AP

Analysis: Week 2 a Comeback Sunday NFL hasn’t seen in years

Sep 18, 2022, 10:45 AM | Updated: Sep 19, 2022, 11:58 am

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) takes a selfie on the field after defeating the Balti...

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) takes a selfie on the field after defeating the Baltimore Ravens at an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022, in Baltimore. The Dolphins defeated the Ravens 42-38. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

(AP Photo/Julio Cortez)


              Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) throws against the Las Vegas Raiders during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)
            
              Miami Dolphins wide receivers Tyreek Hill, foreground, and Jaylen Waddle (17) celebrate at the end of an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens, Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
            
              New York Jets quarterback Joe Flacco (19) celebrates after the team defeated the Cleveland Browns in an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Richard)
            
              New York Jets cornerback Brandin Echols (26) celebrates after his team defeated the Cleveland Browns in an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/David Richard)
            
              Arizona Cardinals cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. (7) runs back for the winning touchdown after a fumble recovery during overtime of an NFL football game against the Las Vegas Raiders, Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/David Becker)
            
              Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) takes a selfie on the field after defeating the Baltimore Ravens at an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022, in Baltimore. The Dolphins defeated the Ravens 42-38. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Call it a Comeback Sunday the NFL hasn’t seen in years.

The Dolphins and Cardinals made history by overcoming 20-point halftime deficits to win on the same day while the Jets rallied from a 13-point deficit in the final two minutes.

Two other teams almost joined the club.

The Falcons fought back from a 28-3 third-quarter deficit — that score sounds familiar in Atlanta — only to fall short against the defending Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams when Jalen Ramsey picked off Marcus Mariota’s pass intended for Bryan Edwards in the end zone, sealing a 31-27 victory.

Joe Burrow helped the Cincinnati Bengals erase a 17-3 halftime deficit in Dallas, but Brett Maher kicked a 50-yard field goal as time expired to give the Cowboys a 20-17 win that dropped the reigning AFC champions to 0-2.

Two weeks into the season, close games and wacky finishes are a common theme. It’s great news for the league, giving viewers who have no fantasy football or gambling interest reason to stick around until the end.

There have been 12 games decided by three points or fewer already, the most through the first two weeks of a season in NFL history.

Eight teams have overcome a deficit of at least 10 points to win or tie, the second-most through Week 2, trailing only the 1987 season when nine teams did it.

Tua Tagovailoa’s performance was most impressive. He tossed six touchdown passes to lead Miami to a 42-38 win at Baltimore after trailing Lamar Jackson and the Ravens 35-14 going into the fourth quarter.

“We basically had to play perfect complementary football to come back from a deficit like that, and this is a really good team so I couldn’t be happier with him, and his teammates know,” Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel said of Tagovailoa. “His teammates learned a lot about him, and I think he learned something about himself.”

Tagovailoa improved to 8-1 vs. Super Bowl-winning head coaches, the highest win percentage league history with a minimum six starts.

His critics should be silent for at least another week.

“Mike told us in our team meeting that this is going to be a great opportunity for us that if we do ever get down against these guys, we know that you’re not looking to put your head down,” Tagovailoa said. “We’re always going to be in the game and just play one play at a time. And Mike is always going to say this. This is kind of like the mindset for our team, that adversity is opportunity. And that’s how we played.”

Kyler Murray put on a spectacular display of his own to help Arizona overcome a 20-0 halftime deficit in Las Vegas. Murray ran in from the 3 on the final play of regulation and made a perfect throw into a tight window through traffic for the 2-point conversion to send the game into overtime.

Then, Byron Murphy Jr. returned Hunter Renfrow’s fumble 59 yards for a touchdown to give the Cardinals a 29-23 win over the Raiders.

“There were so many do-or-die plays, I lost count, where we had to have this stop, had to have this 2-point conversion, had to score, had to have this fourth down and guys just kept fighting,” Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury said. “Nobody blinked. At halftime, it was ‘Hey, we have to settle in and do what we do.’ We played about as bad as you could in the first half, didn’t play great the second half, but the effort was incredible.”

