NFL Week 1: Jason Sanders makes 52-yard field goal as time expires and Dolphins rally past Jaguars
Share this post:
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — For the Miami Dolphins, the day started with chaos and ended with celebration.
Jason Sanders nailed a 52-yard field goal as time expired, and the Dolphins — on probably one of the more bizarre days in their history, one where two players were placed in handcuffs outside the stadium a few hours before kickoff — rallied past the Jacksonville Jaguars 20-17 on Sunday to win their fourth straight season opener.
Jason Sanders drills the 52-yard game-winning FG for Miami! pic.twitter.com/6ndqePzs7q
— NFL (@NFL) September 8, 2024
Fresh off a big offseason payday, Tua Tagovailoa threw for 336 yards and a touchdown and led Miami on an 8-play, 31-yard drive over the final 2:09.
“We just needed to get our head out of our (butt),” said Tagovailoa, who gave an impassioned halftime address, calling out both teammates and coaches with Miami down 17-7. “That was it. That was it.”
Tyreek Hill started the comeback with 80-yard touchdown catch that sparked Miami’s sluggish offense in the third quarter and got the Dolphins within 17-14. After the score, Hill placed his hands behind his back as if to simulate being handcuffed, hours after he was placed facedown and handcuffed on a street by Miami-Dade Police officers after being stopped for a traffic violation near Hard Rock Stadium.
Seeing that Hill was handcuffed, defensive end Calais Campbell stopped to assist as he drove past the scene. He, too, was handcuffed, saying officers told him the reason why was that he disobeyed their direct orders.
“I have no idea, for real. No idea. No idea, man. It was crazy. No idea,” Hill said when asked why he was handcuffed after being stopped, he said, for speeding and reckless driving. “I wasn’t disrespectful because my mom didn’t raise me that way. Didn’t cuss. Didn’t do none of that. Like I said, I’m still trying to figure it out, man.”
So, too, were the police. Miami-Dade officials reacted quickly, saying an investigation was already opened into the officers’ conduct and that one of the officers was placed on administrative leave.
Hill finished with seven catches for 130 yards. Devon Achane seven catches for 75 yards and ran for 25 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries.
Sanders tied the game with a 36-yard field goal with 4:22 left, and the Dolphins’ defense stepped up from there, sacking Trevor Lawrence on consecutive plays to set up Tagovailoa for the winning drive.
Lawrence, who also signed a big contract extension in the offseason, completed 12 of 21 passes for 162 yards and a touchdown. Tank Bigsby had 73 yards on 12 carries.
Rookie receiver Brian Thomas Jr. had a 14-yard touchdown catch and drew a pass-interference call on cornerback Jalen Ramsey — who had been listed as questionable with a hamstring injury — on Jacksonville’s first touchdown drive. The play set up Jacksonville at the 1-yard line and Travis Etienne ran it in from there.
Etienne had the ball punched from his grasp by Dolphins safety Jevon Holland just before crossing the goal line in the third. Miami scored one play later when Tagovailoa found a streaking Hill, who outran two Jaguars defenders into the end zone.
After the Dolphins got a fourth-down stop on Jacksonville’s next drive, Sanders missed a 42-yard field goal that would have tied it.
Achane had a 1-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, but besides that, the opening half of the season was mostly a dud for the Dolphins, who were expected to be as good or better offensively after bringing back most of the weapons from a unit that led the NFL in total yards in 2023.
Miami turned the ball over on downs twice and punted four times before Hill’s touchdown.
Jaylen Waddle had five receptions for 108 yards, including a 63-yard catch that set up Miami at the Jacksonville 26 while trailing by 10. Miami went backwards for three straight plays, though, and Tagovailoa took a third-down sack that knocked the Dolphins out of field goal range.
Texans 29, Colts 27
INDIANAPOLIS — The Houston Texans invested heavily in the offseason in giving C.J. Stroud some additional scoring options.
It’s already paying big dividends.
Stefon Diggs caught two touchdown passes and Joe Mixon ran for 159 yards and another score in their Houston debuts to help the Texans close out a 29-27 victory against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.
