Panthers turn tables on Patriots
The Carolina Panthers got a measure of revenge for their Super Bowl loss to New England — even if they again struggled to stop Tom Brady and the Patriots’ offense.
Rodney Peete found Walter Young for an 18-yard touchdown pass with 1:48 to play, rallying the Panthers past the Patriots 20-17 in an exhibition game Saturday night in Charlotte, N.C.
Jake Delhomme threw for 201 yards and a touchdown for Carolina, which has won eight straight preseason games. Linebacker Brandon Short added a key interception to set up the winning drive, which erased a 17-10 lead built by New England’s starters.
Brady again stung the Panthers’ defense, throwing for 217 yards and two touchdowns in the rematch of last year’s thrilling Super Bowl.
Buccaneers 17, Dolphins 10
Chris Simms tightened his grip on Tampa Bay’s backup quarterback job, and Ryan Nece returned a fourth-quarter interception 55 yards for a touchdown to give the Buccaneers a victory over visiting Miami.
Simms completed 11 of 13 passes for 145 yards to remain well ahead of Brian Griese for the No. 2 spot behind Brad Johnson.
Falcons 37, Bengals 10
The less Atlanta sees of Michael Vick, the more they like Matt Schaub.
For the second straight week, Schaub passed for three touchdowns, leading the Falcons past visiting Cincinnati.
Vick, expected to play the first half, was held out after aggravating a hamstring injury during pregame warmups.
Ravens 17, Lions 6
Chester Taylor ran for 117 yards and two touchdowns and Baltimore got a solid performance from their depleted defense in a victory over visiting Detroit.
Taylor ran for an 84-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage in the third quarter, giving Baltimore a 10-6 lead.
Colts 30, Bills 17
Mike Doss recovered a fumbled punt return and blocked another punt that went for a touchdown, Dominic Rhodes returned a kickoff 84 yards to set up another score and Mike Vanderjagt kicked three field goals to send Indianapolis past visiting Buffalo.
Browns 21, Chiefs 19
Rookie quarterback Luke McCown hit rookie Richard Alston with a 34-yard TD pass with no time left to give visiting Cleveland past Kansas City.
McCown, a fourth-round pick out of Louisiana Tech, engineered an eight-play, 80-yard drive in the final 1 minute, 39 seconds.
Raiders 17, Cardinals 16
Kerry Collins proved better at playing long ball again.
The backup to Rich Gannon rallied Oakland from a 13-3 deficit to a 17-13 lead in a 2:17 span, and the Raiders held on for a 17-16 win over Arizona in Tempe, Ariz.
Arizona QB Josh McCown was 16 of 23 for 187 yards and also led the Cardinals in rushing with 35 yards on three scrambles.