NFL WEEK IN REVIEW - WEEK 5

Week 5 - NFL Week In Review

NFL GAME BY GAME SUMMARIES - NFL WEEK IN REVIEW - WEEK 5

Week 5 - Final Score: Detroit 35, Baltimore 17

Detroit, MI - (MySportsbook.com) - Kevin Jones had two touchdown runs and Dre' Bly added two interceptions with a forced fumble and recovery, as Detroit defeated Baltimore 35-17 in a game that saw the Ravens take 21 penalties and lose two players to ejections at Ford Field. Jones had 26 carries for 58 yards to go with the two scores, as the Lions (2-2) had their best offensive production of the season. They had scored 36 total points in their previous three games. Anthony Wright went 20-of-37 for 230 yards, getting two touchdowns along with two interceptions for the Ravens (1-3), who shattered the previous franchise record of 14 penalties in a game. On an 18-play, 73-yard touchdown drive by Detroit, the Ravens lost Terrell Suggs and B.J. Ward, who were ejected on separate plays after both players had made contact with an official.

The Lions got the first score of the game when Jones took the ball untouched into the end zone on a 14-yard run. The score was set up when Bly picked off Wright and the Lions had the ball in Ravens territory. After a three-and-out series by the Ravens, Detroit was driving when an apparent incomplete pass by Joey Harrington was ruled a fumble. Since the whistle had not been blown Jones picked up the ball and took it past several Ravens before being brought down on the Baltimore two-yard line. The play was reviewed but was allowed to stand. Two plays later Jones punched the ball in on a one-yard run for his second touchdown of the day, giving Detroit a 14-0 lead. The Ravens were driving on their next possession, getting the ball into Detroit territory, when Earl Holmes forced Ovie Mughelli to fumble the ball after a reception. Cory Redding recovered the ball for the Lions.

The Baltimore defense stepped up after the fumble with Suggs picking off Harrington, the Ravens' first interception of the season, and taking the ball to the Detroit 19-yard line. But four plays later Wright tried to force a pass between several Lions defenders and Bly wound up with the ball for his second pick of the game. "I'm just trying to make plays. If you have instincts and playmaking skills, you will make plays," said Bly. The Ravens offense came alive for their first touchdown in the first half this season. After forcing the Lions to punt after the interception, Wright led his team down the field, including an 11-yard run, and capped it with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Jamal Lewis, which made the score 14-7. On the next possession Harrington was picked off by Chris McAllister. This came after three defensive holding penalties helped get the Lions to the Baltimore 47-yard line. McAllister was called for unsportsmanlike conduct after the pick for taunting Kevin Johnson, giving the Ravens the ball on their own six-yard line.

"It's unfortunate. That's all I can say. I shouldn't have threw the ball down regardless if it was this week or last week. I don't have the right to slam the ball down on anybody," said McAllister. After exchanging punts the Ravens drove the ball into Lions territory and capped the five-play, 34-yard drive with a 46-yard Matt Stover field goal to pull within 14-10 at the half. Baltimore had the first possession of the second half but had to punt the ball away. Detroit then held the ball for 9:38 on an 18-play drive that culminated with a one-yard touchdown run by Artose Pinner for a 21-10 lead. Jones ran the ball 10 times on the drive, which included two unsportsmanlike calls on the Ravens, one of which resulted in the ejection of Suggs after he made contact with the official who called him for roughing the passer.

On the extra-point attempt the Ravens lost another player to an ejection, as Ward was thrown out for making contact with the official after McAllister was called for a personal foul. "Clearly what happened out there was giving into the emotion of the situation," said Ravens coach Brian Billick. "Passion, emotion and intensity are good, but they've always got to be under control and we clearly didn't have it today." After a 50-yard punt return to the Baltimore 19 by R.W. McQuarters, with Baltimore giving Detroit another 10 yards on a face mask call, the Lions made it 28-10 on a two-yard Harrington TD pass to Casey Fitzsimmons. The Ravens responded with an 11-play, 89-yard drive. Wright connected with Todd Heap for a 48-yard play, which got them down to the Detroit four-yard line. Two plays later Wright hit Heap again for a six-yard touchdown, making the score 28-17 with 8:59 left in the game.

Detroit quickly reestablished its 18-point lead just under two minutes later, as Shawn Bryson took the ball right up the middle for a 77-yard touchdown run to kill any hopes of the Ravens making a comeback. "This is a good win and a good response to our last loss," said Lions coach Steve Mariucci.

