Cooper Rush capped his first NFL career start with a five-yard touchdown pass to Amari Cooper with 51 seconds left as the Dallas Cowboys recorded a 20-16 victory over the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday night in Minneapolis.
Rush started in place of an injured Dak Prescott and threw two touchdowns and one interception.
The 27-year-old had thrown three career passes, all in 2017, entering the contest before leading Dallas to their sixth straight victory.
Trevor Siemian threw a touchdown pass in place of the injured Jameis Winston and PJ Williams made a clinching pick six of Tom Brady as the host New Orleans Saints defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 36-27.
Siemian replaced Winston in the second quarter, completed 16 of 29 passes for 159 yards and drove the 5-2 Saints 70 yards to Brian Johnson's 23-yard field goal that gave them a 29-27 lead with less than two minutes remaining.
On the second play of the ensuing possession, Williams stepped in front of a Brady pass and ran 40 yards for a touchdown.
Adrian Phillips intercepted Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert twice, including a 26-yard pick-six in the fourth quarter that helped the New England Patriots to a 27-24 victory.
Mac Jones finished 18 of 35 passing for 218 yards, and Damien Harris rushed for 80 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries for New England.
Melvin Gordon rushed for 47 yards and scored two touchdowns, while Teddy Bridgewater was 19 for 26 passing for 213 yards and a touchdown as the Denver Broncos prevailed 17-10 against Washington at Mile High.
Geno Smith, filling in for the injured Russell Wilson, threw for two touchdowns and rushed for another as the Seattle Seahawks defeated the visiting Jacksonville Jaguars 31-7.
Smith completed 20 of 24 passes for 195 yards as the Seahawks snapped a three-game losing streak and won for the first time in four home games this season to gain some momentum heading into their bye week.
Wilson, who had surgery on the middle finger of his right hand after being injured on 7 October against the Los Angeles Rams, is expected to return after the bye.
Every touchdown from NFL RedZone in Week 8! 🏈 pic.twitter.com/3qyBHfEbGA
— NFL (@NFL) November 1, 2021
The Buffalo Bills beat divisional rivals the Miami Dolphins 26-11 to maintain their control of the AFC East.
After a tight first half, Josh Allen threw touchdowns to Gabriel Davis and Stefon Diggs in the third quarter to break the game open.
Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa ran in a score to cut the deficit to 17-11 but Allen's seven-yard touchdown run ensured the Bills improved to 5-2.
There was a shock win for another AFC East team as the New York Jets came from behind to beat the Cincinnati Bengals 34-31.
The Bengals have been the NFL’s surprise package and led 31-20 in the fourth quarter as Joe Burrow threw for three touchdowns to extend his streak of games with two or more to eight – a franchise record and tied with Miami Dolphins great Dan Marino for the longest run to start a player’s second season in the league.
But Mike White, in for the injured Zach Wilson, threw his second and third touchdowns to Ty Johnson and ex-Bengal Tyler Kroft caught a two-point conversion to turn the game around and lift the Jets to 2-5.
Elsewhere in the Bengals’ competitive AFC North, the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Cleveland Browns 15-10 thanks to Najee Harris’ 91 rushing yards and a touchdown and Pat Freiermuth’s juggled touchdown catch.
The Carolina Panthers won 19-13 against an Atlanta Falcons side missing receiver Calvin Ridley for personal reasons.
Ridley, who also missed the London game against the Jets in week five, announced his decision to "step away from football at this time and focus on (his) mental wellbeing" after he was inactive once more for the NFC South divisional match-up.
Four Zane Gonzalez field goals and a Chuba Hubbard touchdown run secured the Panthers’ win.
Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo scored two running touchdowns as the San Francisco 49ers beat the Chicago Bears 33-22 despite a breathtaking touchdown run by his opposite number Justin Fields.
The Tennessee Titans beat AFC South rivals the Indianapolis Colts 34-31 in overtime, Randy Bullock with the winning field goal after Kevin Byard’s interception of Carson Wentz.
The Detroit Lions suffered a seventh straight defeat, 44-6 to the Philadelphia Eagles as Boston Scott and Jordan Howard ran in two touchdowns apiece.
Fellow strugglers the Houston Texans also suffered another heavy defeat to fall to 1-6. They trailed 38-0 to the Los Angeles Rams – whose receiver Cooper Kupp racked up 115 yards and his 10th touchdown of the season – before three largely meaningless fourth-quarter touchdowns gave the scoreline a veneer of respectability.
