Gardner Minshew passed for 171 yards and a touchdown in relief of injured rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson as the Indianapolis Colts claimed a 31-20 victory over the host Houston Texans on Sunday.

After Richardson departed with a concussion early in the second quarter, Minshew led scoring drives of 76 and 75 yards to help the Colts secure a 28-10 halftime lead.

Minshew went 11-of-13 for 114 yards in the second quarter, including a 4-yard touchdown pass to Kylen Granson with 10 seconds left in the first half. When Minshew paced a nine-play, 56-yard drive in the third quarter that resulted in Matt Gay’s 42-yard field goal, the Colts (1-1) extended their lead to 31-10.

Texans rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud mustered a spirited response, leading a pair of scoring drives that enabled Houston (0-2) to close to within 11 points late in the fourth quarter.

But the Texans were forced to settle for Ka’imi Fairbairn’s 36-yard field goal early in the fourth and another Fairbairn attempt that sailed wide left after Kwity Payne and Jake Martin sacked Stroud.

Stroud competed 30 of 47 passes for 384 yards, including scoring passes to Nico Collins and Tank Dell, but he was sacked six times after five in the season-opening loss at the Baltimore Ravens.

Richardson was 6-of-10 passing for 56 yards and rushed three times for 35 yards and two touchdowns before his early exit.

Richardson enjoyed a rousing start. He engineered a 10-play, 75-yard scoring drive on the Colts’ opening possession, capped by his 18-yard touchdown run that yielded a 7-0 lead with 10:44 left in the first quarter. Richardson completed passes for 12 yards to Michael Pittman Jr., 11 yards to Granson and 15 yards to Mo Alie-Cox on the march.

When the Colts started their next possession in the red zone courtesy of a Houston turnover, Richardson struck again.

Samson Ebukam recorded a sack of Stroud on third down and Paye recovered the ensuing fumble at the Houston 15. Richardson converted on the ensuing snap with a 15-yard touchdown run, but he slammed the back of his helmet on the turf on the play. Richardson was evaluated for a concussion on the sideline before departing for the locker room.

Upon further evaluation, Richardson was determined out for the remainder of the contest.

–Field Level Media

Geno Smith connected with Tyler Lockett on a 6-yard touchdown pass in overtime to give the visiting Seattle Seahawks a 37-31 victory over the Detroit Lions on Sunday.

Smith passed for 69 yards on the overtime drive after Seattle won the coin toss. Smith threw for 328 yards and two scores, both to Lockett, who caught eight passes for 59 yards.

Kenneth Walker rushed for 43 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries for Seattle (1-1).

Smith took a 17-yard sack before Detroit started its last possession of regulation at midfield. Riley Patterson made a 38-yard field goal as the clock hit zeroes to tie it 31-31.

Jared Goff passed for 323 yards and three touchdowns for Detroit (1-1). Goff was picked off for the first time in 384 attempts by Tre Brown, who returned the interception 40 yards for a score.

Josh Reynolds caught five passes for 66 yards and two scores. David Montgomery rushed for 67 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown before departing with a thigh injury.

Detroit led 14-7 at halftime.

Both teams scored touchdowns on their first possessions. The Seahawks drove 75 yards on 12 plays, capped by Walker’s 1-yard run.

Goff completed all four of his passes during Detroit’s 75-yard drive, including a 22-yard strike to Reynolds for the score.

The Lions took the lead with 4:51 left in the half. Goff fired a 36-yard pass to Kalif Raymond on a flea flicker play for the touchdown.

The Seahawks tied the game shortly after the third quarter kickoff. Montgomery fumbled and Jarran Reed recovered on the Detroit 23. Two plays later, Walker scored from 3 yards out.

Montgomery then made up for his miscue with a 4-yard touchdown run.

Jason Myers kicked a 25-yard field goal later in the quarter to make it 21-17 Detroit.

Seattle scored again with 10:38 remaining to take the lead. Smith connected with Lockett on a 3-yard touchdown pass.

Brown picked off Goff and raced untouched into the end zone with 8:04 left for a 31-21 Seahawks lead.

The Lions got those points back when Goff hit Reynolds for a 4-yard score with 3:08 remaining.

–Field Level Media

Lamar Jackson finished 24-of-33 passing for 237 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 54 yards to lead the visiting Baltimore Ravens past the Cincinnati Bengals, 27-24, on Sunday.

Joe Burrow completed 27 of 41 passes for 222 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Burrow aggravated his right calf injury on his second touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter.

The Ravens (2-0) took control early with a 75-yard drive in 13 plays. Gus Edwards had three carries for 20 yards, including a 1-yard scoring plunge that capped the drive.

