Wow, what a finish their in Houston. I am reliably informed that is the biggest blown lead in Jacksonville’s history. Kicking a big cat when it’s down aside that is a huge win for the Texans. They keep their hopes of the playoffs alive tonight at 4-5. A division title feels very unlikely with the Colts on 8-2 but a wild card still is very possible with CJ Stroud coming back soon hopefully at quarterback.
And those 8-2 Colts is where the performance of the day comes from in Berlin. Jonathan Taylor was unbelievable. The running back is keeping his name in the MVP conversation after 244 yards on 32 carries and three more touchdowns. Taylor now has 15 rushing scores in 10 games, his best in a single season is 18 so he should comfortably smash that mark. Today’s effort also has him smash through the thousand yard barrier to 1,139 total on the ground so far. Vegas have him has joint-second favourite for the individual honour.
With those heady numbers swirling, I will say guten abend. Guten abend!
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Final scores
(5-5) Carolina Panthers 7-17 New Orleans Saints (2-8)
(6-3) Chicago Bears 24-20 New York Giants (2-8)
(4-5) Houston Texans 36-29 Jacksonville Jaguars (5-4)
(3-7) Miami Dolphins 30-13 Buffalo Bills (6-3)
(4-5) Minnesota Vikings 19-27 Baltimore Ravens (4-5)
(2-7) New York Jets 27-20 Cleveland Browns (2-7)
(6-2) Tampa Bay Buccaneers 23-28 New England Patriots (7-2)
PICK SIX! Texans 36-29 Jaguars, game over
OH NO. Lawrence is sacked and bobbles the ball up straight into the arms of Will Anderson who runs, laughing, home for the touchdown. Of all the outcomes that was not on my bingo card. That is about as embarrassing as it gets for Jacksonville. 29-10 up with about 13 minutes remaining and they lose 36-29 to a backup QB. Horrible, horrible defeat.
Texans 30-29 Jaguars 0:07, 4th quarter
NFL record owning kicker Cam Little is warming up ominously on the sideline. He broke the mark last week with a 68 yarder. He may not get the chance to follow it up though after another killer penalty for the Jags. 10 yards for illegal use of hands puts them back into their own half on the 45. Can they just get out of their own way one time.
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TOUCHDOWN! Texans 30-29 Jaguars 0:31, 4th quarter
No way. Never change NFL. This one looked dead in the water with the Jags up 29-10 at the start of the 4th quarter. But the Texans know their divisional rivals all too well. The sloppy PI penalty bites them on the behind and puts the cherry on the cake of an epic collapse.
Davis Mills rushes for all 14 yards and the go-ahead touchdown. Can the Jags find a late field goal?
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Texans 24-29 Jaguars 0:41, 4th quarter
Oh Jacksonville what have you done?! Or more importantly Jarrian Jones what have you done?! The defender gives up a blatant pass interference penalty to put the Texans inside the 10-yard line.
Fortunately the Texans give up to bone-headed penalties of their own to give back 10 yards. They are now back to the 14-yard line with two downs to get the win.
Full time: Vikings 19-27 Ravens
The Ravens keep their playoff hopes rolling with a nice win as JJ McCarthy can’t pull off a miracle to save the Vikings.
Texans 24-29 Jaguars 1:56, 4th quarter
Wingard makes a brilliant play to break up the pass in what could have been a go-ahead touchdown. Gritty stuff from the Jags.
We still have two games very much in play. I’ll boil them down.
Houston Texans 24-29 Jacksonville Jaguars
Minnesota Vikings 19-27 Baltimore Ravens
Excitingly both trailing teams are within a score and are driving. Can either pull off a comeback? After looking a little beige after the week nine explosion, this slate has developed nicely.
JJ McCarthy just rips a nice run. They are on their 40-yard line with a minute to play.
Full time: Dolphins 30-13 Bills, Jets 27-20 Browns, Bucs 23-28 Patriots
Lowly Miami have pulled off a huge shock against Buffalo and the Jets have won two in a row. Who wudda thunk it?!
Meanwhile the Patriots pull off a strong victory on the back of Henderson and Maye.
TOUCHDOWN! Bears 24-20 Giants 1:06, 4th quarter
Chicago continue to roar back and take the lead. Unbelievable from young Caleb Williams. The QB puts the game on his back and he rumbles 17 yards and into the end zone. From 20-10 down to 24-20 up. What a comeback.
