NFL Roundup: Farve Burns Pack, Bills Blasted By Texans

For the second time in less than a month, Brett Favre sliced up his former team and stuck it to the franchise that cast him aside as the Minnesota Vikings beat the Green Bay Packers 38-26 at Lambeau Field on Sunday.

If walking out to waves of loud jeers from his former fans threw Favre off his game, it didn’t last long. Despite being jeered repeatedly by Packers fans who once cheered his every move, Favre completed 17-of-28 passes for 244 yards and four touchdowns. The Vikings (7-1) took a firm hold on the NFC North standings.

Rookie receiver Percy Harvin caught five passes for 84 yards and a touchdown and had five returns for 175 yards.

The Vikings’ defence roughed up Favre’s successor, Aaron Rodgers, sacking him six times. But with the Packers (4-3) on the verge of getting routed, Rodgers rebounded with three second-half touchdowns.

Favre left the field surrounded by cameras, pumping his fist to a mix of cheers and boos as he jogged down the tunnel. He hugged cornerback Al Harris, Driver and Jennings.

Despite the final score, it was an awkward homecoming for Favre, whose high-profile standoff with the front office split the loyalties of Packers fans last summer.

There weren’t many signs of a split on Sunday.

Fans booed Favre loudly – first when he walked out of the tunnel for pre-game warmups, then again when he ran out of the tunnel for the game, and on every snap during the Vikings’ first few offensive possessions.

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Texans 31 Bills 10

At Orchard Park, N.Y., Ryan Moats, taking over after starter Steve Slaton lost yet another fumble, scored three touchdowns on consecutive fourth-quarter drives to help the Texans (5-3) win their third straight game for their best start in franchise history. Matt Schaub bounced back from two first-half interceptions to lead six scoring drives on seven possessions.

Moats finished with a career-high 23 carries for 126 yards in place of Slaton, who lost a fumble on the Texans’ third possession when Paul Posluszny punched the ball out of his hand following a 7-yard reception. Slaton has fumbled seven times this season and lost five.

The Bills (3-5) were undone by an offence that managed 204 yards and nine first downs, with only three coming in the second half.

Buffalo squandered another opportunistic performance by its defence, which forced three turnovers, including two interceptions by rookie safety Jairus Byrd. The second-round pick out of Oregon became the first player since San Francisco’s Dave Baker in 1960 to have two or more interceptions in three straight games.

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Rams 17 Lions 10

At Detroit, as expected of two teams that combined for one win entering the day, the Rams and Lions played an awful football game. St. Louis, though, loved the outcome – for the first time all season.

Steven Jackson’s 25-yard touchdown run with 1:38 left snapped the Rams’17-game losing streak.

The Rams (1-7) avoided matching their worst start in franchise history. They also ended talk about joining Detroit (1-6) as the only teams in NFL history to have an 0-16 season.

St. Louis’ key score came on a trick play. It lined up to kick a field goal and had kicker Josh Brown throw a short pass to a wide-open Daniel Fells, whose 36-yard reception gave the Rams a 10-2 lead in the final minute of the first half.

Detroit scored its only points on offence early in the fourth quarter when top overall draft pick Matthew Stafford had a 4-yard run and 2-point conversion pass to tie the game.

St. Louis hadn’t won since beating Dallas on Oct. 19, 2008.

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Colts 18 49ers 14

At Indianapolis, the Colts won their 16th straight regular-season game, the equivalent of an undefeated season, and Jim Caldwell became the first rookie coach since the NFL merger to open his career with seven consecutive wins.

Peyton Manning topped 300 yards and got credit for another Colts rally, but it was Joseph Addai who won it. The fourth-year running back threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Wayne early in the final quarter to give the Colts their only lead.

The Colts (7-0) are the last unbeaten team in the AFC for the fourth time in five years.

San Francisco (3-4) has lost three straight despite a solid performance from Alex Smith, who made his first NFL start at quarterback in nearly two years. Smith was 19-of-32 for 198 yards with one TD and one interception.

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Ravens 30 Broncos 7

At Baltimore, the Ravens handed Denver its first loss by using the same blueprint the Broncos employed to win their first six games.

Rookie Lardarius Webb returned the second-half kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown, and the Ravens ended a three-game losing streak with a surprisingly easy victory.

It was Denver’s first loss under rookie head coach Josh McDaniels. The Broncos (6-1) came in with the NFL’s top-ranked defence, a plus-7 turnover differential and one of the league’s best kick returners in Eddie Royal. Denver had also outscored the opposition 76-10 after halftime.

The Ravens, however, dominated all those facets. Baltimore (4-3) limited Denver to 200 yards, scored off the game’s lone turnover, won the special teams fight and pulled away after leading by only 6-0 at halftime.

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Titans 30 Jaguars 13

At Nashville, Tenn., the Titans are no longer winless after a switch to Vince Young at quarterback.

He threw for a touchdown in his first start since the 2008 season opener, Chris Johnson set a franchise record by rushing for 228 yards, and the Titans (1-6) won their first game of the season. Tampa Bay, which had a bye this week, remains the only winless team. Tennessee’s skid of eight straight went back to the end of last season.

Johnson helped Young by scoring on runs of 52 and 89 yards, and the Titans eased Young in with lots of short throws and runs to work off any rust. It worked as Young was 15-of-18 for 125 yards, and ran 10 times for 32 yards, not counting two final kneeldowns.

