Late field goal lifts Packers past Eagles
GREEN BAY, Wisconsin (AP) — Rookie kicker Mason Crosby's 42-yard field goal with 2 seconds left gave the Green Bay Packers a 16-13 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday — the first full day of the National Football League season.
The Packers benefited from a second major mistake by the Eagles' special teams, when J.R. Reed bobbled a punt with 59 seconds remaining. Green Bay's Jarrett Bush recovered at the Philadelphia 31.
Reed had replaced returner Greg Lewis, whose muffed punt led to a Packers touchdown in the first quarter.
Chargers 14, Bears 3
In San Diego, LaDainian Tomlinson threw for one touchdown and rushing for another to lead the Chargers over Chicago.
The Bears, who topped the NFC last year at 13-3 before losing in the Super Bowl to Indianapolis, committed four turnovers, two leading to touchdowns.
Tomlinson threw a 17-yard TD pass to All-Pro tight end Antonio Gates with 45 seconds left in the third quarter, then scored on a 7-yard run with 9:09 left to play.
Broncos 15, Bills 14
In Orchard Park, New York, Jason Elam hit a 42-yard field goal just before time expired to lift Denver.
Elam, who missed two field-goal attempts earlier, almost didn't have a chance to make up for those. The Broncos were out of timeouts when Jay Cutler completed an 11-yard pass to Javon Walker with 14 seconds left.
Rather than spiking the ball to stop the clock, the Broncos' field-goal unit rushed onto the field and got the snap off just in time. It spoiled what had been a remarkably poised effort for a young Bills defense that lost three starters during the game.
Redskins 16, Dolphins 13
In Landover, Maryland, Shaun Suisham kicked a 39-yard field goal 5:36 into overtime to spoil the NFL head coaching debut of Miami's Cam Cameron.
The Redskins won the coin toss to start overtime and drove 58 yards in 10 plays, all but two runs by Clinton Portis and Ladell Betts. Portis, who missed the entire preseason with knee tendinitis, ran 9 yards to Miami's 22 to set up Suisham's kick, which came on first down.
Patriots 38, Jets 14
In East Rutherford, New Jersey, Randy Moss, who missed most of camp with a hamstring injury, caught nine passes from Tom Brady for 183 yards and a touchdown in his New England debut.
Ellis Hobbs set an NFL record by taking the second-half kickoff 108 yards for a score.
Lions 36, Raiders 21
In Oakland, California, Jon Kitna threw a go-ahead, 32-yard touchdown pass to Shaun McDonald with 4:15 remaining and Dewayne White forced two late turnovers that helped Detroit rally to beat Oakland after blowing a 17-point lead.
The matchup between the NFL's two worst teams from a year ago turned highly entertaining in the second half when former Lions backup quarterback Josh McCown led the Raiders on three touchdown drives to turn a 17-0 deficit into a 21-20 Oakland lead with 7:43 to go.
Seahawks 20, Buccaneers 6
In Seattle, Shaun Alexander, playing pain-free for the first time since he broke his foot 12 months ago, ran for 105 yards and one touchdown in a victory over Tampa Bay.
Matt Hasselbeck was sharp in his first game following a mediocre season that included two broken fingers. He went 17-for-24 for 222 yards and threw a 34-yard touchdown pass to Maurice Morris to clinch the win.
Titans 13, Jaguars 10
In Jacksonville, Florida, Chris Brown ran for 175 yards, Vince Young and LenDale White combined for another 88 on the ground, leading Tennessee over Jacksonville.
Tennessee finished with 282 yards rushing, a franchise record for both teams. Jacksonville's previous high allowed was 246 yards against Seattle in 2005. Tennessee's previous best was 279 against Miami in 1967.
Steelers 34, Browns 7
In Cleveland, Ben Roethlisberger threw a career-high four touchdown passes and Pittsburgh cruised in Mike Tomlin's NFL coaching debut.
Willie Parker rushed for 109 yards as the Steelers pounced on mistakes by the Browns to open a 17-0 lead in the first quarter.
Roethlisberger went 12-of-23 for 161 yards. He threw two TD passes in the first quarter and two more in the third period.
Vikings 24, Falcons 3
In Minneapolis, Minnesota's defence overwhelmed Atlanta quarterback Joey Harrington with six sacks and two interception returns for touchdowns, and rookie running back Adrian Peterson finished off the Falcons.
Peterson made an amazing catch out of the backfield that he turned into a 60-yard touchdown and finished with 103 yards rushing on 19 carries.
Texans 20, Chiefs 3
In Houston, Mario Williams, last year's No. 1 draft pick, returned a fumble for a touchdown, had five tackles including two sacks to help Houston over Kansas City.
Panthers 27, Rams 13
In St. Louis, Steve Smith outsprinted Tye Hill on a 68-yard catch for the go-ahead play in Carolina's win. As Smith eased into the end zone, Hill stumbled and then slid on his stomach for several yards. Smith had seven catches for 118 yards.
