Houston Texans 14, New England Patriots 42
This was expected to be the game of the year, but turned out to be a one-sided laugher. The New England Patriots completely dominated the vaulted Houston Texans at home in a convincing victory. The Texans were completely outmatched from start to finish and the lauded Texan’s offense struggled to get 14 points on the board. New England quarterback Tom Brady made his case for the league MVP and the Patriots moved to within one game of the top seed in the AFC.
New England began the game on fire and quickly jumped out to a 14-0 first quarter lead with touchdown passes from Brady to Aaron Hernandez and Brandon Lloyd. On defense the Patriots played as well the offense, shutting out the explosive Houston offense for the entire first half. For good measure, Brady added another touchdown toss to Hernandez before the end of the half. By halftime the game was already out of reach for Houston trailing 21-0. In the second half the Texans final got on the board with a one yard touchdown run by Arian Foster but it was a little late for Houston as the game was well out of reach. The game ended in a lopsided 42-14 victory for New England.
If you are a fan of field goals this was not the game for you. The two offenses combined to score eight touchdowns and zero field goals, six by New England and two by Houston. Next week the Patriots have another tough test as they face a red hot San Francisco 49ers. The Texans will try and regroup as they face the surprising Indianapolis Colts.
Miami Dolphins 13, San Francisco 27
The Miami Dolphins left the Bay Area in defeat Sunday after they lost to the San Francisco 49ers and fell to 5-8 this season. The game ended with a final score of 27-13. The game started slow with both offenses unable to produce a touchdown till the second half. Miami’s offense looked sharp early moving the ball and taking an early 3-0 lead. The 49ers rallied with two scoring drives of their own and went into halftime with a 6-3 lead.
In the second half the 49ers scored after a muffed punt by Marcus Thigpen. This was the turning point in the game. The 49ers never trailed after that. The Dolphins kept it close scoring a late touchdown on an amazing catch by tight end Anthony Fasano but it was not enough. Late in the game 49ers' quarterback Colin Kaepernick broke off a game clinching touchdown run on an option run play. This would seal the win for the 49ers.
The 49ers move one step closer to clinching the NFC West title. San Francisco can clinch the division with a win against New England and Seattle Seahawks loss to the Buffalo Bills. A win against the Patriots, no matter what happens in Buffalo, will clinch the 49ers a playoff spot.
The Miami Dolphins dropped to 5-8 and are all but eliminated from playoff contention. The loss guaranties the Dolphins will not have a winning season. The best they can finish is 8-8. The Dolphins will face the Jacksonville Jaguars next Sunday and try to finish out the season on a winning note.
St. Louis Rams 15, Buffalo Bills 12
The St. Louis Rams lead by quarterback Sam Bradford escaped from New York with a last-minute victory over the home-standing Buffalo Bills. The game started with neither team able to score a touchdown until the second half. Two Rian Lindell field goals gave Buffalo a 6-0 lead into halftime.
The game began to heat up in the third quarter. The Rams scored the first of their two touchdowns on a Steven Jackson1 yard touchdown run. Bill’s quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick would answer with the Bills only touchdown, a two yard pass to tight end Lee Smith. This would turn out to be the last time Buffalo scored.
The Bills held a 12-7 lead entering the fourth quarter. Time was running out for the Rams but Bradford would save his best for last. The Rams marched down into Buffalo territory in the final minutes. The drive was culminated by a Bradford strike to wide receiver Brandon Gibson with less than a minute left on the clock. The Rams converted the two point conversion to close out the game.
New York Jets 17, Jacksonville Jaguars 10
Don’t look now but the sideshow known as the New York Jets are still right in the middle of the playoff race. The Jets won their second game in a row and at 6-7 still have an outside chance at the final playoff spot in the AFC. Despite the soap opera at the quarterback position, Mark Sanchez returned as the starter and led the Jets to a tough road win.
The Jaguars have been hit hard by injuries and have been relying on their backups to step up and play. Backup quarterback Chad Henne has taken over as the starting quarterback and performed well in fill in duty.
The game began with only three points scored in the entire first half. Jacksonville kicker Josh Scobee booted a 31 yard field goal to give the Jaguars a 3-0 lead headed into halftime. With the Jets struggling to score points they turned to their two running backs Shonn Greene and Bilal Powell to provide a spark.
This formula worked to perfection and Greene scored the Jets first touchdown to put New York up 7-3. The Jets added a field goal in the third quarter to extend the lead 10-3. Entering the fourth quarter Powell added to the Jet's lead with a four yard touchdown run of his own. The Jaguars would make a late push to narrow the gap to 17-10 but a late interception of Henne would cement the victory for the Jets.