concussion protocol for most of the week before being cleared Friday, threw a back-shoulder throw to George Pickens, who made a spectacular catch as the Steelers cut the lead to 13-10.
Sanders kicked another field goal with 2 seconds left in the half, putting the Dolphins up 16-10 at the break.
Big stop
The Dolphins could have attempted another field goal to take a two-score lead, but instead elected to go for it on fourth down. The Steelers defense came up big.
Neither team scored in the third quarter.
Picking on Pickett
Pickett and the Steelers were driving for a chance to take the lead, but Jevon Holland stepped in front of a pass intended for Diontae Johnson at the 18-yard line. When the Steelers got the ball back and were driving again, Noah Igbinoghene made a spectacular interception at the 1-yard line to seal the win for the Dolphins.
Kansas City Chiefs 44, San Francisco 49ers 23
Rely on the D
The 49ers just got Christian McCaffrey via trade. But defense remains their bread and butter, and Talanoa Hufanga made off with an eye-popping interception to cut Kansas City's first drive short.
Jimmy Garoppolo rattled off an 8-yard lob TD to Ray-Ray McCloud to put the 49ers up 10-0.
Speed to burn
Sure, the Chiefs don't have Tyreek Hill anymore. But they're still rife with blazing wideouts, including Mecole Hardman. No. 17 busted through a hoard of Niners' defenders to bring K.C. within three, 10-7.
Hardman breezed past the San Francisco defense on another end around to put the Chiefs up 14-13.
Pouring it on
Mahomes continued to cut through the 49ers defense, hitting Justin Watson for a 4-yard score as the Chiefs widened their lead to 28-16.
Happy National Tight End Day!
Tight end George Kittle hauled in a 15-yard TD pass from Garoppolo as the 49ers trimmed the deficit. It was Kittle's first touchdown catch of the season.
The Chiefs didn't wait long to respond, driving down the field for Hardman's third score of the day, a 3-yard run. Mahomes then poured it on with a 45-yard TD pass to Juju Smith-Schuster for a 44-23 lead.
Las Vegas Raiders 38, Houston Texans 20
Whirlybird
The Texans went 62 yards in 13 plays to take an early 7-3 edge. Chris Moore flashed some impressive body dexterity to whip around and haul in a 13-yard TD.
Double coverage? No problem.
Derek Carr fired a pretty pass in response to the Texans' score, zeroing in on Mack Hollins to tie the affair at 10. The scoring drive spanned 10 plays, and went 82 yards.
Carr & Co. used the momentum from their prior TD drive to go 75 yards in the same amount of plays, taking a 17-13 lead. Josh Jacobs got around the edge for the score.
Mowing 'em down
A QB battle began brewing in Las Vegas. Mills raised Carr a rocket to Phillip Dorsett, giving the Texans a 20-17 lead late in the third quarter.
The wild back-and-forth continued when Jacobs scored on this 7-yard run to put the Raiders back in front. Jacobs scored his third TD of the game on a 20-yard burst as Las Vegas padded its lead.
Duron Harmon's pick-6 sealed it for the Raiders.
New York Jets 16, Denver Broncos 9
Breece bringin' it
Four straight punts (two apiece) marked the opening of this one, but on the Jets' third drive, they found pay dirt in three plays thanks to Breece Hall's 62-yard dart to the house.
Unfortunately, the run was one of Hall's last of the outing, as he was carted off shortly afterward with a knee injury. Jets coach Robert Saleh told reporters after the game he fears Hall suffered an ACL injury.
Pound it on the ground
With Russell Wilson absent, the Broncos decided to go with the ground game to open the affair, and it worked early. The squad went 75 yards in 13 plays (mostly rushes) to take a 7-6 lead. Latavius Murray punched in the go-ahead score.
Seattle Seahawks 37, Los Angeles Chargers 23
In good hands
Marquise Goodwin broke behind the Cards' defense for a quick 20-yard score to put the Hawks up 7-0 in the first quarter.