TOUCHDOWN! Buccaneers 22-28 Patriots 0:33, 4th quarter
Rookie Tez Johnson makes the scoreboard look a little more flattering for the Bucs. An 11-yard strike puts them within touching distance. They fail to recover the onside kick though so that looks like curtains.
TOUCHDOWN! Dolphins 30-13 Bills 3:17, 4th quarter
The Bills defense is totally gassed. Achane takes it out left with Buffalo not able to contain the speedster. He’s home and hosed for a 35-yarder. A whopping 174 yards on 22 carries and two TDs for Achane on the day.
Goes to show how poor this Bills defense is against the run. Last week Kansas City did very little on the ground and Buffalo earned a brilliant win. Today has gone a little differently.
TOUCHDOWN! Buccaneers 16-28 Patriots 1:25, 4th quarter
What a day for the rookie! TreVeyon Henderson with another home run in Tampa. The running back has so much time and running room he looks at his coach Mike Vrabel to ask him whether he should go in for the score or sit down to bleed the clock. He opts for the former. A 69-yard banger. 147 yards on 14 carries and two TDs. Nice.
TOUCHDOWN! Bears 17-20 Giants 3:56, 4th quarter
After somehow drawing a blank in the shootout for the ages last weekend in Cincinatti, Rome Odunze gleefully gets a touchdown. Caleb Williams finds the playmaker for a two-yard score. Bears are roaring back at Soldier Field.
TOUCHDOWN! Texans 18-29 Jaguars 12:16, 4th quarter
Jayden Higgins catches a 12-yard strike from Davis Mills and the two-pointer is converted by Nico Collins. Plenty of time still for a Houston comeback.
TOUCHDOWN! Dolphins 23-13 Bills 3:36, 4th quarter
Tight end Jackson Hawes gives the Bills a fighting chance with a 26-yard catch and score. Allen winds out to the right with a beautiful throw on the goal line. The big man finishes it off with aplomb.
Buccaneers 16-21 Patriots 3:55, 4th quarter
As is often the case, I have spoken too soon. Maye throws a pick making his day slightly less excellent. Another throw to Hollins is snatched by Tykee Smith. Tampa roll up to midfield. In the only one-score game standing we could get a thrilling finish.
Scores as they stand
As the final quarters begin to wind down here are the boards:
Carolina Panthers 7-17 New Orleans Saints
Chicago Bears 10-20 New York Giants
Houston Texans 10-29 Jacksonville Jaguars
Miami Dolphins 23-6 Buffalo Bills
Minnesota Vikings 13-27 Baltimore Ravens
New York Jets 27-17 Cleveland Browns
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 16-21 New England Patriots
Some close ones out there, not very though and maybe not for long in Tampa. The Pats are on the five-yard line after a 54-yard bomb to Mack Hollins. What a throw from Drake Maye. The QB is 16/29 for 270 yards, two scores and no picks. Excellent day at the office thus far.
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TOUCHDOWN! Dolphins 23-6 Bills 6:31, 4th quarter
Game over. De’Von Achane torches this knackered Bills defense. He races clear with defenders flailing in his wake for a monster 59-yard touchdown. Even Allen can’t save the Bills from here, right?
Fumble! Dolphins 16-6 Bills 7:51, 4th quarter
Josh Allen puts his cape on, the superhero act doesn’t exactly go to plan though. On a run up the middle the QB is caught out by Jordyn Brooks. The Dolphin punches the ball out. Minkah Fitzpatrick gobbles it up.
TOUCHDOWN! Panthers 7-17 Saints 10:20, 4th quarter
Shough hits his tight end Juwan Johnson for a 30-yard strike to give the Saints a healthy lead in the final quarter. An upset in the making. Frustrating for my fantasy team as I benched him. Ouch.
TOUCHDOWN! Jets 24-17 Browns 14:12, 4th quarter
Justin Fields dumps it off to Breece Hall. The running back does the rest. Hall scampers for a 42-yard score. Who needs generational talents on defense anyway? Well against an equally bad team you don’t anyway. The Jets have not missed Williams and Gardner much so far.
Pick! Dolphins 16-6 Bills 8:55, 4th quarter
Maybe the comeback is on! Maxwell Hairston picks off Tua Tagovailoa. A brilliant play puts the Bills quickly back on offense on their 24-yard line.
