It looked like an ending from a cheesy sports movie, but this was the real thing. Eagles kicker David Akers, hobbled by a sore hamstring in his plant leg that he aggravated during the opening kickoff, limped onto the field to boot the winning field goal in the final seconds of regulation to give the Eagles a 23-20 win over the Raiders. He could barely celebrate his accomplishment, crumpling to the field in pain. The Eagles celebrated as if this was something more important than the third game of the season, and in some respects it was. After such a tumultuous preseason, the Eagles recognize the importance of building some strong momentum, and that is exactly what they are doing. In a game this close, it's easy to find difference-making areas. Perhaps the biggest was the fact that Brian Westbrook caught six passes for 140 yards and a touchdown in addition to his 63 rushing yards. Terrell Owens caught more passes than Randy Moss (nine to five) and Moss had more yards (86 to 80), but Owens was the only one of the two to have a touchdown.

New England 23, Pittsburgh 20: Go ahead. Heap more misery on the Patriots. Take away more starters. Give them more to overcome. This is -- as if anyone hadn't realized it by now -- their lifeblood, their fuel, their oxygen. Rodney Harrison and Matt Light get carted off with injuries, further weakening an already-depleted defense and offense, and the Patriots still play the way they played in winning Super Bowls. After a little early trouble dealing with the Steelers' creative blitzing, the Pats made their customary perfect adjustments and Tom Brady was perfect on his final 12 pass attempts in leading the winning field-goal drive in this AFC Championship Game rematch. New England also had more help than it had gotten in the three previous games from running back Corey Dillon, who rushed for 61 yards and two touchdowns. Ben Roethlisberger threw two touchdown passes on a day when he often found himself struggling to make plays against a Patriots defense that, for all it has lost, still knows how to confuse and frustrate him through scheming.

Dallas 34, San Francisco 31: Monday Night Football hangover? Sure, Drew Bledsoe threw a couple of interceptions to Tony Parrish, who returned one for a touchdown. But Tim Rattay threw a couple of interceptions as well. Bledsoe also threw a couple of touchdown passes; Rattay threw three. The Cowboys had just enough of an edge, though, in a Bledsoe touchdown run and in Julius Jones running for 85 yards and a pair of scores. And Bledsoe showed his veteran poise to lead the Cowboys on the winning, 76-yard scoring drive that ended with his 14-yard touchdown pass to Keyshawn Johnson with 1:51 remaining. If the Cowboys were still reeling from the effects of their crushing prime-time loss to Washington in Week 2, they were able to shake them off and rally from a 12-point deficit in the fourth quarter.

Jacksonville 26, N.Y. Jets 20 (OT): The Jaguars know this roadmap for success well: Byron Leftwich launches a last-second scoring throw to decide the outcome. This time, he found Jimmy Smith, who on only his second reception of the day did a remarkable job of keeping his feet in bounds and diving with the ball inside the pylon for a 36-yard score. The Jets continually pounded on Leftwich, who already was playing on a sore knee from an injury suffered at Indianapolis in Week 2. It was amazing that he was able to remain upright to make the winning play, but we have come to expect such heroics from Leftwich. Jets quarterback Chad Pennington also was fighting through an injury late in the game, and probably shouldn't have been on the field. But after leaving the field with a strained shoulder, his replacement, Jay Fiedler, suffered a shoulder injury of his own and Pennington returned to throw the second of two interceptions.

Miami 27, Carolina 24: The ignorant assumption in some circles that Dolphins rookie running back Ronnie Brown could be deemed a bust after two games should be put to rest -- at least for another week. Brown scored his first NFL touchdown and became the first Miami rookie in a half-dozen years to rush for 100 yards. His 132-yard outing (including a 58-yard run to set up a field goal) was reflective of the talent that allowed him to become the second overall pick of the draft. Gus Frerotte was solid and as effective as a quarterback can expect to be against Carolina's defense. This is a major confidence-building win for the Dolphins, who each week buy more heavily into the new program of coach Nick Saban. Especially linebacker Zach Thomas, who was credited with 17 tackles, a sack, a forced fumble and a pass deflection. At 1-2, the Panthers are naturally going to begin to have doubts about what it will take for them to return to the consistency that they showed in their Super Bowl season of a couple of years ago.