The Bengals (0-2) again had trouble getting their offense in gear, going three-and-out and punting on their first two possessions.

The Bengals caught a break when Justin Tucker missed a 59-yard field goal wide right late in the first quarter. After assuming possession at their 49, the Bengals could manage just 2 yards and punted.

Cincinnati’s offense was booed off the field after their second drive as the offense managed just 14 yards and no first downs.

Burrow completed four of his first five passes but only for 13 yards.

It appeared the Bengals were going to get a big break when Trey Hendrickson forced a fumble and Logan Wilson recovered at the Baltimore 18 to open the second quarter.

But Zach Carter was flagged for illegal use of hands, and the Ravens retained possession. The Ravens would punt four plays later, resulting in Cincinnati’s first touchdown of the season, an 81-yard punt return by rookie Charlie Jones.

Jones took the ball at his 19, started up field, made a sharp cut to the sideline and raced untouched up the left sideline for his first career touchdown.

Tucker finished the first half with his second field goal, a 40-yarder that gave Baltimore a 13-10 halftime lead.

Cincinnati’s offense showed good signs to open the second half and seemed poised to score their first offensive touchdown. With the Bengals facing second-and-8 at the Ravens 17, Burrow’s pass for Tee Higgins at the goal line was picked off by Geno Stone.

The 36-yard interception return was followed by a 52-yard bomb from Jackson to rookie Zay Flowers, who beat corners Cam Taylor-Britt and DJ Turner. Three plays later, Jackson found Mark Andrews on a 3-yard pass for a touchdown that made it 20-10.

The Bengals finally put together an offensive touchdown drive when they needed it most, marching 75 yards on 13 plays. Burrow connected with Higgins from 3 yards out on third-and-goal to cut the deficit to 20-17.

But Jackson engineered another 75-yard scoring drive, capped by his picture-perfect 17-yard fade pass to Nelson Agholor that beat Chidobe Awuzie, putting Baltimore up 27-17 with 11:38 to play in the fourth.

Burrow found Higgins again, this time on a 4-yard touchdown pass, to make it 27-24 with 3:28 left in the game before the Ravens ran out the clock.

–Field Level Media

Josh Allen bounced back from a rough Week 1 performance to throw for three touchdowns as the Buffalo Bills cruised to a 38-10 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday in Orchard Park, N.Y.

After matching his career high with four turnovers (three interceptions, one fumble) against the Jets last Monday, Allen returned to form against Las Vegas, completing 31 of 37 passes for 274 yards.

James Cook paced the rushing attack with 123 yards on 17 carries for Buffalo (1-1), which effectively sealed the victory by maintaining possession for 12:50 of the third quarter.

The Bills opened the third with a 15-play, 75-yard drive that ended when Allen found Gabe Davis for a 2-yard touchdown that made it 28-10. Davis finished with six catches for 92 yards.

In the fourth, Tyler Bass added a 28-yard field goal and Damien Harris found the end zone from 1 yard out to complete the scoring.

Jimmy Garoppolo threw for 185 yards with a TD and two interceptions on 16-of-24 passing for the Raiders (1-1), who saw reigning NFL rushing leader Josh Jacobs held to minus-2 yards rushing on nine carries.

Davante Adams hauled in six receptions for 84 yards and a touchdown. He left the game late in the fourth quarter after taking a helmet-to-helmet hit.

Daniel Carlson made good on a 47-yard field goal to pull the Raiders within 14-10, but Allen found Khalil Shakir for an 11-yard touchdown with just 18 seconds remaining in the first half to send the Bills into the break up 21-10.

Allen also connected with Dawson Knox for a 2-yard TD in the first half.

Las Vegas flew down the field to open the game, using just 2:44 of clock to drive 75 yards in five plays. Garoppolo capped the march with a 16-yard scoring strike to Adams.

It looked like the Raiders were going to ride that momentum when they forced a three-and-out to quickly get the ball back. But just four plays into their next drive, Terrel Bernard came down with a deflected pass to pick off Garoppolo.

Buffalo set up shop at the Las Vegas 28 and later knotted things at 7-7 when Latavius Murray rushed for a 4-yard touchdown.

–Field Level Media

Ryan Tannehill passed for 246 yards and a touchdown, Nick Folk made a 41-yard field goal in overtime and the Tennessee Titans pulled off a 27-24 victory Sunday over the Los Angeles Chargers at Nashville, Tenn., to end an eight-game losing streak going back to last season.