If Miami can hold on this would be massive. They have beaten Buffalo once in their past 15 attempts and have lost the last seven in succession. Large if with Allen back o the ball.
Buccaneers 16-21 Patriots 0:58, 3rd quarter
Big stop for the Bucs defense. The Pats go for it on 4th down. Drake Maye goes to his talisman Diggs but he can’t reel it in. Turnover on downs. Baker Mayfield has a shot to retake the lead now. He takes over at midfield.
TOUCHDOWN! Dolphins 16-6 Bills 12:36, 4th quarter
Is the comeback on? Maybe.
Josh Allen leads a 98-yard drive with a 35-yard finisher to Keon Coleman. That was three passes in succession for more than 20 yards that kept Miami at sixes and sevens. (Sorry for saying six and seven).
On the two pointer Khalil Shakir catches the short pass but can’t make it into the end zone. That keeps it to a two-score game for Miami.
Buccaneers 16-21 Patriots 4:12, 3rd quarter
Neil Reynolds on Sky Sports with an absolute nugget for the ages. The touchdown scorer Tez Johnson is Bo Nix’s adopted brother. The Nix family adopted Johnson at the age of 15. How utterly lovely. How is he not in Denver though? We need brothers reuinted.
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TOUCHDOWN! Buccaneers 16-21 Patriots 4:12, 3rd quarter
“Great offense beats great defense,” says Tony Romo. It sure does. Tez Johnson makes a wonderful grab to snap up a 10-yard score. Game on!
TOUCHDOWN! Vikings 10-19 Ravens 8:02, 3rd quarter
Justice Hill bangs in the one-yard score to give the Ravens a healthy lead. JJ McCarthy needs to step it up here. The young quarterback is 10/17 for 134 yards with no touchdowns and two picks. Struggling.
Pick! Dolphins 16-0 Bills 5:59, 3rd quarter
I think I may have spoken to soon. It appears to just not be Buffalo’s day. Josh Allen throws an ugly pick in the end zone. Ifeatu Melifonwu says thank you very, very much.
Dolphins 16-0 Bills 6:39, 3rd quarter
Buffalo enter the red zone for the first time in this game. I wonder when the last time a team prevented Josh Allen from making it inside the 20-yard line for an entire half?
On that note Allen quickly takes them to 1st & Goal with a keeper up the middle. Six first downs on this drive v four in the first half.
Dolphins 16-0 Bills 10:09, 3rd quarter
Josh Allen is quite special too. The quarterback has the ball for an absolute age as he runs backwards and loops around from left to right. He points to Curtis Samuel telling him where to be, the receiver says “Yessir” and is on hand to convert Buffalo’s first third down of the day. They then convert another to keep the wheels moving. That improvisation from Allen could be the spark the Bills need.
TOUCHDOWN! Bears 7-17 Giants 12:17, 3rd quarter
Jaxson Dart scrambles left and looks for the end zone. The rookie finds it for a 24-yard rushing touchdown. This kid is special.
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Pick! Vikings 10-9 Ravens 12:41, 3rd quarter
Strange looking interception for JJ McCarthy as he throws the bomb to Justin Jefferson but his receiver falls over. All alone Marlon Humphrey cannot believe his luck. He is looking around in disbelief as he wanders back up field from the end zone. Weird.
TOUCHDOWN! Buccaneers 10-20 Patriots 14:12, 3rd quarter
TreVeyon Henderson rips a 55-yard home run. The rookie running back showcases his elite speed to shoot through the gap in the line. And he is OUTTA HERE. Superb. The Pats score with the final play of the half then hit again quickly upon resuming. The Bucs will be wondering what has hit them.
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Pick! Texans 10-20 Jaguars 0:17, 2nd quarter
Unreal interception in Houston. Derek Stingley Jr reaches out in front of Trammell and pulls off a one-handed pick. Get this man on offense now.
Jets 17-14 Browns 0:55, 2nd quarter
Justin Fields is having another statistically sad day. But who cares really as the Jets special teams have them leading, for now at least. The quarterback is 3/6 for a net loss of five yards and one interception. The Browns defense is nasty, the Jets offense is nastier. Myles Garret snaffles his second sack of the day to force the punt.