Multiple teams had not rallied from 20-point halftime deficits to win on the same day until both the Dolphins and Cardinals did it Sunday. It was the first time that two teams overcame a deficit of at least 20 points at any point in a game to win in the same week since Week 4 of the 2011 season.

Of the three teams who blew big leads, the Browns should be most bitter. They would’ve won if Nick Chubb had stayed in bounds instead of run into the end zone for his third touchdown with 1:55 remaining. That score gave Cleveland a 30-17 lead but the extra-point was missed.

Joe Flacco tossed two TD passes in a 60-second span sandwiched around a recovered onside kick as the Jets pulled off an improbable 31-30 victory. Teams had won 2,229 consecutive games when leading by at least 13 points in the final two minutes before the Browns blew it.

“I have won on a Hail Mary. I have lost on a Hail Mary. I have won in a last-second game,” Jets coach Robert Saleh said. “At this point in my life, I’ve experienced all of it, so I’m never surprised at what the league has to offer, but that roller coaster never changes.”

The three comebacks by the Dolphins, Cardinals and Jets — all on the road, too — marked the second time in league history that three teams overcame a fourth-quarter deficit of at least 13 points to win on same day.

The way this season has started, expect to see plenty more comebacks.

___

Follow Rob Maaddi on Twitter at https://twitter.com/robmaaddi

___

More AP NFL coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

AP

Associated Press

Ex-Packer Guion gets 1 year for domestic violence assault

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Former Green Bay Packers defensive tackle Letroy Guion was sentenced to one year in jail after pleading no contest in a domestic violence assault at his home last fall. Brown County Circuit Court Judge Thomas Walsh also ordered Guion on Tuesday to serve three years’ probation and complete a domestic […]

1 year ago

Joe Jarzynka...

Associated Press

Durant eager for Suns debut vs. Hornets after knee injury

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Kevin Durant has been through quite a bit during his 15-year NBA career — but joining a new team midway through the season is a new one for the 13-time All-Star. The 34-year-old Durant doesn’t seem all that worried. Durant makes his highly anticipated Phoenix Suns debut on Wednesday night against […]

1 year ago

FILE - Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores stands on the sideline during the second half of an N...

Associated Press

Judge: NFL coach can press discrimination claims in court

NEW YORK (AP) — NFL Coach Brian Flores can pursue some of his discrimination claims against the league and its teams in court rather than through arbitration, a judge ruled Wednesday. The written decision by Judge Valerie Caproni in Manhattan was issued months after lawyers for the league tried to get the lawsuit moved to […]

1 year ago

Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Alex Stalock cools off in the first period during an NHL hockey game ...

Associated Press

Kane trade reinforces hard reality of Blackhawks rebuild

CHICAGO (AP) — After days of speculation, the harsh reality of the Chicago Blackhawks’ situation was reinforced by one move in a flurry of transactions ahead of the NHL trade deadline. Showtime is over, at least in Chicago, and a seemingly bright future is, well, way off in the distance. The reverberations of Chicago’s decision […]

1 year ago

FILE -  Yves Jean-Bart, president of the Haitian Football Federation, wearing a protective face mas...

Associated Press

Disgraced ex-Haitian soccer president announces he’s back

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Haiti’s former soccer federation president whose lifetime ban from sport over sexual abuse allegations was overturned last month announced Wednesday that he is reclaiming his position. Yves Jean-Bart’s defiant announcement could lead to a standoff with FIFA, which already has appointed an emergency management committee to lead the Haitian Football Association […]

1 year ago

FILE - Green Bay Packers' Aaron Rodgers walks off the field after an NFL football game against the ...

Associated Press

Rodgers says decision on future will come ‘soon enough’

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Aaron Rodgers says he will make a decision on his future “soon enough” as the four-time MVP quarterback ponders whether to play next season and if his future remains with the Green Bay Packers. Rodgers, 39, discussed his future while speaking on an episode of the “Aubrey Marcus Podcast” that […]

1 year ago

Analysis: Week 2 a Comeback Sunday NFL hasn’t seen in years