Derrick Henry gained 79 yards of the Titans’ 141 total yards on the ground as Tennessee (1-1) found some offense one week after a limited attack in a loss to the New Orleans Saints.

Tannehill pulled off a seven-play, 82-yard drive to give the Titans a 24-21 lead with 2:22 remaining in regulation after a 4-yard touchdown pass to Nick Westbrook-Ikhine. The Chargers (0-2) sent the game into overtime on Cameron Dicker’s 33-yard field goal as the clock expired.

The Tennessee defense held the Chargers to a three-and-out to open overtime then got into field-goal position by moving 37 yards in eight plays.

Justin Herbert was 27-of-41 passing and 305 yards for the Chargers, connecting on two touchdown passes to Keenan Allen, who had eight receptions for 111 yards. Mike Williams also had eight catches and 83 yards for the Chargers.

Playing without Austin Ekeler (ankle), the Chargers had just 61 yards rushing on 21 carries. The Los Angeles defense had five sacks, with two from Joey Bosa.

The Chargers took a 3-0 lead in the first quarter on Dicker’s 27-yard field goal.

Los Angeles went eight plays and 47 yards, scoring a second-quarter TD when Herbert connected with Allen on an 8-yard pass. Herbert then found eligible offensive tackle Trey Pipkins III on a pass for the 2-point conversion for an 11-0 lead.

The Titans answered quickly with Tannehill finding Treylon Burks on a 70-yard pass to the Chargers’ 5-yard line one play after the Los Angeles TD. Henry scored from 1 yard out to cut the deficit to 11-7.

Field goals by both teams gave the Chargers a 14-10 lead at halftime.

Tennessee took its first lead of the game at 17-14 on its opening drive of the second half, going 75 yards in nine plays and finding the end zone when Tannehill scored on a 12-yard run on an option play.

The Chargers moved back in front 21-17 in the opening minute of the fourth quarter when Herbert found Allen in the end zone for a second time, this one from 12 yards.

–Field Level Media

Indianapolis Colts rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson departed early in the second quarter after suffering a concussion against the host Houston Texans on Sunday.

Richardson, the fourth overall selection in the 2023 NFL Draft out of Florida, completed 6 of 10 attempts for 56 yards and rushed for a pair of touchdowns in the opening quarter.

Richardson, 21, capped a 10-play, 75-yard opening drive with an 18-yard touchdown run. After Texans rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud fumbled on the ensuing Houston possession, Richardson extended the lead to 14-0 with a 15-yard scoring run on the first snap of the drive.

But Richardson slammed the back of his helmet on the turf on his second touchdown and was taken to the locker room and evaluated for a concussion. The Colts announced that he would not return to the game, leaving Gardner Minshew II to orchestrate the offense.

–Field Level Media

Los Angeles Rams running back Cam Akers was ruled inactive for Sunday’s game against the visiting San Francisco 49ers as the team looks to trade him, FOX Sports reported.

Per the report, Akers is not injured and was made idle for Sunday’s game as a coach’s decision.

Kyren Williams had 15 carries for 52 yards and two touchdowns in Los Angeles’ 30-13 victory over the host Seattle Seahawks last Sunday. Williams, 23, was selected by the Rams in the fifth round out of Notre Dame of the 2022 NFL Draft.

Akers, 24, requested a trade last season after being dissatisfied with his role with Los Angeles. He returned to the team after the Rams failed to find a suitable trade partner.

Akers rushed 22 times for 29 yards and a touchdown in Los Angeles’ season opener. He has 360 carries for 1,443 yards and 10 touchdowns in 30 career games (15 starts) since being selected by Los Angeles in the second round of the 2020 draft.

–Field Level Media

Cleveland Browns wide receiver Amari Cooper is considered unlikely to play in Monday’s game against the host Pittsburgh Steelers, ESPN reported on Sunday.

Cooper aggravated his groin during Saturday’s practice and is listed as questionable versus the Steelers (0-1).

Should Cooper be sidelined, the Browns (1-0) will lean on wideouts Elijah Moore, Donovan Peoples-Jones and Marquise Goodwin, among others.

Cooper, who had core muscle surgery this offseason, recorded three catches for 37 yards in Cleveland’s 24-3 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals last Sunday.

A four-time Pro Bowl selection, Cooper caught 78 passes for 1,160 yards and a career-high nine touchdowns in 17 starts during his first season with the Browns in 2022.

Cooper, 29, has 598 receptions for 8,273 yards and 55 touchdowns in 126 games (119 starts) with the then-Oakland Raiders (2015-18), Dallas Cowboys (2018-21) and Browns.

–Field Level Media