NFL Today, Week 5

NFL Today

New York Giants (7-6) at Washington (4-9), 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN.

With Philadelphia and Dallas winning this weekend, the Giants need a victory to stay close in the NFC East and in the wild-card race.

—Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers, went 29 of 46 with three TDs and 503 yards, becoming the first Pittsburgh quarterback to throw for 500 yards in a game during a 37-36 win. He hit rookie Mike Wallace for a 19-yard touchdown on the final play.

—Aaron Rodgers, Packers, finished 26 of 48 for 383 yards and three touchdown passes and ran for another.

—Vince Young, Titans, threw for a career-high three touchdowns, gaining 236 yards through the air in a 27-24 overtime victory against Miami.

—Matt Schaub, Texans, had his eighth 300-yard passing game, going 28-for-40 for 367 yards and one TD in a 16-13 victory at St. Louis.

—Philip Rivers, Chargers, threw for 308 yards and three TDs in a 27-24 win over Cincinnati. Carson Palmer had 314 yards and two TDs, plus a 2-point conversion run for the Bengals.

—Joe Flacco, Ravens, threw a career-high four touchdown passes, going 21 of 29 for 234 yards in a 31-7 rout of Chicago.

—Matt Moore, Panthers, was 21 of 33 for 299 yards and three touchdowns in Carolina’s 26-7 win over Minnesota.

—NFL rushing leader Chris Johnson, Titans, gained 104 yards in a 27-24 OT win over Miami, but fell off the 2,000-yard pace for the season. Johnson has rushed for 1,730 yards.

—Jerome Harrison, Browns, scored his third touchdown with 44 seconds left for the winning points and rushed for a team-record 286 yards in a 41-34 win over the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday. He broke Jim Brown’s team mark.

—Rookie Beanie Wells, Cardinals, ran for a career-high 110 yards and had an 18-yard, tackle-breaking TD in Arizona’s 31-24 win at Detroit.

—Jamaal Charles got a career-high 154 yards and a touchdown for the Chiefs.

—Frank Gore ran for 107 yards, becoming the first player to surpass 100 yards against the Eagles in 24 games, but the 49ers lost 27-13.

—The Raiders gained 241 yards on the ground, with Michael Bush gashing Denver for 133 yards on 18 carries and Darren McFadden gaining 74 yards on a dozen handoffs in a 20-19 win.

—Jonathan Stewart, Panthers, had 109 yards rushing on 25 carries, snapping Minnesota’s NFL-long steak of 36 games without allowing a 100-yard rusher.

—Andre Johnson, Texans, had a season’s best with 196 yards receiving in Houston’s 16-13 victory at St. Louis. Four of his nine receptions went for at least 30 yards.

—Vincent Jackson, Chargers, had five catches for 105 yards and two TDs in a 27-24 victory against Cincinnati. It gave him his second straight 1,000-yard season.

—DeSean Jackson, Eagles, had 140 yards receiving and a touchdown in a 27-13 win over San Francisco.

—Hines Ward and Heath Miller, Steelers, had huge days in a 37-36 win over Green Bay. Ward had seven catches for 126 and Miller seven for 118. Greg Jennings, Packers, made five catches for 118 yards and an 83-yard touchdown.

—Todd Heap, Ravens, had two TD receptions in a 31-7 romp past Chicago.

—Steve Smith, Panthers, had nine catches for 157 yards and a touchdown in Carolina’s 26-7 win over Minnesota.

—Joshua Cribbs, Browns, returned two kickoffs for touchdowns to lift Cleveland to a 41-34 win over Kansas City. He went 100 and 103 yards in the first half, breaking the NFL career record with eight.

—Nate Kaeding, Chargers, kicked a 52-yard field goal with 3 seconds left for a 27-24 win over the Bengals.

—Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, Cardinals, had two interceptions and helped hold Calvin Johnson to three receptions for 35 yards in a 31-24 win at Detroit.

—Rookie safety Louis Delmas, Lions, had a 100-yard return of an interception off Kurt Warner in a 31-24 loss to Arizona. Delmas also had eight tackles.

—LB Tully Banta-Cain had three of New England’s six sacks to anchor a banged-up defense in a 17-10 victory over Buffalo.

—Tampa Bay’s 26th-ranked defense forced five turnovers by Seattle quarterback Matt Hasselbeck in a 24-7 upset. Elbert Mack had two interceptions.

San Diego clinched the AFC West with its victory over Cincinnati and Denver’s loss to Oakland. … Minnesota secured the NFC North when Green Bay lost at Pittsburgh. … Arizona won the NFC West for the second successive year with a win at Detroit and the 49ers’ loss at Philadelphia. The Eagles’ victory gave them a playoff spot for the eighth time this decade.

