Big Ben gets it done with his legs

The Cleveland Browns did almost everything possible to beat the rival Steelers. They seized a 15-point lead, forced a key turnover and twice got long kickoff returns from Joshua Cribbs.

What the Browns couldn’t defend was, of all things, Ben Roethlisberger’s legs in Pittsburgh’s 31-28 home victory Sunday.

Roethlisberger scrambled 30 yards for a key touchdown during Pittsburgh’s second-half comeback, then set up his own go-ahead 2-yard TD pass to Heath Miller with an important third-down run as the Steelers rallied to beat the Browns for the ninth straight time.

Cleveland opened a 21-6 lead in the first half with the help of Cribbs’ 90-yard kickoff return that led to one of Derek Anderson’s three touchdown passes before halftime. After Roethlisberger’s long scramble put the Steelers in the lead for the first time early in the fourth quarter, Cribbs scored on a 100-yard return to give the Browns a 28-24 lead.

But Roethlisberger led a decisive 78-yard scoring drive. It lasted 8 minutes and was kept going by his 10-yard run to the 2 on third-and-9. He then found Miller for his second touchdown pass.

Phil Dawson could have tied it, but missed a 52-yard field goal try after the snap was high with 6 seconds left.

Cowboys 31, Giants 20: At East Rutherford, N.J., Tony Romo was 20 of 28 for 247 yards and hit Terrell Owens on two of his four touchdown passes and Dallas opened a three-game lead in the division by ending the New York’s six-game winning streak.

Romo and Owens broke the game open in the second half by combining on scoring passes of 25 and 50 yards.

Packers 34, Vikings 0: Brett Favre passed another milestone and host Green Bay beat up rookie running back Adrian Peterson in a rout of Minnesota.

Favre became the second quarterback in NFL history to throw for 60,000 yards, while Peterson left in the third quarter with a knee injury.

Favre was 33 of 46 for 351 yards and three touchdowns. Green Bay running back Ryan Grant had 81 yards in the first quarter and finished with 119.

Bills 13, Dolphins 10: At Miami, the winless Dolphins controlled the ball for nearly 37 minutes and led most of the game, but Rian Lindell kicked a 34-yard field goal with 46 seconds left and Buffalo earned its fourth in a row.

The Bills scored 11 points in the final 9:46, including a TD run and two-point conversion from Marshawn Lynch.

Falcons 20, Panthers 13: At Charlotte, N.C., Joey Harrington found Alge Crumpler over the middle for a 30-yard touchdown with 20 seconds left to give Atlanta a win over Carolina.

Crumpler caught the short pass over the middle and sliced between safeties Chris Harris and Quinton Teal for the score, giving the Falcons their second straight victory.

Eagles 33, Redskins 25: At Landover, Md., Donovan McNabb threw a fourth-quarter, 57-yard TD pass to Brian Westbrook to lead Philadelphia past Washington.

McNabb completed 20 of 28 passes for 251 yards and four touchdowns. Westbrook caught two touchdown passes and ran for another score, finishing with 20 carries for 100 yards and five receptions for 83 yards.

Broncos 27, Chiefs 11: At Kansas City, Mo., backup Selvin Young rushed for 109 yards and Denver scored two quick touchdowns in the third quarter in a victory over the Chiefs.

In the decisive series in the third quarter, Dre’ Bly intercepted Damon Huard, and three plays later Young went 20 yards for a touchdown. On the Chiefs’ next possession, Broncos linebacker Nate Webster returned a Huard fumble for a score.

Cardinals 31, Lions 21: At Glendale, Ariz, Karlos Dansby intercepted two passes and forced a fumble to help Arizona’s defense make mistake-prone Detroit – with five turnovers – look like the lowly Lions of old in the Cardinals’ victory.

Kurt Warner shook off an early interception to complete 26 of 36 for 259 yards and three touchdowns.

Jaguars 28, Titans 13: At Nashville, Tenn., Quinn Gray threw for a touchdown and Maurice Jones-Drew and Fred Taylor ran for one apiece as Jacksonville beat Tennessee.

The Jaguars sacked Vince Young four times and intercepted him twice.

Bears 17, Raiders 6: At Oakland, Rex Grossman replaced an injured Brian Griese and threw a 59-yard pass to Bernard Berrian for the go-ahead score with 3:11 remaining and Cedric Benson added a late touchdown run, leading Chicago to a victory over the Raiders.

Bengals 21, Ravens 7: At Baltimore, Shayne Graham kicked a team-record seven field goals – from 34, 19, 22, 35, 35, 21 and 33 yards – and Cincinnati beat the Ravens.