PHILADELPHIA – Terrell Owens found a new way to celebrate touchdowns: He mocked Ray Lewis.
Owens had an 11-yard TD catch and David Akers kicked three field goals, helping the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Baltimore Ravens 15-10 Sunday to 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 Lewis does when he’s introduced before home games.
The Ravens’ offense, missing three Pro Bowl players, sure could have used Owens. They didn’t score until Kyle Boller threw a 7-yard TD pass to Daniel Wilcox in the fourth quarter.
Titans 27, Bengals 20
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Titans should beg the NFL to let them play the Cincinnati Bengals at least once every year.
The Titans rested Steve McNair and his aching chest, and backup Billy Volek responded by throwing for two touchdowns and 210 yards as the Titans beat the Bengals 27-20 for their first victory at home.
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.
Cowboys 31, Lions 21
IRVING, Texas – The Dallas Cowboys finally got some big plays from the old legs in their running game, only they didn’t come from 33-year-old Richie Anderson or 31-year-old Eddie George.
Would you believe 40-year-old Vinny Testaverde?
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, leading the Cowboys past the Detroit Lions 31-21 Sunday.
Texans 20, Jaguars 6
HOUSTON – Byron Leftwich sealed yet another victory with a touchdown throw in the game’s final minute. This time, he did so for the other team.
Demarcus Faggins returned Leftwich’s errant pass 43 yards for a score with 42 seconds left, sending the Houston Texans to a 20-6 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.
David Carr went 26-of-34 for 276 yards and a touchdown, the Texans held Jacksonville to 39 yards rushing and the Jaguars did almost nothing on offense.
Bills 38, Cardinals 14
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. – The Buffalo Bills are perfect with Willis McGahee as their starter.
McGahee provided the spark the Bills needed offensively, running for 102 yards and two touchdowns to lead Buffalo to a 38-14 win over Arizona.
In two starts this season, McGahee has two 100-yard games and has led the Bills (2-5) to both of their victories.
Terrence McGee had an 87-yard kickoff return for a touchdown, Eric Moulds an 8-yard scoring catch and rookie tight end Tim Euhus added a 12-yard touchdown reception, helping the Bills score their most points since Week 2 of last season.
Packers 28, Redskins 14
LANDOVER, Md. – Playing with a sprained hand and a major personal distraction, Brett Favre started on a roll and survived a rocky finish.
Favre and the Green Bay Packers won their third straight game Sunday, beating the Washington Redskins 28-14 to pull back to .500 after a 1-4 start.
The Redskins, 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.
Chargers 42, Raiders 14
SAN DIEGO – Drew Brees has never looked better than he did against the rival Oakland Raiders.
Brees continued his remarkable turnaround from last season’s catastrophe, throwing a career-high five touchdown passes and setting the team single-game record for pass efficiency in leading the surprising San Diego Chargers to a 42-14 rout of the hapless Raiders on Sunday.
Brees completed his first eight passes Sunday, helping to quiet the thousands of Raiders fans in the stands, and was 22-of-25 overall – 88 percent – for 281 yards.
Falcons 41, Broncos 28
DENVER – Michael Vick looked like Michael Vick again and the Atlanta Falcons shook off their recent collapse with a surprisingly easy 41-28 win Sunday over the Broncos.
Denver didn’t come close despite a career passing day by Jake Plummer.
Plummer threw for a Denver record 499 yards – a career high and the best mark in the league this year.
Seahawks 23, Panthers 17
SEATTLE – Shaun Alexander certainly did his part to put the Seattle Seahawks back on track.
Alexander gained 195 yards rushing on 32 carries and Matt Hasselbeck recovered from a dismal performance last weekend, throwing for 201 yards to lead the Seahawks to a 23-17 win over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.
The Seahawks (4-3) broke a three-game losing streak, while 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.
This win wasn’t spectacular.
The Seahawks didn’t have a zigzag punt return for a touchdown, nor a chest-thumping, helmet-spinning hit by a defender. But the substance was there in little ways that were missing during Seattle’s skid.
Hasselbeck threw to tight end Itula Mili for a 17-yard gain on third-and-14 in the fourth quarter, and Alexander broke a 38-yard run in the second period and a 44-yarder in the fourth – showing the Seahawks made the plays they needed.
It was just as notable for what didn’t happen. There was no fourth-quarter meltdown like the Seahawks had in a loss to St. Louis three weeks ago. And no comic inefficiency on offense like in last week’s stunning loss at Arizona.
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.
The injury-riddled Panthers have been competitive each time in their five straight losses, and they didn’t give up in this one, either.
Delhomme threw a beautiful 63-yard strike to Keary Colbert to move the ball to Seattle’s 2-yard line at the 2-minute warning, setting up a 7-yard TD pass to Muhsin Muhammad with 1:39 to play.
That play was reviewed by game officials, with Muhammad awarded the touchdown because he was in the end zone when he made the catch. The ball had been spotted inside the 1 after tacklers pushed him out of the end zone.
It didn’t matter after Trufant recovered the onside kick.
Delhomme finished 19-of-36 for 248 yards with two TDs and one interception. Hasselbeck was 21-of-30 for 201 yards passing with one TD and one interception.
Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren stripped down the playbook this week, trying to simplify things for Hasselbeck and force the ball to Alexander. It worked from the start, with Hasselbeck completing his first nine attempts.
The Seahawks coasted to a 14-0 lead in the second quarter. Hasselbeck threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Alexander, who added a 4-yard TD run and had 119 yards rushing by halftime.
Things weren’t perfect, though. Hasselbeck, who had four interceptions in last week’s loss at Arizona, was booed when he threw another late in the first half – with Seattle at Carolina’s 7-yard line.
The Panthers had one solid drive in the first half, trailing 14-7 after Delhomme threw a 15-yard TD strike to Muhammad. They made it 14-10 early in the third quarter on John Kasay’s 30-yard field goal.
AP-ES-10-31-04 1920EST
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