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PITTSBURGH -- So much for the longest winning streaks in NFL
history. Ben Roethlisberger drove the Steelers to four scores following
uncharacteristic New England turnovers and Pittsburgh ended the
Patriots' two long winning streaks with a remarkably easy 34-20
victory Sunday. The Patriots had won 21 straight counting the playoffs and a
league-record 18 in a row in the regular season, but were all but
out of this one after Roethlisberger -- still unbeaten as an NFL
starter -- threw two touchdown passes to Plaxico Burress in the
first quarter. Maybe all this winning was too much to ask of Boston-area teams.
With running back Corey Dillon (knee) sitting out and Pro Bowl
cornerback Ty Law (foot) sidelined for all but a few plays, the
Patriots' winning streaks ended only four days after the Boston Red
Sox won their first World Series in 86 years. Tom Brady threw two interceptions and lost a fumble, and New
England lost its first game since a 20-17 defeat to Washington on
Sept. 28, 2003. Roethlisberger upped his personal winning streak to
18. He won his final 13 at Miami of Ohio last season following an
opening-game loss, and now is only the second rookie quarterback
since the 1970 merger to win his first NFL five starts. Mike Kruczek won six straight for the injured Terry Bradshaw for
the 1976 Steelers, never once throwing a touchdown pass.
Roethlisberger already has nine in what is fast becoming the best
season by an NFL rookie QB since Dan Marino threw 20 touchdown
passes and only six interceptions in 11 games for the 1983
Dolphins. Roethlisberger finished 18-of-24 for 196 yards and no
interceptions. Next up for Pittsburgh is unbeaten Philadelphia. The Steelers'
6-1 start is their best since their '78 team was 7-0. It may be of
little consolation, but New England's 6-1 record also equals the
best start in franchise history.
^Eagles 15, Ravens 10= PHILADELPHIA -- Terrell Owens had an 11-yard TD catch and
David Akers kicked three field goals helping Philadelphia reach 7-0
for the first time in franchise history. Owens, who made a few enemies in Baltimore after he spurned the
Ravens and forced a trade to the Eagles in March, had eight catches
for 101 yards. After breaking several tackles to score in the
fourth quarter, Owens, known for his innovative celebrations,
imitated the dance Baltimore's Ray Lewis does when he's introduced
before home games. Baltimore (4-3) drove to Philadelphia's 48 in the final two
minutes, but Boller's fourth-down pass was incomplete. Donovan
McNabb completed 18 of 33 passes for 219 yards and a TD, and also
scrambled for 36 yards, setting up two field goals with his runs.
Akers kicked field goals of 20, 41 and 43.<
^Chiefs 45, Colts 35= KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Trent Green threw for 389 yards and
three scores, two to tight end Tony Gonzalez, and Priest Holmes
finished with 143 yards rushing and three touchdowns to help the
Chiefs break a seven-game losing streak to the Colts. Peyton Manning passed for 472 yards and five touchdowns. But
with his team trying frantically to come back from a 10-point
deficit, Manning's pass was intercepted by Greg Wesley in the end
zone and returned 65 yards to seal the win. Before Sunday, Kansas City (3-4) hadn't beaten Indianapolis
since 1985. Kansas City won back-to-back games for the first time
this year, while Indianapolis (4-3) lost its second straight. The
Chiefs finished with 590 yards, the Colts with 505.<
^Falcons 41, Broncos 28= DENVER -- Michael Vick threw two touchdown passes to
Peerless Price and accounted for 367 yards of offense to help the
Falcons set aside their 56-10 embarrassment at Kansas City last
week. Jake Plummer threw for a Denver record 499 yards -- a career high
and the best mark in the league this year -- but also had three
interceptions as the Broncos (5-3) added this upset to last week's
23-10 loss to Cincinnati. After playing a terrible game last week, just like the rest of
the Falcons (6-2), Vick finished with season highs of 115 yards
rushing and 252 passing. Atlanta gained 467 yards against a defense allowing less than
240 a game. The Falcons scored on six of their first nine
possessions, a stat that would have been better if not for a missed
field goal and a lost fumble in Denver territory.<
^Chargers 42, Raiders 14= SAN DIEGO -- Drew Brees threw a career-high five touchdown
passes and set the team single-game record for pass efficiency in
leading the surprising Chargers (5-3). Brees completed his first
eight passes and was 22-of-25 overall -- 88 percent -- for 281 yards.
He had no interceptions for the fifth time in six games. The previous team record was 81.8 percent by Rick Neuheisel, the
replacement quarterback during the 1987 strike. Brees completed 80
percent of his passes, 16 of 20, against Tennessee on Oct. 3 to tie
Hall of Famer Dan Fouts for second on the team's all-time list. The Raiders (2-6) lost their fifth straight. Kerry Collins was
intercepted twice and went 24-of-39 for 263 yards.<
^Seahawks 23, Panthers 17= SEATTLE -- Shaun Alexander gained 195 yards on 32 carries
and Matt Hasselbeck recovered from a dismal performance last
weekend, throwing for 201 yards to help the Seahawks (4-3) break a
three-game losing streak. The Panthers (1-6) lost their fifth straight. Josh Brown kicked three field goals in the second half,
connecting from 27, 45 and 22 yards to give the Seahawks a
comfortable cushion. His final kick put Seattle up 23-10 with 5:42
remaining. Carolina was driving for a possible late score, but any chance
of a rally was dimmed when Jake Delhomme threw an interception
straight to Seattle's Marcus Trufant, who returned it 57 yards.<
^Giants 34, Vikings 13= MINNEAPOLIS -- Tiki Barber ran 24 times for 101 yards and
two short touchdowns to give the Giants their third straight win
over the Vikings. New York (5-2) finally solved its red zone struggles by scoring
all five times it reached the Minnesota 20, including four TDs. Randy Moss was in street clothes after halftime, going without a
catch for the second straight game while a strained right hamstring
kept him from running at full speed. Daunte Culpepper finished
24-for-42 for 231 yards, one late touchdown and two interceptions.
