Denver • On a day the Denver Broncos honored their past, their current roster put on a good, old-fashioned defensive destruction of the Tennessee Titans.
The Broncos (2-4) blasted their way to seven sacks and three interceptions while sending Marcus Mariota to the bench and then stifling his backup, Ryan Tannehill, too, in a 16-0 win, their first shutout in two years.
They allowed just 204 yards on a day they honored recent Hall of Fame inductee Champ Bailey and other members of their all-time top 100 team including Rich “Tombstone” Jackson, Dennis Smith and Karl Mecklenburg.
“I had it in my mind to put on a show for those guys,” said cornerback Chris Harris Jr., whose interception just before halftime snapped Mariota’s streak of 206 passes without being picked off. “Especially Champ, I told him I’d give him my football from my 20th pick.”
This marked the first time Denver had seven sacks and three interceptions in a game since Sept. 16, 1984. It also happened three times in the 1970s and twice in the 1960s.
Mariota was sacked three times and he was benched after Justin Simmons’s interception early in the third quarter led to the game’s only touchdown , a 2-yard run by Phillip Lindsay that made it 13-0.
“I was inaccurate today, didn’t give our guys a chance to make plays,” said Mariota, who was just 7-for-18 for 63 yards and a paltry passer rating of 9.5.
“We’re just trying to find a way to move the football, score some points,” Titans coach Mike Vrabel said. “Our defense was forcing them to kick field goals. We gave up the touchdown, but I felt like we were in the game and we needed to find a way to score.”
No such luck.
Tannehill was sacked four times and picked off by Kareem Jackson on Tennessee’s final drive, which reached the Denver 5-yard line before two offensive penalties and a sack pushed the Titans (2-4) back to the 30-yard line.
“We were very pumped ,” Harris said of Jackson’s interception with 1:30 remaining, which allowed Joe Flacco to kneel out the clock. “We wanted a shutout.”
“It’s a lot of fun when you dominate, especially when you start the way we did,” Jackson said of Denver’s slow September in which they went three games without a sack and four without a takeaway. “We felt like we were close. We felt like we had to make one or two more plays and things would start to swing in our direction.”
Tannehill was 13 of 16 for 144 yards but much of that came with the Broncos protecting the end zone late.
“I just wasn’t good enough,” Tannehill said. “We failed to put points on the board. You’re not going to win any games if you can’t put points on the board.”
The Broncos, who haven’t allowed a touchdown in nine quarters, host Kansas City (4-2) on Thursday night with the chance to get back into the AFC West race after starting the Vic Fangio era with four frustrating losses.
“I’m hyped up,” Harris said. “I can’t wait. I’m ready for the Chiefs.”
BIG ADDITION
The Broncos’ winning streak coincides with the insertion of ILB Alexander Johnson into the starting lineup. Last week, he made his first start since Nov. 15, 2004, for Tennessee vs. Kentucky, and recorded nine tackles and an end zone interception against the Chargers. On Sunday, he had a team-leading nine tackles, two QB hits, 1½ sacks and a tackle for loss.
“He’s been killing it since he stepped in, and I’m happy for him,” said Von Miller, who got half a sack.
Also collecting sacks for Denver were: DeMarcus Walker (two), Derek Wolfe (two) and Shelby Harris.
“It’s great,” Miller said. “We just kept chipping away. You hit the rock 100 times and on the 101st blow it cracks for us. It’s good to have so many guys have so much success today. We had three picks. Turnovers have been evading us all season long.”
PUNT PRACTICE
Both Denver and Tennessee were 2 of 14 on third downs, leading to 17 punts.
The first half featured more flags (10) and punts (11) than points (six), which came on two field goals by Brandon McManus, whose 53-yarder ended a skid in which he’d missed seven straight from beyond 50 yards.
TEXANS 31, CHIEFS 24
KANSAS CITY, Mo. • Deshaun Watson threw for 280 yards and a touchdown while running for two more, outdueling Chiefs counterpart Patrick Mahomes in a matchup of former first-round picks and leading the Houston Texans to a 31-24 victory over Kansas City on Sunday.
Carlos Hyde added 116 yards rushing and a touchdown against the team that traded him to Houston (4-2) before the start of the season. DeAndre Hopkins hauled in nine passes for 55 yards.
None was bigger than his last, when the Texans star made a sliding grab on fourth-and-3 from the Kansas City 27 with just under 2 minutes to go. That allowed Houston to run out the clock and deal the Chiefs (4-2) their second consecutive loss — both at Arrowhead Stadium.
Mahomes, who was selected two spots ahead of Watson in the 2017 draft, finished with 273 yards passing and three touchdowns, though he also threw his first interception of the season.