TOUCHDOWN! Texans 10-20 Jaguars 1:19, 2nd quarter
Just as I put the scores out the Texans muck it all up. Woody Marks finds the edge out left and saunters home for a crucial score before the break.
Half-time (ish)
So with five games in for a break here are the scores on the boards. There are 33 seconds left in Miami, Dalton Kincaid with a bad drop there. Tough in the rain though. Bills let the clock die and are in a big hole.
Carolina Panthers 7-10 New Orleans Saints
Chicago Bears 7-10 New York Giants
Houston Texans 3-20 Jacksonville Jaguars
Miami Dolphins 16-0 Buffalo Bills
Minnesota Vikings 10-9 Baltimore Ravens
New York Jets 17-14 Cleveland Browns
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 10-14 New England Patriots
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TOUCHDOWN! Buccaneers 10-14 Patriots, halt-time
A punishing 7min 16sec drive from the Patriots arrives at the goal line. Mike Vrabel gets cute by wasting the clock and purposefully running the ball without the intention of scoring on first down. On second they go for it and get stuffed. Slightly embarrassing. On the third attempt Henderson is inches from breaking the plain but the Bucs stay strong.
If the Bucs get the stop here on 4th down that would be huge. They pass it. Red zone specialist Stefon Diggs makes the grab under extreme pressure. Amazing play to get his feet down as he falls out on to the sideline. He just scrapes them on the turf and holds on to the ball for the score. What a play. Not how the Patriots wanted to take the lead into half-time but what a relief for New England. So unlucky for Tampa.
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TOUCHDOWN! Jets 14-14 Browns 10:34, 2nd quarter
“A gorgeous throw from Dillon Gabriel,” says the commentator in New Jersey. He isn’t wrong. Gabriel levels it up with a dime to Jerry Jeudy in the end zone. The receiver makes the diving grab for a 22-yard set of six points.
Dolphins 13-0 Bills 9:13, 2nd quarter
A comedy of errors unfolding in Miami. James Cook coughs up an absolute nightmare of a fumble. He lets go of it and the ball bounces end over end toward the end zone, Miami players keep diving and missing until one eventually just manages to snag it. Josh Allen looks very annoyed. The Dolphins take over on their five-yard line.
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Pick! Vikings 10-3 Ravens 10:33, 2nd quarter
Malaki Starks makes his first NFL interception. It is an absolute beauty, he absolutely posterises Justin Jefferson with a leap up and ahead of him to make the grab. The Ravens take over at Baltimore’s 22-yard line.
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TOUCHDOWN! Texans 0-17 Jaguars 11:40, 2nd quarter
Parker Washington is playing a blinder in Houston! He made the toe-tapper for Jacksonville’s first score and has just returned a punt 72 yards for another touchdown. Single handedly demolishing the Texans. It looks over already with Davis Mills still in at quarterback over the injured CJ Stroud.
TOUCHDOWN! Panthers 7-10 Saints 9:21, 2nd quarter
No Rashid Shaheed, no problem. Chris Olave is pretty good at tearing the roof off the defense too apparently. A lovely stutter move creates the room for Olave to catch from Tyler Shough, who is then off to the races up the right sideline for a 62-yard bomb.
TOUCHDOWN! Dolphins 13-0 Bills 14:52, 2nd quarter
As scorelines go this one is very unexpected. Tua Tagovailoa gives the Dolphins a two-score lead with a fantastic throw to Jaylen Waddle in the end zone. The speedster cruises by the defender and is right on time to catch the 38-yard score. Extra point is no good.
TOUCHDOWN! Buccaneers 7-7 Patriots 0:00, 1st quarter
Kyle Williams breaks the top off the Bucs defense with a monster 72-yard touchdown. Drake Maye slings it to the open Williams who beats his man and is off like a rocket up the right sideline. A perfect throw from Maye to the receiver perfectly in stride. Huge smile from Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel. He knows his quarterback is special.
TOUCHDOWN! Jets 14-7 Browns 5:41, 1st quarter
Special teams are truly special for the Jets. Not happy with just a kick-off return, Isaiah Williams returns a punt for a 74-yard score. Unreal. J-E-T-S, JETS, JETS, JETS!
TOUCHDOWN! Dolphins 7-0 Bills A surprise early lead for Miami (2-7) against AFC East rivals Buffalo (6-2), Malik Washington with the score.
