The second quarter of the NFL season began Sunday with some key matchups — an important AFC North showdown, a potential playoff preview between AFC contenders, a crucial divisional battle in the NFC West and more Again.
The matches were marked by questionable coaching decisions, exceptional performances and unique circumstances.
Let’s dive into the biggest wins of Week 5.
Texans get victory over Bills
Is Houston the Kansas City Chiefs’ biggest challenger in the AFC? The Texans claim this fantasy title after outlasting the Buffalo Bills in a thriller.
CJ Stroud threw for 331 yards and a score in the victory. Houston took a 20-3 lead and held on for a 23-20 victory.
Bills quarterback Josh Allen had his worst game of the season, completing just nine of 30 passes for 131 yards in Buffalo’s second straight loss.
Houston won on a 59-yard field goal thanks in large part to poor clock management by the Bills.
With the game tied late, Buffalo called three consecutive passes from its own 3-yard line. All three were incomplete, allowing the Texans to keep all three of their timeouts when they took the ball back with just seven seconds remaining. Stroud was able to bring the team within field goal range on just one play.
Buffalo fell to 3-2 with the loss, just one game ahead of the New York Jets and Miami Dolphins in the AFC East.
The Texans are 4-1, just behind the Chiefs in the conference.
Ravens beat Bengals in overtime
In an epic quarterback duel, the Baltimore Ravens outlasted the Cincinnati Bengals in overtime – and dealt a major blow to their rival’s playoff chances.
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson threw for 348 yards and four touchdowns in a 41-38 victory. Bengals signal-caller Joe Burrow had a massive game, but his 392 yards and five touchdowns weren’t enough.
The Bengals had a 38-28 lead in the fourth quarter before Baltimore went on an 11-play touchdown drive to cut the lead to seven. On Cincinnati’s next drive, Burrow was picked off, leading to the game-tying field goal .
In overtime, the Bengals missed a golden opportunity. After a Jackson fumble on the Ravens’ opening possession, Cincinnati missed what would have been a game-winning 53-yard field goal four plays later.
A 51-yard run by Derrick Henry after the miss set up Baltimore’s game-winning field goal.
The Ravens are now 3-2 after an 0-2 start.
The Bengals have fallen to 1-4 and their playoff aspirations are on life support.
The 49ers lose another 10 point lead
49ers fans have seen this movie before.
The Arizona Cardinals escaped with a 24-23 victory in San Francisco on Sunday despite trailing by 10 in the fourth quarter. Arizona erased a 23-13 deficit thanks to two San Francisco turnovers in the final period – a Jordan Mason fumble and a Brock Purdy interception that ended a comeback attempt.
It was the 49ers’ sixth loss with a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter under head coach Kyle Shanahan.
Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray threw for 195 yards and ran for 83 more. He led two marathons in the fourth: a 12-play touchdown plus two-point conversion and a 14-play drive for the game-winning field goal.
Purdy had a chance to respond, but was picked off on the second play of a drive that began with one minute, 37 seconds left — his second interception.
Niners kicker Jake Moody was injured in the second quarter, which played a role in the loss. San Francisco attempted to convert a 4th-and-23 in the second half instead of attempting a 45-yard field goal.
Giants upset Seahawks
This Cardinals victory became especially important in light of what happened to the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday.
Seattle was upset at home by the New York Giants, who – along with Arizona – were the biggest underdogs of the day.
Quarterback Daniel Jones played an impeccable game for the Giants, throwing for 254 yards and two scores. New York also ran for 175 yards, controlling the time of possession.
With 55 seconds left, the Seahawks attempted the potential game-tying field goal, but it was blocked and returned for a touchdown.
Seattle’s loss keeps the 49ers and Cardinals one game out of the division lead.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
