‘Fast’ Bucs shut down Vick

Tampa Bay defeats Falcons, keeps NFC South lead

? A harried Michael Vick took a moment to confide in Warren Sapp.

“He said: ‘I can’t believe it. You guys are fast …. I’ve never seen anything like this before,”‘ Sapp said after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had shut down the NFL’s most elusive quarterback for a 34-10 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.

“I looked at him and said: ‘And we’ve never seen anything like you, either.’ It’s just one of those things where you give him the respect and we’ll earn his, because he’s young right now. And when you’re young, you don’t feel like you can be stopped. That’s the way all of us are when we’re young.”

Brad Johnson threw for 276 yards and four touchdowns, and the league’s top-ranked defense made Vick look ordinary for the second time this season.

The Bucs also ended Atlanta’s eight-game unbeaten streak and held on to first place in the NFC South.

“Those guys have speed the other teams don’t have,” Vick said, comparing the speed of defensive end Simeon Rice to that of a running back.

“We’ll just forget about it,” Vick said. “What else can we do? As soon as I stepped in the locker room, I put this one behind behind me.”

The Bucs (10-3) proved that their success two months ago against the speedy quarterback wasn’t a fluke, limiting the Falcons to a field goal until Vick threw a 5-yard TD pass to Alge Crumpler early in the fourth quarter.

Johnson completed 23 of 31 passes, including TD throws of 10 and 13 yards to Joe Jurevicius and 14 and 27 yards to Keenan McCardell. Jurevicius had eight receptions for 100 yards, and Mike Alstott had 95 yards on 13 carries to lead a running game that produced 100 yards for just the fourth time this season.

It was arguably the most impressive performance of the year for the Bucs’ offense, and the victory gave them some breathing room in the NFC South.

The Falcons (8-4-1) lost for the first time since being dominated by the Bucs on Oct. 6, falling 11¼2 games behind in the division.

Tampa Bay's warren sapp, right, talks with Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick after a play. The Buccaneers defeated the Falcons, 34-10, Sunday in Tampa Bay, as the Tampa Bay defense held Vick to 140 total yards.

Atlanta failed to score a touchdown in a 20-6 loss to the Bucs two months ago and didn’t have much more success this time. Vick completed just 12 of 25 passes for 125 yards and struggled to run.

Vick ran for 173 yards and two touchdowns in Atlanta’s overtime victory against Minnesota last week, but Tampa Bay is better equipped defensively to handle his speed, and the Bucs limited him to just 15 yards and five carries.

The defense also had one interception, setting up a second-quarter touchdown, and sacked Vick twice. Atlanta, which played without injured running back Warrick Dunn, finished with just 181 total yards.

“It’s disappointing … with so much at stake,” Falcons coach Dan Reeves said. “We really got dominated.”

The Bucs, coming off a 23-20 defeat at New Orleans, have been resilient all season. They bounced back from a season-opening loss to the Saints to win five in a row; they rebounded from a road loss to Philadelphia in October to win four straight.

Tampa Bay moved the ball virtually at will against an Atlanta defense that also played a major role in the 7-0-1 run that ended Sunday. The Bucs gained 421 yards, including 150 on the ground.

“You can’t come into our stadium with one weapon and say you’re going to beat us. That normally ain’t going to happen,” Sapp said. “If that’s where you’re focusing your energy – one player, and he’s your quarterback – you’ve got four mean dogs, rottweilers off the leash ready to hunt, and we hunt all day long.”

Browns 21, Jaguars 20

Jacksonville, Fla. – Cleveland’s Quincy Morgan caught a 50-yard desperation pass from Tim Couch, then waited as officials upheld the play on review.

Morgan fought off tight coverage from Fernando Bryant on the final play. As the two fell to the ground, Morgan cradled the ball to his body with his right hand. Side judge Bill Spyksma signaled touchdown.

The ball looked as if it might have touched the ground as Morgan hit the turf, but after a review of about 90 seconds, referee Ron Winter said there was no indisputable evidence to overturn the play.

Phil Dawson kicked the extra point for the one-point margin, and the Browns (7-6) pulled within a half-game of Pittsburgh in the AFC North.

49ers 31, Cowboys 27

Irving, Texas – Terrell Owens made a juggling catch of a 3-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter, then caught an 8-yarder with 12 seconds left, as the 49ers clinched their first NFC West title since 1997.

Although Owens’ first TD catch put the 49ers (9-4) ahead, they fell behind by 10 before Jeff Garcia brought them back.

Garcia started the rally with a four-play drive that he capped with a 23-yard strike to Tai Streets with 5:26 left. After Dallas (5-8) missed a 47-yard field goal, Garcia took over at the 37 with no timeouts and 2:16 to go.

Raiders 27, Chargers 7

San Diego – Rich Gannon overwhelmed the Chargers’ young stars as the Raiders took take sole possession of first place in the AFC West.

Gannon, 37, set an NFL record with his 10th 300-yard game of the season, throwing for 328 yards.

LaDainian Tomlinson rushed for 57 yards and one touchdown on 18 carries and set the Chargers’ single-season rushing record with 1,375 yards. He broke Natrone Means’ 1994 record of 1,350 yards.

Texans 24, Steelers 6

Pittsburgh – Aaron Glenn scored twice on long interception returns, and the Texans gained just 47 yards – the fewest by a winning team in NFL history.

The Texans (4-9) scored the first three defensive touchdowns in their history, all off Tommy Maddox turnovers.

