Some of Odell Beckham’s most memorable performances with the Giants came at the expense of the Dallas Cowboys.
But even OBJ’s famed one-handed grab in 2014 may have been replaced on his personal highlight reel by his game-sealing 50-yard touchdown run Sunday in Cleveland’s 49-38 win at AT&T Stadium.
Beckham got into the end zone three times, also including a 37-yard TD reception on a flea-flicker from fellow receiver Jarvis Landry in the first quarter and a 4-yard grab from quarterback Baker Mayfield in the second.
“I just want to be able to help in any way I can, be able to be efficient and help this team find ways to win. That’s really what it boils down to,” said Beckham, who has eight touchdowns in eight career games against Dallas. “I have a lot of history with the Cowboys, my family’s from here and everything, I don’t know if it’s something about being in this atmosphere or this stadium.
“It’s not like it’s not always like that, but I just want to be great and find ways to help us win.”
Beckham, who totaled 154 yards from scrimmage, broke his 50-yard score on a reverse with 3:25 remaining after Dak Prescott and the Cowboys had posted 24 consecutive points in the fourth quarter to slash Cleveland’s lead to 41-38.
Odell Beckham runs for a touchdown in the Browns’ win over the Cowboys.AP“I just think we have to find a way to not put ourselves in that position,” Beckham said. “But that’s NFL football, the game’s never over. From my experience, I’ve seen games like that happen and lose. Just happy we found a way to win.”
Prescott finished with a career-high 502 passing yards — his NFL record third straight game with at least 450 — and four touchdown passes for Dallas (1-3), but he was intercepted by Denzel Ward at the Cleveland 3-yard line with 1:42 to go.
Old Beat Young
In the largest age discrepancy between starting quarterbacks in NFL history, Tom Brady outgunned Justin Herbert in Tampa Bay’s 38-31 shootout win over the Los Angeles Chargers.
The 43-year-old Brady threw for a season-high 369 yards and five touchdown passes — all to different receivers — to help the Bucs post their third straight win following a season-opening loss to New Orleans.
Tampa trailed 31-28 through three quarters, but Brady engineered his 46th career fourth-quarter comeback, behind only Peyton Manning (54), Drew Brees (50) and Dan Marino (47) on the all-time list.
“How can you not believe in him? He’s the greatest to ever do it,” said receiver Scotty Miller, who caught a third-quarter TD pass. “We just go in there and follow his lead.”
Brady also threw a pick-six to Michael Davis in the first quarter, the three-time MVP’s second in four games this year for the Bucs, who played without receiver Chris Godwin (hamstring) and running back Leonard Fournette (ankle).
The 22-year-old Herbert, the sixth-overall pick in the 2020 draft out of Oregon, completed 20 of 25 passes for 290 yards and three scoring strikes, but the rookie was picked off by Carlton Davis at the Tampa Bay 48-yard line with 2:35 remaining.
“He was very impressive today and he played great,” Brady said of Herbert. “Our defense has been great all year, and he hung in there and made a lot of great throws. We blitzed him and he stood in there and took it. … He has a lot of ability, his team believes in him and he’s off to a great start.”
Houston Has A Problem
Deshaun Watson and the Texans have lost their first four games, falling 31-23 to another previously winless 2019 playoff team, the Minnesota Vikings.
Deshaun WatsonGetty Images“This is terrible. It’s brutal. It’s depressing. This sucks. I don’t know any other way to put it.” Houston defensive end J.J. Watt said after the Texans fell to 0-4 for the first time since 2008. “We obviously have to do something different. Something has to change. Something has to be different. The only thing I know I can do is work harder.”
Watson’s 24-yard TD pass to Kenny Stills drew the Texans within eight with 5:52 remaining, and they appeared to score again on a short fourth-down pass to Will Fuller in the end zone with 1:15 left. But the play was overturned when it was ruled Fuller lost control of the ball when he hit the ground.
Dalvin Cook ran for 130 yards and two touchdowns and Adam Thielen had eight receptions for 114 yards for the Vikings (1-3).
First-Place Eagles!
The Eagles’ first win of the season has vaulted them to the top of the NFC East.
Carson Wentz’s 42-yard touchdown pass to Travis Fulgham with 5:50 remaining and a defensive touchdown eight seconds later lifted Philadelphia (1-2-1) to a 25-20 win Sunday night over San Francisco.
On the next play from scrimmage after Fulgham’s go-ahead TD, 49ers quarterback Nick Mullens’ third turnover and second interception of the game resulted in a 30-yard pick-six by Eagles linebacker Alex Singleton.
Mullens, filling in for injured starter Jimmy Garoppolo, was replaced by third-stringer C.J. Beathard on the ensuing drive. Jerick McKinnon scored from 1 yard out with 2:08 left, but both the two-point conversion and an onside kick failed.
Beathard completed 14 of 19 passes for 138 yards on two late drives, and tight end George Kittle finished with 15 receptions for 183 yards for the Niners (2-2).
