Things are heating up in the NFL as overtime games and last-second victories were the order of the day for the NFL
Week 11 slate. Here’s the recap:
Detroit beat Cleveland 38-37: After a rare pass interference penalty in the end zone on a Hail Mary pass from Matt Stafford, the Lions were granted one final play with 0:00 on the clock. The Lions scored on a Stafford to Pettigrew connection on that play, making Stafford the youngest QB to pass for 5 TDs in a game. The Browns’ Brady Quinn also had a career day, throwing for four which exceeded his career total of three. The Lions battled back from a 24-3 deficit.
Kansas City upset Pittsburgh 27-24 in OT: KC was without suspended Dwayne Bowe but used the recycled Chris Chambers and RB, Jamal Charles to win. Their defense intercepted Big Ben twice, one for a TD. Ben was knocked out in OT, after he passed for 398 yards.
Indianapolis hung on to defeat Baltimore 17-15: Indy’s D kept the Ravens out of the end zone all day and the offense produced just enough to win. Indy remains undefeated at 10-0 and Ravens newly signed kicker Billy Cundiff put five FGs through the uprights.
Green Bay beat San Francisco: 30-24: Green Bay almost gave the game away but held on after Alex Smith threw all three of his TDs in the second half. Big news for Aaron Rodgers: he was only sacked twice!
Jacksonville beat Buffalo 18-15: A TO sighting in the end zone almost carried the day for the Bills, but his 197 receiving yards wasn’t enough. Jacksonville’s ‘D’ held the Bills off for an 18-15 squeaker.
New York Giants escapes with an OT win against Atlanta 34-31: The Giants snapped a four game losing streak despite allowing Atlanta to tie it up with less than 30 seconds left in regulation. Falcons’ running back Jason Snelling did his part starting in place of the injured Michael Turner as he scored twice and ran for 76 yards but it wasn’t enough.
New Orleans rolled over Tampa Bay 38-7: The Saints remain undefeated at 10-0 behind a great day for their defense and running back Mike Bell who played in place of the injured Reggie Bush. He found the end zone twice and Drew Brees threw for three TDs.
Dallas beat Washington 7-6: Sounds like a baseball score doesn’t it? But it was slower than that if you can believe it. Dallas put its only points on the board with 2:41 remaining in the game on a throw from Tony Romo to Patrick Crayton. Just plain ugly; but still a win.
Minnesota beat Seattle 35-9: You knew the game was over when you saw Vikings’ QB Tavaris Jackson take the field early in the fourth quarter. He connected with Sidney Rice for a TD, Rice’s second on the day. Favre threw for 4TDs and the Vikings’ ‘D’ overwhelmed Matt Hasselbeck.
In other games: Arizona defeated St. Louis 21-13, San Diego knocked off the spiraling Denver Broncos 32-3, New England beat the Jets 31-14, Oakland squeaked out a 20-17 victory over the Bengals and the Bears continued to struggle losing 24-20 to the Eagles.
Tired of the same old sports page? Then check out Paula Duffy’s insightful (and often humorous) take on the sports day at her Examiner.com page! The popular co-host for Sports Journey Radio is also a contributor to the Huffington Post and founder of the sports learning site Incidental Contact. In her spare time, Duffy practices law in Los Angeles. But don’t hold that against her.