Rookie Mewelde Moore, who had 610 total yards in the last three
games, was held to 29 yards on eight carries for the Vikings
(5-2).<
^Packers 28, Redskins 14= LANDOVER, Md. -- Brett Favre and the Packers won their third
straight game to pull back to .500 after a 1-4 start. The Redskins (2-5), trailing 20-14, thought they scored the
go-ahead touchdown on a 43-yard reception by Clinton Portis with
2:35 to play. But the celebrations died quickly when the play was
called back for an illegal motion penalty on receiver James Thrash. On the next play, Al Harris intercepted Mark Brunell's pass and
Ahman Green scored on an 11-yard run four plays later to seal the
victory. Favre grimaced at times as he grabbed the throwing hand he
sprained last week. But he persevered to complete 20 of 33 passes
for 289 yards and a touchdown for Green Bay (4-4), extending his
streak to 33 games with at least one TD pass in his 199th
consecutive regular-season game.<
^Texans 20, Jaguars 6= HOUSTON -- Demarcus Faggins returned Byron Leftwich's errant
pass 43 yards for a score with 42 seconds left, sending the Texans
to a victory. David Carr went 26-of-34 for 276 yards and a touchdown, the
Texans held Jacksonville (5-3) to 39 yards rushing and the Jaguars
did almost nothing on offense until the fourth quarter in the
latest edition of this burgeoning AFC South rivalry. The Texans (4-3) have won four of their last five. Houston is
above .500 for the first time in franchise history this late in a
season. Leftwich finished 25-of-40 for 227 yards with two interceptions,
but got almost no help from the ground game after Fred Taylor left
in the third quarter with a hip pointer.<
^Cowboys 31, Lions 21= IRVING, Texas -- Vinny Testaverde stunned everyone with a
7-yard run on fourth-and-3 to set up a tying touchdown, then
scrambled 3 yards for the go-ahead score to help the Cowboys (3-4)
end a three-game losing streak. With Keyshawn Johnson the only receiver in the lineup who'd ever
caught a pass, the Cowboys ran 41 times -- 11 more than in any game
this season -- for 127 yards. Eddie George had season-bests of 31
carries and 99 yards. Testaverde also came through with his arm when needed, throwing
a 38-yard touchdown pass to Johnson with 1:54 left to seal the
victory. He finished 19-of-24 for 235 yards, offsetting three
interceptions with three touchdowns, two by Johnson. Joey Harrington was 19-of-32 for 255 yards with two touchdowns
and an interception for Detroit (4-3).<
^Titans 27, Bengals 20= NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Titans rested Steve McNair and his
aching chest, and backup Billy Volek responded by throwing for two
touchdowns and 210 yards for their first victory at home this
season. Gary Anderson kicked two field goals, and Chris Brown also ran
for a touchdown and for 147 yards, his fifth 100-yard performance
this season. The Titans snapped a two-game skid with their ninth
victory in 10 games against their old AFC Central foe Cincinnati
(2-5). Tennessee (3-5) sacked Carson Palmer four times, hit him
repeatedly, batted down four passes behind the line and forced him
into an interception and a fumble. Palmer finished 20-of-36 for 247
yards, while Rudi Johnson had just 57 yards on 17 carries.<
^Bills 38, Cardinals 14= ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Willis McGahee provided the spark the
Bills needed offensively, running for 102 yards and two touchdowns. In two starts this season, McGahee has two 100-yard games and
has led the Bills (2-5) to both of their victories. The Cardinals (2-5) continued to struggle away from home after a
big 25-17 win over Seattle in Arizona last week. The loss was
Arizona's 17th straight on the road, the worst current streak in
the NFL, dating back to a win at Carolina on Oct. 6, 2002.<
^Bears 23, 49ers 13= CHICAGO -- Nathan Vasher's stumbling interception and
71-yard return iced a wobbly victory. Anthony Thomas replaced the
injured Thomas Jones and rushed for 98 yards on 25 carries for
Chicago (2-5). On a night when two young quarterbacks struggled to get a grasp
on their offenses, the Bears prevailed behind Vasher's interception
of Ken Dorsey's throw and three field goals by Paul Edinger. Edinger, who like 49ers kicker Todd Peterson had a field goal
hit the crossbar and go over, made a 27-yarder a minute into the
final quarter to give Chicago a 16-13 lead. Dorsey tried to drive
the 49ers (1-6) into scoring position -- they reached the Chicago 36
-- but his wobbly pass for Brandon Lloyd was picked off. Chicago rookie Craig Krenzel made his first NFL start and Dorsey
got the nod for the third time this season when 49ers starter Tim
Rattay was a no-go because of an injury to his right forearm.
Krenzel and Dorsey had squared off in the national title game
following the 2002 season when Krenzel led Ohio State past Dorsey
and Miami in the Fiesta Bowl.
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