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NFL: Titans stay undefeated with overtime win over Packers
By The Associated Press
Monday, November 03, 2008 | No comments posted.
The Tennessee Titans still have their sights set on perfection, thanks to Rod Bironas’ right leg.
Bironas redeemed himself for an earlier miss by kicking a 41-yard field goal with 9:36 to go in overtime that led the undefeated Titans to a 19-16 victory over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday.
Tennessee (8-0), the league’s only team without a loss, matched a franchise record with its 11th straight regular-season victory.
“I was hoping for exactly what happened,” Bironas said. “We’d win the toss and get another shot at it. I don’t miss many, so I definitely wanted another shot at it to put us in the lead and go home with the victory.”
The Cincinnati Bengals were able to do that for the first time this season. Ryan Fitzpatrick threw a pair of touchdown passes to Chad Ocho Cinco, and Cincinnati (1-8) stopped a late 2-point conversion try, preserving a 21-19 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
“Being 0-for-whatever-it-was coming in, there was a lot of pressure and a lot of frustration for everybody, from the staff to the equipment managers,” said running back Cedric Benson, who ran for 104 yards and a touchdown. “Everybody’s trying to figure out what’s wrong.”
At Nashville, Tenn., Bironas had a chance to win in regulation, but banged a 47-yarder off the upright, prompting him to yank his facemask down in anger at himself.
The Titans won the toss and drove 55 yards in 10 plays to give Bironas another chance. Going out on third-and-2, he swung through his fourth field goal.
“When you win eight games, you’re going to on occasion need to win some like this, and that is just what we did,” Titans coach Jeff Fisher said of his team’s second game a week. “We hung in there.”
The Packers (4-4) had tied it at 16 on Mason Crosby’s third field goal, a 38-yarder, with 5:30 left.
Bengals 21, Jaguars 19
At Cincinnati, the Bengals were coming off the most lopsided back-to-back losses in franchise history. One more would have left them 0-9 for only the second time in team history.
But Fitzpatrick looked a lot more comfortable in his fourth straight start for the injured Carson Palmer, going 21-of-31 for 162 yards.
After his 10-yard touchdown catch made it 14-0, Ocho Cinco flipped the ball to the official, went to the sideline and gave coach Marvin Lewis a peck on the cheek, the second time he’s done that this season.
“I think that’s his way of telling me to relax,” Lewis said. “It doesn’t work, obviously.”
The stunned Jaguars (3-5) fell behind 21-3 before making it close.
Giants 35, Cowboys 14
At East Rutherford, N.J., Eli Manning threw three touchdown passes, Brandon Jacobs rushed for 117 yards and a score and the Giants defense took advantage of Tony Romo’s absence to intercept three passes.
The win was the fifth straight at home for the Giants (7-1) and it allowed the Super Bowl champions to open a three-game lead over the defending NFC East champion Cowboys (5-4) in the division.
The loss was the third in four games for Dallas, which fell into last place in the division.
Colts 18, Patriots 15
At Indianapolis, Adam Vinatieri showed New England he’s still the NFL’s best clutch kicker.
The Patriots’ career scoring leader, who booted winning field goals in two of their Super Bowl victories and then let go as a free agent, kicked a 52-yarder with 8:05 left for the Colts (4-4).
With the Patriots (5-3) facing third-and-2 at the Colts 32 with 4:45 left, BenJarvus Green-Ellis ran for 1 yard and David Thomas drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after the play. That put the Pats in third-and-16 from the Colts 45, and all they could muster was 1 yard before Bob Sanders picked off Matt Cassel’s errant fourth-down throw to seal it.
Peyton Manning threw for 254 yards and two touchdowns for the Colts.
Jets 26, Bills 17
At Orchard Park, N.Y., Abram Elam returned an interception thrown by Trent Edwards 92 yards for a touchdown, sparking the New York Jets’ victory over the bumbling Buffalo Bills.
The Jets (5-3) have won four of five and caught the Bills in the division standings. Buffalo (5-3) has lost three of four and lost all the momentum it had generated following a 4-0 start.
A week after throwing three interceptions, Brett Favre forced a throw to the left sideline that was intercepted by Jabari Greer, who returned it 42 yards for a touchdown that cut the Jets’ lead to 23-17 with under 11 minutes left.
Favre, 19-of-28 for 201 yards, responded by efficiently producing a 14-play, 65-yard drive that ate up nearly 9 minutes and ended with Jay Feely hitting a 31-yard field goal.
