Wing works well for Steelers, Ryan stars for Falcons, Dallas D is horrible
AUSTRALIA’S sole NFL debutant Brad Wing played a crucial role in Pittsburgh’s last-second 30-27 victory over the Cleveland Browns.
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BRAD Wing played a crucial role in Pittsburgh’s last-second 30-27 victory over the Cleveland Browns.
Australia’s sole NFL debutant in the opening round, Wing executed a successful hold for Shaun Suisham’s matchwinning field goal that sent the Heinz Stadium fans into delirium.
Wing also had a successful outing with the boot, averaging 40.3 yards from six punts with a longest of 56.
VIDEO: NFL PUNTER KICKED IN FACE
Suisham drilled a 41-yard field goal as time expired to lift the Pittsburgh Steelers to a 30-27 victory over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday.
The Steelers blew a 24-point half-time lead as the Browns rallied behind quarterback Brian Hoyer, but escaped thanks to some great plays from quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and wide receiver Markus Wheaton.
Roethlisberger hit Wheaton twice on the game-winning drive, including a 20-yard completion that put Suisham in range to send the Browns to their 10th straight season-opening loss.
Roethlisberger passed for 365 yards and a touchdown for Pittsburgh.
Hoyer threw for 230 yards and a score and played brilliantly at times in the second half in a performance that should strengthen his grip on the starting job over rookie Johnny Manziel.
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Falcons beat saints on Matt Bryant FG in overtime
MATT Bryant kicked a 51-yarder field goal on the final play of regulation, then booted a 52-yarder in overtime to give the Atlanta Falcons a 37-34 victory over the New Orleans Saints.
In another thriller between the NFC South rivals Sunday, Matt Ryan threw for a franchise-record 448 yards, leading the Falcons to just their fourth victory over the Saints in the last 17 meetings. This one was particularly sweet for Atlanta coming off a miserable 4-12 season, its first losing campaign since 2007.
The teams combined for 17 points in the final 2:50 of the fourth quarter to force overtime. The Saints got the ball first, but Marques Colston fumbled after catching a pass over the middle. The Falcons recovered at the Saints 38; after three plays gained only 4 yards, Bryant booted through another long field goal.
Bengals stave off late Ravens comeback
A.J. Green caught a 77-yard touchdown pass from Andy Dalton with 4:58 left, and the Cincinnati Bengals blew a 15-point lead before bouncing back to beat the Baltimore Ravens 23-16 Sunday.
Green got behind cornerback Chykie Brown, who was pressed into a starting role for the injured Lardarius Webb. The ball popped from Green’s grasp before he gathered it in.
That TD, along with the 2-point conversion, came just 48 seconds after Baltimore newcomer Steve Smith caught an 80-yard touchdown pass from Joe Flacco.
Following Green’s score, Flacco took the Ravens to the Cincinnati 16 before he was sacked on a fourth down play with 55 seconds left.
Mike Nugent kicked five field goals to give the Bengals a 15-0 half-time lead.
Dalton went 25 for 38 for 301 yards for the Bengals, who ended a four-game losing streak in Baltimore.
Flacco overcame a poor first half to finish 35 for 62 for 345 yards and an interception.
Bears fall to Bills 23-20 in OT
THE Buffalo Bills prevailed 23-20 in overtime over the Chicago Bears thanks to a 27-yard field goal by Dan Carpenter.
The Bears tied the game 20-20 when Robbie Gould kicked a 37-yard field goal with 30 seconds left in the fourth quarter.
“We didn’t finish drives and we turned the ball over and put our defence in tough positions,” Bears coach Marc Trestman said. The game was marred by turnovers. Bears quarterback Jay Cutler (34-for-49, 349 yards, two TDs) had two passes intercepted. Bills quarterback EJ Manuel had a pass intercepted by Chris Conte. “Turnovers and penalties. those things will kill you,” Cutler said.
The Bears took a 7-0 lead on their opening drive as Cutler connected with Martellus Bennett from 12 yards out. The Bills answered with a 2-yard TD run by Manuel.
Matt Forte rushed for 82 yards on 17 carries and had eight catches for 87 yards.
The Bears played much of the game without offensive linemen Matt Slauson and Roberto Garza, both of whom sustained ankle injuries, Trestman said. Wide receiver Alshon Jeffery also missed much of the second half with a hamstring injury.
The Bills led 17-7 at the half as Carpenter kicked a 50-yard field goal and C.J. Spiller scored on a seven-yard pass from Manuel.
The Bears tied it at 17 on a 41-yard Gould field goal and an 11-yard TD catch by Brandon Marshall.
Defence leads Texans to opening victory over Redskins
ROOKIE Alfred Blue blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown and J.J. Watt lived up to his massive new contract to help the Houston Texans snap a 14-game losing streak with a 17-6 win over Washington on Sunday.
The Texans led 7-6 after a 76-yard touchdown reception by DeAndre Hopkins in the second quarter. Blue blocked Washington’s punt on the next drive, scooped it up and returned it five yards for a touchdown to push the lead to 14-6.
Watt had a sack, blocked an extra point, recovered a fumble and swatted down a pass in his first game since signing a six-year, $100 million contract Monday. First overall pick Jadeveon Clowney had a tackle for a loss in the first half before leaving with a knee injury.
Robert Griffin III threw for 267 yards, but Washington was done in by two second-half fumbles.
Titans’ D too much for Chiefs’ Alex Smith
JAKE Locker threw for 266 yards and two touchdowns, Alex Smith was intercepted three times and the Tennessee Titans rolled to a 26-10 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.
Locker picked apart a Chiefs defence that lost linebacker Derrick Johnson and defensive tackle Mike DeVito to Achilles injuries. Locker was 22 of 33 and found eight different players, including former Chiefs wide receiver Dexter McCluster.
