NFL Recap | October 12, 2026
Monday night at SoFi gave Week 5 the finish it deserved. Buffalo and Los Angeles traded five touchdowns in the fourth quarter alone, Kyren Williams tied it with five seconds left, and Tyler Bass ended it from 45 yards with 1:55 to play in overtime. Josh Allen ran for 121 yards. Matthew Stafford threw for 383 and still went home with a loss. Here's how it went, and how the card graded.
Bass From 45 Ends a Monday Night Shootout in Overtime
Buffalo Bills 37, Los Angeles Rams 34 (OT)
The first half belonged to the kickers and the running backs. Tyler Bass opened the scoring from 49 yards at 13:23 of the first quarter, Harrison Mevis pushed a 50-yarder wide left at 5:40, and Bass added a 23-yarder with ten seconds left in the quarter for a 6-0 Buffalo lead. Stafford found Davante Adams from four yards out at 8:00 of the second for the Rams' first points, and James Cook III answered with a 17-yard touchdown run at 5:09. Jaylen Watson picked off an Allen deep ball at 0:37, but the Rams couldn't turn it into points, and Buffalo led 13-7 at the half.
The second half was a different game. Blake Corum's 1-yard run at 10:11 of the third put Los Angeles ahead 14-13, then Allen found Keon Coleman for a 7-yard score at 2:45 and Bass missed the extra point, 19-14 Buffalo. Puka Nacua caught a 2-yard touchdown at 14:16 of the fourth for a 20-19 Rams lead after a failed two-point try. Allen scored from the 1 at 11:28 and threw to Dalton Kincaid for two, 27-20. Adams caught his second touchdown at 7:14 to tie it at 27. Cook scored again from five yards at 1:39 for a 34-27 lead. Stafford then went 63 yards in 1:34, and Williams plunged in from the 1 with five seconds left to send it to overtime at 34-34.
Overtime turned on two special-teams moments and one fumble. Khalil Shakir's 57-yard catch put Buffalo at the Rams' 22, but Cook fumbled at 8:00 and Aaron Donald recovered. Los Angeles drove to the Buffalo 30, and Greg Rousseau blocked Mevis's 48-yard attempt at 4:16. Allen then scrambled for 19 and 13 yards on back-to-back snaps, and Bass connected from 45 with 1:55 left. The Rams never got the ball back. Allen finished 12-of-19 for 210 yards with ten carries for 121, and Cook ran 25 times for 111 yards and two scores as Buffalo piled up 234 rushing yards. Stafford was 40-of-54 for 383 yards and three touchdowns without an interception, and Nacua caught 17 of his 24 targets for 138 yards. Buffalo moves to 4-1. Los Angeles falls to 2-3.
THE CARD, GRADED · BUF @ LAR
Side · Lean LAR -3.5 (Lean) · closing number LAR -3.5 · missed
Total · Over 54.5 (Toss-up) · final total 71 · cleared
The lean was driven by the injury report, and the Rams' defense did its part through three quarters. Allen's legs were the input the number didn't have.
THE RECORD · NFL REGULAR SEASON
Side 35-41-3 (46%) · Total 45-34 (57%) · through Week 5
This slate: side 0-1, total 1-0 (2 leans).
Every card is graded against the closing number. The full ledger, by tier and by week, is on The Record.
What's Next
That closes Week 5. Week 6 opens Thursday night with Seattle at Denver, 8:15 PM ET, and the preview with the card and both leans lands before kickoff. Sunday's full slate follows, with the three most prominent games free and the rest on Tome Intel.
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