Brady, Patriots best Manning, again
Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman jumps over Oakland Raiders’ tight end Mychal Rivera and Seahawks’ Earl Thomas (29) after Sherman made an interception in the first half of Sunday’s game in Seattle.
Arizona Cardinals defensive end Ed Stinson (72) takes down Dallas Cowboys quarterback Brandon Weeden (3) during the second half of Sunday’s game in Arlington, Texas.
San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, bottom, fumbles as he is hit by St. Louis Rams defensive end Robert Quinn (94) during the second quarter of Sunday’s game in Santa Clara, Calif. The Rams recovered the ball.
Tom Brady outdueled Peyton Manning, throwing for four touchdowns, and Julian Edelman returned a punt 84 yards for a score in leading the New England Patriots past the Denver Broncos 43-21 Sunday.
The 16th matchup between the all-time great quarterbacks wasn’t particularly competitive after the first quarter.
New England (7-2) won its fifth straight, halting the four-game winning streak for Denver (6-2) in emphatic fashion. Brady has 18 TD passes and one interception in those five victories.
Manning fell to 2-7 at Gillette Stadium and 5-11 overall against Brady, even though he threw for 438 yards and two touchdowns. He has at least two TD passes in 14 consecutive games, an NFL record.
Arizona 28, Dallas 17: Carson Palmer had three touchdown passes after an early interception the Cowboys returned for a score, and the Dallas offense struggled without the injured Tony Romo in a loss to Arizona.
The Cardinals (7-1), who have sole possession of the best record in the NFC for the first time since 1974, won their fourth straight. They have beaten all five conference opponents.
St. Louis 13, San Francisco 10: Colin Kaepernick fumbled at the goal line with two seconds remaining, and St. Louis sacked the San Francisco quarterback eight times on the way to an upset over the 49ers.
The Rams recovered, and the play was reviewed and upheld. The 49ers (4-4) had first-and-goal at the 1, but struggled in the red zone and failed to capitalize on consecutive penalties by Trumaine Johnson as he defended Michael Crabtree.
Philadelphia 31, Houston 21: Mark Sanchez replaced the injured Nick Foles and threw for 202 yards and two touchdowns to lead Philadelphia over Houston.
Foles injured his left shoulder late in the first quarter, forcing Sanchez into his first action since 2012 with the Jets. He threw two interceptions in three quarters, but made throws when he had to.
Seattle 30, Oakland 24: Marshawn Lynch rushed for two first-half touchdowns, Bruce Irvin tipped and intercepted Derek Carr’s pass and returned it 35 yards for another score and Seattle beat Oakland.
After a tumultuous previous month, the Seahawks (5-3) won their second straight behind a strong first half, three field goals from Steven Hauschka and a defense that made Carr look like a rookie much of the afternoon.
Cincinnati 33, Jacksonville 23: Jeremy Hill ran for a career-high 154 yards and a pair of touchdowns, including a 60-yarder in the fourth quarter that helped Cincinnati hold on for a victory over Jacksonville.
Andy Dalton threw a pair of touchdown passes, one of them to A.J. Green in the Pro Bowl receiver’s return from a toe injury, but also had a pair of interceptions that kept it close.
Kansas City 24, N.Y. Jets 10: Alex Smith threw for 199 yards and two touchdowns, Jamaal Charles ran for another score and Kansas City sent New York to its eighth straight loss.
Tight ends Travis Kelce and Anthony Fasano each caught touchdown passes, and the Chiefs (5-3) won their third straight and fifth in six games on the same day former running back Priest Holmes was inducted into their ring of honor.
Minnesota 29, Washington 26: Teddy Bridgewater outplayed Robert Griffin III down the stretch after a rough start, Matt Asiata ran for three scores and the Vikings spoiled Griffin’s return to the Redskins with a victory.
Bridgewater completed 26 of 42 passes for 268 yards for the Vikings (4-5), who sacked Griffin five times.
Griffin went 18 for 28 for 251 yards, one touchdown and one interception for the Redskins (3-6).
Cleveland 22, Tampa Bay 17: Brian Hoyer threw a 34-yard TD pass to Taylor Gabriel with 8:59 remaining, helping Cleveland complete a favorable stretch of its schedule with a win over Tampa Bay.
Cleveland was trailing 17-16 when Hoyer completed his second TD pass. Hoyer finished 21 of 34 for 300 yards, two TDs and two interceptions. He improved to 8-3 as Cleveland’s starter.
The Browns (5-3) have their best record at the midway point since 2007 when they won 10 and barely missed the playoffs. Cleveland went 2-1 the past three weeks against Jacksonville, Oakland and Tampa Bay, who entered a combined 2-19.
Miami 37, San Diego 0: Ryan Tannehill threw for 288 yards and three scores, and Miami forced four turnovers to rout San Diego.
Tannehill went 24 for 34 and threw touchdown passes to Charles Clay, Rishard Matthews and Jarvis Landry. San Diego’s Philip Rivers threw three interceptions, two to Brent Grimes, and was sacked three times.