STEELERS 24, RAIDERS 21
Story line: The Steelers won it on Jeff Reed’s 42-yard field goal with seven seconds remaining. Pittsburgh led 14-0 and 21-10 before the Raiders tied it on Alvis Whitted’s catches of Rich Gannon’s 38-yard touchdown pass and two-point conversion pass with 4:51 left.
Star: Steelers linebacker Clark Haggans had two sacks and two forced fumbles in his fifth career start.
Extra points: The Steelers are 81-1-1 when leading by 11 or more points under coach Bill Cowher. . . . Warren Sapp had four tackles and no sacks in his first Raiders game.
Quote: “They let us hang around, but we couldn’t close the deal.” — Raiders wide receiver Jerry Porter
BROWNS 20, RAVENS 3
Story line: For the first time since their NFL rebirth in 1999, the Browns are 1-0. Ravens running back Jamal Lewis, who had an NFL single-game record 295 yards against Cleveland last year, couldn’t find a hole. He was held to just 57 yards.
Star: Browns defensive end Kenard Lang tied a career high with three sacks and forced a fumble.
Extra point: Cleveland tight end Kellen Winslow had four catches for 39 yards in his pro debut. He dropped one pass but nearly blocked a punt in the first quarter.
Quote: “We didn’t think about it all week. We thought about it all year. We couldn’t wait to get back on the field against Jamal. We wanted a chance to redeem.” –Lang
RAMS 17, CARDINALS 10
Story line: The Rams beat the Cardinals for the fifth straight time and sent Arizona to its 14th straight road loss, but they did it the hard way. The Rams outgained Arizona 229-134 in first-half total offense but had only two field goals.
Stars: Marc Bulger, 19-4 as the Rams’ starting quarterback, was 23 of 34 for 272 yards. His main target was Isaac Bruce, who caught nine passes for 112 yards.
Extra point: Kicker Jeff Wilkins became the Rams’ career leading scorer with 797 points, passing Mike Lansford.
Quote: “The contact took place within 5 yards . . . Inside of 5 yards you can pretty much do anything except an illegal act.”–Cardinals coach Dennis Green, who thought the defensive holding call that nullified a 95-yard interception return by James Darling was legal contact.
JETS 31, BENGALS 24
Story line: The Jets ruined the debut of Carson Palmer. The 2003 No. 1 draft pick commanded the Bengals’ offense well (18 of 27 for 248 yards, two TDs) but threw an interception with two minutes remaining to seal the Jets’ win.
Stars: The Jets’ Chad Pennington threw two touchdowns, going 20 of 27 for 224 yards in the first season-opening start of his career. . . . In the first possession of the second half, Sam Cowart stripped Rudi Johnson of the ball, and Donnie Abraham returned it 41 yards for a TD and a 21-10 Jets lead.
Extra point: Palmer threw a 53-yard touchdown pass to Johnson with a little over three minutes to go to bring the Bengals within a touchdown.
JAGUARS 13, BILLS 10
Story line: The Jaguars’ win snapped a nine-game road losing streak that dated back to Dec. 15, 2002. The Bills’ Drew Bledsoe-led offense bumbled, dominating the time of possession by more than seven minutes but settling for 10 points despite three trips into the red zone.
Star: Ernest Wilford, outmuscled three Bills to catch the winning TD–his only reception of the game–with no time left.
Extra points: Eric Moulds’ touchdown catch for the Bills matched his total from last season, in which he was limited for most of the year with a groin injury. . . . . . . Jacksonville was 2-for-13 on third downs, but converted all three fourth downs, including the winning touchdown pass.
Quote: “I’m a little bit in shock. I really felt we were in control of the ballgame the whole way.”–Bledsoe
CHARGERS 27, TEXANS 20
Story line: The Chargers dedicated their off-season to upgrading at quarterback. It turns out they might have done just that, even if he’s the guy they were trying to replace. Drew Brees was 17 of 24 for 209 yards and hit Eric Parker in the back of the end zone with the winning TD pass.
Stars: Tight end Antonio Gates, who did not play college football, emerged as Brees’ favorite target, catching eight balls for 123 yards. . . . Houston running back Domanick Davis had 157 yards of offense and two TDs but had two costly fumbles–the last on San Diego’s 14 with 3:57 left.
Extra point: Marty Schottenheimer ran his total of opening-day victories to 11, most among active coaches.
Quote: “You get a catch in the end zone that some people think was out of bounds, and you get a win in the NFL. That’s why it’s the most popular sport in the world.”–Schottenheimer, on Houston’s failed protest of Parker’s TD catch.
SEAHAWKS 21, SAINTS 7
Story line: The Saints’ game plan had been simple: Keep Shaun Alexander from having a big game and don’t turn over the ball. They weren’t able to do either, losing the ball three times and letting Alexander run for 135 yards, two TDs.
Star: Matt Hasselbeck completed 19 of 29 passes for 246 yards and a touchdown to Alexander.
Extra points: The Saints’ Deuce McAllister had only 26 yards on 10 carries in the first half, 57 yards on 16 carries for the game. “No gap, no hole to run through,” he said. . . . Seattle coach Mike Holmgren is 5-0 lifetime against the Saints.
FALCONS 21, 49ERS 19
Story line: Falcons defense stepped up under new head coach Jim Mora. Rod Coleman batted down Tim Rattay’s two-point conversion pass attempt with 40 seconds left.
Stars: Rattay left in the second quarter with a shoulder injury but returned to lead two fourth-quarter touchdown drives for the 49ers. . . . Niners linebacker Julian Peterson had two sacks and forced two fumbles.
Extra point: Former San Francisco cornerback Jason Webster made five tackles in his first game with Atlanta. “It was like playing against my brothers,” he said.
Quote: “I was pretty hazy. I don’t know if I got a concussion or not. … I didn’t play very well.”–Rattay, on his aching head after Coleman pounded him on a second-quarter sack.
EAGLES 31, GIANTS 17
Story line: Four-time Pro Bowl receiver Terrell Owens, playing his first game with the Eagles, made an immediate impact. He scored on his first two receptions in the first quarter and finished with three touchdowns on eight catches.
Star: Donovan McNabb was 26 of 36 for 330 yards and tied a career high with four TD passes and had no interceptions.
Extra points: The Giants lost their ninth straight game. . . . Two-time NFL MVP Kurt Warner has lost his last nine starts.
– – –
Monday night matchup
Packers at Panthers
Time: 8 p.m., WLS-Ch. 7, WSCR-AM 670.
Line: Panthers by 3.
Last meeting: Packers won 17-14 at home on Sept. 29, 2002.
Keep your eye on: The Panthers’ Stephen Davis tries to repeat his 1,444-yard season of 2003. The Packers’ Brett Favre would take another 32 TD passes too.
Terry Bannon’s pick: Panthers 24, Packers 23.