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Latest scores:
Panthers 7-3 Saints
Bears 7-0 Giants
Texans 0-10 Jaguars
Dolphins 0-0 Bills
Vikings 7-3 Ravens
Jets 7-7 Browns
Buccaneers 7-0 Patriots
TOUCHDOWN! The first score of the 6pm (GMT) games comes in Tampa, Emeka Agbuka putting the Buccaneers up on the Patriots in the Tom Brady classic.
Right, here’s what we’ve got coming up:
(5-4) Carolina Panthers v New Orleans Saints (1-8)
(5-3) Chicago Bears v New York Giants (2-7)
(3-5) Houston Texans v Jacksonville Jaguars (5-3)
(2-7) Miami Dolphins v Buffalo Bills (6-2)
(4-4) Minnesota Vikings v Baltimore Ravens (3-5)
(1-7) New York Jets v Cleveland Browns (2-6)
(6-2) Tampa Bay Buccaneers v New England Patriots (7-2)
Jonathan Taylor speaking on Sky Sports after his 286-yard day: “We understood the assignment!”
Walk-off touchdown! Colts beat 31-25 Falcons in OT
Six more for Taylor on first down and now it’s all about ball security, at least so you think. Taylor puts it beyong doubt as he goes untouched into the end zone to win it as Warren clears the way.
Colts 25-25 Falcons 4:44, OT
Taylor makes seven hard yards on first down but can’t make any more on second but then finds a gap on third down. First down and Taylor has more than 250 all purpose yards. Colts into the redzone.
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Colts 25-25 Falcons 6:44, OT
Tyler Warren makes a huge play! Lovely touch on the throw from Jones and the Colts are now probably in good enough position to win this, down to the Falcons’ 22.
Colts 25-25 Falcons 7:29, OT
It’s not a great kick and Downs manages to get a few extra yards. Jones will have nice field position to start and they now only need a field goal.
Colts 25-25 Falcons 8:14, OT
The Falcons cannot get anything going and facing third and long, again, Penix is sacked by Zaire Franklin. They will have to punt.
Colts 25-25 Falcons 9:06, OT
Penix faces pressure on third down and with the ball harmlessly hitting the turf, but there’s a flag. New set of downs.
OVERTIME! Colts 25-25 Falcons
Lot’s of confusion there as the Falcons opt to let the clock run out for a juicy bit of overtime. Berlin with an absolute banger! Danke schöne!
It’s good! Colts 25-25 Falcons 0:25, 4th quarter
Jones is sacked again bringing up another 3rd down. The Colts dump off a short pass to move the kicker closer to tie this up. Badgley has missed two already today. I can’t look. It’s … GOOD! 44-yard strike levels it.
“They love their kickers over here,” quips Kurt Warner. Yeah, we sure love it when they kick the ball in Europe.
Colts 22-25 Falcons 1:11, 4th quarter
Atlanta’s pass rush wins again on the very next play. A sixth sack of Jones rocks the Colts back to 3rd & 21. The QB is forced to scramble with no receivers open and he is so, so close to getting it. 4th & 2, pressure, Jones lofts it to Warren who is under even more pressure from Bolin, but makes the catch to move the chains. Brilliant.
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Colts 22-25 Falcons 1:32, 4th quarter
Ameer Abdullah comes up huge for the Colts on the kick return. The speedster races up to midfield giving Jones excellent position to go with the handy amount of clock.
After all the excitement, Tyler Warren may have just fumbled. Indy await the referees call nervously. INCOMPLETE. 2nd & 10 to go with one timeout in hand.
TOUCHDOWN! Colts 22-25 Falcons 1:44, 4th quarter
And they keep slicing and dicing. Tyler Allgeier gets a hat-trick of hand offs that work perfectly. He just keeps banging until he is stopped on the goal line. They keep it with him for the one-yard score. Drake London snatches up the two-point conversion too.
You could almost say Atlanta scored a bit too quickly there. Jones has plenty of time to work with.
Colts 22-17 Falcons 2:00, 4th quarter
What a thriller for Berlin’s footballing public. Two minutes remain. With the game on the line Atlanta are finally finding some offensive fluency. They slice and dice the Colts, with a heady brew of run and pass, up to Indy’s 32-yard line. They are in position to win, but can Penix and company deliver?
