SUNDAY STARS
Monday, Oct. 10Pittsburgh (2-1) at San Diego (2-2), 9 p.m. EDT (ABC). The Steelers come off a bye following a loss to New England. The Chargers have had two straight lopsided wins, including over the Patriots last week.
STARSQuarterbacksSteve McNair, Titans, threw for 220 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another to lead his team to a 34-20 win over Houston. The performance gave him more than 25,000 career yards passing, the 49th player to reach the mark. Warren Moon became the first from the Titans franchise to do it when the team was still in Houston.Tom Brady, Patriots, threw for 350 yards and three touchdowns, hitting 22 of 27 passes and leading the drive to a winning field goal in beating Atlanta 31-28.Matt Schaub, Falcons, filled in admirably for injured Michael Vick, with three TD passes while rallying his team from deficits of 14-0 and 28-13 against the defending Super Bowl champions. He completed 18-of-34 for 298 yards and didn't have any turnovers.Matt Hasselbeck, Seahawks, passed for 316 yards and two scores, going 27-for-38 in a 37-31 win at St. Louis.Drew Bledsoe, Cowboys, finished 24-of-35 for 289 yards and three touchdowns in a 33-10 romp over Philadelphia.Mark Brunell, Redskins, hits 30 of 53 passes for 322 yards and two TDs in a 21-19 loss at Denver.
ReceiversJoe Jurevicius, Seahawks, caught a career-best nine passes for 137 yards and a touchdown in a 37-31 victory at St. Louis. On the way to the game, the Seahawks drove past the hospital where Jurevicius' young son, Michael William, died of a neurodegenerative disease in 2003.Deion Branch, the Patriots' MVP of the last Super Bowl, had eight catches for 107 yards, while tight end Daniel Graham added 119 yards on five receptions, including a 45-yard TD, in a 31-28 win at Atlanta. Brian Finneran, Falcons, caught five passes for 103 yards and also had a 2-point conversion reception.Torry Holt, Rams, hauled in eight passes for 126 yards and a TD in a 37-31 defeat to Seattle.Terry Glenn caught seven passes for 118 yards and two TDs in leading Dallas past Philadelphia 33-10.Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald became the first Cardinals' tandem to top 100 yards receiving each in consecutive games. It was the first time it's happened in the NFL since 2001, when Derrick Mason and Kevin Dyson did it for Tennessee. Boldin caught 10 for 158 yards and a touchdown, Fitzgerald nine for 136 yards and a score in a 24-20 loss to Carolina.
Running BacksThomas Jones, Bears, rushed for 137 yards on 24 carries, but left a 20-10 defeat at Cleveland midway through the fourth quarter with an injured right knee.Corey Dillon, Patriots, rushed for 106 yards in a 31-28 win at Atlanta before he went to the locker room with an undisclosed injury late in the game.Shaun Alexander, Seahawks, ran for 119 yards and touchdowns of 1 and 18 yards in a 37-31 win at St. Louis.Domanick Davis, Texans, provided almost all of Houston's offense with 130 yards on 19 carries in a 34-20 loss to Tennessee.Edgerrin James, Colts, rushed for 105 yards and a touchdown in a 28-3 victory at San Francisco.Tatum Bell made the difference for Denver in a 21-19 win over Washington, rushing for 127 yards and two long scores. In the first quarter, Bell took a toss on fourth-and-1 and faked out Redskins lineman Phillip Daniels en route to a 34-yard score. That stood as Bell's longest career run until the third quarter, when he burst through the Washington defense on a sweep for a 55-yard touchdown.Clinton Portis, Redskins, ran for 103 yards on 20 carries against his former team in the loss.
Special TeamsKris Brown kicked four field goals for Houston and Matt Bryant did the same for Tampa Bay. But the Texans lost to Tennessee and the Bucs fell to the Jets.Adam Vinatieri kicked a 29-yard field goal with 17 seconds left to beat Atlanta 31-28, giving him 19 game winners in his career.Rookie punter Matt Koenen, Falcons, was wide right on a field goal from 58 yards near the end of the half, but New England had called a timeout just before the snap. Koenen then made the 58-yarder with plenty to spare for the first field goal of his career and second longest in Falcons history.Chris Johnson returned the opening kickoff 99 yards for a Rams touchdown, the team's first runback in five seasons, but they lost 37-31 to Seattle.
DefenseTennessee blanked the Texans on third downs, with Houston going 0-for-13 on conversion attempts.Dre' Bly, Lions, had two interceptions and recovered a fumble in leading a 35-17 rout of Baltimore.The Jets had three sacks and limited Tampa Bay to 285 yards despite the Bucs having 71 plays in a 14-12 New York win. That averages to 4 yards a play. Tampa Bay was 2-of-14 on third downs.CB Al Harris, Packers, intercepted two passes, broke up three more and got a sack as Green Bay beat New Orleans 52-3.Keith Bulluck, Titans, had 15 tackles and one of Tennessee's seven sacks of David Carr in a 34-20 win at Houston.
MILESTONESThe 34-20 win at Houston gave Titans coach Jeff Fisher his 100th career victory. ... Colts K Mike Vanderjagt scored his 900th NFL point after Cato June's TD on an interception return.
STREAKSMiami lost for the ninth time in 10 road games, 20-14 at Buffalo. ... Green Bay scored 52 straight points against New Orleans. ... Peyton Manning started his 117th straight game to break his tie with Ron Jaworski for the second-longest streak in NFL history behind Brett Favre.
STATSDespite beating Chicago 20-10, Cleveland is just 15-35 at Browns Stadium since returning to the league as an expansion team in 1999. ... Houston is the only winless team in the league and is 0-4 for the first time in its four-year history. The Texans also failed to get a takeaway, leaving them with zero this season. ... 2004 NFL rushing king Curtis Martin, Jets, got his first two TDs rushing in a 14-12 victory over Tampa Bay. ... The Cowboys led 17-0 before the Eagles had a first down and were up 27-3 at halftime, having scored on five of six possessions in their 33-10 victory.
