Steelers get points for originality

Pittsburgh slips past San Diego to claim NFL's first 11-10 win

The Packers' Ryan Grant ran through Chicago's vaunted defense for 145 yards and a touchdown. (Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

The only thing perfect on a snowy, frigid day when the weather and the offenses were equally awful was San Diego's regular-season record in Pittsburgh.

Make it 0-13, losing the first 11-10 final in NFL history.

Ben Roethlisberger stayed away from the mistakes that cost the Steelers their previous two home games, Willie Parker ran for 115 yards, and Jeff Reed's third field goal - a 32-yarder with 11 seconds remaining - rallied Pittsburgh (7-3) past the Chargers.

The unusual final score was the first in NFL history (spanning 12,837 games), and it was in jeopardy when Troy Polamalu returned an errant lateral 12 yards for an apparent touchdown on the final play. But the play was overturned on review - it was called an illegal forward pass - and the 11-10 final was restored.

Nate Kaeding put San Diego (4-6) ahead, 10-8, with a 22-yard field goal with 6:41 to play, after missing from 41 in the third quarter with the Steelers leading, 8-7.

Kaeding's miss came at Heinz Field's open end, where breezes blowing off the nearby three rivers cause tricky kicking conditions, but Reed made his decisive kick at the same end following a 13-play, 73-yard drive.

The Steelers outgained the Chargers, 410-213, but couldn't get into the end zone even as Roethlisberger went 31 of 41 for 308 yards, partly because they had 13 penalties for 115 yards to San Diego's two for 5 yards.

Roethlisberger wasn't intercepted after being picked off eight times, with only one touchdown pass, in his previous three games. No matter. The Steelers' only scoring drives ended with field goals of 21, 41, and 32 yards by Reed. Pittsburgh also had a safety in the first half.

A snow squall about 45 minutes before the late-afternoon kickoff left Heinz Field's grass surface snowy white at the start and snow splotches remained the rest of the game.

Colts 33, Texans 27

Peyton Manning produced five straight scoring drives, twice erasing Houston leads, to spark host Indianapolis to its third straight victory.

Manning finished 30 of 46 for 320 yards with two touchdowns and magnificently mixed plays in the second half when Houston couldn't keep pace with the surging Colts (6-4), who rolled up a season-high 474 yards. Indy's supporting cast reverted to form, too - Joseph Addai ran for 105 yards and one TD, and Marvin Harrison caught nine passes for 77 yards and another score.

The combination flummoxed Houston's defense, which wasted Steve Slaton's best day of the season. Slaton ran 14 times for 156 yards, breaking the franchise's rookie record for a game, and he scored on a 71-yard run, the longest in team history. But it wasn't enough for the Texans (3-7) to avoid a third straight loss.

Broncos 24, Falcons 20

Jay Cutler threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to Daniel Graham with 5 1/2 minutes remaining and Denver's defense held off Matt Ryan's last-gasp drive as the Broncos handed Atlanta its first loss of the season at home.

Michael Turner scored on a 28-yard run to put Atlanta ahead, 20-17, with just under 11 minutes left, but the Broncos (6-4) rallied behind Cutler, who accounted for more than half the distance on the deciding 10-play, 83-yard drive. He connected for a 47-yard pass to Brandon Marshall, then on third and goal at the Atlanta 9, Cutler scrambled to his right and spotted Graham for the winning score.

Denver's defense loaded up on the line and held Michael Turner to 81 yards on 25 carries. The rookie Ryan had another strong game (20 of 33 for 250 yards), but he threw his first interception at home and his final bid at rallying the Falcons (6-4) slipped through the hands of top receiver Roddy White in the right corner of the end zone.

Cardinals 26, Seahawks 20

Kurt Warner completed 32 of 44 passes for 395 yards - his franchise-record fourth straight 300-yard game - and J.J. Arrington scored a pair of touchdowns as Arizona essentially knocked the Seahawks from their NFC West throne by winning in Seattle for the first time since 2002.

The Cardinals are 7-3 for the first time since 1977, when they were in St. Louis. Arizona can clinch its first division title since 1975 next week when it hosts the Giants and second-place San Francisco (four games back) plays at Dallas.

Seattle's Matt Hasselbeck was 17 of 29 for 170 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions in his first game in six weeks after a bulging disk in his back caused nerve issues down his leg. The loss handed exiting Mike Holmgren the first 2-8 start in his 17 years as a head coach.

Eagles 13, Bengals 13

Cincinnati's Shayne Graham missed a 47-yard field goal with seven seconds left in overtime, and the Bengals and visiting Philadelphia played the NFL's first tie game in six years.

The Eagles' Donovan McNabb fumbled and threw three interceptions in regulation, and nearly had another pass picked off in overtime. His gaffes not only doomed Philadelphia (5-4-1) offensively, they set up Cincinnati (1-8-1) for 10 points.

The Bengals had one last chance to break the deadlock, but Graham, who was 6 for 6 this season from 40-49 yards, sliced his kick just outside the right upright, leaving Cincinnati with just its second tie in franchise history and first since 1969. The NFL's last tie game was Nov. 10, 2002, when the Falcons and Steelers finished 34-34.

Packers 37, Bears 3

Ryan Grant ran for 145 yards and a touchdown and Aaron Rodgers passed for two scores for host Green Bay (5-5), which thoroughly dominated Chicago to forge a three-way tie atop the NFC North with the Bears and Minnesota.

Rodgers completed his first seven passes, including a 3-yard slant to Greg Jennings for a touchdown to take a 7-0 lead, and finished 23 of 30 for 227 yards. His only mistake was a second-quarter interception to Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher to end a potential scoring drive, but Grant picked up the Packers on their next possession, plunging in for a 4-yard score and a 14-3 lead.

Panthers 31, Lions 22

Jonathan Stewart rushed for a career-high 130 yards and a touchdown and DeAngelo Williams added 120 yards rushing and two more scores, leading Carolina to a franchise-record 264 yards on the ground in a home victory.

The Panthers (8-2) won their fourth straight game to surpass last year's win total and stay atop the NFC South, but it was a second consecutive sluggish performance that kept the Lions (0-10) within striking distance all day.

Saints 30, Chiefs 20

New Orleans (5-5) finally won on the road in its fifth attempt as Drew Brees, directing the NFL's top-ranked offense, threw for 266 yards and one touchdown against Kansas City's league-worst defense.

Tyler Thigpen's second touchdown pass to Dwayne Bowe brought the Chiefs (1-9) to within 27-20 with 13:54 left. But Brees led the Saints on a time-consuming, 12-play drive that was capped by Garrett Hartley's third field goal, a 35-yarder, to make it a 10-point game with 3:28 to go.

Buccaneers 19, Vikings 13

Jeff Garcia threw for 255 yards and scrambled for two first downs on a time-consuming go-ahead field goal drive in the fourth quarter, helping host Tampa Bay (7-3) hold off Minnesota (5-5), which turned the ball over on downs with 2:24 left and lost a fumble on its final possession.

49ers 35, Rams 16

Shaun Hill threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score during San Francisco's 28-point second quarter, and the 49ers (3-7) broke a six-game skid with interim coach Mike Singletary's first win, a rout of visiting St. Louis (2-8).