Star wide receiver Tyreek Hill returned to action for the first time since Week 1, when he broke his collarbone, to catch five passes for 80 yards and two of the Chiefs’ scores.
SEAHAWKS 32, BROWNS 28
CLEVELAND • Chris Carson scored on a 1-yard touchdown run with 3:30 left, Russell Wilson threw two TD passes and ran for one and Seattle rallied past mistake-prone Cleveland, improving to 3-0 on the road for the first time in 39 years.
The Seahawks (5-1) gave up touchdowns on Cleveland’s first three possessions before storming back.
Wilson connected with Jaron Brown for two scores, and Seattle’s cool quarterback scampered 16 yards for a TD. The Seahawks last won their first three road games in 1980, when they went 4-12.
The Browns (2-4) were hurt by their own miscues. They couldn’t overcome four turnovers, a blocked punt or quarterback Baker Mayfield’s hip injury and fell to 0-3 at FirstEnergy Stadium.
Mayfield threw three interceptions, raising his NFL-leading total to 11. Trying to bring the Browns back late, Mayfield, who went to the locker room in the third quarter to be evaluated, was picked off by Seattle’s K.J. Wright with 2:41 remaining.
STEELERS 24, CHARGERS 17
CARSON, Calif. • James Conner scored two touchdowns, Devin Bush recovered a pair of turnovers and Devlin Hodges won his first NFL start as the Steelers held off the Chargers.
Conner had his first game with both a rushing and receiving touchdown and accounted for 119 scrimmage yards (41 rushing, 78 receiving).
Hodges, who was elevated into the starting spot after Mason Rudolph suffered a concussion last week against Baltimore, didn’t look fazed. He completed 15 of 20 for 132 yards and benefited from a running game that helped control the clock. Benny Snell led the way with 75 yards on 17 carries for the Steelers (2-4).
Bush forced turnovers on the Chargers second and third drives. The rookie linebacker scored his first NFL touchdown when he scooped up a backward pass from Philip Rivers that Melvin Gordon was unable to handle and went 9 yards to give the Steelers a 7-0 lead. Bush got his second turnover four plays later when he intercepted a Rivers’ pass that was deflected by defensive end Tyson Alualu at the line of scrimmage. That would lead to Conner’s first TD.
The Chargers (2-4) trailed 24-0 after three quarters but rallied to get within seven on a Chase McLaughlin field goal and two TD passes from Rivers to Hunter Henry.
SAINTS 13, JAGUARS 6
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Teddy Bridgewater found Jared Cook for a 4-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter, and New Orleans held on to beat Jacksonville and improve to 4-0 without injured starter Drew Brees.
Coming off a 300-yard, four-touchdown performance against Tampa Bay, Bridgewater was less effective against the Jaguars (2-4). But he did enough for New Orleans’ defense.
Gardner Minshew was sacked twice, hurried often and threw his first interception as a starter. The rookie sensation completed 14 of 29 passes for 163 yards and was held without a touchdown for the first time this season.
Bridgewater was 24 of 36 passing for 240 yards for the Saints (5-1).
Michael Thomas had eight receptions for 89 yards, and Alvin Kamara finished with 31 yards rushing while playing through an ankle injury.
49ERS 20, RAMS 7
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jimmy Garoppolo passed for 243 yards and ran for a touchdown, and San Francisco remained unbeaten with a dominant defensive performance against struggling Los Angeles.
George Kittle had eight catches for 103 yards for the Niners (5-0), who held Los Angeles’ once-unstoppable offense to 157 yards in coach Kyle Shanahan’s first victory over Rams coach Sean McVay in a game in which both of these NFC West rivals were playing their starters.
These longtime coaching colleagues’ teams are going in opposite directions after this one-sided showdown at the Coliseum. San Francisco used its possession offense and a sturdy defense to stay alongside New England as the NFL’s only unbeaten teams, while the Rams (3-3) are on their first three-game losing streak of McVay’s 2½-year tenure.
Tevin Coleman rushed for an early touchdown for San Francisco, while Garoppolo was mostly effective despite two turnovers. The Niners didn’t score a touchdown in the final 27 minutes, but they’re off to their fourth 5-0 start in franchise history, and their first since 1990.
JETS 24, COWBOYS 22
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Sam Darnold gave the Jets’ struggling offense a huge boost by throwing two touchdown passes in his return from mononucleosis, and New York held on to beat Dallas for its first win of the season.
The Jets led 21-9 in the fourth quarter, but Dak Prescott and the top-ranked Cowboys offense stormed back — and had a chance to tie in the closing moments.
Prescott ran for a 4-yard touchdown with 43 seconds left, making it a two-point game. Going for the tie, Prescott dropped back and was quickly met by a blitzing Jamal Adams and his pass on the conversion try fell short of Jason Witten in the end zone.
