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Justin Houston sacks Houston, Matthew Stafford continues to climb NFL record books

Justin Houston had three sacks against the Houston Texans.
Eric Christian Smith/AP
Connor Riley
Connor Riley

The Buffalo Bills had been the only team to not win a Monday Night Football game, as the franchise’s last win on a Monday night came all the way back in 1999.

But thanks to a touchdown from Isaiah McKenzie — and a stellar performance from Josh Allen — the Bills ended up beating the San Francisco 49ers 34-24.

The 23-yard touchdown catch for McKenzie was one of two catches in the game for the Bills, who now sit at 9-3 and in first place in the AFC East.

On the other side for San Francisco, former Bulldog Charlie Woerner had his first two catches in the NFL, as he finished with 33 yards. Woerner has seen an increase in snaps in recent weeks as All-Pro tight end George Kittle deals with an injury.

Elsewhere, Nick Chubb continued to be Nick Chubb. He finished the game with 80 yards, his lowest output since coming back from a midseason knee injury, on 18 carries. But he scored another touchdown and most importantly helped the Browns move to 9-3 on the season with a 41-35 win over the Tennessee Titans.

Chubb is now fifth in the NFL in rushing yards with 799, despite missing four games due to a knee injury. He’s got seven rushing touchdowns to go with a league-best 11 rushes of 20-yards or more.

Perhaps the best individual week came from Justin Houston of the Indianapolis Colts. He finished with 3.0 sacks against the Houston Texans. One of those sacks of Houston quarterback Deshaun Watson led to a safety. It was the fourth time Houston has done that in his career, tying an NFL record.

Indianapolis teammate Rodrigo Blankenship made his only field-goal attempt on the day, a 42-yard, to go along with all three of his extra points. Indianapolis is now 8-4 on the season and in a position to earn a wildcard berth.

In Detroit, Matthew Stafford had his best game of the season, tossing for 402 yards and three touchdowns in a come from behind win over the Chicago Bears. Stafford did so without standout rookie D’Andre Swift, who missed his second-consecutive game for the Lions.

This was Detroit’s first game since firing Matt Patricia. The three touchdown passes helped move him past Vinny Testaverde for the 16th most touchdown passes in NFL history. With four games left in the season, Stafford has 277 career touchdown passes.

For the Bears, Roquan Smith picked up another nine tackles to go along with a quarterback hurry. While it has been a great year for Smith, the Bears have lost their last five games and are now 5-7.

In Miami, there was a chippy moment between two former Bulldogs, as Cincinnatti safety Shawn Williams appeared to intentionally step on the leg of former Bulldog Solomon Kindley. The Miami-Cincinnati game was filled with numerous fights and ejections. Williams was suspended for one game after the 19-7 loss for the Bengals.

As for this week’s Top Dawg, our weekly honor that goes to the former Bulldog with the best week in the NFL, we narrowly have to give to Houston. Even after a decade in the NFL, the former Georgia great can still be unblockable at times.

Top Dawgs in the NFL

Week 13: Justin Houston, Indianapolis Colts OLB
Week 12: Nick Chubb, Cleveland Browns RB
Week 11: Rodrigo Blankenship, Indianapolis Colts K
Week 10: Leonard Floyd, Los Angeles Rams OLB
Week 9: Roquan Smith, Chicago Bears ILB
Week 8: Mecole Hardman, Kansas City Chiefs WR
Week 7: Leonard Floyd, Los Angeles Rams OLB
Week 6: Tae Crowder, New York Giants LB
Week 5: Andrew Thomas, New York Giants OT
Week 4: Mecole Hardman, Kansas City Chiefs WR
Week 3: Nick Chubb, Cleveland Browns RB
Week 2: Rodrigo Blankenship, Indianapolis Colts K
Week 1: Leonard Floyd, Los Angeles Rams OLB

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