NFL Early Games Week 3

There are eight games kicking off this morning, and we begin with...

The Cincinnati Bengals hosting the San Francisco 49ers. Cincinnati opened with a field goal of 25 yards by Mike Nugent. This would be the score that was taken into halftime after a silent second quarter. San Francisco got a tying field goal in the third quarter off of David Akers' boot, a 23 yard kick. The Bengals replied with their own 23 yard field goal in the fourth, courtesy of Nugent. The 49ers took the lead when Kendall Hunter ran 7 yards for a touchdown, and Akers made both a PAT and a FG of 53 yards for a 13-6 lead. Cincinnati would get a free two points as Andy Lee, punter for San Francisco took an intentional safety to save a 13-8 win. The 49ers go to 2-1 and the Bengals fall to 1-2.

Next, we have the Carolina Panthers hosting the Jacksonville Jaguars. Carolina got a sack by Greg Hardy on Blaine Gabbert, good for two points on the safety. The Panthers took a 5-0 lead (I've always wanted to type that) on Olindo Mare's 35 yard field goal. Jacksonville had a field goal of their own, namely Josh Scobee's 53 yard kick to make it 5-3. The Jaguars found the end zone (the correct one this time) with Gabbert's first NFL touchdown, a 36 yard strike to Mike Thomas, and Scobee had the extra point to make it 10-5 at halftime. Mare added on a field goal in the third quarter, going true from 32 yards away. The Panthers got the lead with Cam Newton finding Greg Olsen for 16 yards and a touchdown, and made it 16-10 with those two connecting again on the two point conversion. This was a final score, moving Carolina to 1-2 and Jacksonville down to the same mark.

Heading northwest, the Minnesota Vikings host the Detroit Lions. Minnesota led off with a Ryan Longwell field goal, coming from 33 yards away, and backed it up with a 41 yarder later in the quarter. Minnesota got a touchdown run from Adrian Peterson, a 6 yard rush finished off by Longwell with the extra point. Donovan McNabb went airborne for the next touchdown, passing to Visanthe Shiancoe for 8 yards, and Longwell topped it off with the extra point. The Vikings lead 20-0 at halftime. Detroit showed life in the third quarter as Matthew Stafford connected with Calvin Johnson for 32 yards and a touchdown. Jason Hanson added the extra point and another three later with his 28 yard field goal. In the fourth, Stafford and Johnson met up again for 5 yards and a TD, with Hanson making the PAT again, and adding field goals of 50 and 40 yards to take a 23-20 lead. Longwell replied to tie the game with a 49 yard field goal to the benefit of Minnesota. Detroit would take the game in overtime with Hanson blasting a 32 yard field goal through the uprights for a 26-23 win. The Lions remain undefeated at 3-0, and Minnesota fell to 0-3.

Backtracking to Tennessee, with the Titans hosting the Denver Broncos. Denver was the first into the scoring game as Kyle Orton found Matt Willis for 5 yards and a touchdown, followed by a Matt prater extra point. Tennessee tied it in the second with a touchdown pass of 14 yards from Matt Hasselbeck to Nate Washington, and Rob Bironas was there with the extra point. Bironas also kicked a 46 yard field goal. The Titans own a 10-7 lead going into the locker rooms. In the third quarter, Orton passed for a touchdown to Willis McGahee, and Prater was there for the extra point. Tennessee struck in the fourth quarter as Hasselbeck met up with Daniel Graham for 4 yards and a touchdown, and Bironas' extra point made it 17-14, the final in the Titans' favor. They went to 2-1 and they dropped their opponents to 1-2.

Into Ohio again, as the Cleveland Browns welcome the Miami (Florida) Dolphins. Miami opened up with a touchdown, a 10 yard Chad Henne pass to Daniel Thomas, and Dan Carpenter added the extra point. Colt McCoy responded in the second quarter with a 33 yard touchdown pass to Joshua Cribbs, and Phil Dawson's extra point tied the game. The Dolphins retook the lead on Carpenter's 23 yard field goal. Miami would lead 10-7 at the half. Dawson and Carpenter traded field goals in the third quarter, Dawson from 30 and Carpenter from 41 yards out. Carpenter added on another three points in the fourth quarter with a 38 yard FG, but the Browns stole the game late as McCoy and Mohamed Massaqoui found a connection of 14 yards and a touchdown, Dawson's extra point being the difference in the 17-16 Cleveland win. They improved to 2-1 and kept the Dolphins winless at 0-3.

