Nov 9, 2014 5 min read

Mired in a two-game losing streak and stuck in last place, the Baltimore Ravens broke out their old recipe for success to earn a much-needed victory.

The Ravens have long relied on a strong running game and a suffocating defense to win, and that was precisely the formula Baltimore used to beat the Tennessee Titans 21-7 Sunday.

Justin Forsett ran for 112 yards and two touchdowns to back a redemptive performance by the Baltimore defense that produced two turnovers, five sacks and plenty of helmet-ringing hits.

“The catalyst was really our defense, obviously,” coach John Harbaugh said.

The Ravens (6-4) repeatedly harassed rookie quarterback Zach Mettenberger, who went 16 for 27 for 179 yards and an interception in his first road start in the NFL. He rarely got the chance to comfortably plant both feet in the pocket and was unable to move the offense after the first quarter.

“They got a lot of dudes, they got a lot of studs in that front seven and they know it,” Mettenberger said. “Early in the first half we did a lot of good things to kind of counteract their guys. We just got to … be able to play like that for 60 minutes.”

Tennessee didn’t get its initial first down of the second half until 4:37 was left in the game. Soon after that, newcomer Danny Gorrer intercepted a pass to clinch it for the Ravens.

“Going into the bye, you want to feel good about things and get back on track,” tight end Owen Daniels said. “It was huge for us today.”

After the game, the Ravens complained that a CBS camera crew aired Harbaugh’s comments to the team in the locker room.

“The comments made by John Harbaugh in the locker room following today’s victory over the Titans were meant for Ravens players and coaches only,” Ravens Senior Vice President Kevin Byrne said. “The CBS-TV crew that was in the locker room was told by Coach Harbaugh that it could not broadcast what he was about to say.”

San Francisco 27, New Orleans 24, OT: Colin Kaepernick completed a 51-yard pass on fourth down to sustain a game-tying drive, Ahmad Brooks sacked and stripped Drew Brees in overtime, and Phil Dawson kicked a 35-yard field goal to cap San Francisco’s stirring 27-24 victory over New Orleans.

The victory snapped a two-game skid for the Niners (5-4) and marked the first home loss for the Saints (4-5) in more than a season.

Kansas City 17, Buffalo 13: Anthony Sherman recovered a fumble to set up Alex Smith’s 8-yard touchdown run with nearly 9 minutes left in allowing the Kansas City Chiefs rally to a 17-13 win over the Buffalo Bills.

Jamaal Charles also scored on a 39-yard touchdown run as the Chiefs (6-3) scored twice in span of 4:31 to overcome a 13-3 deficit. The Chiefs defense then made a stand at its own 15 by forcing Bills quarterback Kyle Orton to throw four consecutive incompletions and turn the ball over on downs with 2:32 left.

Detroit 20, Miami 16: Matthew Stafford led Detroit to another thrilling victory in the final minutes, throwing an 11-yard touchdown pass to Theo Riddick with 29 seconds remaining to lift the Lions to a 20-16 victory over the Miami Dolphins.

Calvin Johnson had seven catches for 113 yards and a touchdown in his first game back from an ankle injury, and the Lions (7-2) won their fourth straight game.

Atlanta 27, Tampa Bay 17: Matt Ryan threw for 219 yards and one touchdown to help the Atlanta Falcons end a five-game losing streak with a 27-17 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Falcons (3-6) won for the first time since embarrassing their NFC South rivals 56-14 Sept. 18, a game in which the Bucs (1-8) lost quarterback Josh McCown to a thumb injury.

Dallas 31, Jacksonville 17: Tony Romo returned from injury and helped the Dallas Cowboys snap a two-game losing streak, throwing three touchdowns passes Sunday in a 31-17 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Romo injured his back two weeks ago and sat out last Sunday. He started this game for Dallas (7-3) and completed 20 of 27 passes for 246 yards against the Jaguars (1-9) at Wembley Stadium in the last of three regular-season NFL games this year in the British capital.

Denver 41, Oakland 17: Peyton Manning overcame a shaky start to throw five touchdown passes in less than 17 minutes and the Denver Broncos handed the Oakland Raiders their 15th straight loss, 41-17.

Manning threw a pair of early interceptions that put Denver (7-2) in a hole against the NFL’s only winless team. That all changed with a short pass that C.J. Anderson turned into a spectacular 51-yard catch and run.

Arizona 31, St. Louis 14: Carson Palmer went down with a fourth-quarter knee injury, then backup Drew Stanton and the Arizona defense rallied the Cardinals to a 31-14 victory over the Rams.

John Brown’s diving grab of Stanton’s 48-yard touchdown pass put the Cardinals (8-1) up 17-14 with 7:40 to play.

Seattle 38, N.Y. Giants 17: Marshawn Lynch rushed for a season-high 140 yards and career-best four touchdowns and the Seahawks overcome their own sloppiness for a key 38-17 win over the Giants.

Russell Wilson threw two interceptions, the Seahawks committed three total turnovers, and Eli Manning picked apart Seattle’s secondary for the first half. It all didn’t matter because of Lynch leading Seattle’s run game.