So the Indianapolis Colts stayed perfect and New England Patriots signal-caller Tom Brady looked like Tom Terrible instead of Tom Terrific on Sunday in a 27-20 slugfest.
The NFL season is halfway over, and right now all we know is that the Colts beat the Patriots in the regular season. Keep in mind, though, the team still hasn't proved itself in the postseason, and you can't count the Pats out just yet.
The stage was set for a classic Brady drive to tie the game in the final minutes, but a botched catch by Kevin Faulk led to yet another interception on the second play of the series and destroyed any chance of a miracle finish. Brady finished the night 20-for-35 for 201 yards with zero touchdowns and an uncharacteristic four interceptions. Colts quarterback Payton Manning on the other hand was consistent as ever, throwing for 326 yards on 20-of-36 attempts for two TDs and one pick.
The game started strong for the Patriots as they drove down the field, but an errant Brady pass picked off in the end zone ended any chance for the Pats to get on the board first. The one bright spot of the day came with Troy Brown's 534th catch as a Patriot, surpassing the previous New England record held by Stanley Morgan; but even that play was marred. Brown was penalized for taunting on his previous catch when he tied Morgan's record, although he was simply celebrating his milestone.
The often criticized Colts' defense finally woke up, and although they allowed 349 yards of offense, including 148 on the ground, they successfully kept Brady out of sorts all night. The Pats' defense held its own against Manning, but spectacular catches by Marvin Harrison kept the Patriot defense on its toes. Harrison finished the night with 145 yards on eight receptions and two touchdowns, including an acrobatic grab in third quarter.
While some had thought New England would end Indy's attempt at a perfect season, few could have predicted that the Miami Dolphins would hand the Chicago Bears their first loss. Neither field general was anything special, with Bears quarterback Rex Grossman throwing an ugly 18-for-42 for 210 yards and three interceptions. Dolphins QB Joey Harrington almost matched Grossman's poor numbers with a 16-for-32 showing on 137 yards with two picks but salvaged his day by tossing three touchdowns.
It was about defense and the rush for Miami, with defensive end Jason Taylor and running back Ronnie Brown leading the way. Taylor forced a fumble and returned an interception 20 yards for a touchdown, while Brown carried the ball 29 times for 157 yards. Despite Harrington's best efforts to hand the game to the Bears with his poor performance, the Dolphins were able to snap a four-game losing streak and leave the Bears an imperfect 7-1.
While the loss for the Bears only slightly tarnishes their stellar first half of the season, the wheels have completely come off for the Pittsburgh Steelers, who lost 31-20 on Sunday against the Denver Broncos. Falling to 2-6, it's time to scratch any chance of a Steelers' Super Bowl repeat.
Although he racked up numbers, going 38-for-54 for 433 yards, Ben Roethlisberger is not the same quarterback from last season. With three interceptions in Sunday's game and 14 picks for the season, some wonder if Big Ben returned to center too soon from his devastating pre-season motorcycle injury. But Roethlisberger's mistakes have only compounded an error-prone Steelers squad.
On Sunday it was the Javon Walker show for the Broncos. Walker tallied 134 yards receiving for two touchdowns, plus a 72-yard scoring run on a wide receiver reverse in the third quarter. Denver quarterback Jake Plummer played almost perfectly, completing 16-of-27 passes for 227 yards and three scores.
In other league play, Bill Parcells and his Dallas Cowboys continue to find ways to lose. Tied 19-19 with its archrival, the Washington Redskins, the Cowboys were set to kick the game-winning field goal in the final seconds of play, but Dallas kicker Mike Vanderjagt's attempt was blocked and recovered by Sean Taylor who returned the ball into Dallas territory. A 15-yard facemask penalty added to the end of Taylor's run gave Washington the chance to run one more play with no time left on the clock, and Skins kicker Nick Novak delivered with a 47-yard field goal to propel his team to victory.
With the New York Giants coming away with a closer-than-expected 14-10 victory over the Houston Texans, the lead in NFC East increased for the Giants, who moved to 6-2, with the Cowboys floundering at 4-4 along with the Philadelphia Eagles. The Giants will face a real challenge next week against the Bears as the Bears look to prevent a two game-skid.