Joshua Cribbs, Browns, set an NFL career record at Kansas City with seven career kickoff returns for touchdowns. After his 100-yard return in the first quarter broke the mark, Cribbs sped 103 yards in the second quarter. He also had a 98-yard return against Pittsburgh this season.

Ricky Williams, Dolphins, reached 1,000 yards rushing for this season against Tennessee, setting an NFL record for the longest span between 1,000-yard seasons at six years. He got to 1,000 yards on a 15-yard carry and finished with 1,055 yards for 2009. This marks the fifth 1,000-yard rushing season of his career.

New England WR Randy Moss’ touchdown at Buffalo marked the ninth 10-TD season, matching the NFL record set by Jerry Rice.

RB Chris Johnson, Titans, turned in his ninth straight 100-yard rushing game, the eighth player in NFL history with such a streak, by gaining 104 yards vs. Miami. … The Patriots beat AFC East rival Buffalo for the 13th straight time and 18th time in 19 meetings. … The Bills will miss the playoffs for a 10th straight season, tied with Detroit for the longest active drought. … The Eagles have won five in a row. … Pittsburgh 37-36 win over Green Bay snapped a five-game slide and also ended the Packers’ five-game victory string. … San Diego has won nine straight and improved to 17-0 in December since 2006. … Chicago has dropped five straight on the road.

A season after the Steelers beat San Diego in the first 11-10 game in NFL history, they won the first 37-36 game, over Green Bay. Pittsburgh avoided becoming the first Super Bowl champion to lose six in a row the following season. … Justin Gage, Titans, had two catches for 43 yards, both for TDs, in a 27-24 OT win against Miami. They were Gage’s first receptions since breaking several bones in his lower back on a leaping catch Nov. 8 in San Francisco. … The Patriots (9-5) won their first road game on this side of the Atlantic this season, beating Buffalo 17-10. But Tom Brady went just 11 of 23 for a season-worst 115 yards. … Playing in Arrowhead Stadium’s first non-sellout in 19 years, the Chiefs finished 1-7 at home for the second straight season, losing 41-34 to Cleveland. … Baltimore is 6-0 against teams currently with losing records.

Jay Feely missed a field goal on a high snap, had another blocked, and holder Kellen Clemens mishandled the snap on another for the Jets. Mark Sanchez, starting after missing a game with a sprained right knee, also threw three interceptions in a 10-7 loss. … Daunte Culpepper, Lions, starting for banged-up Matthew Stafford for a second straight week, completed half of his 12 passes for 64 yards with an interception and was benched in the second half of a 31-24 loss to Arizona. … The Bills were undone by 11 penalties for 124 yards against New England, including a pair of pass-interference calls that set up two scores. Buffalo’s 104 yards in penalties in the first half were the most by an NFL team in an opening half this season. … Jay Cutler went 10 for 27 for 94 yards and was intercepted three times in Chicago’s 31-7 loss at Baltimore.

The Titans, who started the season 0-6, reached .500 for the first time at 7-7 with their 27-24 overtime win against Miami. … The loss was Miami’s first in December after six straight wins under coach Tony Sparano. … Atlanta couldn’t score a touchdown at the Meadowlands until its final drive, a 6-yard pass from Matt Ryan to Tony Gonzalez with 1:38 remaining to beat the Jets … A week after being accused of quitting by Carolina Panthers defenders, Patriots WR Randy Moss bounced back with five catches for 70 yards and a touchdown in a 17-10 win at Buffalo. … Cleveland won in Kansas City for the first time since the 1988 season opener.

Chicago DE Adewale Ogunleye broke his left leg. … Raiders QB Charlie Frye was knocked out of the game at Denver, with a blow to the head by Broncos linebacker Andra Davis as he passed incomplete downfield, and his head hit the turf. …Tennessee LB Keith Bulluck sprained his left knee in the third quarter against Miami. … Broncos WR Eddie Royal injured his neck. … Eagles QB Michael Vick limped off and didn’t return because of a thigh bruise.

“You all did your talking, now let me do mine. I’ve been in this league 12 years, and I’ve been through a lot. And these shoulders that I have on my body, you can put the earth on it. So just to let you know, I bounced back. I appreciate it.” — Patriots wide receiver Randy Moss responding to criticism of his recent play.

“I made sure I came down early to be able to greet Mr. Harrison. These young people deserve credit when they do something that great, especially under these circumstances. My heart goes out to him. I respect him a lot.” — Jim Brown, whose team record for yards rushing was broken by Jerome Harrison, who gained 286 in a 41-34 win at Kansas City.