Big Ben shakes rust, Steelers thump Browns

Ben Roethlisberger, cheered loudly during his first game in 9 1/2 months, shook off the rust from his four-game suspension to throw three touchdown passes, and the host Pittsburgh Steelers shut down a depleted Cleveland Browns offense during a 28-10 victory Sunday.

"I started thinking about it on the way here," said Roethlisberger, who once worried that his reception would be chilly. "Before the game I got emotional. To hear the cheers was something special. I got a little emotional."

With the Steelers (4-1) leading 7-3 but backed up to their own 4 late into the third quarter, Roethlisberger - flashing the big-play ability his team lacked without him - completed passes of 50 yards to Mike Wallace and 36 yards to Heath Miller on successive plays.

Three plays later, Hines Ward fought through two potential tacklers on an 8-yard touchdown catch that made it 14-3 and gave the Steelers' defense all the points needed on a mostly dominating day. The Browns never advanced inside the 20 until rookie Colt McCoy's late 12-yard scoring pass to Ben Watson with Pittsburgh already up by 18 points.The Browns fell to 1-5.

Browns wide receivers Joshua Cribbs and Mohamed Massaquoi were knocked out of the game in the second quarter after taking hard hits from linebacker James Harrison.

"We didn't want him to be flawless," said Wallace, who welcomed Roethlisberger back by cutting the Mohawk haircut the quarterback disliked. "Then we wouldn't have anything to work on in practice."

Eagles 31, Falcons 17: Jeremy Maclin and DeSean Jackson each scored two touchdowns and host Philadelphia (4-2) snapped Atlanta's (4-2) four-game winning streak.

A head-on collision in the second quarter cost Philadelphia star receiver Jackson, and Atlanta lost cornerback Dunta Robinson, both with head injuries. Jackson dropped a pass when hit by Robinson, who led with his head and hit Jackson in the helmet. Robinson was flagged for hitting a defenseless receiver.

Jackson scored both Philadelphia TDs in the first quarter, on a 31-yard run and a 34-yard pass from Kevin Kolb.

Patriots 23, Ravens 20, OT: At Foxborough, Mass., Stephen Gostkowski's 35-yard field goal with 1:56 left in overtime gave New England (4-1) a come-from-behind win over Baltimore (4-2).

Former Seattle Seahawk Deion Branch sparked the comeback from a 20-10 deficit starting with a 5-yard scoring pass from Tom Brady four minutes into the fourth quarter.

Jets 24, Broncos 20: At Denver, LaDainian Tomlinson scored his second touchdown from 2 yards out with 73 seconds left after a pass interference flag and New York (5-1) rallied past Denver (2-4).

On fourth-and-6 from the Denver 48, Denver safety Renaldo Hill and Jets receiver Santonio Holmes jostled near the goal line and the ball fell incomplete as the crowd went crazy. But field judge Gary Cavaletto threw his yellow flag and called Hill for pass interference.

Vikings 24, Cowboys 21: At Minneapolis, Percy Harvin's 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown gave Minnesota (2-3) a spark to start the second half, and the Vikings overcame another uneven game by Brett Favre in a victory over Dallas (1-4).

Playing with a bad elbow and the specter of a scandal hovering over him, Favre - who is to meet with NFL security Tuesday about the alleged racy messages he sent to a former New York Jets employee - took a bunch of big hits and finished 14 for 19 for 118 yards, one TD and one turnover.

Giants 28, Lions 20: At East Rutherford, N.J., Eli Manning threw two touchdown passes and New York (4-2) sent error-prone Detroit (1-5) to an NFL record-tying 24th straight road loss.

Rams 20, Chargers 17: James Hall, Chris Long and Larry Grant had two sacks apiece and host St. Louis (3-3) stuffed the NFL's top offense for its third straight win at home, beating San Diego (2-4).

Sam Bradford threw a 38-yard touchdown pass to fellow rookie Danario Alexander, making his NFL debut, to help build a 14-point cushion in the first half. Steven Jackson, who finished with 109 yards, also scored and had several key late carries for the Rams.

Texans 35, Chiefs 31: Matt Schaub threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Andre Johnson with 28 seconds left to give host Houston (4-2) a stunning fourth-quarter comeback victory over Kansas City (3-2).

The Texans trailed 31-21 with just over 7 minutes left after Thomas Jones' 11-yard TD run.

Saints 31, Buccaneers 6: At Tampa, Fla., Drew Brees threw for 263 yards and three touchdowns to help lift New Orleans (4-2) past Tampa Bay (3-2).

The Super Bowl champions rebounded from a mistake-filled road loss, scoring on their first three possessions and getting an unexpected lift from rookie running back Chris Ivory.

Dolphins 23, Packers 20 OT: At Green Bay, Wis., Dan Carpenter kicked a 44-yard field goal with 9:01 left in overtime to lift Miami (3-2) over Green Bay (3-3).

Aaron Rodgers started for Green Bay one week after sustaining a concussion, and scored on a sneak with 13 seconds left in regulation. The Packers tied the game with the extra point and forced overtime.

49ers 17, Raiders 9: Alex Smith threw second-half touchdown passes to Michael Crabtree and Vernon Davis and host San Francisco (1-5) finally won its first game, beating Oakland (2-4) in a sloppy, penalty-filled game.

Crabtree made a go-ahead 32-yard TD reception on the last play of the third quarter and Smith hit Davis on a 17-yard score with 7:14 remaining. Frank Gore ran for 149 yards, including a 64-yard scramble that set up Davis' third touchdown of the season.

Colts 27, Redskins 24: At Landover, Md., Peyton Manning threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns, leading Indianapolis (4-2) over Washington (3-3).

Donovan McNabb went 29 for 45 for 246 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions for the Redskins. They seem to make every game suspenseful down to the final whistle despite a defense that gives up well over 400 yards per game, and made it a tight one once again. McNabb went 10 for 11 on a 92-yard fourth-quarter drive that cut the Colts' lead to three, hitting Keiland Williams for a 5-yard touchdown pass with 2:46 remaining.