Moon Stars and Oilers Get Revenge : AFC: Quarterback throws touchdown passes to five receivers in 48-17 victory over Cincinnati. It helps avenge 61-7 loss to the Bengals last season.

Warren Moon threw a career-high five touchdown passes to five receivers as the Houston Oilers scored 31 consecutive points en route to a 48-17 victory over Cincinnati Sunday, avenging a 61-7 loss to the Bengals last December.

The Oilers could have gloated about getting revenge after the Bengals ran up the score last year, recovering an onside kick after taking a 45-0 lead and kicking a field goal in the final seconds when they led 58-7.

Instead, the Oilers took the victory graciously.

“We don’t worry about history,” Coach Jack Pardee said. “We’ll just enjoy this one and start getting ready to play the next one.”

Pardee shook hands after the game with Bengal Coach Sam Wyche, who sought out Pardee--unlike last December when Wyche waved derisively at former Oiler Coach Jerry Glanville at the end of the game and later called him a phony.

There were no such hostilities Sunday between the intense divisional rivals. Only one scuffle broke out near the end of the game. There was no talk of running up the score.

“We have more class than that,” linebacker John Grimsley said. “We were just controlling the ball and keeping it far enough out of reach. Our play spoke for itself. We didn’t have to rub it in.”

Oiler guard Mike Munchak said: “There have been a lot of lopsided scores in the series. The difference is, last year, they purposely ran up the score. Today, we just soundly defeated them.”

And mainly because of Moon, who completed 21 of 33 passes for 369 yards,

Moon, 33, who starred at Hamilton High in Los Angeles and the University of Washington, became the first quarterback to pass for 20,000 yards in both the NFL and the Canadian Football League.

“We have to get off the passes quickly on the blitzes, so we have to have a lot of guys running quick, crisp routes,” Moon said. “Today I singled out the one that was the most open.”

Did the Oilers play a perfect game?

“I’ll take it until we have one,” Pardee said. “We needed this one so badly. A loss would have buried us so deep. We couldn’t afford a loss.”

The game was too perfect for the Bengals.

“Warren had a near-flawless performance,” quarterback Boomer Esiason said. “It’s one of the finest performances I’ve ever seen from an opposing quarterback.”

Houston (3-3) moved within one game of Cincinnati (4-2) in the AFC Central Division.

Esiason passed for 471 yards last week, a club record, in a 34-31 overtime victory over the Rams. Sunday, he was 12 of 21 for 130 yards and threw three interceptions.

Esiason downplayed the revenge factor. “You have to realize it took Jerry Glanville five years to build that kind of resentment,” he said. “It’s an intense rivalry, but it’s not like it was when Glanville was there.”

Cincinnati scored first. The Bengals stormed in on Moon and safety Barney Bussey intercepted his third pass, returning it 18 yards to the Oiler 40. Esiason completed a 21-yard pass to tight end Jim Riggs to the Oiler seven and two plays later Craig Taylor scored from the two.

The Oilers tied it when rookie wide receiver Tony Jones caught a 33-yard pass in the end zone after a fight for the ball with cornerback Rod Jones. The touchdown came three plays after Moon scrambled 12 yards for a first down on third-and-six.

A 29-yard field goal by Jim Breech early in the second quarter gave Cincinnati a 10-7 lead.

Breech, who has scored in 155 consecutive games, has made 10 field goals in a row and 11 of 12 attempts this season.

After his one field goal Sunday, it was all Oilers.

Moon riddled Cincinnati’s defense with touchdown passes of 33 yards to Drew Hill and 42 yards to Leonard Harris. Richard Johnson returned an interception 30 yards for a touchdown, and Tony Zendejas kicked a 22-yard field goal for a 31-10 halftime lead.

Johnson’s second-quarter interception bounced out of tight end Rodney Holman’s hands. Johnson slipped behind a wall of blockers and ran into the end zone.

Cris Dishman intercepted an Esiason pass at the Oiler 47 early in the third quarter, and Moon extended Houston’s string to 31 consecutive points with an 11-yard touchdown pass to Ernest Givins, who was left uncovered in the end zone.

Cincinnati’s second touchdown came with 10:33 gone in the third quarter, when Esiason passed five yards to Holman on a fourth-down play.

With 12:08 to play, Moon completed a three-yard touchdown pass to Haywood Jeffires for his fifth touchdown pass.

Zendejas added Houston’s final points with a 23-yard field goal with 7:54 left.

Houston linebacker Al Smith had nine solo tackles and five assists, increasing his team-leading total to 50 tackles.

Houston’s Greg Montgomery, the AFC’s leading punter, got the day off.

Victor Jones, who replaced waived Mike Rozier, was the fifth Oiler in six games to lead the team in rushing, although Jones had only 36 yards in five carries.

The Bengals lead their series with the Oilers 23-19-1, but the Oilers are 13-8-1 in Houston and have won six in a row in the Astrodome.