The Cowboys (3-3) tried an onside kick, but Demaryius Thomas recovered for the Jets (1-4), who won for the first time under coach Adam Gase. It was the third straight loss for Dallas.
Darnold, who missed three games while recovering from mononucleosis, finished 23 of 32 for 338 yards — including a 92-yard touchdown toss to Robby Anderson and a 5-yarder to Ryan Griffin.
VIKINGS 38, EAGLES 20
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Kirk Cousins threw to Stefon Diggs for three of his four touchdowns, racking up a season-high 333 passing yards as Minnesota ravaged Philadelphia’s secondary.
Diggs scored on plays in the first half that covered 51 and 62 yards, becoming the first player since Randy Moss in 2000 to post two touchdown receptions of 50-plus yards in one game for the Vikings (4-2).
His most important catch came late in the third quarter, a double toe tap in the back of the end zone from 11 yards out that pushed the lead to 11 points after Carson Wentz and the Eagles (3-3) had pulled within 24-20 with 17 straight points.
Cousins went 22 for 29 with one sack and one interception on a deflected ball.
The Eagles have been badly missing starting cornerbacks Ronald Darby and Avonte Maddox, and Cousins took full advantage with a first half that looked at times like passing drills against the scout team.
RAVENS 23, BENGALS 17
BALTIMORE (AP) — Lamar Jackson ran for a career-high 152 yards and a touchdown, threw for 236 yards and guided Baltimore past hapless Cincinnati.
Jackson carried 19 times, including three kneel-downs, and finished tantalizingly short of Michael Vick’s single-game record of 173 yards rushing by a quarterback.
Jackson now has three career 100-yard rushing games, tied with Billy Kilmer for most by a quarterback in his first two seasons since 1950.
Regardless of where Jackson went, the Bengals (0-6) were usually a step behind. Jackson was also adept when throwing, going 21 for 33 without an interception.
Cincinnati jumped on top when Brandon Wilson took the opening kickoff 92 yards for a score, but Jackson responded quickly. Baltimore (4-2) finished with 497 yards of offense, and the Ravens retained sole possession of first place in the AFC North.
PANTHERS 37, BUCCANEERS 26
LONDON (AP) — Christian McCaffrey scored two touchdowns and Carolina turned five interceptions by Jameis Winston into 17 points as the Panthers beat Tampa Bay.
After starting the season with two straight losses with hobbled Cam Newton at quarterback, the Panthers (4-2) have been on a roll with Kyle Allen at quarterback thanks to McCaffrey’s big plays and an opportunistic defense that had a franchise record-tying seven takeaways on the day.
Both of those factors came up big on Carolina’s first trip to London in front of a large contingent of Panthers fans for what was designated as a home game for the Bucs (2-4).
Winston did most of his damage after the game got out of hand late, throwing for 400 yards with a 10-yard TD pass to Cameron Brate in the fourth quarter that gave him 100 touchdown passes in his career.
WASHINGTON 17, DOLPHINS 16
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Rookie Terry McLaurin caught two touchdown passes and Washington stopped Miami’s two-point conversion attempt with 6 seconds left in a matchup between winless teams.
Adrian Peterson more than doubled his season rushing total with 118 yards for Bill Callahan in his first game as interim coach. Washington intercepted Josh Rosen twice and sacked him five times before he was benched at the start of the fourth quarter with the Dolphins trailing 17-3.
Rosen’s replacement, Ryan Fitzpatrick, sparked a rally and led two touchdown drives, including a 75-yard march that began with 2:02 left. But after Fitzpatrick hit DeVante Parker for an 11-yard score to cut the deficit to one point, rookie coach Brian Flores decided to go for two.
Running back Kenyan Drake dropped Fitzpatrick’s quick pass with several defenders between him and the goal line.
Washington (1-5) looked like a different team after firing coach Jay Gruden, but the caliber of the opposition had something to do with that. The Dolphins (0-5) remained winless under Flores but helped their chances of securing the No. 1 draft pick in April.
CARDINALS 34, FALCONS 33
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Kyler Murray threw for 340 yards and three touchdowns and Arizona built a big lead over Atlanta, lost it, and then rallied to win.
Atlanta looked like it would tie the game with 1:53 left after Matt Ryan hit Devonta Freeman on a 12-yard touchdown pass, but 44-year-old Matt Bryant missed left on the extra point, and the Cardinals ran out the clock from there.
The Cardinals (2-3-1) took a 34-27 lead with 5:12 remaining on David Johnson’s 14-yard touchdown catch from Murray. Johnson made a great adjustment to his route on the slightly underthrown ball, catching the ball between two defenders.
The Cardinals won at home for the first time since last Oct. 28.
The Falcons (1-5) have lost four straight games.