L.T., V.Y., Reggie and Drew Keep Winning

L.T. (LaDainian Tomlinson) got the record, a division title and a ride on his teammates' shoulders. <br/><br/>V.Y. (Vince Young) provided more late-game heroics, this week in overtime. <br/><br/>Reggie

Monday, December 11th 2006, 6:22 am

By: News On 6

L.T. (LaDainian Tomlinson) got the record, a division title and a ride on his teammates' shoulders.

V.Y. (Vince Young) provided more late-game heroics, this week in overtime.

Reggie (Bush) and Drew (Brees) had far too much firepower for Dallas.

Yes, those guys known by their initials or first names _ forget T.O., who was on the losing end of the Cowboys' flop Sunday _ keep on winning.

Tomlinson rushed for three touchdowns, giving him 29 for the season, breaking the record Shaun Alexander set for Seattle last year. He also ran for 103 yards in a 48-20 romp past Denver that gave the San Diego Chargers the AFC West crown.

``We can talk about something special that we did. We made history today,'' L.T. said. ``There's no better feeling than to share it with the group of guys that's in that locker room.''

The Chargers (11-2) have the AFC's best record.

Young, the rookie quarterback from Texas, lifted the Tennessee Titans to their third straight dramatic win. His 39-yard run in overtime on third-and-14 beat Houston 26-20.

Young blew kisses and high-fived fans before pointing to a sign that read: ``VY Wish You Were Here'' after the winning scramble.

``It was a great ending, just being from Houston,'' Young said. ``And then being in front of my family ... it doesn't get any better than that.''

It's getting better and better for the NFC South-leading Saints, too. They won their third straight thanks to the exciting rookie Bush and the dominant QB Brees.

Bush turned a short pass into a scintillating 61-yard TD, one of five touchdown throws for Brees in a 42-17 romp at Dallas.

``We let a lot of people know what we are all about,'' Brees said.

Elsewhere Sunday, Miami stunned New England 21-0 and Jacksonville did the same to Indianapolis 44-17. Also it was Arizona 27, Seattle 21; Baltimore 20, Kansas City 10; the New York Giants 27, Carolina 13; Atlanta 17, Tampa Bay 6; Philadelphia 21; Washington 19; Cincinnati 27, Oakland 10; Buffalo 31, the New York Jets 13; Minnesota 30, Detroit 20; and Green Bay 30, San Francisco 19.

The Monday night game has Chicago at St. Louis. The weekend began with Pittsburgh beating Cleveland 27-7 on Thursday night.

Chargers 48, Broncos 20

At San Diego, Tomlinson scored his final two touchdowns in a span of 47 seconds late in the game, from the 3 and then from the 7. He has 26 in the last nine games.

He was mobbed in the end zone by his teammates, who hoisted him on their shoulders. He held up the ball and waved the index finger of his other hand.

``He came into the huddle and said, 'I want all of you guys to join me in the end zone when I get it,' `` right tackle Shane Olivea said.

``He is a king and he should be treated like one,'' left guard Kris Dielman said. ``That is what a king gets.''

The Chargers also grabbed the inside track to home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs when Indianapolis lost.

Denver (7-6) lost its fourth straight game.

Titans 26, Texans 20, OT

At Houston, Young ran into the end zone virtually untouched and then jumped into the stands to the open arms of a throng of burnt orange-clad fans. He then blew kisses and waved to a crowd that had cheered the Texans most of the game, but went wild when the former University of Texas star scored.

Two weeks ago, the Titans (6-7) rallied from a 21-0 deficit in the final 9 1/2 minutes to beat the Giants. Last week, Rob Bironas' 60-yard field goal in the final seconds beat Indianapolis.

``Once again, like in the last month, every Sunday, I stand up here and say: 'Wow, we found another way to do it,''' said Titans coach Jeff Fisher.

The Texans fell to 4-9.

Saints 42, Cowboys 17

Sean Payton outsmarted his old boss. Having spent the last three years on Bill Parcells' staff, Payton knew exactly how to attack the Cowboys _ and Brees pulled it off perfectly, tying his career high for touchdown passes, all before the third quarter ended. Brees finished 26-of-38 for 384 yards.

The Saints (9-4) grabbed sole possession of the second-best record in the NFC, putting them in position for a luxury the franchise has never enjoyed: a first-round playoff bye.

Parcells absorbed most of this one with his lips pinched and his arms crossed. Not even Tony Romo could save the Tuna and the Cowboys (8-5) from this embarrassment.

Jaguars 44, Colts 17

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) _ There was nothing Peyton Manning could do to prevent this outcome _ unless he decided to play defense or special teams.

Rookie Maurice Drew ran for a career-high 166 yards and two touchdowns, had a 93-yard kickoff return for a score, and the Jaguars literally ran the Colts out of town and maybe out of contention for home-field advantage in the AFC.

Fred Taylor was equally effective against the league's worst run defense, gaining 131 yards on nine carries before leaving with a sore right hamstring.

By then, the Jaguars (8-5) were ahead 34-10 and coasting to their first win against Indianapolis since 2004.

