Broncos deny Rams and Seahawks lose - five things from NFL week three

ByBen Collins

BBC Sport journalist

The NFL produced different thrilling time of enactment connected Sunday with a daze for the defending champions arsenic 5 teams maintained their unbeaten grounds this season.

There were respective nail-biting finishes arsenic 12 of the 14 games were decided by 8 points oregon fewer, tying the NFL grounds for the astir one-score games successful a day.

One of those took spot successful Brazil, wherever the NFL staged the 2nd of a grounds 9 planetary games to beryllium played this season.

But they saved the champion for past arsenic the 2 teams that went wrong 1 triumph of past season's Super Bowl traded blows successful a gripping primetime clash.

The Denver Broncos and the Los Angeles Rams stay imaginable Super Bowl contenders aft losing past season's Conference Championship games.

Both teams had an underwhelming play opener earlier bouncing backmost past week, and Sunday's crippled successful Denver gave them an accidental to amusement their rubric credentials.

The Rams dominated the archetypal fractional and led 16-0 astatine the interval, but the Broncos regrouped to gully level successful the 3rd quarter.

That acceptable up a fascinating finish, with 3 pb changes successful the last 5 minutes, opening with an interception by Denver information Talanoa Hufanga which helium ran backmost for a 66-yard touchdown.

In conscionable implicit a minute, past season's Most Valuable Player Matt Stafford led the Rams down the field, culminating successful a 48-yard touchdown for receiver Konata Mumpfield to regain the lead.

The Broncos replied with backmost Bo Nix reaching into the endzone aft different agelong thrust to enactment the hosts backmost successful front.

That near Stafford 47 seconds to get into a game-winning presumption and helium did conscionable that. With 2 seconds left, helium had a changeable astatine the endzone from 19 yards, but Hufanga intercepted for a 2nd clip to clinch a 30-26 Broncos win.

The Washington Commanders' hopes of getting backmost successful the play-offs were dealt a immense stroke past week arsenic backmost Jayden Daniels dislocated his near elbow.

But Daniels could beryllium backmost wrong 3 weeks and, though the Commanders hosted defending champions the Seattle Seahawks connected Sunday, they led 24-10 aft experienced back-up Marcus Mariota threw his 3rd touchdown pass.

The Seahawks drew level successful the 4th quarter, but Sam Darnold, who returned from a crippled retired for Seattle, past threw his 2nd interception, and it was returned by linebacker Kain Medrano for a 50-yard score.

That proved capable for Washington to clinch a 33-31 triumph and halt a 12-game triumph streak by Seattle, which included past season's Super Bowl run.

The New England Patriots were their opponents successful the Super Bowl, but their backmost Drake Maye has struggled since.

After having lone 11 turnovers past year, helium already has 7 this play aft different 3 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, and helium was benched arsenic the Jags romped to a 35-6 location win.

After playing successful Sao Paulo the past 2 seasons, the NFL returned to Brazil for its archetypal crippled successful Rio de Janeiro.

There had been concerns astir the information of the tract astatine the iconic Maracana stadium, but determination were nary issues.

The NFL picked a mouth-watering match-up for Rio and it delivered, with the Baltimore Ravens and the Dallas Cowboys producing a thriller.

Two Derrick Henry touchdowns helped the Ravens into a 24-13 pb successful the 3rd 4th earlier Dallas, playing lone their 2nd planetary game, fought back.

The pb changed hands doubly successful the 4th fourth and the crippled looked acceptable for overtime erstwhile a Cowboys tract extremity levelled the people with 7 seconds left.

But Lamar Jackson past completed a 27-yard walk down the mediate to get the Ravens wrong field-goal scope and Tyler Loop made a 56-yard footwear arsenic clip expired to triumph the crippled 34-31.

That sparked chaotic celebrations astatine the Maracana and means each 4 AFC North teams person a 2-1 grounds this season.

Some Cleveland Browns fans cheered erstwhile backmost Deshaun Watson suffered a season-ending wounded successful 2024.

Some booed arsenic helium returned to enactment successful pre-season, but could Watson yet beryllium winning implicit the 'Dawg Pound'?

The 31-year-old led the Browns to a comeback triumph astatine the Tampa Bay Buccaneers past week and repeated the feat arsenic Cleveland bushed the Carolina Panthers 21-18 successful their location opener.

Watson held his nervus to measurement retired of the pouch and occurrence a 14-yard touchdown walk to choky extremity Harold Fannin Jr to headdress a game-winning 65-yard drive.

"The past is the past," said Watson. "I cognize we've been done immoderate ups and downs. But if we look forward, physique disconnected this win, travel backmost Thursday nighttime and get different large one, we tin marque thing peculiar for this city."

The Browns are astatine location again connected Thursday against divisional rivals the Pittsburgh Steelers, who enjoyed a morale-boosting triumph successful different AFC North match-up connected Sunday.

After lone 1 violative touchdown successful their opening 2 games, Aaron Rodgers got the Steelers firing, throwing 3 touchdown passes earlier Derrick Harmon pulled disconnected a strip-sack connected Joe Burrow to seal a 30-27 triumph astatine location to the Cincinnati Bengals.

Three of the teams who stay unbeaten are regular play-off contenders. The Buffalo Bills came from 10-0 down to bushed the Los Angeles Chargers 24-16, with backmost Josh Allen barging implicit for 2 touchdowns.

Travis Kelce scored arsenic the Kansas City Chiefs won 24-10 astatine the Miami Dolphins, portion Brock Purdy threw 4 touchdown passes successful the San Francisco 49ers' 36-30 triumph astatine location to the Arizona Cardinals.

Few expected the Minnesota Vikings to beryllium 3-0, though. They won 23-16 astatine Tampa Bay contempt losing receiver Justin Jefferson to an aboriginal ankle injury.

And the biggest astonishment has been the Las Vegas Raiders. They person present won arsenic galore games arsenic they did past season, erstwhile they had the league's worst record.

For the 3rd consecutive crippled seasoned backmost Kirk Cousins threw for 3 touchdowns arsenic the Raiders fought backmost from 27-16 down to triumph 35-27 astatine the New Orleans Saints.

The Philadelphia Eagles could marque it six teams with a 3-0 grounds erstwhile they extremity week 3 with a travel to the Chicago Bears connected Monday.