Vulnerable, but victorious 11-0 New England survives scare from Eagles, 31-28
Guess what: The New England Patriots are vulnerable.
Not beatable, at least not yet, but vulnerable.
The Patriots improved to 11-0, the NFL's only undefeated team, with their toughest win, 31-28 over the spunky Philadelphia Eagles, a 22-point underdog. New England needed two interceptions by Asante Samuel, one for a touchdown, and a late 4-yard score from Laurence Maroney for the decisive points Sunday night.
It was the biggest test the Patriots have passed thus far in a season when, generally, they've blown out opponents.
"The goal is to win the game and we did that," Patriots quarterback Tom Brady said. "I wish we could have played better. I wish everybody could have played better. We won so we can be happy."
Wes Welker took advantage of the blanket coverage on Randy Moss to catch a career-high 13 passes for 149 yards.
"I don't think that was the case where (it was) give me the ball," Welker said. "Whenever your number is called you have to step up to the plate. We all have done it. Tonight was the night for me."
Early Sunday, the Bills' loss clinched the AFC East for New England.
Samuel's TD return covered 40 yards. Maroney's score capped a 69-yard drive. Brady completed 34 of 54 throws for 380 yards and one touchdown, the first time this season he has been held to fewer than three TD passes in a game.
For the Eagles (5-6), A.J. Feeley, playing for injured starter Donovan McNabb, finished 27-for-42 for 345 yards with three touchdown passes, two to Greg Lewis, and three interceptions.
Bears 37, Broncos 34
At Chicago, Robbie Gould kicked a 39-yard field goal in overtime and the defending NFC champions (5-6) gave their flickering playoff hopes a boost.
After scoring two touchdowns in the final 5:17 of regulation, the Bears won the coin toss for overtime. They drove from their 24 to the Denver 18 and Gould delivered the winner.
The Bears got two long touchdown returns from Devin Hester in the second half, one on a punt, the other on a kickoff.
49ers 37, Cardinals 31, OT
Kurt Warner was hit by Ronald Fields and fumbled in the Arizona end zone, and Tully Banta-Cain recovered for a touchdown that ended the 49ers' eight-game losing streak.
"You could have swore we just won the Super Bowl the way we were celebrating," Banta-Cain said. The 49ers are 2-0 against Arizona, 1-8 against everybody else.
Neil Rackers, whose 19-yard field goal as regulation ended forced the overtime, missed a 32-yarder that would have given host Arizona the victory moments earlier.
Chargers 32, Ravens 14
At San Diego, LaDainian Tomlinson reached 10,000 career yards rushing, making him the 23rd player in NFL history to reach the milestone. The Chargers (6-5) won for the fifth time in seven games following their shocking 1-3 start.
Philip Rivers rediscovered Antonio Gates, throwing two of his three touchdown passes to the All-Pro tight end. Rivers, who came in leading the NFL with 17 turnovers, didn't throw an interception for only the third game this season.
Seahawks 24, Rams 19
At St. Louis, Rams backup quarterback Gus Frerotte fumbled the snap on fourth-and-goal from the Seattle 1 with 27 seconds left.
The Rams (2-9) had one last chance when Josh Brown missed a 52-yard field-goal attempt with 2:44 to go. The Rams took over at their 42 and drove to the 4 with just over a minute to play.
Vikings 41, Giants 17
Darren Sharper, Dwight Smith and Chad Greenway picked off passes by Eli Manning and returned them for touchdowns. Sharper scored on a 20-yard return, Smith rumbled 93 yards and Greenway followed from 37 yards just a few plays later. The Vikings set a team single-game record for interception returns for touchdowns.
Bucs 19, Redskins 13
At Tampa, Fla., Ronde Barber became the Bucs' interceptions leader with 3:40 remaining and Brian Kelly picked off Jason Campbell's throw in the end zone with 17 seconds left. The turnovers were the fifth and sixth forced by Tampa Bay's defense, which also recovered four fumbles to set up a touchdown and three field goals in the first half.
Raiders 20, Chiefs 17
Oakland hadn't beaten anybody in its division since a 25-24 squeaker over Denver on Nov. 28, 2004, the longest streak of divisional futility in the NFL. The 17-loss streak ended when Justin Fargas rushed for 139 yards on 22 carries for the Raiders (3-8), who also snapped a six-game skid overall and a nine-game losing streak to the host Chiefs.
Jaguars 36, Bills 14
At Jacksonville, Fla., Fred Taylor ran for a season-high 104 yards and a touchdown and Josh Scobee kicked five field goals. It was Jacksonville's third consecutive victory; the Jaguars (8-3) probably need to beat Indianapolis next week to have a shot at the AFC South title.
Browns 27, Texans 17
At Cleveland, Jamal Lewis rushed for 134 yards and a TD, Kellen Winslow had 10 catches and Derek Anderson threw two touchdown passes.
Bengals 35, Titans 6
At Cincinnati, Chad Johnson had a career-high 12 catches, set the Cincinnati record for career receptions and scored three touchdowns.
One week after Carson Palmer threw a career-high four interceptions, the Bengals (4-7) had a breakout game behind Johnson, who had gone into a funk for the past month.
Johnson piled up 103 yards and his first touchdowns since a 51-45 loss in Cleveland in Week 2. Johnson eclipsed Carl Pickens' club mark with his 531st career reception in the second quarter. His next catch was a 10-yard touchdown that broke the long drought.
Saints 31, Panthers 6
Drew Brees shook off a slow start to throw for 260 yards and three touchdowns and run for another score. Marques Colston caught seven passes for 93 yards and a TD for the Saints (5-6), who snapped a two-game losing streak. They remained two games behind division-leading Tampa Bay.
