When the last player drafted in 2009 trotted onto the field Sunday, the best team of 2008 was doomed.
A few minutes after Ben Roethlisberger wobbled off the field with a possible concussion, Ryan Succop kicked a 22-yard field goal with 8:28 left in overtime and the Kansas City Chiefs snapped a team-record 10-game home losing streak with a 27-24 victory over the stunned Pittsburgh Steelers.
Chris Chambers’ 61-yard catch-and-run set up Succop, and “Mr. Irrelevant” booted through the game-winner for the Chiefs (3-7), whose stadium was crammed with tens of thousands of towel-waving fans of the Steelers (6-4).
Roethlisberger had thrown for 398 yards and three touchdowns when he apparently took a knee to the helmet while being sacked by Derrick Johnson and gave way to Charlie Batch.
Coach Mike Tomlin said he was not certain how severe the injury might be.
Matt Cassel had a horrendous first half, passing for only 35 yards on four completions. But he came through in the final two quarters and overtime, finishing with 248 yards and two touchdowns.
Saints 38, at Buccaneers 7 — Drew Brees threw for three touchdowns and New Orleans shrugged off a slow start defensively to remain unbeaten. Robert Meacham caught TD passes of 4 and 6 yards in the first half. Third-string running back Mike Bell scored on runs of 3 and 1 yards in the second half, when New Orleans gained 147 of its 183 yards rushing.
Chargers 32, at Broncos 3 — Philip Rivers and a dominating defense led San Diego into sole possession of first place in the AFC West. Denver could not move the ball effectively behind either of its quarterbacks. The Chargers have won five consecutive games and the Broncos have dropped four in a row, turning the division race upside-down. Just five weeks ago, the Chargers trailed the Broncos by 3½ games.
At Raiders 20, Bengals 17 — Bruce Gradkowski threw a 29-yard tying touchdown pass to Louis Murphy with 33 seconds left and Sebastian Janikowski kicked a 33-yard field goal after Andre Caldwell fumbled the ensuing kickoff. Cincinnati is 0-10 all-time in Oakland, including one playoff game. The Raiders rallied from an early 14-point deficit and trailed 17-10 with 2:06 remaining.
At Patriots 31, Jets 14 — Leigh Bodden had three of the four interceptions thrown by Mark Sanchez and New England’s defense allowed just one touchdown and 226 yards. Tom Brady completed 28 of 41 passes for 310 yards, Wes Welker set career highs with 15 receptions for 192 yards, and Laurence Maroney ran for two touchdowns.
At Giants 34, Falcons 31, OT — Lawrence Tynes kicked a 36-yard field goal 3:54 into overtime to make up for an earlier miss after the defense blew a two-touchdown lead in the fourth quarter. Eli Manning threw for a career-high 384 yards and three touchdown passes, including two to Kevin Boss, to help the Giants snap a four-game skid.
Cardinals 21, at Rams 13 — Kurt Warner spent the second half pacing the sideline after taking a blow to the head, still in uniform but shut down for the day. Warner threw for 203 yards and two touchdowns while building a 21-3 cushion. Tim Hightower had 110 yards on 14 carries, the first 100-yard game of the season for a team ranked next to last in the NFL in rushing, helping the Cardinals win for the sixth time in seven games.
At Cowboys 7, Redskins 6 — Tony Romo led a single scoring drive, hitting Patrick Crayton for a 10-yard touchdown pass with 2:41 left to preserve first place in the NFC East. Shaun Suisham put Washington ahead 6-0 with field goals of 45 and 31 yards. But he missed a 39-yard attempt shortly before halftime and a 50-yarder that would’ve made it 9-0 with 7:06 left. Suisham had been 13 of 13 this season before those misses.
At Packers 30, 49ers 24 — Aaron Rodgers threw touchdowns to Greg Jennings and Jordy Nelson, and Ryan Grant rushed for 129 yards and a score. Green Bay lost outside linebacker Aaron Kampman and cornerback Al Harris to knee injuries. Rodgers was 32 of 45 for 344 yards, including 274 in the first half as the Packers took a 23-3 lead.
At Jaguars 18, Bills 15 — David Garrard’s second game-winning drive in as many weeks gave Jacksonville its first three-game winning streak in nearly two years. Garrard threw a touchdown pass to Mike Sims-Walker with 56 seconds left, spoiling Perry Fewell’s debut as Buffalo’s interim coach.
Eagles 24, at Bears 20 — Donovan McNabb and Philadelphia found a way to pull out a close victory. McNabb threw for 244 yards against his hometown team, LeSean McCoy scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 10-yard run following Antonio Dixon’s blocked field goal, and Philadelphia came away with a 24-20 victory over struggling Chicago after back-to-back close losses. The Bears lost for the fifth time in six games.
