American Football: Third time lucky for Tynes as Chiefs beat Raiders

Kansas City's Scottish-born kicker Lawrence Tynes followed team-mate Dante Hall's 49-yard kickoff return by scoring with 22 seconds to go to help the Chiefs to a 31-30 victory over the Oakland Raiders.

It was the fourth win in a row for the Chiefs (7-8), whose Super Bowl hopes were dashed by a 1-3 start and a four-game losing streak in November.

Sebastian Janikowski scored the last nine points for Oakland (5-10) on three field goals, including a 46-yarder with 1:03 left that followed a fumble by Chiefs quarterback Trent Green.

But Hall, who already has two touchdowns on kick runbacks this year, got loose on the ensuing kick and was not stopped until Janikowski got him on the Raiders 36.

Tynes, who had missed from 50 yards and had another attempt blocked, had no trouble from 38 yards with his first NFL game-winner even though his holder, punter Nick Murphy, had only been signed at midweek.

Born to a Scots mother and US Army father in Greenock in 1978, Tynes left Scotland at the age of 11. Making his breakthrough as a kicker this season after two successful years with the Ottawa Renegades of the Canadian Football League and a season with the Scottish Claymores in NFL Europe, he took over kicking duties from the NFLÿs second most prodigious scorer Morten Andersen, who at 44 had scored 2,259 points since breaking into the New Orleans Saints team in 1982.

Green hit 32 of 45 passes for 358 yards and two touchdowns to tight end Tony Gonzalez, who has 54 career TDs, tied with Wesley Walls for third all-time at tight end.

In the other Christmas Day match, Denver quarterback Jake Plummer broke out of his slump to keep his Broncos in the playoff race.

Plummer threw for 303 yards and two touchdowns and Reuben Droughns scored three touchdowns as Denver beat the Tennessee Titans 37-16 Saturday night to stay in at least a tie for the AFC's final wild-card slot going into the final week of the season.

Denver (9-6) had lost three of its last four games with two of those losses to teams with losing records, including last week's 45-17 rout at Kansas City. Plummer hurt Denver more than he helped with nine interceptions and only two touchdowns in that stretch.

Against a defense missing six starters, Plummer was intercepted once, giving him an NFL-high 20 interceptions this season. But he otherwise was superb, completing 21 of 26 pass attempts.

The Broncos gave coach Mike Shanahan his 100th career regular-season victory with the franchise at the expense of his friend, Titans coach Jeff Fisher.

Denver handed the Titans (4-11) their fifth straight loss by shutting down Billy Volek, who was trying to become the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for 400 yards in three consecutive games.

Reggie Hayward had three of the Broncos' six sacks, and the defense also forced two turnovers and limited Tennessee to a season-low 153 yards offense.