Bears 27, Lions 23
At Chicago, Rex Grossman came off the bench to replace injured quarterback Kyle Orton and scored the go-ahead touchdown with 5:36 left, helping the Bears rally from a 10-point deficit for a victory over winless Detroit.
Matt Forte had 126 yards rushing for the Bears (5-3), who lost Orton to a right ankle injury and safety Mike Brown to a calf problem late in the first half.
The Bears broke up a pass intended for Calvin Johnson in the end zone on the final play, and Detroit’s search for a win continued.
Bucs 30, Chiefs 27, OT
At Kansas City, Mo., Jeff Garcia’s 24-yard touchdown pass and 2-point conversion toss tied it with 19 seconds left, and Matt Bryant’s 33-yard field goal in overtime gave the Buccaneers a win after they trailed by 21.
The Chiefs (1-7) never touched the ball in overtime as Garcia hit Michael Clayton for 29 yards on the first play and smartly moved Tampa Bay (6-3) down the field.
The Chiefs’ Tyler Thigpen, making his third career start, was 14-for-25 for 164 yards and a touchdown, and also caught a 37-yard touchdown pass from wide receiver Mark Bradley.
Vikings 28, Texans 21
At Minneapolis, the Vikings forced three turnovers, got three touchdown passes from Gus Frerotte and shut down Houston’s Andre Johnson.
Minnesota (4-4) returned from the bye week fully recharged. Madieu Williams intercepted Sage Rosenfels in the end zone in the third quarter, and Antoine Winfield picked off Matt Schaub at the Vikings 5 before Houston’s starting quarterback was sidelined at halftime by an injury to his left knee.
The Texans (3-5) missed their chance to win four straight games for the first time in the franchise’s six-year history. Johnson matched two NFL records by posting at least 130 yards in his previous four games and 10 or more catches in his past three, but had just four catches for 62 yards and a late TD.
Cardinals 34, Rams 13
Kurt Warner and Arizona used a 24-point second quarter to win another one in their former home city.
The Cardinals (5-3) have won four in a row in St. Louis, their home from 1960-87, and four straight over the Rams overall. Warner had his 45th 300-yard passing game, throwing for two touchdowns to beat the team he led to two Super Bowls from 1999-2001.
The Rams (2-6) have lost two straight after winning their first two games under new coach Jim Haslett.
Ravens 37, Browns 27
At Cleveland, Matt Stover booted three field goals — the last with 5:36 left — and linebacker Terrell Suggs returned an interception 42 yards for a touchdown to end the Browns’ last threat with 2:43 remaining as Baltimore rallied for a win.
Stover, who ranks fifth in league scoring history, made field goals of 41, 32 and 22 yards for the Ravens (5-3), who trailed 27-13 in the third quarter before storming back to beat the Browns (3-5) for the second time this season.
Ravens rookie quarterback Joe Flacco threw two touchdown passes, and rookie running back Ray Rice rushed for a season-high 154 yards.
Cleveland’s Joshua Cribbs returned a kickoff 92 yards for a touchdown and finished with 278 return yards.
Dolphins 26, Broncos 17
At Denver, the Miami Dolphins intercepted Jay Cutler three times, the second returned 32 yards for a touchdown by Will Allen.
With Champ Bailey sidelined by a torn groin, Chad Pennington repeatedly picked on his replacement, Karl Paymah, who picked off one pass but otherwise was victimized all afternoon by Greg Camarillo, whose 11 receptions for 111 yards were season highs.
Ronnie Brown rushed 20 times for 59 yards, including a 2-yard touchdown with three minutes left to ice it for the Dolphins (4-4).
Denver (4-4) lost for the fourth time in five games.
Falcons 24, Raiders 0
At Oakland, Calif., Matt Ryan threw a pair of first-half touchdown passes to Michael Jenkins and the Falcons held the Raiders to negative yards and no first downs in the first half and their lowest yards total in 47 years.
Oakland (2-6) finished with just 77 yards for its worst total since getting 58 in 1961 against the Chargers, when Al Davis was an assistant in San Diego.
The Falcons (5-3) scored on their first four possessions.
Eagles 26, Seahawks 7
At Seattle, Donovan McNabb rebounded from early problems to complete 28 of 43 passes for 349 yards and two touchdowns, one to tackle Todd Herremans, and rally the Philadelphia Eagles.
Brent Celek, playing because L.J. Smith was out with a concussion, set an Eagles (5-3) record for yards receiving by a tight end in a regular-season game with 131 on six receptions.
