Bills end 2-game skid with win over spiraling Panthers

(AP) -ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Josh Allen threw three touchdown passes, Devin Singletary ran for a season-high 86 yards with his quarterback mostly kept in the pocket by a sprained left foot and the Buffalo Bills beat the offensively challenged Carolina Panthers 31-14 Sunday.

Allen finished 19 of 34 for 210 yards while Singletary kept Buffalo moving on the ground and opened the scoring on a 16-yard run.

The Bills limited Allen’s mobility a week after the fourth-year starter was hurt in a 33-27 overtime loss at Tampa Bay. Allen was sacked a season-high four times for 17 yards. He scrambled once for 26 yards in the third quarter.

The Panthers (5-9) dropped their fourth straight and lost for the ninth time in 11 games. In a what-else-can-go-wrong season, Carolina was dealt a blow a little over an hour before kickoff when kicker Zane Gonzalez had to be helped off the field after hurting his quadriceps.

The injury left Carolina minus a real kicker. The Panthers passed up a field-goal attempt and failed to convert fourth-and-9 from Buffalo’s 24 to end their second possession. Carolina converted one of two 2-point attempts.

After Cam Newton scored on a 4-yard run, DJ Moore made a one-handed catch in the right corner of the end zone to cut Buffalo’s lead to 14-8 with 1:48 left in the first half. Newton was stopped on a running attempt after hitting Ameer Abdullah for a 23-yard touchdown catch with 11:01 remaining.

The Panthers converted just 1 of 5 fourth-down tries, with Efe Obada ending Carolina’s last real chance for a comeback by sacking Newton for an 8-yard loss on fourth-and-10 from his own 46 with under six minutes left.

Allen’s one miscue was an interception in which he sailed a pass intended for Diggs that was picked off by Jeremy Chinn. Allen’s ninth interception in seven games set up Newton’s touchdown.

Newton finished 13 of 39 for 156 yards and an interception, with 15 carries for a team-leading 71 yards. He extended his NFL record by scoring a TD rushing and TD passing for the 44th time of his career. Newton also extended his streak of scoring a TD rushing to five consecutive games, matching the NFL record for a quarterback set by Arizona’s Kyler Murray last year.

Newton has lost 12 consecutive starts for Carolina, a skid that began before he spent last season with New England. Newton re-signed with the Panthers last month and hasn’t led Carolina to victory since a 42-28 win against Tampa Bay on Nov. 4, 2018.