Best replacement QB: Kevin Kolb led the Eagles to a 31-17 win against Atlanta in relief of Michael Vick for the second straight week. Kolb went 23-for-39 for 326 yards with three TD passes and an INT, which could ignite speculation about whether coach Andy Reid will follow through on his promise to turn the starting job back over to Vick.
Best kick return: Minnesota's Percy Harvin ran the second-half kickoff back 95 yards for a TD against Dallas in the Vikings' 24-21 win.
Biggest surprise: Dallas ended the day at 1-4 and 2.5 games back in the NFC East. The Cowboys, who made a preseason goal of becoming the first team to host a Super Bowl this season, ended Week 6 as one of just six teams yet to win two games.
CAPTION
By Jeffrey Phelps, AP
Best debut: Deion Branch, five days after being acquired from Seattle, caught nine passes for 98 yards and a TD to help the Patriots clinch a 23-20 overtime win against Baltimore. Branch had two catches for 33 yards on the game-winning drive.
Hottest team: The Jets won for the fifth straight week in a 24-20 decision at Denver. They retained possession of first place in the AFC East -- and became the first team to post five wins.
Worst loss: The Chargers, who went to St. Louis with the league's top-ranked offense and second-ranked defense, fell to 2-4 after a 20-17 loss to the Rams. San Diego collected 287 total yards, 175 less than their average entering the game.
Worst interception: Dallas QB Tony Romo threw a pick to the Vikings' E.J. Henderson at the Dallas 30 with 7:33 left in the game at Minnesota. The Vikings converted the Dallas turnover into a game-clinching field goal in the 24-21 win.
Most notable debut: Ben Roethlisberger, returning from a four-game suspension for violating the league's personal-conduct policy, appeared in his first game of the season for the Steelers. Cheered by many fans upon his introduction, Roethlisberger was 16-for-27 for 257 yards with three TD passes and an INT in a 28-10 win. "To hear the cheers was something special," he said. "I got a little emotional."
Best milestone: Chicago's Devin Hester tied Brian Mitchell for the most combined kick-return TDs in NFL history. Hester's 89-yard punt return for a TD in a 23-20 loss to Seattle was his 13th career runback for a score.
Biggest hitter: Steelers LB James Harrison knocked both Browns WR Mohamed Massaquoi and WR/RB Josh Cribbs out of the game in Pittsburgh's 28-10 win. The hit on Cribbs appeared to be helmet-to-helmet.
Scariest quote: "You don't want to injure people. I don't want to injure anybody. But I'm not opposed to hurting anybody." -- Steelers LB James Harrison on the injuries sustained by the Browns' Josh Cribbs and Mohamed Massaquoi
Worst protection: Bears QB Jay Cutler was sacked six times in a 23-20 loss to Seattle. That made it 15 sacks in his last two starts (Cutler sat out in Week 5 with the effects of a concussion) and 18 in the past three games.
Ugliest hit: Eagles WR DeSean Jackson and Falcons DB Dunta Robinson were knocked out of the Eagles' 31-17 win after Robinson flattened Jackson (who had already scored two TDs) in the first half. Both players suffered head injuries and did not return, though after several minutes each was able to walk off the field with help.
Best bounce-back: The Dolphins, who fired special teams coach John Bonamego following critical breakdowns in the unit during their last loss to New England, won in Green Bay on the strength of a Dan Carpenter 44-yard field goal in overtime.
Longest wait ended: The 49ers finally won their first game of the season in a 17-9 decision against the Bay Area rival Raiders. QB Alex Smith, whom fans booed for the second straight week, threw two second-half TD passes to Michael Crabtree and Vernon Davis.
Worst penalty: Denver DB Renaldo Hill extended the Jets' game-winning drive when he was flagged for pass interference against Santonio Holmes with 1:16 left. The Jets faced fourth-and-6 from the Broncos' 48-yard-line when Hill's foul gave them a first down at the 2, moments before LaDainian Tomlinson scored the game-clinching TD.
Biggest rout: The Saints, smarting from a loss in Arizona last week, defeated the Bucs 31-6 in Tampa. Drew Brees threw for three TD passes as the Saints rang up 475 yards of total offense.
Best forced fumble: Giants DB Deon Grant forced a fumble by Lions WR Nate Burleson while both were falling to the ground and then wrestled control of the ball away from Burleson with 5:01 left. The turnover set up a Giants TD that iced a 28-20 win against Detroit.
Biggest TD: Lions WR Calvin Johnson caught an 87-yard TD pass from third-strong QB Drew Stanton in Detroit's 28-20 road loss to the New York Giants. After Giants DB Terrell Thomas fell down in coverage, Johnson ran uncontested to the end zone for about the final 40 yards.
Longest passing streak ended: Jets QB Mark Sanchez threw his first INT in 185 pass attempts in the win at Denver. Sanchez finished the day with his first two picks of the season.
Worst streak: The Lions tied their NFL record with their 24th straight road loss in a 28-20 decision to the Giants. Detroit hasn't won on the road since Oct. 28, 2007.
Best stepping up: With teammate DeSean Jackson knocked out of the game, Eagles WR Jeremy Maclin caught seven passes for 159 yards and two TDs to help power a 31-17 win against Atlanta.
Worst defense on a winning team: The 4-2 Texans, who entered the game with the league's 31st-ranked defense, surrendered 417 total yards in a 35-31 win against Kansas City.
Best start to a second chance: New Seahawks RB Marshawn Lynch, in his first game since being acquired from Buffalo, scored a TD and while rushing for 44 yards in a 23-20 win at Chicago.
Worst slip: Chargers K Nate Kaeding injured his groin when he lost his footing on a field-goal attempt in the fourth quarter at St. Louis. The kick was blocked, and the Rams went on to beat the Chargers 20-17.
Surest hands: Chiefs LB Mike Vrabel caught a 2-yard touchdown while lining up with the offense in the 35-31 loss at Houston. That marked Vrabel's 12th career TD (including the postseason), and all of his 12 career catches have gone for scores.
Best fill-in: Saints RB Chris Ivory, playing in place of the injured Reggie Bush and Pierre Thomas, rushed for 158 yards in a 31-6 win at Tampa.
Most notable TD jaunt: Tim Tebow scored his first NFL TD with a 5-yard run in the first half of a 24-20 loss to the Jets.
Best run by a QB: Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers scored a 1-yard TD on fourth-and-goal to tie the game at 20-20 with 13 seconds left against Miami. Rodgers' score was wasted, however, when the Dolphins left Wisconsin with a 23-20 win in OT.
Biggest pretenders: The Bucs' three wins have come against three teams (Cleveland, Carolina and Cincinnati) with a combined record of 3-13. Their two losses have against teams (Pittsburgh, New Orleans) with a combined record of 8-3 by a combined score of 69-19.
Source:USA Today
Author: Sean Leahy
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