Patience Pays Off for the Panthers

Carolina’s stout defensive effort allowed quarterback Jake Delhomme time to show the Panthers can win without Steve Smith leading the way.

With Smith blanketed all game, Delhomme hit third-string tight end Michael Gaines for a three-yard touchdown, lifting Carolina to a 13-9 victory over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday at Orchard Park, N.Y.

The score came with 2:16 left and capped a 14-play, 68-yard drive in which Smith was a non-factor. Smith, the NFL’s leading receiver, finished with three catches for 55 yards.

“They rolled to Smitty a good bit and we had to be patient,” Delhomme said. “Just take what they give you. It was going to be one of those games where you were going to have to be smart.”

Delhomme was both patient and smart. He finished 20 for 27 for 191 yards passing, erasing the dreadful memories of his effort last weekend, when he had two passes intercepted and was sacked a career-worst eight times in a 13-3 loss at Chicago.

Credit Carolina’s defenders too, who registered four sacks and sealed the win when Chris Gamble intercepted J.P. Losman, ending the Bills’ last-gasp drive.

“We came straight at them like we always do,” safety Mike Minter said. “We stopped them with seven guys in the box. When you can do that as a defense, you’re playing well.”

The Panthers limited Buffalo to 216 yards offense, the sixth straight opponent they’ve held under 300 yards. They also have 23 sacks in their last six games.

Carolina (8-3) took over sole possession of the NFC South lead, a game ahead of Tampa Bay, which lost to Chicago.

The Bills (4-7) squandered two three-point leads and settled for Rian Lindell’s three fields goals despite three trips inside the Panther 20.

Cincinnati 42, Baltimore 29 -- Carson Palmer took advantage of the Ravens’ generous turnovers by throwing three touchdown passes en route to a 34-0 lead and a Bengals’ victory at Cincinnati.

The Ravens’ Kyle Boller had two passes intercepted and lost a fumble, helping Cincinnati (8-3) move a half-game ahead of Pittsburgh in the AFC North. The Steelers play tonight at Indianapolis.

Baltimore (3-8) played its fifth straight game without linebacker Ray Lewis and strong safety Ed Reed. The Ravens suffered another loss when free safety Will Demps tore a knee ligament in the second quarter.

St. Louis 33, Houston 27 -- In the first NFL action of his career, rookie third-string quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick threw a 56-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Curtis in overtime to cap an improbable comeback for the Rams (5-6) at Houston.

St. Louis rallied from a 21-point halftime deficit and scored 10 points in the final 30 seconds of the fourth quarter to force overtime.

Isaac Bruce scored on a 43-yard pass with 26 seconds left and the Rams recovered an onside kick on the ensuing kickoff. Torry Holt caught a 19-yard pass that set up Jeff Wilkins’ 47-yard field goal that tied the game at 27 with four seconds left.

Houston (1-10) got the ball first in overtime but had to punt when David Carr was sacked on third down.

Fitzpatrick, a seventh-round draft pick, replaced Jamie Martin late in the first quarter and completed 19 of 30 passes for 310 yards and three touchdowns despite being sacked five times. Martin left after being hit in the head.

Minnesota 24, Cleveland 12 -- Brad Johnson threw three touchdown passes to Marcus Robinson, each of them set up by Browns’ turnovers, and the host Vikings (6-5) won their fourth in a row.

Johnson, 4-0 since taking over as the Vikings’ starter after Daunte Culpepper suffered a season-ending knee injury, completed 19 of 28 passes for 207 yards.

Rookie C.J. Mosley and Keith Newman both forced fumbles by Trent Dilfer with sacks, leading to Robinson’s first two scores.

Cleveland fell to 4-7.

Tennessee 33, San Francisco 22 -- Steve McNair threw for 343 yards and three third-quarter touchdowns, including two within 80 seconds, and the Titans ended a five-game losing streak by beating the 49ers (2-9) at Nashville.

McNair finished 23 for 41 in his best game since Oct. 12, 2003, when he threw for 421 yards against Houston.

Chris Brown, who hasn’t rushed for 100 yards in a game this season, caught three passes for 105 yards and a touchdown. Rob Bironas kicked a career-high four field goals. Kyle Vanden Bosch had two sacks, and the Titans (3-8) forced four turnovers.

Jacksonville 24, Arizona 17 -- Without their starting quarterback and running back, the Jaguars (8-3) still had just enough to win their fourth in a row.

Derrick Wimbush returned a kick 91 yards for a touchdown, backup quarterback David Garrard ran 16 yards for a score and the Jaguars edged the host Cardinals (3-8).

Quarterback Byron Leftwich left because of a broken ankle on their first offensive series and Fred Taylor didn’t play because of an ankle injury.

Arizona’s Neil Rackers’ string of 31 consecutive field goals, tied for third-longest in NFL history, ended on the first series of the windy afternoon when his 43-yard try was wide left.

Miami 33, Oakland 21 -- Jason Taylor had three of Miami’s seven sacks, including a safety, Gus Frerotte threw for 261 yards and two touchdowns, and the Dolphins ended a three-game losing streak with a victory at Oakland.

Ricky Williams had a 34-yard scoring run with 3:50 left, and Vonnie Holliday had three sacks to give Miami (4-7) its sixth straight regular-season victory over Oakland (4-7).

Philadelphia 19, Green Bay 14 -- David Akers kicked four field goals and Mike McMahon completed 12 of 28 passes for 91 yards and ran for 29 yards in an efficient, error-free game to help the Eagles (5-6) end a four-game losing streak by beating the Packers at Philadelphia.

Samkon Gado ran for 111 yards and one touchdown for the Packers (2-9), who are assured of their first losing season since Brett Favre took over as starter in 1992, a run of 13 years that was the best in the league.

Favre misfired on nine of his first 10 passes, and finished 15 for 33 for 171 yards and one touchdown. He had two passes intercepted.

New Orleans 21, N.Y. Jets 19 -- Aaron Brooks threw three touchdown passes and the Saints (3-8) broke a six-game losing streak with a victory over the Jets (2-9) in their second visit to East Rutherford, N.J., this season. Ironically, New Orleans fared better as the road team.

The Saints played their “home” opener here against the New York Giants after Hurricane Katrina devastated the New Orleans area and ruined the Superdome. They lost that game, 27-10.

Brooks completed 17 of 23 passes for 181 yards in handing the Jets their sixth straight loss.

Jet running back Curtis Martin became the fourth NFL player to rush for 14,000 yards, reaching the mark with a 23-yard run in the first quarter. The 11-year veteran joined Emmitt Smith (18,355), Walter Payton (16,726) and Barry Sanders (15,269) as the only players to reach the milestone.