The Steelers (7-5-1) were 6-1-1 in their previous eight games, the NFL’s best record over that span except for Atlanta’s 7-0-1, yet they lost to a first-year team that completed only three passes and had only three first downs. The Texans won despite being outgained 422-47.

Eagles 27, Seahawks 20

Seattle – Duce Staley ran for 100 yards and third-string quarterback A.J. Feeley threw for 190 yards and two touchdowns as the Eagles held Matt Hasselbeck in check.

Feeley’s 20-yard touchdown pass to Todd Pinkston early in the third quarter gave Philadelphia (10-3) a 27-6 lead, and the Eagles held on for their fourth straight victory and seventh in the last eight games. They are 3-0 without starting quarterback Donovan McNabb, who has a broken right ankle.

Hasselbeck was pressured most of the day and completed 24 of 45 passes for 223 yards with two TDs and three interceptions for Seattle (4-9). He scrambled for 62 yards.

Patriots 27, Bills 17

Foxboro, Mass. – Tom Brady outplayed former teammate Drew Bledsoe for the second time this season as the Patriots took over first in the AFC East.

New England (8-5) is a half-game ahead of Miami, which hosts Chicago tonight.

Brady completed 15 of 27 passes for 183 yards and no interceptions, while Bledsoe went 32-for-51 for 328 yards and threw four interceptions.

The Patriots led 20-0 at halftime, dominating Buffalo for the second time in barely a month. New England won 38-7 at Buffalo on Nov. 3 to start the Patriots’ current 5-1 surge.

Jets 19, Broncos 13

East Rutherford, N.J. – Laveranues Coles went over 1,000 yards receiving and made a spectacular diving touchdown catch, keeping the New York Jets’ dim playoff hopes alive in a comeback victory.

The Jets (7-6) are one game out of the AFC East lead. Denver is two games out in the AFC West, trailing two teams.

Coles finished with six catches for 126 yards.

Curtis Martin became the 16th player over 10,000 career yards rushing and scored the Jets’ other touchdown.

Titans 27, Colts 17

Nashville, Tenn. – Despite sore ribs that kept him from practicing for a second straight week, Steve McNair led the Titans with 237 yards passing and a touchdown.

The Titans (8-5) swept the season series from the Colts and won for the seventh time in their last eight games. Tennessee, which also got two rushing TDs from Eddie George, improved to 4-0 in the AFC South and are in control of the division.

Indianapolis (8-5) had won four straight games, but Peyton Manning threw three interceptions.

Saints 37, Ravens 25

Baltimore – Deuce McAllister ran for 127 yards and three touchdowns, and the Saints capitalized on a litany of Baltimore miscues.

Quarterback Aaron Brooks left in the third quarter with New Orleans up 20-7, and was replaced by Jake Delhomme.

Ravens quarterback Jeff Blake, who started for New Orleans in 2000 and was a backup to Brooks last year, went 18-for-39 for 316 yards.

Giants 27, Redskins 21

Landover, Md. – The Giants took advantage of five Redskins’ turnovers, keeping their minuscule playoff hopes alive.

Cornerback Ralph Brown set up two touchdowns with dazzling runbacks, Kerry Collins threw for 212 yards and two TDs, and Cornelius Griffin had three of New York’s six sacks and forced a fumble as the Giants (7-6) broke a two-game losing streak.

The Redskins (5-8) lost their second straight but rallied from a 17-0 deficit behind backup quarterback Patrick Ramsey, who entered the game when starter Danny Wuerrfel sprained his right shoulder in the third quarter. Ramsey was 12-of-27 for 204 yards.

Cardinals 23, Lions 20, OT

Tempe, Ariz. – Bill Gramatica kicked a 42-yard field goal with 10:48 left in overtime as the Arizona Cardinals snapped a six-game losing streak. It was the 21st game this season to go to overtime, tying the 1995 league record.

The Lions (3-10) lost their fifth consecutive game overall and 15th straight on the road. Detroit lost in OT for the second time in three weeks; the Lions were beaten by a Chicago field goal 20-17 on Nov. 24.

A 41-yarder by Gramatica tied the game 20-20 with 3:20 to in regulation. The Cardinals (5-8) never led until his final field goal.

Jake Plummer completed 24 of 43 passes for 228 yards and two touchdowns, despite a drastically depleted corps of wide receivers.

Panthers 52, Bengals 31

Charlotte, N.C. – Steve Smith scored three touchdowns – two on punt returns – and had a career-high 313 total yards to lead the Carolina Panthers to victory.

His scores earned him hugs and high-fives from his teammates, most of whom were slow to accept him when he returned last week from a suspension for beating up a teammate.

Rodney Peete completed 21 of 29 passes for a season-high 319 yards and three TDs for Carolina (5-8), which set a franchise record for points scored.

Smith scored on returns of 61 and 87 yards, and on a 31-yard reception.

Cincinnati (1-12) must now win two of its final three games to avoid having the worst record in franchise history.

Packers 26, Vikings 22

Green Bay, Wis. – Tony Fisher’s 14-yard touchdown run with 1:06 left gave Green Bay its first lead of the game on a chilly Lambeau night.

Darren Sharper picked off Daunte Culpepper’s desperation pass as time expired and returned the ball 66 yards before finally going down at the Minnesota 16.

The bad blood between the border rivals boiled over at that point as Vikings tight end Jim Kleinsasser gave a two-handed shove to Packers safety Marques Anderson near the Minnesota bench.

For the second straight season, the Vikings (3-10) have double-digit losses.

The league had never scheduled a night game this late in the year in Green Bay, and the temperature at kickoff was 11 degrees.