Kenny walkin'
Kenneth Walker's been a TD machine for Seattle in recent weeks, and he posted his third TD in just as many weeks to put the Hawks up 14-0. The romp made good on a Seattle INT.
DK carted off
The Hawks received a huge blow when DK Metcalf was carted back to the locker room in the second quarter, and ruled out with a knee injury.
Living fantastic
This is real life, but Austin Ekeler sure makes fantasy owners happy campers on a weekly basis. The TD hound found pay dirt again to close out an eight-play, 75-yard drive for L.A.
Looks familiar
Goodwin entered the tilt with zero TD for the Seahawks. He's now got two, and his second of the day put Seattle up 24-14 just before halftime. Chargers cornerback J.C. Jackson was injured on the play and taken off on a cart. He suffered a dislocated kneecap on the play, the team revealed Sunday night.
Walker, touchdown ranger
Walker bolted 74 yards for a score as the Seahawks padded their lead after taking over on downs. That iced the game.
Dallas Cowboys 24, Detroit Lions 6
One for the rook
Dak Prescott made his first appearance for the Cowboys since Week 1, but was immediately stuffed in the backfield on his first drive by Aidan Hutchinson, who made his fourth sack of the season to force a punt.
Digging it
No player has more interceptions than Trevon Diggs since last season, and he made off with another on the Cowboys' first defensive possession of the second half, laying out to make an athletic grab.
Ezekiel Elliott helped capitalize on the big takeaway with a one-yard TD rush, putting Dallas up 10-6.
Feasting
Elliott extended Dallas' lead to 17-6 with another one-yard plow up the middle on what was perhaps Prescott's best drive of the day. The Cowboys' starting QB completed four-of-six passes for 47 yards on the drive.
Shot out of a cannon
Prescott tossed his first TD of the season after rookie Sam Williams came away with a big fumble recovery, finding Peyton Hendershot in the end zone for a feel-good finale. The TD pass was the 150th of Prescott's career.
Cincinnati Bengals 35, Atlanta Falcons 17
Quick hitter
Joe Burrow and the Bengals' offense began the season at a snail's pace, but they've improved in recent weeks. Burrow followed up his 300-yard, three TD performance from last week with an early dart to Tyler Boyd, good for 60 yards and a score.
The Bengals doubled their lead on an 11-play, 71-yard drive that Joe Mixon finished off with a short one-yard romp.
Playmakers galore
Cincy's offense kept the wheels turning late in the first. Tyler Boyd added to his stellar day with a crazy one-handed grab over the middle, before Burrow hurled a laser to Ja'Marr Chase for the Bengals' third TD.
Burrow's stat line just five seconds into the second quarter: 14-of-16, 228 yards, two TD and a perfect 158.3 passer rating.
Chasing history
Chase continued his hot game with another wondrous run after the catch, breaking away for 41 yards and another TD in the second quarter.
New York Giants 23, Jacksonville Jaguars 17
Daniel Jones has been dropping dimes more than ever this season, and the fourth-year signal-caller was tossing around money bags on his first drive against Jacksonville.
He completed six of seven pass attempts on the drive, including this pretty throw to Darius Slayton to put New York up 7-0.
Duval!
The Jags saw New York's TD, and raised it one, plus a two-point conversion. Travis Etienne got past the pylon with a short 7-yard burst, and Jacksonville went right back to him for the two-pointer.
Over the top
Trevor Lawrence showed his ups to open the third quarter for the Jags, pushing them ahead 17-13 after leaping over the line for the TD. The Jags went 73 yards in seven plays to take the lead.
Rally the troops
A combination of breakout runs from Jones and Saquon Barkley got the Giants into stellar field position, and Jones put a bow on the big-time drive to give New York a 20-17 edge with five minutes to play in the fourth.
Baltimore Ravens 23, Cleveland Browns 20
Walk it in
When in doubt, give it to Nick Chubb. That's what the Browns did with a high frequency in their 11-play, 75-yard drive to open their tilt with Baltimore. Chubb got five carries on the drive, amassing 18 yards and the go-ahead score.