“It’s everything for us,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said of his new tag-team tandem. “Those guys go out and make plays no matter what the situation is, like when you can count on those guys to make plays it’s huge for our team, not just our offense but what they did for an entire team, providing the energy they did for our team, it’s outstanding.”
In some ways, it was more of the same for Houston (1-0).
C.J. Stroud was 24 of 32 with 234 yards and no turnovers as the defending AFC South champs won their ninth consecutive road game in division play — inside the same venue they clinched a playoff spot in Week 18 last season.
Still, Mixon, who was acquired in a trade from Cincinnati, and Diggs, who was acquired in a trade with Buffalo, gave Houston a more potent look.
Diggs caught six passes for 33 yards with two touchdowns — a 9-yard score to give Houston a 12-7 lead it never surrendered and a 2-yard TD reception on fourth-and-goal to essentially seal the victory with 4:42 to play.
Mixon carried a career-high 30 times, finished with his highest single-game rushing total since gaining a career-best 165 yards against Pittsburgh in November 2021 and scored on a 3-yard run early in the fourth quarter on the first play after a holding penalty erased a Colts interception.
“I’m just finally getting tapped into the player I know I am,” Mixon said. “The guys are encouraging me to make sure this thing is still up and going. I’m just glad I’m one of the forefront persons to really set the tone and let people know what it is like playing us.”
For the Colts (0-1), it was an all-too-familiar script.
They extended the NFL’s longest active opening day winless drought, three of the past four coming against division teams including a 20-20 tie at Houston in 2022.
And even though Anthony Richardson gave them a chance with two TD passes of more than 50 yards and a powerful 3-yard TD run with 2:14 to play, Indy’s weary defense couldn’t get the ball back to Richardson.
Houston’s offense had the ball for 40 minutes.
“It’s going to be like this a lot, you know, there’s going to be a lot of one-score games,” Colts coach Shane Steichen said. “We’ve got to find ways at the end, offensively and defensively, to make the plays in critical situations.”
But Mixon, Diggs, Stroud and Nico Collins simply wouldn’t allow it.
Collins had his third consecutive big game against the Colts, catching six passes for 117 yards including a 55-yarder that set up Diggs’ first score and Ka’imi Fairbairn made three field goals from 50 or more yards.
It was simply too much for the Colts, who took a 7-3 lead when Richardson and Alec Pierce hooked up on a 60-yard TD pass in the first quarter.
Diggs’ first score made it 12-7 and when Fairbairn started the second half with another field goal, the Texans’ lead expanded to 15-7.
The Colts capitalized on a blocked punt with Jonathan Taylor’s 5-yard TD run, but a failed 2-point conversion left Indy in a 15-13 deficit.
Mixon responded with his TD run and after Richardson found Ashton Dulin on a 54-yard score, Diggs extended the lead to 29-20 with less than five minutes to play.
Richardson was 9 of 19 with 212 yards and one interception and ran six times for 56 yards. Taylor rushed 16 times for 48 yards and Pierce finished with three catches for 125 yards as the Colts came up short again.
Vikings 28, Giants 6
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Sam Darnold had one of those super performances at MetLife Stadium that New York Jets fans hoped to see weekly after he was drafted No. 3 overall in 2018.
Six years later as a member of the Minnesota Vikings, he did it against, of all teams, the Giants on his old home turf.
Darnold threw two touchdown passes in a highly efficient performance and Andrew Van Ginkel scored on a spectacular one-handed 10-yard interception return to lead the Vikings to an easy 28-6 victory over the woeful New York Giants on Sunday.
Darnold completed his first 12 passes and had touchdown passes of 3 yards to Justin Jefferson and 21 to Jalen Nailor in making an impressive debut for the Vikings, who are coming off a 7-10 season, He also had a 22-yard pass to Josh Oliver to help set up Aaron Jones’ 3-yard TD run that put Minnesota ahead 7-3 late in the first quarter and got Kevin O’Connell’s team off to a good start.