Jacksonville (3-4) has lost two of three. Maurice Jones-Drew provided the lone highlights, running for 177 yards and taking the NFL lead in touchdowns rushing with runs of 80 and 79 yards. But the Jaguars gave him only eight carries.

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Chargers 24 Raiders 16

At San Diego, LaDainian
Tomlinson scored twice, the first in the wildcat, and the Chargers took their 13th straight victory against the Raiders. It’s the longest active NFL winning streak by one team over another.

The Chargers (4-3) have swept the series for the sixth straight season. Many Chargers, including quarterback Philip Rivers, have never lost to the Raiders (2-6). It was San Diego’s seventh straight home win against the Raiders.

San Diego sacked JaMarcus Russell five times, two each for outsides linebacker Shaun Phillips and Shawne Merriman.

Tomlinson has accounted for 28 touchdowns against Oakland in his nine-year career: 22 rushing, three receiving and three passing.

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Panthers 34 Cardinals 21

At Glendale, Ariz., Carolina earned a measure of revenge over the Cardinals, even if the stakes weren’t quite as high.

Jake Delhomme, whose downward spiral began with a playoff loss at home against Arizona last season, threw a 50-yard touchdown pass before leaving with a chest injury and Jonathan Stewart ran for two scores.

The Panthers (3-4), in a turnover-free performance, rolled up 270 yards on the ground against what had been the No. 1 rushing defence in the NFL.

Arizona’s Kurt Warner was intercepted five times and fumbled the ball away once. Julius Peppers returned one of the picks 13 yards for a touchdown.

The Cardinals (4-3) are 1-3 at home.

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Eagles 40 Giants 17

At Philadelphia, Donovan McNabb threw three touchdown passes and DeSean Jackson had another big TD catch for the Eagles. The game was just the appetizer in a marathon day in the NY-Philadelphia rivalry. The Yankees and Phillies were set for the first pitch of Game 4 of the World Series across the street only hours after the Eagles’ rout ended.

The Eagles (5-2) remained undefeated in the division and host Dallas next week. Philly dominated without running back Brian Westbrook (concussion).

New York (5-3) has lost three straight games. Eli Manning continuously threw high over his receivers or was the victim of bad route running and threw two interceptions.

His absence caused coach Andy Reid to add a new wrinkle to the offence: a fullback. Rarely asked to carry the ball under Reid, Leonard Weaver was an integral part early and helped catch the scuffling Giants by surprise when he ran 41 yards up the middle for a touchdown.

LeSean McCoy, Westbrook’s backup, joined in the fun on a 66-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter that made it 40-17.

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Cowboys 38 Seahawks 17

At Arlington, Texas, Miles Austin caught a touchdown pass for the third straight game and Patrick Crayton returned a punt for a score for the second consecutive week, sending Dallas into a share of first place in the NFC East.

Tony Romo went a third game in a row without an interception. Since a herky-jerky first month, the Cowboys (5-2) have found quite a groove, winning three straight.

Romo threw for 256 yards, with touchdowns to Austin, Sam Hurd and Roy Williams. Marion Barber added a TD run and Crayton broke open the game with an 82-yard punt return, one week after a game-breaking 73-yarder. DeMarcus Ware had a sack for the third straight game, this one coming a few days after cashing a US$20 million signing bonus as part of a $78 million, six-year contract extension.

Seattle (2-5) was coming off its bye and had cornerback Marcus Trufant for the first time all year. The Seahawks led 3-0 and were within 14-10 late in the second quarter, but did little right after that. Trufant was flagged three times for pass interference and the injury-riddled offensive line allowed three more sacks of Matt Hasselbeck.

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Dolphins 30 Jets 25

At East Rutherford, N.J., Ted Ginn Jr. had two long kickoff returns for touchdowns in the third quarter. Miami (3-4) swept the two regular-season games after the teams met for the second time in 20 days, capping a week filled with trash talk from both sides in a reignited AFC East rivalry. The bad feelings were evident even before the game, when the Jets’ Kerry Rhodes and a few Dolphins players got into a shoving match during warmups.

And, just like the last time these teams met, the game came down to the wire.

Facing a fourth-and-13 following a sack by Randy Starks with just over a minute remaining, Mark Sanchez scrambled before firing an incomplete pass over an outstretched Dustin Keller in the end zone to seal the loss for the Jets (4-4).

Ginn became the first player to return two kickoffs for touchdowns in the same quarter since Green Bay’s Travis Williams in 1967. Ginn had returns of 100 and 101 yards. Ginn had been replaced by wide receiver Brian Hartline in the starting lineup.

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Bears 30 Browns 6

At Chicago, Jay Cutler threw for 225 yards, Matt Forte ran for two touchdowns and the Bears (4-3) easily beat the bumbling Browns (1-7).

Derek Anderson had another miserable day and was lifted for Brady Quinn, the man he replaced in Week 3, with about three minutes left in the game. Anderson completed just 6-of-17 passes for 76 yards and got intercepted twice.

That certainly didn’t help a rating that was already a league-low 40.6 entering this game. And now, the Browns appear to be back in a familiar spot: deciding on a starting quarterback.

The Bears paid tribute to Walter Payton at halftime on the 10th anniversary of his death, then delivered a performance that was far from sweet. But it was effective enough.