The Colts (10-3) were looking to clinch their fourth consecutive AFC South title. Now, they will try to regroup from a third loss in four games and wonder whether they've gone from the leading candidate to secure the conference's No. 1 seed to a possible wild-card team.

The Colts allowed a franchise-record 375 yards rushing. Indy's Marvin Harrison became the fourth player in NFL history with 1,000 receptions, joining Jerry Rice, Tim Brown and Cris Carter. Harrison had six catches for 101 yards.

Manning finished 25-of-50 for 313 yards.

Dolphins 21, Patriots 0

Miami sacked Tom Brady four times, forced him to fumble twice, held him to 78 yards passing and shut out the visiting Patriots for the first time since the perfect-season Dolphins of 1972.

The Patriots (9-4) still lead the AFC East, but lost on the road for the first time in six games this season. Miami (6-7), virtually eliminated from the playoff race a week ago, won for the fifth time in six games.

The Patriots totaled a season-low 189 yards and lost three fumbles, giving them 11 turnovers in the past three games.

Cardinals 27, Seahawks 21

Edgerrin James topped 100 yards rushing for the second game in a row and Matt Leinart threw touchdown passes of 56 and 5 yards to lead the host Cardinals (4-9) to their third victory in four games.

Seattle (8-5) blew a chance to clinch the NFC West and lost three fumbles resulting in 14 Arizona points. Matt Hasselbeck threw for three TDs.

Ravens 20, Chiefs 10

Steve McNair hooked up with Mark Clayton for an 87-yard score and Ed Reed had two interceptions, leading the Ravens (10-3), who maintained a two-game AFC North lead over Cincinnati. The Ravens forced three turnovers and sacked Trent Green four times. Green also lost a fumble after being sacked and stripped of the ball by Terrell Suggs.

The TD throw, McNair's longest career pass and Clayton's longest career reception, put the Ravens up 13-0 with just under 6 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter.

Host Kansas City is 7-6.

Giants 27, Panthers 13

Tiki Barber rushed for 112 yards, Eli Manning threw three touchdown passes and the Giants (7-6) snapped a four-game losing streak. They remained in the top spot in the NFC wild-card race as Barber went over 10,000 career yards rushing in the second quarter on the way to his fifth 100-yard game of the season.

Chris Weinke, making his first start in more than four years in place of the injured Jake Delhomme, threw for a team-record 423 yards, but had three second-half interceptions for the Panthers (6-7), losers of three straight.

Falcons 17, Buccaneers 6

At Tampa, the NFL's top rushing team lost Warrick Dunn and Jerious Norwood within a span of five plays of the third quarter, but Justin Griffith finished a 71-yard drive with a 21-yard touchdown run to lead Atlanta (7-6).

Dunn injured his calf after gaining 9 yards to boost his season total to 997. Norwood hurt his right knee four plays later. Griffith had carried just six times for 34 yards before Sunday.

LB Demorrio Williams' 54-yard fumble return for a TD wiped out a 6-0 deficit.

Tampa Bay (3-10) has lost six of seven.

Eagles 21, Redskins 19

The visiting Eagles (7-6) intercepted two passes _ one returned 84 yards for a TD by Michael Lewis _ and Jeff Garcia threw two TD passes. Brian Westbrook had 88 yards rushing and 38 receiving. The Eagles have swept the Redskins (4-9) four times in the last five years.

Ladell Betts led the Redskins with 171 yards on 33 carries.

Bengals 27, Raiders 10

At Cincinnati, Carson Palmer threw for a pair of touchdowns and Rudi Johnson ran for two more. The Bengals (8-5) have won four in a row, moving to the front of the AFC wild-card race with Jacksonville.

The Raiders (2-11) had another self-destructing performance against a defense setting new team standards. The Bengals have allowed only 17 points in the last three games, a franchise first.

Two Bengals receivers, T.J. Houshmandzadeh and Chad Johnson, topped 100 yards, and a running back also ran for 100 yards _ Rudi Johnson had 117 yards _ the first time that has happened in franchise history.

Bills 31, Jets 13

Willis McGahee again victimized the Jets, as he scored on a 57-yard run and had 125 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries. He has gained 100 or more yards in each of his last five games against New York.

Lee Evans had a 77-yard TD catch and Nate Clements returned an interception 58 yards for a score as Buffalo (6-7) looked more like the playoff contender than New York (7-6), winning for the third time in four games.

Vikings 30, Lions 20

At Detroit, the Vikings stayed in the playoff picture with an unlikely boost from a player haunting his former team. Artose Pinner had career highs with 125 yards rushing and three touchdowns to lift Minnesota (6-7).

Despite losing five of the previous six games and being under .500, the Vikings still have a shot at playing in January. The Lions (2-11), meanwhile, have lost five straight.

Packers 30, 49ers 19

At San Francisco, Brett Favre passed for 293 yards and hit Donald Driver for a 68-yard touchdown as the Packers (5-8) snapped a three-game losing streak.

Ruvell Martin also caught a long TD pass, and Driver had nine catches for 160 yards as Favre went 22-for-34 and surpassed 3,000 yards passing for the 15th straight season to extend his own NFL record. San Francisco also is 5-8.