Big NFC East matchup comes next, as the Philadelphia Eagles kickoff against the New York Giants. New York got a big play to take an early lead, as Eli Manning and Brandon Jacobs made a 40 yard touchdown connection, and Lawrence Tynes added the extra point. Manning had another big pass, going 74 yards to Victor Cruz for a touchdown, and Tynes once again had the extra point. Alex Henery put Philadelphia on the board with a 21 yard field goal. The Eagles gained more ground with LeSean McCoy rushing 11 yards for a touchdown, and Henery tacked on the extra point. Henery's last second field goal from 38 yards away made the score at halftime 14-13 Giants. Henery kept kicking in the third quarter with his 21 yard field goal. The Giants went back to work in the fourth though, and Manning found Cruz once more on a 28 yard touchdown, capped off with a Jacobs two point conversion. Manning would go to the air again for a touchdown later, finding Ahmad Bradshaw for 18 yards and a score, with Tynes finalizing the score at 29-16 on his extra point. New York advanced to 2-1 and dropped their rival Philadelphia to 1-2.

Down south, the New Orleans Saints and Houston Texans go out it. Houston was first on the board with a Matt Schaub touchdown pass of 14 yards to Owen Daniels, and Neil Rackers added the extra point, plus a later field goal of 22 yards. New Orleans got on the board with a 30 yard rush by Darren Sproles, a touchdown run polished off by John Kasay with the extra point. Rackers added a pair 27 yard field goals for the Texans to gain a little separation. The Saints took three back with Kasay kicking a 35 yard field goal. Houston took a 16-10 lead into the half. New Orleans took off in the third with a Drew Brees touchdown pass to Robert Meachem for 2 yards, and Kasay had the extra point. Houston briefly took the lead back on a Rackers field goal from 36 yards. They padded the lead with Schaub finding James Casey for 26 yards and a touchdown, which Rackers added the extra point on. The Saints came back with a rather quick fifteen points to erase the deficit, as Brees passed 27 yards for a touchdown to Jimmy Graham and extra point by Kasay, followed by Brees and Lance Moore for 16 yards and the score, and meeting again for two more. The Texans got a one point lead as Schaub and Kevin Walter found gold on a 20 yard touchdown pass, with Rackers making the extra point. The Saints made it far more difficult though, as Mark Ingram ran 13 yards for a touchdown, and Brees passed to Moore again for another two point conversion, putting the score at 40-33, the eventual final. The Saints improved to 2-1 and took Houston off the undefeated list, moving them to 2-1 as well.

Finally, in upstate New York, the Buffalo Bills welcome the New England Patriots. New England took no time to dent the scoreboard, as Tom Brady connected for a touchdown with Wes Welker, a 14 yard play capped off by Stephen Gostkowski with the PAT, and he made the extra point on Brady's next golden TD pass, a 1 yard strike finding Rob Gronkowski. Exactly one quarter later, the terrific twosome would hook up again, this time for 26 yards a touchdown, and Gostkowski cordially obliged to kick the extra point. Buffalo found the scoreboard with a Ryan Fitzpatrick touchdown pass to Stevie Johnson, going 11 yards for the score, finished off by Rian Lindell with the extra point. Lindell also tacked on a late field goal to make it 21-10, the kick coming from 42 yards just before halftime. In the third quarter, Fitzpatrick found Scott Chandler for a 3 yard touchdown, and Lindell made the extra point. Gostkowski lessened the pain with a 23 field goal for the Patriots. Fred Jackson stirred it up for the Bills in the fourth, running a yard for a touchdown, allowing Lindell to tie it with the extra point. Drayton Florence then intercepted Brady and took it home 27 yards for a touchdown, giving Buffalo a seven point lead after Lindell kicked the PAT. Brady threw his next touchdown to the right team, finding Welker again for 6 yards, and Gostkowski made it 31 all with the extra point. Lindell would put the nail in the coffin at the last second, giving Buffalo a 34-31 win with a 28 yard field goal. The Bills are now at 3-0 (who would have guessed it?) while their division rivals fell to 2-1.