“Obviously it’s great to be back,” said Darnold, who finished was 19 of 24 for 208 yards and one interception that came on a deflected pass. “It’s been a while since I played here. I played here my first year in Carolina coming back. That was the last time I played here. It’s always good to get back in MetLife.”
What’s remarkable was Darnold, who played in San Francisco last season, was signed as a veteran presence for first-round draft pick J.J. McCarthy. The Michigan product injured a knee in training camp and won’t play this season.
“Sam Darnold, for a guy in a new system to start 12 for 12 and be incredibly poised throughout the day, it was a huge performance for us to be able to build off,” O’Connell said.
Giants inside linebacker Bobby Okereke, who recovered a fumble to set up the game’s opening score, was not surpried by Darnold. He was at Stanford when Darnold was at Southern California and they played against each other often.
“You know, it’s fun competing against him because he’s a gamer. He makes plays. They’re going to run play-action. They’re going to run boot,” said Okereke, who said New York didn’t play well enough to win.
The Vikings certainly made all the big plays and none was more impressive than Van Ginkel’s left-handed grab of Daniel Jones’ swing pass deep in his own territory late in the third quarter put an exclamation point on a solid defensive performance by Brian Flores’ unit. It had Giants fans booing loudly as they headed to the exits down 28-6.
“He jumped up off the edge and made a nice play,” Giants coach Brian Daboll said of the interception.
Jefferson had four catches for 59 yards, with his TD coming on a quick slant on a fourth-down pass. It capped a 99-yard drive that he ignited with a 44-yard catch.
Graham Gano kicked field goals of 23 and 50 yards for the Giants, who played just like the team that posted a 6-11 record last season.
Jones, who was coming off major knee surgery, did not play well and got little help from either his new revamped offensive line or his receivers. First-round draft pick Malik Nabers had five receptions for 66 yards, including two for 25 yards.
Jones finished 22 of 42 for 186 yards and two interceptions, the second by 35-year-old safety Harrison Smith.
Giants co-owner and chief executive John Mara said after last season he wanted to see significant progress this year. But New York did little on offense with Daboll taking over the play calling and the Giants got little pressure on Darnold despite acquiring edge rusher Brian Burns from the Carolina in the offseason.
“Obviously not the way we wanted to start. Disappointing game,” Daboll said. “A lot to clean up and that’s what we will do.”
Bills 34, Cardinals 28
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Josh Allen had three of his four touchdowns in the second half and the Buffalo Bills overcame a 14-point deficit to defeat the Arizona Cardinals 34-28 on Sunday.
Greg Rousseau had a career-best three sacks, including one that forced a fumble. The defense preserved the Bills’ win when Damar Hamlin and Ja’Marcus Ingram broke up Kyler Murray’s pass attempt to Greg Dortch near the goal line on fourth-and-7 from Buffalo’s 29 with 26 seconds remaining.
This was a thrilling back-and-forth affair between two non-conference rivals on a blustery day with temperatures in the low 60s and heavy winds gusting up to 30 mph (45kph) from the west off of nearby Lake Erie.
The outing featured the first kickoff return for a touchdown under the NFL’s new rules. DeeJay Dallas fielded the ball at his own 4, worked his way up the middle through a barrage of Bills before finding a lane up the left side with 8:31 remaining in cutting Buffalo’s lead to 31-28.
Dallas’ score came after the Bills appeared to put the game away when Allen scampered in from 6 yards and hurdled Budda Baker before being hit from the side and tumbling into the end zone.
Allen finished the game with his left, non-throwing hand, heavily wrapped, and managed to march the Bills 22 yards to set up Tyler Bass hitting a 39-yard field goal with 1:56 remaining. Allen finished 18 of 23 for 232 yards and completed 11-yard touchdown passes to Mack Hollins and Khalil Shakir. He also ran for 39 yards and scored on a 7-yard run to close the first half.