Kendall Wright and Delanie Walker had TD catches for the Titans, and Ryan Succop was perfect on four field-goal attempts against the team that released him last weekend.
Smith was 19 of 35 for 202 yards and a touchdown for a Chiefs offence missing suspended wide receiver Dwayne Bowe and right tackle Donald Stephenson.
Fast-paced Dolphins edge Patriots in second-half onslaught
KNOWSHON Moreno rushed for 134 yards and a touchdown, Ryan Tannehill threw for two scores and the Miami Dolphins overpowered New England after half-time on the way to a 33-20 win over the Patriots on Sunday.
The Dolphins outscored New England 23-0 in the second half.
Tannehill had touchdown throws to Lamar Miller and Mike Wallace as Miami debuted a faster-paced offence. The Dolphins’ defence recorded four sacks — all in the second half — and recovered two fumbles.
Tom Brady threw a scoring pass to Rob Gronkowski, and Shane Vereen had a rushing touchdown for New England.
It was New England’s first loss in an opener since 2003 and marks the first time the Patriots will not be at least tied for the AFC East lead since Week 3 of 2012.
Jets’ D flusters Raiders rookie Carr in debut
CHRIS Ivory burst through a few tackle attempts for a 71-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter, and the New York Jets’ defence clamped down on Oakland rookie quarterback Derek Carr in a 19-14 victory Sunday.
With still a one-score game, Ivory rushed up the middle and appeared stopped, but slipped a few would-be tacklers on his way to the end zone. A 2-point conversion failed, but the Jets held on to win their season opener.
Geno Smith threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Chris Johnson as the Jets sent the Raiders to their 14th straight loss in the Eastern time zone.
Carr held his own in the first half, but the Jets pressured him throughout the final two quarters. He finished 20 of 32 for 151 yards and touchdown throws to Rod Streater and James Jones.
Eagles roll over Jags with second-half shutout
NICK Foles threw a 68-yard touchdown pass to Jeremy Maclin in the fourth quarter and the Philadelphia Eagles rallied from a 17-0 second-half deficit to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 34-17 on Sunday.
Chad Henne threw two touchdown passes to rookie Allen Hurns in the first quarter and the Jaguars (0-1) dominated the defending NFC East champion Eagles (1-0) in the first two quarters.
But whatever Chip Kelly said to his players at half-time worked.
The Eagles scored TDs on their first two possessions in the third quarter. Cody Parkey hit a 51-yard field goal on his first career attempt in the fourth quarter to tie it 17-17.
Then Foles made a perfect deep throw to a wide-open Maclin for the longest pass of his career to put the Eagles ahead 24-17.
Vikings shut down Rams in St. Louis
WIDE receiver Cordarelle Patterson ran for 102 yards on three carries with a 67-yard scoring run off a simple pitchout and the Minnesota Vikings shut down the St. Louis Rams 34-6 on Sunday, opening impressively under new coach Mike Zimmer.
The Rams handled Adrian Peterson, limiting the All-Pro to 75 yards on 21 carries. They had zero luck with Patterson, who had three touchdowns rushing as a rookie.
Rams quarterback Shaun Hill lasted one half as the stand-in starter for Sam Bradford, missing the rest of the game with a thigh injury and leaving untested Austin Davis in charge. Hill’s last pass was intercepted by Josh Robinson with 1:09 to go in the half, setting up Matt Cassel’s 8-yard pass to Greg Jennings for a 13-0 lead.
Colin Kaepernick, 49ers dominate Dallas Cowboys
COLIN Kaepernick threw two touchdown passes to Vernon Davis, one right after the first of three interceptions by Tony Romo, and the San Francisco 49ers opened the season with a 28-17 win over the sloppy Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.
The 49ers (1-0) also got a 35-yard fumble return on the second play of the game when Chris Culliver picked up a loose ball stripped from DeMarco Murray. They led 21-3 after the first quarter despite running just four offensive plays.
Coming off a spotty preseason for his offence, Kaepernick was efficient if not prolific, going 16 of 23 for 201 yards without an interception.
Romo was playing his first meaningful game for the Cowboys (0-1) since back surgery in December.
Derek Anderson, Panthers hang on for win over Buccaneers
DEREK Anderson filled in nicely for injured Cam Newton, throwing for 230 yards and two touchdowns Sunday to lead the Carolina Panthers to a 20-14 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Despite rallying with two late TDs, it was an ugly debut for the Bucs (0-1) under coach Lovie Smith. The defence applied little pressure on Anderson, and an offence that was among the worst in the NFL in 2013 showed few signs of improvement until midway through the fourth quarter.
With Newton cheering from the sideline after being held out because of a rib injury suffered in preseason, Anderson completed 24 of 34 passes with no interceptions and one sack. The 10th-year pro tossed threw for TDs of 5 yards to Greg Olsen and 26 yards to rookie Kelvin Benjamin.
Carolina’s defence did its part, too.
Peyton hangs on against old team
Peyton Manning became only the second quarterback in history to beat every single NFL team after his Denver Broncos held on to beat his former side the Indianapolis Colts.
Manning threw three touchdown passes to tight end Julius Thomas in the first half as the Broncos won 31-24.
In his second try, Manning beat his old team and joined Brett Favre as the only quarterbacks to beat each of the current 32 NFL franchises.
The Broncos raced out to a 24-0 lead thanks to Thomas, then turned to their revamped defense to fend off a furious comeback attempt by Colts QB Andrew Luck, who was working wonders behind a patchwork offensive line.
Luck brought the Colts within a touchdown when he found Hakeem Nicks for a nine-yard scoring strike with 3:26 remaining. But Indianapolis’ last drive stalled at midfield when rookie Bradley Roby broke up a pass to Reggie Wayne.
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