Game Notes

The Ravens won the last meeting between these teams, 19-10 in 1998...Lewis became second Ravens player to amass over 7,000 scrimmage yards (Jermaine Lewis, 8001)...The Lions lost wide receivers Eddie Drummond and Roy Williams to leg injuries...Detroit is home against Carolina next week...The Ravens host Cleveland next week.

Week 5 - Final Score: Buffalo 20, Miami 14

Buffalo, NY - (MySportsbook.com) - Kelly Holcomb threw a touchdown pass in his first start of the year to energize a struggling Buffalo offense, but the Bills nearly blew a big lead and had to hold on for a 20-14 victory over the Miami Dolphins at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Holcomb completed 20-of-26 passes for 169 yards, helping the Bills race out to a 17-0 first-half lead, but Miami rallied with 14 unanswered points before a late field goal and a big turnover helped Buffalo (2-3) snap a three-game losing streak. Gus Frerotte threw for 226 yards with a pair of touchdowns for Miami (2-2), but he contributed to the five Dolphin turnovers with three interceptions. The Dolphins, coming off their bye week, were sloppy all over the field. In addition to the miscues, Miami committed a franchise-high 18 penalties for 102 yards. A Rian Lindell field goal with 4:35 to play gave Buffalo a six-point edge, but the Dolphins quickly moved from their own 29 to the Buffalo 25. Frerotte then hit Ronnie Brown with a pass out of the backfield for 11 yards, but the rookie was stripped of the ball as he was tackled and former Dolphin Troy Vincent recovered the fumble with 1:37 remaining.

The play was reviewed to determine if Brown's knee had first hit the turf, but the call on the field stood. "It was a key mistake," said Brown of his fumble. "I think we had a pretty good chance of scoring on that drive. It's behind me now. I've got to come in and look forward to next week. I can't keep it on my mind. I just have to go out and get better and make sure things like that don't happen." Buffalo couldn't run out the remaining time and punted it back to Miami with 21 seconds to play. The Dolphins had the ball near midfield, but Frerotte was sacked twice to end the contest. "It's a big win for this football team," said Bills head coach Mike Mularkey. "We needed a win. It became a close game, closer than we wanted it to be, but we have to win close games at the end and when we needed big plays, guys made them." Miami managed just 106 yards in the first half and trailed 17-0, but put together a 90-yard drive midway through the third quarter to reach the end zone. A 52-yard pass from Frerotte to Marty Booker keyed the series and Brown added a 28-yard run to the Buffalo one before Frerotte found Will Heller in the end zone on the next play to make it 17-7.

The Dolphins forced a quick Buffalo punt and got the ball right back, but Frerotte tried for the deep ball on the second play and had his underthrown pass intercepted by Nate Clements at the Buffalo 26. After a trade of punts, the Dolphins recovered a fumble by Holcomb at the Buffalo 35-yard line with 9:45 to play and cashed in just three plays later when Frerotte threw a perfect strike to Randy McMichael for a 30-yard touchdown. McMichael, though, was called for taunting as he held the ball out toward a Buffalo defender while crossing the goal line. The resulting 15-yard penalty was assessed on the kickoff and Terrence McGee followed with a 53-yard return to give the Bills possession at the Miami 33. The Miami defense held and forced Lindell's 47-yard field goal. The Bills have yet to score a second-half touchdown this season and mustered just 75 yards of offense in the second half. "We didn't make any third downs [in the second half]," said Holcomb. "The first half we were able to keep drives going."

The first half was much different, as Buffalo scored on its first three possessions with Holcomb at the helm in place of the benched J.P. Losman. "I'm not worried about that to be honest with you," Holcomb said when asked if he would remain the starter. "All I knew is that I was playing this game. That's the coach's decision." The Bills took the opening kickoff and quickly marched 67 yards in eight plays for a touchdown. Willis McGahee converted an early third down with a three- yard run and Lee Evans turned a short pass from Holcomb into a 49-yard gain that set up a first down at the Miami one-yard line. McGahee scored from there on his second attempt to put Buffalo ahead early. The Dolphins went three and out and the Bills followed with another scoring drive from their own 43. Holcomb completed passes of 15 and 11 yards during the 11-play march, but the Miami defense stiffened after Buffalo had 1st-and- goal inside the one. McGahee was stopped on a pair of carries and a pass to fullback Daimon Shelton lost five yards, forcing Lindell to kick a 24-yard field goal for a 10-0 lead.

