Houston-Indianapolis
The AFC South’s top two teams go at it Sunday in Indianapolis as the Texans take on the Colts. The Texans, who enter the contest on a three-game winning streak, hammered the Bills on Sunday, 31-10. Running back Ryan Moats rushed for 126 yards and three touchdowns in the victory, while quarterback Matt Schaub was 25-for-34 for 268 yards. He completed his 25 passes to ten different receivers, with wide receiver Andre Johnson catching six passes to lead the team.
Houston outscored Buffalo 25-0 in the second half and won despite having three turnovers. Houston is 5-3 for the first time in its eight-year history. The Colts rallied from a 14-6 deficit to down the 49ers, 18-14, in week eight to improve to 7-0. Running back Joseph Addai tossed the game-winning touchdown pass to wide receiver Reggie Wayne to complete the comeback.
Wayne caught 12 passes for 147 yards in the win, while quarterback Peyton Manning threw for 347 yards. The Colts defense stepped up, allowing zero points in the second half and recording four sacks, an interception and a fumble recovery in the win. Indianapolis, which has won 16 consecutive regular season games, has owned this series, winning 13 of the first 14 meetings and all seven meetings in Indianapolis. Houston’s lone win was a 27-24 win in week 16of the 2006 season.
Baltimore-Cincinnati
A rematch of the week five meeting in Baltimore, which the Bengals pulled out in the final seconds with a 17-14 win on a touchdown pass from Carson Palmer to Andre Caldwell with 22 seconds left to give Cincinnati the win. The Ravens ended a three-game losing streak with a 30-7 win over the previously unbeaten Denver Broncos. The Ravens scored the last 17 points in the win to break open a 13-7 tilt. The Ravens held the Broncos to just 200 yards of total offense, registered two sacks and recovered a fumble in the win. Running back Ray Rice churned out 84 yards rushing and scored a touchdown, while quarterback Joe Flacco threw for 175 yards and a touchdown. Flacco has tossed a touchdown pass in each game this season. The Bengals, who had the bye in week eight, come off of a 45-10 thumping of the Bears in Week 7 in Cincinnati.
Running back Cedric Benson rushed for a career-high 189 yards and a touchdown, while quarterback Carson Palmer went 20-for-24 for 233 yards and five touchdown scores. The Bengals scored the first 31 points of the game and took a 31-3 lead into halftime. The Bengals defense got into the action with three inceptions, a fumble recovery and a sack in the win. This is a crucial game as the Ravens are 4-3 and the Bengals are 5-2. A win by the Ravens puts both teams at 5-3, while a Bengals win would give the Bengals a 6-2 record and the tiebreaker on the Ravens based on the season sweep.
San Diego-New York Giants
On Draft Day 2004, the Chargers took Eli Manning with first pick, despite Manning telling the Chargers he was not going to play for them. Three picks later, the Giants drafted Philip Rivers. Shortly thereafter, the two teams struck a deal and Manning was on his way to New York and Rivers was on his way to San Diego. On Sunday, the two quarterbacks will be going against each other for the first time at Giants Stadium.
The Chargers, who enter the game on a two-game winning streak, down the Raiders for the 13th straight time, 24-16, on Sunday in San Diego. Quarterback Philip Rivers threw for 249 yards and a touchdown in the win, while running back LaDainian Tomlinson rushed for two scores. Linebacker Shawne Merriman, who was drafted with the 2005 first round pick the Chargers obtained from the Giants, had two sacks in the win and had a sack on Oakland’s last drive in the victory.
New York fell for the third straight game, losing 40-17 to the Eagles on Sunday in Philadelphia. The Eagles scored the first 16 points of the game took a 30-7 lead into halftime. Quarterback Eli Manning had a rough afternoon, tossing two inceptions and just one touchdown in the loss. Running back Brandon Jacobs did have 86 yards rushing and 21 yards receiving in the loss.
The Giants defense has allowed just 31 points in four games against teams below .500, but has allowed 143 points to teams who have a better than .500 record. The Giants and Chargers last played in 2005 in San Diego, where the Chargers pounded the Giants, 45-23, in a game where Manning was heavily booed by the San Diego crowd.
That night for the Chargers, Drew Brees was the quarterback and not Rivers. The last time the two teams met in the Jersey Swamps, was in 1995 when San Diego won 27-17 in Week 17. The game was marred by Giant fans tossing snowballs and iceballs at the Chargers and one even knocking out the San Diego Equipment Manager.
Dallas-Philadelphia
One of the most intense rivalries in the NFL will take place on the national stage this Sunday night at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia with first place in the NFC East on the line. Dallas comes into the game with a three-game winning streak after dropping Seattle, 38-17, on Sunday in Texas.
The Cowboys broke open a 21-10 game with a 14-0 third quarter to take a 35-10 lead after three quarters. The Cowboys defense had three sacks and recovered two fumbles by the Seahawks. Quarterback Tony Romo threw for three touchdowns, running back Marion Barber ran for one score and wide receiver Patrick Crayton returned a punt 82 yards for a touchdown.
The Cowboys controlled the ball for 34:45 in the victory over the Seahawks. The Eagles come off a very impressive 40-17 win over the Giants on Sunday at home. The Eagles jumped out to a 16-0 lead and after the Giants cut it to 16-7, the Eagles scored 14 straight points in just over a minute at the end of the first half to take a 30-7 lead into halftime. Quarterback Donovan McNabb had three touchdown passes and threw for 240 yards in the win.
Philadelphia ran for 177 yards in the win, despite missing running back Brian Westbrook, who missed the game due to a concussion. The Eagles had three of their five touchdowns come on plays of over 40 yards. The Eagles defense had two interceptions and recorded two sacks. In the last meeting between the two rivals, with the sixth and final spot in the NFC playoffs on the line, Philadelphia scored a 44-6 beating of Dallas to get into the playoffs and sent the Cowboys home. The Eagles are 8-2 at home against the Cowboys in the Andy Reid Era.
Pittsburgh-Denver
A contest that could have major playoff implications will take place on Monday night in Denver as the 5-2 Steelers play the 6-1 Broncos. Pittsburgh, which is coming off of a bye, downed Minnesota 27-17 in week seven in Pittsburgh.
The Steelers used three big plays to end the Vikings undefeated season. At the end of the first half, wide receiver Mike Wallace scored a 40-yard touchdown as he sliced through the Minnesota secondary to make it 10-7. In the fourth quarter and the Steelers leading 13-10, defensive end Brett Kiesel stripped Minnesota quarterback Brett Favre of the football and linebacker LaMarr Woodley picked up the ball and ran 77 yards to paydirt to increase the lead to 20-10. Minnesota cut the score to 20-17 and was driving inside Pittsburgh territory, but linebacker Keyaron Fox picked off a pass and ran it back 82 yards to seal the win. The Steelers won in spite of being outgained 386-259.
Denver fell for the first time in 2009 with a 30-7 setback3 at Baltimore this past Sunday. The Broncos cut the score to 13-7 in the third quarter, with the help of two penalties on a one-yard run by Knowshon Moreno, but Denver could not score any more points the rest of the game. The Broncos had just 200 yards of offense and were 3-for-13 on third downs in the game. Wide receiver Eddie Royal did have 117 return yards in the loss. The Broncos defense did register two sacks, but did not force any turnovers in the game.
The two teams have combined to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl 13 times, with the Steelers going to seven Super Bowls and the Broncos playing in six Super Bowls. From 1974-79, Denver and Pittsburgh combined to play in five of the six Super Bowls. The two teams last squared off in 2007, with the Broncos scoring a 31-28 win on a field goal as time expired.
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