Patrick Mahomes (L), quarterback of the Kansas City Chiefs, Tom Brady, quarterback of the New England Patriots /VCG Photo
Reigning Super Bowl champions New England and the Kansas City Chiefs managed narrow road triumphs in battles between NFL unbeatens on Sunday to remain perfect through four games this season.
Tom Brady threw for only 150 yards but New England intercepted four passes, two by J.C. Jackson, and Matthew Slater returned a blocked punt 11 yards for a touchdown in a 16-10 Patriots victory at Buffalo.
"To go on the road and beat a team that's 3-0 is pretty good," Brady said. "We can certainly play better than we did. We've got to get in the red area (at or inside the opponent's 20-yard line). We missed some opportunities there. We'll go out and try and do a better job next week."
Patrick Mahomes drove the Chiefs 79 yards in 13 plays and Darrel Williams made his second 1-yard touchdown run of the fourth quarter with 20 seconds remaining to give Kansas City a 34-30 triumph at Detroit.
Matthew Stafford (C) of the Detroit Lions scrambles inside the 10-yard line against the Kansas City Chiefs at the Ford Field, September 29, 2019. /VCG Photo
Mahomes completed 24-of-42 passes for 315 yards but went without a touchdown pass for only the fourth time in his career while Detroit's Matthew Stafford completed 21-of-34 passes for 291 yards and three touchdowns in a losing cause.
"They found a way to take away some of the stuff we like to do," Mahomes said. "They hadn't lost a game for a reason."
The Chiefs and Patriots became the first NFL teams to reach 4-0 while the Bills fell to 3-1 and Detroit slid to 2-1-1.
Bills coach Sean McDermott was upset over the brutal helmet-to-helmet hit delivered by New England's Jonathan Jones on Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen that knocked the signal caller out of the game in the fourth quarter and into the NFL's concussion protocol.
Back Duron Harmon (L) and Jonathan Jones (R) of the New England Patrioits tackle Josh Allen (C) of the Buffalo Bills at the New Era Field, September 29, 2019. /VCG Photo
"There's no room in football for a play like the hit on Josh Allen," McDermott said.
A penalty against Jones was offset by another on the Bills, but Buffalo defender Micah Hyde said his unit would have gotten a harsher fate had one of them delivered such a hit to 42-year-old Brady, winner of a record six Super Bowl crowns.
"One of us did that to 12, we wouldn't have been in the game anymore," Hyde said.
Frank Gore #20 of the Buffalo Bills runs with the ball against the New England Patriots at the New Era Field, September 29, 2019. /VCG Photo
Buffalo running back Frank Gore, in his 15th NFL season, became the fourth player in league history to rush for 15,000 career yards, cracking the barrier on a 41-yard run.
Only record-holder Emmitt Smith (18,355 yards), Walter Payton (16,726) and Barry Sanders (15,269) have carried for more yards and Gore is on track to pass Sanders later this year.
Gore, who ran 17 times for 109 yards in the loss to stand on 15,021 yards, has played for San Francisco, Miami and Indianapolis as well as the Bills.
Other results on Sunday (away teams mentioned first):
Tennessee Titans 24-10 Atlanta Falcons
Washington Redskins 3-24 New York Giants
Los Angeles Chargers 30-10 Miami Dolphins
Oakland Raiders 31-24 Indianapolis Colts
Carolina Panthers 16-10 Houston Texans
Cleveland Browns 40-25 Baltimore Ravens
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 55-40 Los Angeles Rams
Seattle Seahawks 27-10 Arizona Cardinals
Minnesota Vikings 6-16 Chicago Bears
Jacksonville Jaguars 26-24 Denver Broncos
Dallas Cowboys 10-12 New Orleans Saints