A Bear Bones Effort
Mitchell Trubisky was benched despite a 3-0 start, but Nick Foles mostly was ineffectual Sunday against the NFL’s top-ranked defense.
The Colts held Chicago to 28 rushing yards and held Foles’ offense without a touchdown until he found Allen Robinson with 1:35 remaining in a 19-11 Indianapolis win at Soldier Field.
Rodrigo Blankenship drilled four field goals and Philip Rivers hooked up with Mo Alie-Cox for a 13-yard touchdown in the first quarter for Indianapolis (3-1).
The Hurt Locker
Buccaneers tight end O.J. Howard suffered a ruptured Achilles’ tendon against the Chargers and is expected to miss the rest of the season. Running back LeSean McCoy also suffered an ankle injury in Tampa Bay’s win.
Browns running back Nick Chubb (knee) and Chargers running back Austin Ekeler (knee, hamstring) also left their games and did not return.
Other injuries: Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green (wrist), Panthers cornerback Eli Apple (hamstring), Dolphins defensive end Shaq Lawson (shoulder), Cardinals running back Kenyan Drake (undisclosed), Lions defensive tackle Nick Williams (shoulder), Washington cornerback Greg Stroman (leg), Cowboys center Joe Looney (knee), Browns defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi (abdominal), Jaguars cornerbacks CJ Henderson (shoulder) and D.J. Hayden (hamstring) and tight end Tyler Eifert (head).
Post Patterns
Bills quarterback Josh Allen threw for 288 yards and two touchdowns and added a 1-yard scoring plunge in the fourth quarter as Buffalo moved to 4-0 for the first time since 1992 with a 30-23 win at Las Vegas (2-2). … Bengals running back Joe Mixon scored three times (twice on the ground) and totaled 181 yards from scrimmage to help No. 1-overall Joe Burrow (300 passing yards) to his first NFL victory in a 33-25 win over Jacksonville. … Former Giants kicker Aldrick Rosas hit four of five field goals in his first game for the Jaguars (1-3). … Panthers quarterback Teddy Bridgewater threw for 276 yards and two TDs and ran for another score as Carolina improved to 2-2 with a 31-21 win over Arizona (2-2). … Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray was held to 133 passing yards, but he completed three TD tosses and added 78 rushing yards on six attempts. … Saints quarterback Drew Brees connected for two scoring throws with Tre’Quan Smith in a 2:19 span in the second quarter as New Orleans (2-2) overcame an early 14-0 hole for a 35-29 win over Detroit. … Seahawks running back Chris Carson scored twice and quarterback Russell Wilson flipped TD passes to running back Travis Homer and wideout David Moore as Seattle is 4-0 for the first time since their 2013 Super Bowl season following a 31-23 win over Miami. Jason Sanders was 5-for-5 on field-goal attempts for the Dolphins (1-3). … Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson busted a 50-yard scoring run and the reigning league MVP connected with tight end Mark Andrews for two TD passes as Baltimore (3-1) rebounded from a rough Monday night loss to Kansas City with a 31-17 win over Washington (1-3).
Three Stars
1. Odell Beckham Jr., Browns WR
The former Giant enjoyed an electrifying game, with two touchdown grabs and a late 50-yard scoring scamper in Cleveland’s 49-38 win over Dallas.
2. Tom Brady, Buccaneers QB
The former New England star threw for 369 yards and five TDs — season highs with his new team — in Tampa Bay’s 38-31 win over the Chargers.
3. Joe Mixon, Bengals RB
The fourth-year running back ran for 151 yards and two touchdowns and hauled in another TD reception in Cincinnati’s 33-25 win over Jacksonville.
Fantasy Insanity
- Patience sometimes pays off. Bengals RB Joe Mixon and Browns WR Odell Beckham Jr. are among the league’s most talented at their respective positions, but had not remotely approached adequate fantasy production through the first three weeks. That changed Sunday. Mixon had 181 total yards and Beckham 154, both with three total touchdowns. But both have tough matchups the next two weeks. So if you were considering benching them before Sunday, keep that option open.
- Browns RB Nick Chubb went down with what looked like a serious knee injury. Kareem Hunt becomes a strong fantasy option for however long Chubb is out, with D’Ernest Johnson also in the mix — though don’t read too much into heavy use Sunday, since the Browns were comfortably ahead much of the day.
- Chubb wasn’t the only premier RB to go down. The Chargers’ Austin Ekeler left with a leg injury that coach Anthony Lynn later said “looked pretty bad.” Joshua Kelley had been getting the secondary work, and he split the carries with second-year Justin Jackson after Ekeler left. Neither separated himself, and we could be looking at a committee.
– Drew Loftis
He Said What?
“It felt like a punt return or a kick return or something. It was the perfect time to call it. Put the game away, and let’s go home.”
— Odell Beckham Jr. on his game-sealing 50-yard rushing touchdown on a reverse late in Cleveland’s win over Dallas.
