Sunday's NFL games 12/6/04

Sunday's Games

COLTS 51, TITANS 24

Peyton Manning threw three touchdown passes, Edgerrin James ran for two more scores and Indianapolis returned a blocked field goal for another TD as the Colts routed Tennessee and moved closer to clinching the AFC South.

Indianapolis (9-3) won its fifth straight by tying the NFL record for most consecutive 40-point games with four. Only two other teams have done it: the 2000 St. Louis Rams and the 1960 San Diego Chargers.

The Titans (4-8) have lost three of four, allowing their most points since a 52-25 loss to the Oakland Raiders on Sept. 29, 2002.

Manning still threw for 317 yards in the first half, when receivers Brandon Stokley and Marvin Harrison each topped 100 yards. Manning finished 25-for-33 for 425 yards with two interceptions as he moved within four TD passes of Dan Marino's single-season record (48).

Patriots 42, Browns 15

Bethel Johnson returned the opening kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown and Corey Dillon rushed for 98 yards and two TDs before halftime. Randall Gay ran in a fumble 41 yards for a TD early in the second half as the Patriots (11-1) continued their best start in franchise history and won for the 26th time in 27 regular-season games.

Dillon, who bruised his leg in the first half, carried just once in the second half and finished with 100 yards -- his seventh 100-yard game this season.

The 42 points were the most scored by the Patriots since Sept. 15, 2002, a 44-7 win at the New York Jets.

Chargers 20, Broncos 17

The San Diego Chargers took firm control of the AFC West by hanging on to beat the Broncos. LaDainian Tomlinson ran for two touchdowns, and San Diego's defense saved the win by intercepting Jake Plummer four times, including in the end zone in the closing minutes.

Playing their biggest game in 10 years, the Chargers (9-3) clinched their first winning season since 1995 and took a two-game lead in the division over Denver (7-5).

Now all that's left for the Chargers to do in this surprising season is to clinch a playoff berth, which the Bolts haven't done since 1995. San Diego is on a six-game winning streak for the first time since going 6-0 to open the 1994 season, when it made its only Super Bowl appearance. They were an NFL-worst 4-12 last year.

Eagles 47, Packers 17

Donovan McNabb threw a career-high five touchdown passes in the first half and finished with a team-record 464 yards passing. Brian Westbrook had 11 catches for 156 yards and three TDs and Terrell Owens caught eight passes for 161 yards and one score. McNabb set a team record by completing his first 14 passes and finished 32-of-43.

Meanwhile, Brett Favre threw two interceptions that led to Philadelphia's first two scores. His streak of games with a TD pass was snapped at 36, second in NFL history to Johnny Unitas' 47 straight.

The four-time NFC East champion Eagles (11-1) matched the best start in team history. Since losing to Pittsburgh 27-3 last month, the Eagles have won four in a row by at least 20 points, outscoring opponents 151-50.

The Packers (7-5) snapped a six-game winning streak, but remained tied with Minnesota for first place in the NFC North.

Buccaneers 27, Falcons 0

Making Michael Vick look ordinary for much of the day, the Bucs (5-7) kept the first-place Falcons (9-3) from clinching the NFC South.

Simeon Rice became the 22nd player in league history to reach 100 sacks, getting Vick on the ground twice and forcing a fumble to set up a touchdown. Rice boosted his career total to 101 in nine seasons.

The loss also ended a four-game winning streak for Atlanta.

Bengals 27, Ravens 26

Carson Palmer capped his finest day in the NFL with an appropriate ending to an improbable comeback. Down by 17 points entering the fourth quarter, the Bengals pierced the proud Baltimore defense for 24 points over the final 15 minutes. Shayne Graham kicked a 24-yard field goal as time expired, giving the Bengals their first win in Baltimore (7-5) in eight tries since 1996.

Palmer went 29-for-36 for a career-high 382 yards. T.J. Houshmandzadeh had 10 catches for 171 yards and Chad Johnson amassed 161 yards on 10 receptions.

Bears 24, Vikings 14

Chad Hutchinson, who was surfing in California a little more than two months ago, made his first Chicago start a memorable one, throwing three TD passes. Since the Bears (5-7) signed Hutchinson in September following a season-ending knee injury to Rex Grossman, he has spent most of time as a third-stringer.

Jets 29, Texans 7

While Chad Pennington's return from a strained right rotator cuff was far from perfect, Curtis Martin was stellar yet again. Pennington, back after missing three games, directed three second-half touchdown drives and Martin added his seventh 100-yard game of the season to help the Jets (9-3) stay in the thick of the AFC playoff race.

The Jets shut out the Texans (5-7) in the second half. Martin had 134 yards on 23 carries, going over the 1,300-yard mark on the season.

Bills 42, Dolphins 32

Drew Bledsoe threw four touchdown passes, and the Bills forced seven turnovers. The Bills (6-6) have scored 117 points in the past three games, all wins, and they're in playoff contention despite an 0-4 start. They completed a season sweep of the Dolphins (2-10), who fell to 0-8 against AFC opponents.

Panthers 32, Saints 21

John Kasay kept the Carolina Panthers' late-run for a playoff berth on track with six field goals, a team record. It was the Panthers' fourth victory in a row and, in the weak NFC, their 5-7 record has them in the middle of the wild-card race.

Lions 26, Cardinals 12

Kevin Jones ran for 196 yards and a touchdown, ending the Lions' five-game losing streak and keeping their playoff hopes alive in the muddled and mediocre NFC. Jason Hanson was 4-for-4 on field goals and Dre' Bly had two interceptions for the Lions (5-7).

Redskins 31, Giants 7

The Redskins finally scored 20 points. The historic moment occurred with 41 seconds left in the first half, when tight end Robert Royal cradled Patrick Ramsey's 9-yard pass for Royal's first career touchdown.

The Redskins (4-8) broke a three-game losing streak and broke the 20-point barrier for the first time since Joe Gibbs returned as coach.

Clinton Portis ran for 148 yards and scored twice. Portis has 1,093 yards on the season, giving him 1,000-plus in each of his first three years.

Chiefs 34, Raiders 27

Trent Green completed 14 of 15 passes after halftime for 229 of his 340 yards and hit Eddie Kennison for a tiebreaking 70-yard touchdown with 2:04 left Kennison's winning catch came at the 35-yard line, then he ran out of the grasp of rookie safety Stuart Schweigert. The Chiefs (4-8) scored on all four second-half possessions to end a four-game losing streak.

Steelers 17, Jaguars 16

Rookie quarterback Ben Roethlisberger extended both his and the Pittsburgh's winning streak to 10 games by engineering a last-minute drive Sunday night to set up a 37-yard field goal by Jeff Reed with 18 seconds left. Roethlisberger finished the night 14-of-17 for 221 yards and two touchdowns.

--AP