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TOUCHDOWN! Colts 22-17 Falcons 6:02, 4th quarter
What on Earth!? Jonathan Taylor runs 83 yards for a touchdown to give Indy the lead!!! And it is an incredible one. The back is trapped at the line of scrimmage and I mean pinned up against his linemen but he keeps those giant legs churning to bust out to the left into fresh air. He just keeps running and running and running and running and touchdown!
That was set up the Colts say anything you can do to the Falcons D by forcing another punt. Bijan Robinson had them moving until Penix took over on 3rd down. The QB throws long and misses. Not even close, seven failures on 3rd down.
It’s good! Colts 16-17 Falcons 9:00, 4th quarter
This Falcons defense is playing out of their minds. A five-yard delay of game penalty knocks some air out of the Indy balloon, and the Colts elect to just buy some yards back with a short pass on 2nd down. On 3rd and long Jones steps up and out of the pocket but is chased down by Brandon Dorlus. That is five sacks now for the Falcons. Mike Badgley bangs in the 34-yarder but it is Atlanta who are celebrating another big stop in the red zone.
Colts 13-17 Falcons 10:29, 4th quarter
The Colts immediately revert to Taylor, smart thinking as he hits an 18-yard run up the right then an eight-yard scamper to Atlanta’s 25-yard line. On the third down … Jones GETS IT on the QB keeper. Phew. 14th try is the charm after all. Red zone time.
Colts 13-17 Falcons 13:56, 4th quarter
Three and out for Atlanta. It is all about Sauce Gardner. The corner is all over the field as he stops two passing plays, the second of which could have been a pass interference call as he smashes into Darnell Mooney. A real bully move that gives the receiver no chance of making the grab. No call though, so well played, Sauce.
Can I shock you? On the resulting third down the Colts get to Penix so he throws it in the trash. Punt. 13 failures between them on 3rd down now. 13! Outside of two minutes in the first quarter when 21 points ran up the scoreboard these defenses have been superb.
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Colts 13-17 Falcons 0:47, 3rd quarter
Another third down, another failure. What else were you expecting? Jones has no one open so he tries to scramble for it but comes up two yards short. The Colts gamble again as a field goal is fairly useless to them. Taylor is stopped short on the run. Atlanta were ready for it that time. This defense are doing a phenomenal job at stopping Indy. Pittsburgh needed splashy turnovers last week to best them, pure grit and gristle for the Falcons so far.
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Colts 13-17 Falcons 4:03, 3rd quarter
And the wait continues for a third down conversion. Taylor comes up just shy so Indy gamble. One yard for the 1st and of course their bell cow moves the chains this time. 19 yards remain for the Colts.
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Colts 13-17 Falcons 5:08, 3rd quarter
Indy’s version of protecting the QB appears to be not calling passing plays on this drive. Six plays, six runs. Taylor carries them to midfield only for them to call the screen pass to Tyler Warren who scampers out to the left for 24 yards. About another 24 to go for the go-ahead score.
Colts 13-17 Falcons 8:38, 3rd quarter
Colts take over and will be hoping to do a better job of protecting the quarterback. The Falcons have sacked Jones four times. Ouch.
Colts 13-17 Falcons 10:19, 3rd quarter
Drake London 1-1 Sauce Gardner. WOW! Gardner almost picks off a Penix throw to London. The corner jumps the route perfectly to put him in prime position for an easy interception. But Butter fingers strike and he drops it. Still, he breaks up the play and the Falcons must punt.
And we continue to wait for one of these two to convert a third down. Both are 0-5. Sort it out!
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Colts 13-17 Falcons 10:19, 3rd quarter
The Colts were cruising down the field there, until they weren’t. Daniel Jones is monstered by Atlanta’s pass rush not once but twice. Firstly Jones is pressured into fumbling but he manages to recover setting up a long 3rd down. He fails on his second try as James Pearce forces the fumble after a huge sack. Atlanta are causing serious problems, they take over at midfield.
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Colts 13-17 Falcons 12:19, 3rd quarter
Excellent field position for Indy. They set up show on Atlanta’s 44-yard line after a 50-yard return by Ashton Dulin. Their position gets even better on the next play as Jonathan Taylor breaks off a 24-yard run after a short catch.
