NFL Early Games week 12

Seven games in the first wave of kickoffs. We begin in...

Atlanta, with the Falcons hosting the Minnesota Vikings. Matt Ryan got Atlanta moving with his 27 yard touchdown pass to Harry Douglas, and Matt Bryant made the extra point. The Falcons added on in the second quarter with Ryan finding Roddy White for 6 yards and a touchdown, and Bryant again nailed the extra point. At halftime, the score was 17-0 with Bryant successfully kicking a 37 yard field goal for Atlanta. Minnesota got going in the third quarter on a 1 yard touchdown run by Toby Gerhart, and Ryan Longwell supplied the extra point. The Vikings pulled closer in the fourth quarter as Christian Ponder and Percy Harvin met up for a 39 yard touchdown reception, and Longwell made another PAT. The Falcons gained some separation with a Ryan touchdown to Michael Palmer, going 3 yards for the score, and Bryant had the extra point. The final would be 24-14, and the Falcons jumped up to 7-4, while the Vikings plummeted to 2-9.

Northwest to Indianapolis, with the Colts hosting the Carolina Panthers. Carolina opened with a 40 yard Olindo Mare field goal. The Panthers pushed farther ahead in the second quarter with Cam Newton rushing 14 yards for a touchdown, and Mare tacked on the extra point. Indianapolis replied with a touchdown run of 17 yards by Donald Brown, and Adam Vinatieri made the extra point. The Colts tied it at 10 for halftime with Vinatieri's 43 yard field goal. Carolina took the lead back on a 25 yard touchdown run for DeAngelo Williams, and Mare once more had the PAT. Vinatieri pulled Indianapolis closer with a 31 yard field goal. Williams extended the Panthers lead with his second touchdown of the day, a 2 yard rush, and Mare made the extra point. Curtis Painter got the Colts back within striking distance on a 56 yard touchdown pass to Reggie Wayne, but he failed to connect the two point attempt to Austin Collie. Carolina put it away on Mare's 41 yard field goal, making it 27-19, and they staved off the furious attempt to tie by Indianapolis. Carolina is now 3-8 while the nightmare season for the Colts stays dark at 0-11.

Staying in the AFC South against NFC South mindset, the Tennessee Titans welcomed in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Tampa Bay would strike first with a 43 yard Connor Barth field goal. Tennessee took the lead on the ensuing kick off, as Marc Mariani returned the ball 16 yards and tossed a lateral to Tommie Campbell, who ran 84 yards for the touchdown. Rob Bironas made the extra point. Bironas extended the lead in the second quarter for the Titans, with a 31 yard field goal. The Buccaneers tied it before halftime and took the 10 all game into the locker room, produced by a Josh Freeman pass of 3 yards to Mike Williams, and Berth was there on the PAT. Tampa Bay took the lead again in the third quarter as Aqib Talib intercepted Matt Hasselbeck and took it home 27 yards for the touchdown, with Barth subsequently making the extra point. Bironas got Tennessee closer again with a 52 yard field goal in the fourth quarter. The Titans took the lead when Hasselbeck met up with Damian Williams for a 2 yard touchdown, and Bironas made the extra point. Tennessee made it 23-17 on Bironas' 38 yard field goal. This was a final, and the Titans go to 6-5 while Tampa Bay is 4-7.

The rest of the AFC South played against themselves, as the Jacksonville Jaguars hosted the Houston Texans. Jacksonville was first to dent the scoreboard, as Ashton Youboty picked up an Arian Foster fumble and returned it for a touchdown from 38 yards out, and Josh Scobee added on the extra point. Foster made up for the Fo-pas with a 1 yard touchdown rush, and Neil Rackers' extra point tied the game. The Jaguars took the lead back in the second quarter with a 21 yard Scobee field goal. The Texans quickly replied with Matt Leinart throwing 20 yards to Joel Dreessen for a touchdown, and Rackers had another PAT. Rackers made it 20-10 Houston before halftime with a pair of field goals, coming from 53 and 33 yards out. After a silent third quarter, Jacksonville made it 20-13 in the fourth with Scobee's 35 yard field goal, but they would go no further and lost by that margin. Houston is now 8-3 and the Jaguars are 3-8.

Westward to St. Louis, with the Rams hosting the Arizona Cardinals. St. Louis opened on a punt return of 88 yards by Nick Miller, and Josh Brown handled the extra point. Arizona got on the board with a Jay Feely field goal of 29 yards. Brown made it 10-3 Rams before halftime with a 35 yard field goal. Feely got the Cardinals going in the third quarter with a 37 yard field goal. Beanie Wells added on for Arizona, giving them the lead with a 7 yard touchdown run, and Feely had the PAT. The Cardinals padded the lead with Patrick Peterson returning a punt 80 yards for a touchdown, and Feely again made the extra point. Brown pulled St. Louis back into the game early in the fourth quarter on a 48 yard field goal. The Rams tied the game when Sam Bradford met up for a 16 yard touchdown pass to Brandon Lloyd, and Brown's extra point was the tying point. Arizona would have none of it, allowing Feely to kick a 22 yard field goal to take a 23-20 lead. The defense held on from there to give them the win, advancing them to 4-7 while sending the Rams reeling to 2-9.

Back to the northeast, where the New York Jets welcome the Buffalo Bills to East Rutherford, New Jersey. Buffalo was first on the board with a Ryan Fitzpatrick touchdown pass to David Nelson for 8 yards, and Dave Rayner kicked the extra point. New York tied it in the second quarter with Mark Sanchez throwing 3 yards to Dustin Keller for a touchdown, and Nick Folk handled the extra point. The Bills regained the lead on a Fitzpatrick touchdown to Stevie Johnson for 5 yards, and after Johnson "shot himself in the leg a la opponent Plaxico Burress," Rayner put up the extra point. Sanchez helped Burress get revenge for the Jets, throwing him a 14 yard touchdown, and Folk's extra point would be the last of the half, for a 14 all tie into the locker rooms. New York took the lead in the third quarter with Sanchez finding Keller again, an 18 yard touchdown play, capped off with a Folk PAT. Buffalo kept pace with Fitzpatrick tossing Brad Smith a 36 yard touchdown, and Rayner supplied the extra point. Rayner gave the Bills the lead in the fourth quarter on a 53 yard field goal, but it would prove to be their demise. The Jets answered with a Sanchez touchdown pass to Santonio Holmes, a 16 yard pass play, and Folk made it 28-24 with the extra point. Buffalo could not overcome this, and lost, dropping to 5-6 while New York surged up to 6-5.

Finally, the Battle for Ohio roars on in Cincinnati, as the Bengals welcome the Cleveland Browns. Cleveland struck first with Colt McCoy throwing a 24 yard touchdown to Jordan Norwood, and Phil Dawson added on the extra point. Cincinnati replied on a Cedric Benson touchdown run of 16 yards, and Mike Nugent made the extra point. Dawson gave the Browns the lead in the second quarter with a 32 yard field goal. Cleveland extended the lead to 17-7 at halftime with McCoy throwing a 3 yard touchdown to Greg Little and Dawson's extra point. The Bengals got it together in the third quarter with a 23 yard Nugent field goal. Dawson moved the Browns back to a 10 point lead with a 54 yard field goal. Cincinnati answered with Andy Dalton's 22 yard touchdown to Jermaine Gresham, and Nugent had the PAT. The Bengals would take the game 23-20 with field goals of 40 and 26 yards in the fourth quarter, and a stout defensive effort to prevent further Cleveland scoring. Cincinnati is now 7-4 while the Browns tumble to 4-7.