The Miami special teams then gave Buffalo great field position on the final play of the first quarter. A punt snap rolled to Donnie Jones, who then lost control of the football and the Bills recovered at the Miami 45-yard line. Holcomb then directed a 12-play drive for another Buffalo touchdown. Two Miami penalties on third downs extended the series, including a defensive holding call against linebacker Donnie Spragan on a sack that would have forced a field goal. "You can't take penalty after penalty after penalty," said Dolphins defensive back Sam Madison. "That's something we have to set ourselves up not to do and just maintain our focus." Instead, the Bills gained a first down at the three-yard line and Holcomb made it pay off with a two-yard touchdown pass to Eric Moulds on third down to make it 17-0 with 8:08 to play in the half. The Dolphins finally mounted an offensive threat on their next series, driving from their own 35 to the Buffalo four. But a false start penalty pushed them back five yards and Frerotte had a pass picked off by McGee in the end zone. The Bills finally punted, but got the ball right back when Frerotte had a deep pass intercepted by Vincent. "Buffalo won the game and I give them credit," said Dolphins defensive end Jason Taylor. "They've been through a lot and they've been struggling and had the whole quarterback situation this week, so I give them credit. But you can't tell me they beat us. We lost the game, but they didn't beat us."

Game Notes

The previous Miami record for penalties in a game was 14, set on October 1, 1995 at Cincinnati and matched on November 3, 1996 at New England...McMichael is the only receiver with a touchdown catch in each of his team's games this season. He is also the first Dolphin with a TD reception in each of the team's first four games since Mark Duper in 1984...Brown finished with 97 yards on 17 carries, falling three yards shy of becoming the first Dolphin rookie to have consecutive 100-yard rushing games since Bennie Malone in 1974...The season series between these teams has resulted in sweeps each of the last six years. The Bills will try to continue that trend on December 4 in Miami...McGahee had 86 yards on 31 carries...Evans' catch on the first drive gave him 1,000 receiving yards for his career.

Week 5 - Final Score: Green Bay 52, New Orleans 3

Green Bay, WI - (MySportsbook.com) - Brett Favre threw for 215 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Green Bay Packers to their first win of the season with a 52-3 trouncing of the New Orleans Saints at Lambeau Field. Favre, who will turn 36 on Monday, completed 19-of-27 passes without an interception to help the Packers (1-4) become the final NFC team to get a victory this year. The win also ended the worst start to a season in the career of Favre, while Green Bay avoided its first 0-5 start since 1988. "It feels great," said Favre of the win. "I know we're not 52-3 better than the Saints, but I also know we're better than 0-4." Najeh Davenport, filling in for injured starter Ahman Green, had a pair of touchdown runs, but was forced to leave the game in the second quarter with a right ankle injury. Davenport, who did not return, ended with 54 yards on 12 carries. "This is one game and we certainly needed this one game," said Green Bay head coach Mike Sherman. "Our back was up against the wall, so it was nice to see them respond the way they responded."

Al Harris had two interceptions, returning one for a touchdown, as the Packers defense held New Orleans to a season-low in points and Green Bay converted five turnovers into 31 points. "It doesn't get any worse than that," Saints head coach Jim Haslett said. "We were just bad today...We just self destructed. We were awful." The club also recorded its most points since scoring 55 on October 2, 1983 against Tampa Bay and largest margin of victory since October 23, 1966 in a 56-3 win over Atlanta. Aaron Brooks ended 9-of-22 for 146 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions and was pulled midway through the third quarter for New Orleans (2-3), which failed to follow up its win in Week 5 with an another victory.

Az-Zahir Hakim had 108 yards on five catches for the Saints, who allowed a season-high in points and scored their fewest points since being shutout 38-0 in the final game of the 2001 season by San Francisco. The Saints have dropped three of their last four games and are averaging just 9.6 points per game in those three setbacks. New Orleans jumped out to a 3-0 lead courtesy of a 33-yard field goal by John Carney, but that was all the offense the Saints would get. Davenport capped Green Bay's second possession with a one-yard TD run, marking the first rushing score of the season for the Packers. The big play of the 68- yard drive was a 3rd-and-9 completion from Favre to Donald Driver for 13 yards. Then, on the Saints' ensuing possession, Brooks had his second-down pass intended for Donte Stallworth in the flat intercepted by Harris, who returned the pick 22 yards for a 14-3 lead.

Harris then intercepted Brooks again on the Saints ensuing possession, setting up another touchdown. The pick came at the end of the first quarter, giving Green Bay the ball at its own 32 to start the second stanza. Again it was Davenport running in, this time from four yards out, to highlight the 10-play, 68-yard drive that took over six minutes off the clock. His 24- yard run during the march was the longest from scrimmage for the Packers this year. Later in the quarter, Favre threw his first touchdown pass of the game, hitting Robert Ferguson with a 25-yard strike for a 28-3 lead with 6:42 left until the break. Ferguson finished with three catches for 84 yards. New Orleans committed its third turnover of the half with under a minute to play in the quarter when Ernie Conwell fumbled a reception that was recovered by Kenny Peterson and returned to the Saints' 34. A 15-yard face mask penalty added 15 yards to the end of the return and Favre needed just two plays to put his team well ahead.