It’s good! Colts 13-17 Falcons 12:26, 3rd quarter
And that is the second touchdown Pitts should have had on another missed third down. Only this time it is all on the quarterback. He throws deep into the left corner of the end zone with his tight end on his mark to make the catch. Penix’s throw is slow and short, with no arc on the ball it bonks Jaylon Jones on the helmet before reaching Pitts and pops harmlessly out of play. Zane Gonzalez makes the 43-yard kick.
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Colts 13-14 Falcons 12:54, 3rd quarter
Atlanta start the second half on offense and are already deep into enemy territory after a 25-yard grab from Kyle Pitts. Bijan Robinson then rumbles for another first down. A missed tackle at the line of scrimmage sets up the run to Indy’s 30-yard line.
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Colts 13-14 Falcons, half-time
It turns out a lot of people have heard of THE Kid Laroi to give him his full title. Stay with Justin Bieber has 3,714,698,060 streams on Spotify. Nearly four billion, what’s that translate to as income, hmmm … 37 quid a month?
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Colts 13-14 Falcons, half-time
Despite a few offensive fireworks, the defenses have shown some serious muscle. Neither team have converted a third down yet. Three failures for Atlanta and four for Indy.
Anyone ever heard of this bloke Kid Laroi doing the half-time show? I use the word bloke advisedly as he hails from Australia. Google tells me has done a song with Justin Bieber. I think that might be this second tune. Certainly better than the opener. Apologies, Mr Laroi.
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Colts 13-14 Falcons, half-time
Interception! Jones takes a huge sack for a 10-yard loss and it looks like Indy are going to run the clock out. Only they dial up the deep pass and it goes wrong. Jones massively underthrows his receiver and is picked off by Jessie Bates. Atlanta have some time but not enough to extend their lead. Indy avoid what could have been an ugly own goal.
TOUCHDOWN! Colts 13-14 Falcons 3:25, 2nd quarter
Drake London 1-0 Sauce Gardner. The cornerback slips as London has an easy catch to move the chains. Not that he would have broken it up even if he had stayed vertical.
For the touchdown London makes a 16-yard grab with the ball flying over his head, the red zone monster sticks his mitts out and that is all she wrote. Germaine Pratt never had a chance in coverage, Gardner had scampered off with Kyle Pitts. London has 72 yards on four receptions so far.
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Colts 13-7 Falcons 6:57, 2nd quarter
The defenses are settling down into their assignments now. The combatants trade punts on a lesser-spotted three and out for Indianapolis. Atlanta take over at their 45-yard line, well placed to strike back before half-time. The Colts defense will have something to say about that though. They have done a great job of confusing Penix Jr so far by faking pressure at the line of scrimmage then dropping back into coverage.
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It’s no good! Colts 13-7 Falcons 10:40, 2nd quarter
Mike Badgley is having a shocker. He misses the mark after a lucky escape for Jones who fumbles but is saved by the ball going out of bounds. The QB tries a scramble and upon impact from a defender sheds the rock but the Falcons just cannot get the ball under control. The drive loses steam and so out comes the kicker. The 53-yard effort comes up painfully short. Four points left out on the field already today for Indy.
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Colts 13-7 Falcons 12:45, 2nd quarter
Pierce is involved again as he moves the Colts up to midfield with a 26-yard grab. Tyler Warren then provides the safety net for Jones who was inches from taking a huge sack. The rookie makes a punishing run after the catch through two defenders and keeps the chains moving in the process. Indi are moving the ball with ease so far.
Colts 13-7 Falcons 15:00, 2nd quarter
The opening quarter winds to a close with the Colts fighting out from their two-yard line to the 26. An excellent punt pinned them back but they are coming again.
Colts 13-7 Falcons 4:36, 1st quarter
And our commentary team kindly informs us that Pierce’s brother played basketball in Germany. So him scoring today was meant to be I suppose.
We have a first glimpse of Sauce Garnder then as he attempts a peanut punch, no bueno sadly.
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TOUCHDOWN! Colts 13-7 Falcons 5:19, 1st quarter
One minute later and Indianapolis have retaken the lead. End-to-end stuff. Alec Pierce catches an unbelievable home-run shot from Daniel Jones for a 37-yard touchdown. The receiver is sandwiched between two defenders in the end zone but makes a soaring catch thanks to a pass that perfectly finds its mark between them. Before that Jonathan Taylor put his QB in range with a supremely feisty run for 28 yards, actually carrying a chasing defender at one point. What a game we have already here.
