Colts Give Dungy a Nice Welcome Back Present

Tony Dungy tried to do things his normal way Sunday.

But when Mike Doss handed him the ball with 13 seconds left, even the Indianapolis Colt coach couldn’t resist the temptation to respond. In a rare emotional outburst, he grabbed the ball, raised it in his right hand and pumped it toward the RCA Dome crowd, which roared in approval.

Five days after burying his oldest son, 18-year-old James, Dungy watched Jim Sorgi throw two touchdown passes and got the goal line stand he needed -- thanks to a replay reversal -- in the final seconds to give the Colts a 17-13 victory over the Arizona Cardinals.

“I know those guys wanted to win the game for me and wanted to do it for a lot of reasons,” Dungy said. “But I think they wanted to win it for me, and they came up with the effort to do it. It was special.”

Before the game, the Colts had a moment of silence in honor of James Dungy.

The Colts (14-2) deactivated running back Edgerrin James, Peyton Manning played only one series and receivers Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne were in for only two.

Arizona’s Neil Rackers kicked two field goals to break the NFL season record with 40.

The Cardinals finished the season at 5-11.

Miami 28, New England 26 -- The Patriots sat out their stars at Foxborough, Mass., with an eye toward the playoffs as the Dolphins won their sixth straight game, their longest winning streak in 13 seasons.

The Patriots (10-6) staged a late comeback in which Doug Flutie converted the NFL’s first successful drop kick in 64 years. Then backup quarterback Matt Cassel cut the lead to 28-26 with a four-yard pass to Benjamin Watson with no time left. But Cassel’s pass for a two-point conversion fell incomplete.

The Dolphins started the season 3-7, then didn’t lose as they finished at 9-7.

Jacksonville 40, Tennessee 13 -- The Jaguars scored 27 points in the first half at Jacksonville, Fla., en route to their eighth win in the last nine games.

Jacksonville (12-4) essentially sealed the win on Derrick Wimbush’s six-yard touchdown run with 4:11 left in the second quarter. The Titans (4-12) ended their second straight losing season with a three-game losing streak.

St. Louis 20, Dallas 10 -- Aveion Cason and Arlen Harris ran for their first touchdowns since 2003 and Jeff Wilkins kicked two field goals for the Rams at Irving, Texas.

The Rams (6-10) were giving up a league-worst 27.9 points a game but came away with their stingiest effort of the season. Although effort may be too strong a word in a game rendered meaningless when Washington beat Philadelphia and eliminated Dallas (9-7) from the wild-card chase an hour before kickoff.

St. Louis won for only the second time in its last eight games. It may be a going-away present for Marshall Faulk, who got his first start of the season, and Coach Mike Martz, who is believed to be on his way out.

New York Jets 30, Buffalo 26 -- Justin Miller returned a kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown with 5:58 left, and Ty Law had three interceptions for the Jets (4-12) at East Rutherford, N.J.

Buffalo (5-11) had one final shot with 47 seconds left, but Law intercepted Kelly Holcomb’s deep heave.

Cleveland 20, Baltimore 16 -- Dennis Northcutt’s 62-yard punt return for a touchdown helped the Browns (6-10) win at Cleveland over the Ravens, who finished 0-8 on the road. The Ravens (6-10) have lost 11 straight on the road dating to last season.