Indianapolis 13, Cleveland 6: Let's face facts about the kind of team the Colts have become. They are not the points-producing machine of a year ago. Now, instead of counting on Peyton Manning's touchdown passes to win games, they find a way to win even when he doesn't have a single scoring throw. And that way is with a methodical, ball-controlling offense and a bend-but-don't-break defense. Other than for some distraught fantasy owners who have Manning in their lineup, the formula is not a problem. In fact, the Colts should be able to rely on it while living up to expectations as a likely Super Bowl contender.

Tampa Bay 17, Green Bay 16: First, we need to acknowledge the impressive work of the 3-0 Buccaneers. They continue to play well on both sides of the ball, with Carnell Williams building a foundation to establish himself as one of the greatest rookie rushing talents the game has ever seen. Tampa Bay's defense also continues to be as dominant as it has ever been in what seems like a permanent perch atop the league. But we can't help but take a hard look at the state of the Packers. At 0-3, they seem to have dug a hole from which they are going to have a very difficult time escaping. And the questions surrounding the status of Brett Favre continue to pile up. After another loss, his three interceptions are going to be all that is remembered from a performance that included two scoring throws. Brian Griese had a pair of touchdown passes of his own, along with an interception, but he also had the backing of Williams' 158 rushing yards compared to the team-leading 58 of the Packers' Ahman Green.

Cincinnati 24, Chicago 7: It would be impressive enough to simply admire the Bengals' 3-0 record, which has caused the rest of the NFL to stand up and take notice. But the Bengals also are making history. They are off to their best start in 15 years, and after swiping five passes from rookie Kyle Orton, they became the first team in 34 years to intercept five passes in consecutive games. Carson Palmer made it look too easy by throwing three touchdowns against a quality defense. And Cincinnati's defense did an excellent job of rattling Orton and making him look like a rookie after throwing only one interception in the first two weeks. The Bengals continue to show that they are a very complete and very dangerous team.

Atlanta 24, Buffalo 16: So much for concerns about Michael Vick's hamstring. He ran nine times for 64 yards, but what made a major difference was the fact he generally moved well in the pocket while looking to throw. Vick's passing yards were modest, but he did have a pair of touchdown passes. The Falcons certainly can feel good about the fact their defense, missing four injured starters, generally held its own. They intercepted J.P. Losman, forced him to fumble, and stopped him on a fourth-and-1 drive late in the game. It's hard for the Bills to find any satisfaction in a second successive loss, but Willis McGahee did make a strong comeback from a poor showing in Tampa with 140 yards and a touchdown.

Minnesota 33, New Orleans 16: If the Vikings' 0-2 start was all about Daunte Culpepper's struggles, their get-well game against the Saints is all about him returning to his dominant form. He threw three touchdown passes, two to Travis Taylor, as the Saints defense found itself on the receiving end of two weeks of built-up frustration. Culpepper added 36 yards with his feet, got some much-needed help from running back Mewelde Moore (101 yards on 23 carries) and solid play from the Vikings defense. After their emotional season-opening victory at Carolina, the disruptive impact of Hurricane Katrina and the flooding of New Orleans seems to be finally catching up with all of the Saints' players and coaches.

Seattle 37, Arizona 12: The Seahawks did exactly what a superior team should do against the bottom-feeder of the division. The Cardinals had no answer for Shaun Alexander, who rushed for 140 yards and four touchdowns. Besides having a defense that didn't show up, the Cardinals failed to generate anything resembling an effective passing game, from either Kurt Warner or Josh McCown, or any sort of rushing attack. I'm still not sure what inspired numerous prognosticators to make the Cardinals a "sleeper" pick to emerge in the NFC's postseason picture. The Cardinals didn't look like they were ever going to come out of their slumber.
St. Louis 31, Tennessee 27: You have to admire Marc Bulger's ability to overcome an interception and two lost fumbles ... or be critical of the fact that he made so many mistakes. Either way, his Rams are off to a 2-1 start, which puts them in a two-way tie for first place in the NFC West. Bulger did have three touchdown passes and mostly did a good job of exploiting the Titans' coverage with precise timing routes. Steve McNair tried to keep pace with a pair of scoring throws of his own, but he, too, made some big errors with two interceptions.