The Seahawks (2-6) punted 10 consecutive times — seven after three-and-outs — following a team-record 90-yard touchdown pass on their first play from backup Seneca Wallace to Koren Robinson.
Bironas redeemed himself for an earlier miss by kicking a 41-yard field goal with 9:36 to go in overtime that led the undefeated Titans to a 19-16 victory over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday.
Tennessee (8-0), the league’s only team without a loss, matched a franchise record with its 11th straight regular-season victory.
“I was hoping for exactly what happened,” Bironas said. “We’d win the toss and get another shot at it. I don’t miss many, so I definitely wanted another shot at it to put us in the lead and go home with the victory.”
The Cincinnati Bengals were able to do that for the first time this season. Ryan Fitzpatrick threw a pair of touchdown passes to Chad Ocho Cinco, and Cincinnati (1-8) stopped a late 2-point conversion try, preserving a 21-19 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
“Being 0-for-whatever-it-was coming in, there was a lot of pressure and a lot of frustration for everybody, from the staff to the equipment managers,” said running back Cedric Benson, who ran for 104 yards and a touchdown. “Everybody’s trying to figure out what’s wrong.”
At Nashville, Tenn., Bironas had a chance to win in regulation, but banged a 47-yarder off the upright, prompting him to yank his facemask down in anger at himself.
The Titans won the toss and drove 55 yards in 10 plays to give Bironas another chance. Going out on third-and-2, he swung through his fourth field goal.
“When you win eight games, you’re going to on occasion need to win some like this, and that is just what we did,” Titans coach Jeff Fisher said of his team’s second game a week. “We hung in there.”
The Packers (4-4) had tied it at 16 on Mason Crosby’s third field goal, a 38-yarder, with 5:30 left.
Bengals 21, Jaguars 19
At Cincinnati, the Bengals were coming off the most lopsided back-to-back losses in franchise history. One more would have left them 0-9 for only the second time in team history.
But Fitzpatrick looked a lot more comfortable in his fourth straight start for the injured Carson Palmer, going 21-of-31 for 162 yards.
After his 10-yard touchdown catch made it 14-0, Ocho Cinco flipped the ball to the official, went to the sideline and gave coach Marvin Lewis a peck on the cheek, the second time he’s done that this season.
“I think that’s his way of telling me to relax,” Lewis said. “It doesn’t work, obviously.”
The stunned Jaguars (3-5) fell behind 21-3 before making it close.
Giants 35, Cowboys 14
At East Rutherford, N.J., Eli Manning threw three touchdown passes, Brandon Jacobs rushed for 117 yards and a score and the Giants defense took advantage of Tony Romo’s absence to intercept three passes.
The win was the fifth straight at home for the Giants (7-1) and it allowed the Super Bowl champions to open a three-game lead over the defending NFC East champion Cowboys (5-4) in the division.
The loss was the third in four games for Dallas, which fell into last place in the division.
Colts 18, Patriots 15
At Indianapolis, Adam Vinatieri showed New England he’s still the NFL’s best clutch kicker.
The Patriots’ career scoring leader, who booted winning field goals in two of their Super Bowl victories and then let go as a free agent, kicked a 52-yarder with 8:05 left for the Colts (4-4).
With the Patriots (5-3) facing third-and-2 at the Colts 32 with 4:45 left, BenJarvus Green-Ellis ran for 1 yard and David Thomas drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after the play. That put the Pats in third-and-16 from the Colts 45, and all they could muster was 1 yard before Bob Sanders picked off Matt Cassel’s errant fourth-down throw to seal it.
Peyton Manning threw for 254 yards and two touchdowns for the Colts.
Jets 26, Bills 17
At Orchard Park, N.Y., Abram Elam returned an interception thrown by Trent Edwards 92 yards for a touchdown, sparking the New York Jets’ victory over the bumbling Buffalo Bills.
The Jets (5-3) have won four of five and caught the Bills in the division standings. Buffalo (5-3) has lost three of four and lost all the momentum it had generated following a 4-0 start.
A week after throwing three interceptions, Brett Favre forced a throw to the left sideline that was intercepted by Jabari Greer, who returned it 42 yards for a touchdown that cut the Jets’ lead to 23-17 with under 11 minutes left.
Favre, 19-of-28 for 201 yards, responded by efficiently producing a 14-play, 65-yard drive that ate up nearly 9 minutes and ended with Jay Feely hitting a 31-yard field goal.
Bears 27, Lions 23
At Chicago, Rex Grossman came off the bench to replace injured quarterback Kyle Orton and scored the go-ahead touchdown with 5:36 left, helping the Bears rally from a 10-point deficit for a victory over winless Detroit.
