NFL - Week Five Review

Tom Brady is back!
The beleaguered New England Patriots quarterback (pictured at right) returned from his four-game suspension and had 406 passing yards with three touchdown passes to lead the Patriots (4-1) to a 33-13 road win against the Cleveland Browns, who dropped to 0-5 with the loss.
The Minnesota Vikings remained unbeaten (5-0) and are the only unbeaten team left in the NFL as they routed the visiting Houston Texans, 31-13 behind solid defense (only 214 yards allowed) and a pair of TD passes from Sam Bradford. Marcus Sherels returned a punt 79 yards for another score in the win.
The Detroit Lions defeated the Philadelphia Eagles, 24-23 to give the Eagles (3-1) their first loss this season as kicker Matt Prater made the game winning 29-yard field goal. Lions QB Matthew Stafford had three TD passes to lead the way.
The Denver Broncos (4-1) also fell from the ranks of the unbeaten as they lost at home to the Atlanta Falcons, 23-16. The Atlanta defense limited Denver to 267 yards in offense while Matt Ryan had a TD pass to go with a one-yard scoring run by Devonta Freeman.


                                              Around the NFL  . . . . . . .  

The Indianapolis Colts battled back to win 29-23 over the visiting Chicago Bears in a back-and-forth game that had five lead changes. Colts QB Andrew Luck threw two TD passes and kicker Adam Vinatieri drilled five field goals to pace the win. The Bears racked up 522 yards in offense in the loss . . .   The Oakland Raiders (4-1) survived a thrilling 34-31 win against the snake bitten San Diego Chargers, who saw a botched hold off the snap on a potential game tying field goal attempt late in the game ruin their chances. Raiders QB Derek Carr had a pair of TD tosses to offset four TD passes by Chargers QB Philip Rivers . . .   The Washington Redskins surprised the host Baltimore Ravens, 16-10 as Jamison Crowder took a punt back 85 yards for a score. The Ravens fired Offensive Coordinator Marc Trestman after the loss . . .  The Dallas Cowboys won their fourth straight game, 28-14 over the visiting Cincinnati Bengals as Ezekiel Elliot (134 yards and two rushing TD) had a 60-yard scoring jaunt while the Cowboys defense sacked Cincy QB Andy Dalton four times . . .  The Pittsburgh Steelers (4-1) rolled the visiting New York Jets (1-4), 31-13 behind four TD passes from QB Ben Roethlisberger (380 passing yards) . . .   The Buffalo Bills beat the host Los Angeles Rams, 30-19 as QB Tyrod Taylor had two TD passes to go with 193 rushing yards by the Bills for their third straight win . . .  The Tennessee Titans beat the host Miami Dolphins, 30-17 behind three TD passes and a five-yard scoring run from QB Marcus Mariota. The Titans defense held the hapless Dolphins to just 200 yards in offense in the win . . .  The Arizona Cardinals rallied past the host San Francisco 49ers, 33-21 last Thursday night as the defense had seven sacks while QB Drew Stanton had two TD passes and running back David Johnson gained 157 yards and had two rushing scores to pace the victory . . .  The Sunday night game saw the Green Bay Packers win a 23-16 yawner at home against the New York Giants. Packers QB Aaron Rodgers threw for two scores (along with two interceptions) while kicker Mason Crosby made three field goals to help provide the difference in the outcome . . .  The Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the host Carolina Panthers, 17-14 in the Monday night game. Bucs kicker Roberto Aguayo nailed a 38-yard field goal as time expired for the win. The Tampa Bay defense forced four turnovers in the win, two fumbles and two interceptions.


                                                The Heftyinfo NFL Player of the Week 

Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott rushed for 134 yards on just 15 carries and scored two touchdowns to pace the Cowboys easy 28-14 win against the Cincinnati Bengals.


WEEK FIVE SCORES
Arizona 33, San Francisco 21
Indianapolis 29, Chicago 23
Detroit 24, Philadelphia 23
Pittsburgh 31, NY Jets 13
Tennessee 30, Miami 17
New England 33, Cleveland 13
Washington 16, Baltimore 10
Minnesota 31, Houston 13
Dallas 28, Cincinnati 14
Atlanta 23, Denver 16
Oakland 34, San Diego 31
Buffalo 30, Los Angeles 19
Green Bay 23, NY Giants 16
Tampa Bay 17, Carolina 14