This time Favre hit David Martin with a one-yard touchdown pass as the Packers tallied 35 first-half points for the first time in 13 years. Favre added to the lead in the third quarter, hitting Donald Lee with a 26- yard scoring pass. Ryan Longwell also hit a 26-yard field goal in the stanza, sending the Packers into the final 15 minutes with 45-3 cushion. Packers rookie quarterback Aaron Rodgers entered the game in the fourth quarter and completed the lone pass he attempted. Todd Bouman replaced Brooks and finished 5-of-13 for 31 yards. His pass in the fourth quarter intended for Hakim in the end zone was picked off by Nick Barnett and returned 95 yards for a touchdown. New Orleans running back Deuce McAllister ended with just 31 yards on 11 carries, leaving the game in the third quarter with a right knee sprain. McAllister also had three catches for 33 yards.

Game Notes

Favre has seven touchdown passes in his last two games...In its last six quarters dating back the second half of Green Bay's Week 5 loss in Carolina, the Packers have scored 74 points and allowed just 12...Green Bay last scored 35 points in the first half on December 6, 1992 at home versus Detroit...Carney missed a pair of 43-yard field goals in the first half...Green missed the game with a thigh injury...Saints WR Joe Horn also sat out his second straight contest with a hamstring ailment...Driver has a catch in 53 straight games, which is fourth best in team history. He ended with five catches for 48 yards...Harris' INT return for the TD was the third of his career...Barnett's INT for the TD was the second longest in franchise history.

Week 5 - Final Score: NY Jets 14, Tampa Bay 12

East Rutherford, NJ - (MySportsbook.com) - Curtis Martin scored twice and Vinny Testaverde threw for 163 yards to lead the New York Jets past the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 14-12, at the Meadowlands. Testaverde, who was drafted by Tampa Bay way back in 1987, completed 13-of-19 passes for the Jets (2-3), who won for the first time in three weeks and defeated the Bucs for the eighth time in their nine all-time matchups. "These guys we were playing against are a good football team," head coach Herm Edwards said after the game. "Vinny Testaverde did a good job. You are talking about a guy who was sitting home [two weeks ago]. He came in a got us off the carpet. He made some good throws in the passing game." The 41-year-old Testaverde, who was signed by the Jets after the shoulder injuries to Chad Pennington and Jay Fiedler in the Week 3 loss to Jacksonville, completed 10-of-12 passes for 120 yards in the second half to secure the win. Brian Griese was 27-of-42 for 226 yards and a pick for Tampa Bay (4-1), which suffered its first loss of the season and was denied its first 5-0 start since 1997. Buccaneers head coach Jon Gruden also lost to the Jets for only the second time in five meetings.

"It is a credit to Vinny Testaverde and the Jets coaching staff," said Gruden. "He made some good throws and our guys could not get to him. We just didn't get it done and they did." Tampa was without rookie running back Carnell "Cadillac" Williams, who missed the game with a sprained foot and a hamstring injury. Trailing by two at the half, 9-7, the Jets took the opening possession of the second half 59 yards in 5:55 to grab their first lead of the contest, as Martin's one-yard plunge on fourth down put them ahead. New York had the ball for just 7:10 in the first half, but kept it for 12:30 during the third quarter. Tampa, though, had a chance late in the game. After a Testaverde interception, Griese drove the Bucs all the way down to the Jets 12, but had to settle for a 30-yard Matt Bryant field goal to make it 14-12 with four minutes to go. The Buccaneers got the ball back with a minute to play and no timeouts, but the clock ran out as Joey Galloway hauled in a pass at the New York 34.

"Our defense came in with the mindset that they were not going to let them score many points, and they did do that," Edwards said. "They held them to field goals. When you can do that, it will not be a high-scoring game, and you are always in the game. That was good to see." Neither team was able to get much going offensively in the first half, but Tampa managed to grab a six-point advantage on the strength of two field goals, thanks in most part to a slew of New York errors. The Jets forced to Tampa to kick after three plays to open the game, but Jerricho Cotchery fumbled the punt, which the Bucs recovered at the New York 38. Tampa then hit the scoreboard later in the drive on Bryant's 35-yard field goal.