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TOUCHDOWN! Colts 6-7 Falcons 6:07, 1st quarter
Penix Jr puts the fumble behind him by marching his Falcons down the field for a score of their own. Drake London makes some chunky receptions to put them in the red zone then the seas part for Tyler Allgeier to saunter on to the goal line through the heart of the field for 13 yards. The running back finishes it off for a one-yard touchdown of his own. Advantage Atlanta.
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TOUCHDOWN! Colts 6-0 Falcons 8:36, 1st quarter
Did Kyle Pitts just drop a touchdown? The tight end drops a clanger, he was very open but the ball just swishes through his hands. That play rather sums up the first round pick’s career to date.
So far, so disappointing but it only gets worse for the Falcons as they cough the ball back to the Colts on the 23-yard line. Michael Penix Jr is hunted down and can’t keep hold of the ball.
A nifty 22-yard run from Ashton Dulin sets Jonathan Taylor up to roll in for the score on the following play. Kicker Michael Badgley skews the extra point wide. Oops.
Colts 0-0 Falcons 10:51, 1st quarter
And the drama keeps coming as the Colts go for it on 4th down. The gamble fails to pay off as Josh Downs cannot reel in a fastball from Jones. On the play before the turnover on downs Jessie Bates put a huge hit on tight end Mo Alie-Cox. The Falcons have come out fighting on defense as they try and snap their three-game losing streak. Next up Sauce Garner’s debut!
Colts 0-0 Falcons 13:30, 1st quarter
Here we go! And we have early drama after Jonathan Taylor catches a screen pass, sweeps out for 15 yards to the right then fumbles … only for his center to save his bacon with the recovery. Colts are in Falcons territory already.
Updated
Not to be outdone the singer belting out the Star Spangled Banner has some of the largest shoulder pads you are ever likely to see. Loving the sartorial choices today. We are almost underway after a choral number for the German anthem. Classy.
As sparkly jackets go that is an absolute belter from Katarina Witt on the coin toss. Did the referee say she was an Olympic tennis champion? Figure skating was Witt’s game I believe.
A slight fluff from Sky Sports there as we hear “who won the toss?” from the presenter with an unfortunately hot mic.
Well, the Colts have won the toss and have elected to receive. Daniel Jones and company will be setting up shortly. Will the QB bounce back after a rough one in Pittsburgh?
And for afters the jumbo package starting at 12pm CST/1pm EST/6pm GMT (home teams listed first) is as follows:
(5-4) Carolina Panthers v New Orleans Saints (1-8)
(5-3) Chicago Bears v New York Giants (2-7)
(3-5) Houston Texans v Jacksonville Jaguars (5-3)
(2-7) Miami Dolphins v Buffalo Bills (6-2)
(4-4) Minnesota Vikings v Baltimore Ravens (3-5)
(1-7) New York Jets v Cleveland Browns (2-6)
(6-2) Tampa Bay Buccaneers v New England Patriots (7-2)
What a feast. I’m planting my flag on Minnesota and Baltimore playing out the game of the day.
Preamble
Guten tag, fussball fans. Wie gehts? Alles klar I hope on this fine early start to week 10 coming straight outta Deutschland. The Olympiastadion in Berlin to be exact where at 8.30am CST/9.30am EST and 2.30pm GMT the mighty Indianapolis Colts (7-2) take on the Atlanta Falcons (3-5). The fifth game played on German soil and the first in the nation’s capital.
The news hounds among you may have picked up on the Colts being involved in some rather large business on trade deadline day. So what looked like an intriguing one between a playoff contender and a team fighting to turn things around has been turned up several notches by Indianapolis trading for star cornerback Sauce Gardner. Yes, on Tuesday they engaged in some rather punchy retail therapy to shake off the sadness of losing to Pittsburgh. The Colts dispensed two future first-round draft picks and receiver Adonai Mitchell in exchange for the highest paid corner in the NFL. Indianapolis are all in on the Super Bowl and handily Gardner has cleared concussion protocol for a first appearance since week seven today to aid that endeavour.
His first assignment will most likely be tracking Drake London. As head-to-heads go this could be a classic. Atlanta’s premier pass catcher starts in good form after nabbing three touchdowns last week with more than 100 yards in three of his past four games. So no pressure, Sauce. But the $120m man will likely back himself. A good on good matchup as they say.
Da steppt der Bär!