Cooooooppp!
Cleveland took advantage of Chubb's intimidation factor on its second drive, faking a handoff to him before Jacoby Brissett uncorked a 55-yard bomb to Amari Cooper down the left sideline. The Browns got three points out of their second possession, taking a 10-3 first-quarter lead.
Flocky
After a pair of field goals, Baltimore found pay dirt near the end of the first half after a 10-play, 80 yard drive. Lamar Jackson's legs were a key catalyst in keeping plays alive, before Gus Edwards punched in a 7-yard score to put Baltimore up 13-10.
Big 93
Immense defensive lineman are not a foreign sight for Ravens fans, and their newest big man Calais Campbell made magic in a massive way to strip Brissett in Ravens' territory.
Edwards — fresh off the PUP list — punched in another TD for the squad on fourth down to give it a 20-10 lead.
Hunting for the end zone
After a slew of mammoth runs from Nick Chubb, Kareem Hunt brought the Browns within three with a two-yard TD, capping a seven-play, 75 yard drive.
Blocked!
After the Browns jumped on a key fumble recovery, the Ravens' D came up with a clutch deflection on Cade York's 60-yard field goal attempt, keeping the team ahead 23-20.
Washington Commanders 23, Green Bay Packers 21
Aaron to Aaron
You can't keep Aaron Rodgers and Aaron Jones in check forever, and the combo put their heads together for a 4-yard TD after a nifty fake. The hook-up capped a seven-play, 42 yard scoring drive for G.B.
Back the other way!
De'Vondre Campbell wrestled a ball away from Darrick Forrest, taking it back 63 yards to the house to give Green Bay a 14-3 lead.
Capital cookin'
Washington got the best of the Packers' D on the next drive, however, going 83 yards in 12 plays to come within four. Taylor Heinicke found Antonio Gibson over the middle for the pivotal TD.
Dime. Piece.
It took just five plays for Washington to find pay dirt on its third drive of the second half.
Heinicke hadn't frequented Terry McLaurin much before the drive, but he honed in on his favorite receiver when looking for six, and found him on the sideline for a tough 37-yard hook-up. The pitch-and-catch gave the Commanders a 17-14 advantage.
Pack attack
The Aaron-Aaron duo found gold again late in the fourth, as Rodgers put on a supreme display of pocket maneuvering, before finding Jones in the end zone. The throw brought G.B. within two, 23-21.
Washington's defense held up on the Packers' last possession though, moving up to 3-4, and dropping Green Bay to the same record.
Tennessee Titans 19, Indianapolis Colts 10
Defensive gem
It's picture time! The Titans' defense posed for their Kodak moment after Andrew Adams got his paws on a Matt Ryan pass attempt, and raced 76 yards to the end zone for Tennessee's first TD of the day.
The Titans doubled down with another interception on their next outing, this time from David Long Jr., who collected his second in two weeks.
Meet me in Parris
Ryan and the Colts put the pair of giveaways behind them in the third, piecing together a 12-play, 58-yard drive that Ryan topped off with a deft pass to Parris Campbell.
Ball hunting
The Titans' defense put its foot down once again in the fourth, stopping a Colts' drive with just over three minutes to play as Terrance Mitchell stripped the ball loose, and Amani Hooker jumped on it.
Carolina Panthers 21, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 3
Securing the bag
The Panthers played stifling defense in the first half, holding Tampa scoreless. Just as the half came to a close, P.J. Walker fired a 20-yard missile to D.J. Moore, who got both feet down in the back of the end zone.
Walker had 125 yards and a TD on an 11-of-12 clip in the first half.
TD Hub
Chuba Hubbard put his imprint on the game after D'Onta Foreman broke out for a 60-yard scamper, speeding 17 yards to the house to double the Panthers' lead in just three plays.
Tight end TD!
The first tight end TD on National Tight Ends Day came courtesy of Tommy Tremble, who put Carolina up 21-3 with a 29-yard grab from Walker.