The Cardinals were unable to sustain the momentum from scoring two touchdowns and a field goal on their opening three possessions in building a 17-3 lead on James Conner’s 3-yard touchdown run with 2:40 left in the second quarter. Murray capped the Cards’ 13-play, 70-yard opening drive with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Michael Wilson. Matt Prater also made a 29-yard field goal.
It marked the first time since 2006 that Arizona scored points on each of its first three drives.
The Bills overcame a sloppy start during which they were undone by penalties and Allen lost a fumble at Arizona’s 19 to close Buffalo’s first possession. The Bills were flagged five times for 40 yards, including three false-start penalties on six snaps on their final drive of the half.
Buffalo’s young and retooled defense also had trouble getting off the field, allowing the Cardinals to dominate the time of possession in the first half by more than 10 minutes.
The game turned in the third quarter when Allen capped Buffalo’s opening possession with a touchdown pass to Hollins to tie it at 17. After both teams went three-and-out, the Bills capitalized on Rousseau’s third sack when he forced Murray to fumble and Dorian Williams recovered at Arizona’s 21.
Buffalo went ahead five plays later when Allen hit Shakir over the middle and the receiver rolled over defensive lineman Justin Jones before reaching the ball over the goal line.
Murray’s last-gasp heave was eerily reminiscent to what happened in the teams’ last meeting in the desert in 2020 — except this time the pass fell incomplete. Four years ago, Murray completed a 43-yard pass to DeAndre Hopkins, who outjumped three Bills in the end zone with 2 seconds left to seal a 32-30 win on a play that immediately became known as the “Hail Murray.”
Murray finished 21 of 31 for 162 yards and a touchdown in this one and also led the Cardinals in rushing with 57 yards on five carries.
Arizona rookie receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., the fourth player selected in the draft, had a near-invisible NFL debut while finishing with one catch — on three targets — for 4 yards. One of Murray’s passes directed at Harrison fluttered behind the receiver, and he dropped a second one over the middle.
Bears 24, Titans 17
CHICAGO — Caleb Williams had a rough debut for Chicago but got bailed out by his defense, with Tyrique Stevenson returning an interception 43 yards for the go-ahead touchdown to give the Bears a 24-17 victory over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.
The Bears, who have their sights set on a playoff spot after going 10-24 over the previous two seasons, trailed 17-0 in the first half. They shut down the Titans from there and spoiled the debut of Tennessee coach Brian Callahan.
Williams, the No. 1 overall pick, finished 14 of 29 for 93 yards with a 55.7 passer rating. The former Heisman Trophy winner at Southern California still became the first quarterback drafted first overall to win his debut start since 2002, when David Carr led Houston past Dallas. The past 15 No. 1 picks were a combined 0-14-1 in initial starts, beginning with Cincinnati’s Carson Palmer in 2003.
The Bears had just cut it to 17-16 on a field goal by Cairo Santos when Stevenson put Chicago on top midway through the fourth quarter. With DeMarcus Walker about to sack him, Will Levis flung the ball in desperation, and Stevenson grabbed it and ran untouched down the sideline. A 2-point conversion pass from Williams to D’Andre Swift made it 24-17.
Jaylon Johnson sealed the win with just over a minute remaining when he intercepted a deep pass intended for Tyler Boyd on fourth down at the Tennessee 40, giving fans who spent a big portion of the afternoon booing a reason to cheer.
With Williams struggling, Chicago’s vaunted receiving corps was quiet, too. DJ Moore caught five passes for 36 yards. Keenan Allen had 29 yards receiving in his Bears debut.
Chicago finished with 148 yards of offense and got its only other touchdown on special teams. Daniel Hardy blocked a punt in the third quarter, and Jonathan Owens recovered and returned it 21 yards for a score that got the Bears within 17-10.
Owens’ play drew a roar from the crowd and delighted his wife, Simone Biles, who answered “I ALMOST HAD A HEART ATTACK” in response to a post on X asking how she felt.
Santos cut it to 17-13 early in the fourth with a 50-yard field goal. The Bears then had a huge opportunity when Darrell Taylor strip-sacked Levis and T.J. Edwards recovered at the Tennessee 31, only to settle for another field goal that made it a one-point game.
