Moon Gives Oilers a Taste of Their Past : Interconference: He leads Vikings to 23-17 overtime victory in first meeting with former team.

When the Houston Oilers needed a big play late in a close game, Warren Moon almost always came through.

In this game, Moon was on the other side for the first time. He still was on the winning side.

After Moon threw two first-half touchdown passes and two second-half interceptions against his former team, Dewayne Washington’s interception set up Robert Smith’s 20-yard touchdown run in the Minnesota Vikings’ 23-17 overtime victory Sunday.

Moon, who helped Houston win 26 games in the fourth quarter or overtime, wasn’t savoring the taste of revenge in his first meeting with the Oilers since he was traded to the Vikings in April 1994, but there was plenty of emotion.

“I tried to keep it low key the whole week,” he said, “but the emotions really came out when I came out of the locker room and saw the Houston uniforms.”

He completed 28 of 43 passes for 289 yards, although Chuck Cecil returned one of his interceptions 20 yards for Houston’s only touchdown.

The Oilers (2-4) gave Moon too much room in the first half, and he took advantage with two touchdown passes to Cris Carter as the Vikings (3-2) built a 17-6 lead. Carter finished with 12 catches for 115 yards.

“Warren is a great quarterback, and he’ll probably be in the Hall of Fame when it’s all over,” said Houston cornerback Chris Dishman, who intercepted his former teammate once. “But I think we gave him too much respect. We played soft and made stupid mistakes. Like on Carter’s second TD.”

That pass to a wide-open Carter came one play after a roughing penalty against Kanavis McGhee wiped out Darryll Lewis’ 78-yard interception return for a score that would have given Houston a 13-10 lead.

That might have been enough for the Oilers, who one week after losing to the expansion Jacksonville Jaguars, almost overcame their own mistakes with the help of 12 Minnesota penalties.

Houston tightened its coverages in the second half, intercepting two of Moon’s first four passes. After Cecil’s interception and a two-point conversion, Al Del Greco’s 44-yard field goal tied it with 6:40 left in regulation.

Minnesota’s Ed McDaniel sacked Houston’s Chris Chandler with 18 seconds left in regulation, re-injuring Chandler’s sprained throwing shoulder and knocking him out of the game. Then, in the overtime, Washington intercepted the second pass thrown by backup Will Furrer, giving the Vikings the ball at Houston’s 28.

All Moon had to do then was hand off to Smith. He ran for three yards and five yards before plowing through the right side and breaking loose for a touchdown.