On New York's opening possession, Testaverde drove the Jets down to the Tampa 22, but Mike Nugent's 40-yard field goal attempt was off the mark. Testaverde was 3-of-4 on the drive for 43 yards. Tampa's next field goal was again the product of another Jets miscue. After New York had an interception called back due to an illegal contact penalty from Ty Law, Bryant made the most of the opportunity later in the march and booted a 36-yard field goal to make it 6-0 with 11:21 remaining in the half. The Jets finally took advantage of a Tampa mistake to get on the board. Law made up for his mistake from earlier in the game, as he stepped in front of a Griese pass and returned it down to the Tampa eight. Two plays later Martin scored and New York had a 7-6 lead. Martin's score was his first of the season and the first for the Jets since Pennington went down in Week 3.

Tampa, though, went back in front right before the half, again due to a New York mistake. This time after Law had an interception called back because of a penalty, Bryant booted his third field goal of the half, this one from 43 yards and the Bucs carried a 9-7 edge into the locker room. The Jets managed just 59 yards of offense with three first downs in the opening 30 minutes.

Game Notes Jets backup running back Derrick Blaylock fractured his foot during the contest and will miss the remainder of the season...Griese was sacked three times, as the Bucs have now allowed a sack in 22 straight games...Michael Pittman started in place of Williams and finished with 46 yards on 13 carries...Edwards was Tampa's assistant coach from 1996-00...Jets WR Laveranues Coles caught six passes for 89 yards...Galloway ended with 87 yards on five catches.

Week 5 - Final Score: Cleveland 20, Chicago 10

Cleveland, OH - (MySportsbook.com) - Trent Dilfer hit Antonio Bryant with two fourth-quarter touchdown passes just 38 seconds apart to help the Browns defeat the Bears, 20-10, at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Dilfer was 23-of-34 for 218 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions, as Cleveland (2-2) won for the first time in its last seven home games. Bryant had six catches for 83 yards and Reuben Droughns added 17 carries for 72 yards in the victory. Kyle Orton was 16-of-26 for 117 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions and Thomas Jones carried the ball 24 times for 137 yards for the Bears (1-3), who fell to 10-7 all-time after a bye. Dilfer threw a 33-yard touchdown pass to Bryant with 3:02 left in the fourth quarter to put the Browns ahead 13-10. After the Browns recovered an Orton fumble, Dilfer connected with Bryant again, this time for 28 yards, to give Cleveland a 20-10 advantage.

The Browns drew first blood late in the first quarter after Gary Baxter hit Mark Bradley, causing a fumble that was recovered by Ray Mickens and returned to the Chicago 18. But Cleveland could only get as far as the two-yard line, settling for a 19-yard field goal from Phil Dawson. Mike Brown helped the Bears get even after he stopped a Browns drive with an interception that he returned 72 yards to the Cleveland nine. The Bears lost 17 yards, but salvaged points after Robbie Gould booted a 44-yard field goal with 9:01 remaining in the half. Cleveland regained a 6-3 lead after Dilfer ran the two-minute drill for 36 yards in eight plays, culminating in a 44-yard field goal from Dawson with 37 seconds left in the first half. Chicago took its first lead of the game in the third quarter when Orton hit Marc Edwards on a screen pass that he ran in from eight yards out to put the Bears ahead 10-6. That capped a 12-play, 93-yard drive that ate 6:18 off the clock.

Game Notes

The Bears have lost their last five road games, with their last win coming at Tennessee, 19-17 in OT, on November 14, 2004...Gould replaced veteran Doug Brien, who traveled to Cleveland but missed the game with a back injury sustained while running sprints 10 days ago at Halas Hall...Jones, who rushed for his third straight 100-yard game, left the contest due to a right knee sprain...The Browns have not lost consecutive games to Bears in 13 all-time meetings. Cleveland leads the all-time series 9-4 and has won three of last four meetings...In five career home starts versus Chicago, Dilfer is 5-0. He has also thrown 101 career TD passes...Dilfer and Kenard Lang made their 100th career NFL starts...The Browns have forced a turnover in a league-best 17 consecutive games...Dawson (8-for-8) is one of four kickers in NFL with six- plus field-goal tries without a miss...The Browns had last won at home against Cincinnati on October 17, 2004 (34-17)...Cleveland wide receiver Braylon Edwards did not play because of an elbow infection...Cleveland's defense forced three fumbles.

NFL Week In Review - Page 1 - 2 - 3

Game Capsules Used With Permission By Our Sponsor MySportsbook.com

Week 1 . 2 . 3 . 4 . 5 . 6 . 7 . 8 . 9 . 10 . 11 . 12 . 13 . 14 . 15 . 16 . 17

Top | NFL Weekly Reviews | NFL Football Betting at NFL Sportsbooks