Levis was 19 of 32 for 127 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions to start his second season. Tony Pollard ran for 82 yards and a TD for Tennessee.
Saints 47, Panthers 10
NEW ORLEANS — Derek Carr passed for three touchdowns and the New Orleans Saints scored on their first nine possessions in a 47-10 victory over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.
Alvin Kamara and Jamaal Williams each ran for touchdowns and Blake Grupe kicked four field goals — two from beyond 50 yards — in an extraordinary debut for new Saints offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak.
The Panthers, who went 2-15 last season, made front office, coaching and key roster changes in hopes of showing more promise this season. But this season opener could not have gone much worse for new coach Dave Canales and second-year quarterback Bryce Young.
Young was 13 of 30 passing for 161 yards and was intercepted twice — once each by safeties Will Harris and Jordan Howden.
The Saints profited from another turnover when safety Tyrann Matthieu forced and recovered a fumble by receiver Jonathan Mingo.
Young was sacked three times by defensive back Alontae Taylor and once by linebacker Demario Davis.
Carr was 19 of 23 for 200 yards, highlighted by his 59-yard touchdown pass to Rashid Shaheed on the game’s opening series. Carr also found tight ends Foster Moreau and Juwan Johnson for touchdowns of 3 and 16 yards, the latter putting New Orleans up 30-0 before Carolina scored its first points on a field goal as the first half ended.
Johnson also got a hand on a Johnny Hekker punt that went just 11 yards, setting up the Saints on the Panthers’ 36. Williams’ 14-yard, fourth-quarter TD run came two plays later.
Kamara finished with 83 yards rushing and 27 receiving for his 50th game with at least 100 yards from scrimmage.
Young scored the Panthers’ lone touchdown on a three-yard scramble in the third quarter.
Buccaneers 37, Commanders 20
TAMPA, Fla. — Baker Mayfield threw for 289 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a 37-20 rout of the new-look Washington Commanders, spoiling the NFL debut of No. 2 overall draft pick Jayden Daniels on Sunday.
Daniels was more effective running the ball than passing, scoring a pair of rushing TDs for Washington, which is aiming for a fresh start with the 2023 Heisman Trophy winner at quarterback, Dan Quinn as the coach and Kliff Kingsbury and Joe Whitt Jr. running the offense and defense, respectively.
The former LSU star was one of three rookie starting quarterbacks in Week 1, along with No. 1 pick Caleb Williams of the Chicago Bears and 12th pick Bo Nix of the Denver Broncos. He joined Robert Griffin III (2012) as the only rookies to start a season opener for Washington since 1967.
Mayfield jumpstarted a fizzling career last season, signing a one-year contract with the Buccaneers and winning Tom Brady’s old job before leading Tampa Bay to a third consecutive NFC South title and a playoff victory.
The 2017 Heisman Trophy winner and No. 1 overall pick from the following year’s draft was rewarded in the offseason with a three-year, $100 million contract that answered any lingering questions about whether the Bucs considered him the QB to lead them forward.
Mayfield completed 24 of 30 passes without an interception Sunday, including TD throws of 1 and 17 yards to Mike Evans. Chris Goodwin scored on a 4-yard reception and rookie Jalen McMillan had a 32-yard TD catch in the second half.
Daniels scored on a pair of 1-yard runs after halftime, the last one coming with just under two minutes left. He finished with 88 yards rushing on 16 attempts and went 17 of 24 passing for 184 yards and no interceptions. The Bucs sacked him twice.
Seahawks 26, Broncos 20
SEATTLE — Kenneth Walker III rushed for 84 of his 103 yards and a touchdown in the second half and the Seattle Seahawks overcame a mistake-filled first half to beat the Denver Broncos 26-20 on Sunday in the debut of new coach Mike Macdonald.
Walker sparked a second-half rally after an unsightly performance by Seattle’s offense over the first 30 minutes littered with sloppy miscues. The Broncos led 13-9 at the half thanks in part to two safeties.
