Steelers Cuff Bengals Rookie Qb Stewart Catches Key Td Pass
The Pittsburgh Steelers found a new title for Kordell Stewart - game saver.
Stewart’s 71-yard touchdown reception was the crushing blow as the Steelers scored 36 straight points in the second half for a 49-31 victory Sunday over the host Cincinnati Bengals.
Pittsburgh overcame an 18-point deficit - its second-biggest comeback ever - for its fourth straight win. The Steelers took control of the AFC Central and avenged an earlier 18-point loss to Cincinnati.
The Steelers trailed 31-13 early in the second half before they started taking advantage of the NFL’s worst defense by figuring out how to get their most versatile player in the game.
Neil O’Donnell threw two touchdown passes, and Bam Morris ran for three more scores in the final 22 minutes. O’Donnell threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to Andre Hastings and Stewart pitched to Erric Pegram on an option for the 2-point conversion that cut it to 31-28 late in the third quarter.
Just 2:19 later, Stewart, drafted out of Colorado as a quarterback, lined up in the slot on the left as a receiver, sprinted down the middle of the field and took a pass from O’Donnell at the Bengals’ 43-yard line. He did a 360-degree spin to shake out of safety Darryl Williams’ grasp and went untouched for his first pro receiving touchdown.
“There were mental breakdowns all over,” Bengals linebacker Ricardo McDonald said. “Kordell running wide open down the middle of the field? There’s no excuse for that.”
Cowboys 34, Raiders 21
Emmitt Smith ran for three touchdowns and Troy Aikman threw a 17-yard scoring pass to Michael Irvin as Dallas handed Oakland its first home loss since returning to that city.
“That was nice,” Dallas offensive lineman Nate Newton said. “Everybody was saying we were a joke and the coach and the players should be fired after what happened last week. Now I can’t wait to hear what the hard-liners have to say this week.”
Dallas began a week in which it will face the AFC’s two best teams by battering the Raiders. Oakland played the second half without quarterback Jeff Hostetler, who reinjured his left shoulder on a hit by Chad Hennings.
The Cowboys host the Chiefs, who have the NFL’s best record, on Thursday.
Chiefs 20, Oilers 13
Kansas City was headed for overtime, then came a crunching hit on Todd McNair.
Mark Collins returned McNair’s fumble 34 yards for a touchdown with 15 seconds left, lifting host Kansas City past Houston.
McNair, a former Chief, fumbled when hit in the face by Doug Terry, and Collins scopped up the ball and scored almost untouched as the Chiefs maintained the best record in the NFL.
Vikings 43, Saints 24
Warren Moon turned 39 on Saturday, and then turned in one of the best performances of his 12-year NFL career. He threw for 338 yards and four touchdowns as host Minnesota beat New Orleans for its third win in a row.
Throwing with pinpoint accuracy and dodging pressure like a man 10 years younger, Moon completed 25 of 32 passes before leaving midway through the third quarter.
Bills 28, Jets 26
Buffalo rode the receiving of Billy Brooks and Steve Tasker and the running of second-stringer Darick Holmes to victory over host New York. But they got a scare when the Jets scored on the final play of the game, a 41-yard desperation pass that was tipped to Adrian Murrell, who fell into the end zone.
But Thomas Smith broke up a 2-point conversion pass to Murrell to end the game.
Panthers 27, Cardinals 7
Kerry Collins threw for 201 yards and two touchdowns and host Carolina held Arizona to 96 yards in total offense, its lowest yardage total in 40 years in a win over the Cardinals.
Buccaneers 17, Jaguars 16
Jacksonville coach Tom Coughlin decided to go for the 2-point conversion. He wound up with a 1-point loss.
Host Tampa Bay hung on for the win after Steve Beuerlein’s 2-point conversion pass to Jimmy Smith was caught just out of bounds with 37 seconds left.
With the Jaguars trailing 17-10, Beuerlein, replacing former University of Washington quarterback Mark Brunnell (strained hamstring) early in the fourth quarter, threw a 12-yard scoring pass to Pete Mitchell, completing a 96-yard drive.
Broncos 30, Chargers 27
John Elway handed off the late-game heroics to rookie Terrell Davis, and Jason Elam followed through with the winning kick.
Davis ran for 176 yards - 53 on Denver’s game-winning drive - and the Broncos beat San Diego on Elam’s 32-yard field goal with 2 seconds left.
The win boosted Denver’s playoff hopes while visiting San Diego, playing for the second straight week without running back Natrone Means, moved a step closer to playoff elimination.
The Chargers trailed 27-10 at halftime.
Colts 24, Patriots 10
Indianapolis broke a two-game losing streak in a key AFC East matchup. Marshal Faulk rushed 24 times for 96 yards, caught eight passes for 71 yards and scored once.
Packers 31, Browns 20
The way the Cleveland Browns are playing, Baltimore may not want them anymore.
The Browns lost for the third straight time since the news broke that they’re leaving town, falling to visiting Green Bay as Brett Favre passed for three touchdowns and ran for another.
Eagles 28, Giants 19
For the second time in five weeks, Randall Cunningham took over in the second half for an injured Rodney Peete (sore hip) and led the Philadelphia over visiting New York.
Lions 24, Bears 17
Even without an injured Scott Mitchell in the second half, Detroit had enough offense to overcome its own mistakes to beat host Chicago.
Detroit backup Don Majkowski came in after Mitchell sprained an ankle and threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Herman Moore with 2:32 left, and the Lions won their second straight game.
Falcons 31, Rams 6
Jeff George completed 20 of 34 passes for 352 yards and four touchdowns, three of them to Terance Mathis in a rout of visiting St. Louis.
MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: Sunday’s best Quarterbacks Neil O’Donnell, Steelers 24-31-377 Warren Moon, Vikings 25-38-338 Running backs Chris Warren, Seahawks 27-121-1 Emmitt Smith, Cowboys 29-111-3 Receivers Tim Brown, Raiders 12-161-1 Robert Brooks, Packers 6-138-2