Matt Forte had 126 yards rushing for the Bears (5-3), who lost Orton to a right ankle injury and safety Mike Brown to a calf problem late in the first half.
The Bears broke up a pass intended for Calvin Johnson in the end zone on the final play, and Detroit’s search for a win continued.
Bucs 30, Chiefs 27, OT
At Kansas City, Mo., Jeff Garcia’s 24-yard touchdown pass and 2-point conversion toss tied it with 19 seconds left, and Matt Bryant’s 33-yard field goal in overtime gave the Buccaneers a win after they trailed by 21.
The Chiefs (1-7) never touched the ball in overtime as Garcia hit Michael Clayton for 29 yards on the first play and smartly moved Tampa Bay (6-3) down the field.
The Chiefs’ Tyler Thigpen, making his third career start, was 14-for-25 for 164 yards and a touchdown, and also caught a 37-yard touchdown pass from wide receiver Mark Bradley.
Vikings 28, Texans 21
At Minneapolis, the Vikings forced three turnovers, got three touchdown passes from Gus Frerotte and shut down Houston’s Andre Johnson.
Minnesota (4-4) returned from the bye week fully recharged. Madieu Williams intercepted Sage Rosenfels in the end zone in the third quarter, and Antoine Winfield picked off Matt Schaub at the Vikings 5 before Houston’s starting quarterback was sidelined at halftime by an injury to his left knee.
The Texans (3-5) missed their chance to win four straight games for the first time in the franchise’s six-year history. Johnson matched two NFL records by posting at least 130 yards in his previous four games and 10 or more catches in his past three, but had just four catches for 62 yards and a late TD.
Cardinals 34, Rams 13
Kurt Warner and Arizona used a 24-point second quarter to win another one in their former home city.
The Cardinals (5-3) have won four in a row in St. Louis, their home from 1960-87, and four straight over the Rams overall. Warner had his 45th 300-yard passing game, throwing for two touchdowns to beat the team he led to two Super Bowls from 1999-2001.
The Rams (2-6) have lost two straight after winning their first two games under new coach Jim Haslett.
Ravens 37, Browns 27
At Cleveland, Matt Stover booted three field goals — the last with 5:36 left — and linebacker Terrell Suggs returned an interception 42 yards for a touchdown to end the Browns’ last threat with 2:43 remaining as Baltimore rallied for a win.
Stover, who ranks fifth in league scoring history, made field goals of 41, 32 and 22 yards for the Ravens (5-3), who trailed 27-13 in the third quarter before storming back to beat the Browns (3-5) for the second time this season.
Ravens rookie quarterback Joe Flacco threw two touchdown passes, and rookie running back Ray Rice rushed for a season-high 154 yards.
Cleveland’s Joshua Cribbs returned a kickoff 92 yards for a touchdown and finished with 278 return yards.
Dolphins 26, Broncos 17
At Denver, the Miami Dolphins intercepted Jay Cutler three times, the second returned 32 yards for a touchdown by Will Allen.
With Champ Bailey sidelined by a torn groin, Chad Pennington repeatedly picked on his replacement, Karl Paymah, who picked off one pass but otherwise was victimized all afternoon by Greg Camarillo, whose 11 receptions for 111 yards were season highs.
Ronnie Brown rushed 20 times for 59 yards, including a 2-yard touchdown with three minutes left to ice it for the Dolphins (4-4).
Denver (4-4) lost for the fourth time in five games.
Falcons 24, Raiders 0
At Oakland, Calif., Matt Ryan threw a pair of first-half touchdown passes to Michael Jenkins and the Falcons held the Raiders to negative yards and no first downs in the first half and their lowest yards total in 47 years.
Oakland (2-6) finished with just 77 yards for its worst total since getting 58 in 1961 against the Chargers, when Al Davis was an assistant in San Diego.
The Falcons (5-3) scored on their first four possessions.
Eagles 26, Seahawks 7
At Seattle, Donovan McNabb rebounded from early problems to complete 28 of 43 passes for 349 yards and two touchdowns, one to tackle Todd Herremans, and rally the Philadelphia Eagles.
Brent Celek, playing because L.J. Smith was out with a concussion, set an Eagles (5-3) record for yards receiving by a tight end in a regular-season game with 131 on six receptions.
The Seahawks (2-6) punted 10 consecutive times — seven after three-and-outs — following a team-record 90-yard touchdown pass on their first play from backup Seneca Wallace to Koren Robinson.
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