Walker changed the momentum in the third quarter as Seattle recommitted to the ground game. He gained 53 yards on five carries on Seattle’s first drive of the second half, capped by a 23-yard touchdown run. Walker had another TD called back on a penalty, but he still produced the seventh 100-yard rushing game of his career.
Walker appeared to injure himself on a 7-yard run early in the fourth quarter and didn’t play the rest of the game because of abdominal pain.
Seattle quarterback Geno Smith was part of the early struggles for the Seahawks offense but found a rhythm in the second half. Smith ran for a 34-yard touchdown in the second quarter — the longest run of his career — and hit Zach Charbonnet on a 30-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the fourth quarter that gave Seattle a 26-13 lead.
Smith finished 18 of 25 for 171 yards.
Macdonald won his debut after being hired as the youngest head coach in the NFL tasked with moving Seattle forward following Pete Carroll’s 14 seasons in charge of the franchise. And he’ll be thrilled with the defensive performance for 3 1/2 quarters.
Denver rookie QB Bo Nix was 26 of 42 for 138 yards and was twice intercepted on careless throws — once by Julian Love at the Seattle 1 and the other time by Riq Woolen in the fourth quarter. The Broncos finished with 231 total yards and committed three turnovers.
Nix did put together a late drive and pulled the Broncos within 26-20 with 2:09 left after scoring on a 4-yard run. But Seattle was able to run out the clock after Tyler Lockett’s one-handed catch to convert a third down, the last of his six receptions.
Chargers 22, Raiders 10
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — J.K. Dobbins rushed for 135 yards, including a 12-yard touchdown, and the Los Angeles Chargers had a successful debut under Jim Harbaugh as they rallied in the second half for a 22-10 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.
All 10 of Dobbins’ carries came in the second half. It was the fifth 100-yard rushing game for Dobbins, who signed a one-year deal with the Chargers during the offseason after beginning his career in Baltimore.
Dobbins played in only one game last year when he tore his Achilles tendon during the second half of Baltimore’s opener against Houston.
Justin Herbert was 17 of 26 for 144 yards and a touchdown as the Chargers avenged a 63-21 loss to the Raiders last December, which resulted in the firings of coach Brandon Staley and general manager Tom Telesco. That set in motion the eventual hiring of Harbaugh after he led Michigan to a national title.
Gardner Minshew was 25 of 33 for 257 yards with a touchdown and an interception in his first game for the Raiders.
Dobbins also had the second- and third-longest carries of his career in his Chargers debut. His 46-yard run up the middle on third-and-1 from the LA 47-yard line set up Cameron Dicker’s third field goal and put the Bolts up 9-7 with 9:08 remaining in the third quarter.
On the first play of the fourth quarter, Dobbins went 12 yards off right tackle to put the Chargers up 16-7.
Midway through the fourth quarter and with Los Angeles up 16-10, Dobbins had a 61-yard run off left tackle to the Raiders 14. Three plays later, Herbert connected with Ladd McConkey for a 10-yard touchdown to put it out of reach. The 2-point conversion was no good.
Dicker opened the scoring with a 53-yard field goal with 4:22 remaining in the first quarter. The Chargers got the ball on the Raiders 40 after Poona Ford stopped Zamir White for a 1-yard loss on fourth-and-1.
The Raiders took a 7-3 lead on the ensuing possession when they went 67 yards in seven plays. On first-and-10 at the Chargers 31, Minshew checked down and threw a screen pass to Alexander Mattison, who caught it at the 35, hurdled over Chargers cornerback Asante Samuel Jr. and broke through an attempted tackle from linebacker Daiyan Henley near the right sideline at the 27 before scoring his first touchdown with the Raiders.
It was the longest play in the career of the sixth-year running back, who previously was with the Vikings.
The Chargers got within 7-6 late in the first half when Dicker was good from 25 yards. Los Angeles took over at the Las Vegas 12 after Khalil Mack returned Minshew’s fumble 22 yards. Minshew bobbled a snap and lost the ball on a scramble.