AMERICAN FOOTBALL ROUND-UP:THE NEW England Patriots leapfrogged the New York Jets atop the AFC East division as NFL's Halloween Sunday lived up to its grisly billing for some of the league's Super Bowl contenders.
BenJarvus Green-Ellis scored two touchdowns as the Patriots (6-1) posted their fifth straight win this season. Minnesota Vikings (2-5) quarterback Brett Favre was forced out of the game with a gash on his chin that required stitches.
“I got hit very hard, it was sore and bleeding,” said Favre. “I don’t want to make a big deal out of it. I remember everything, unfortunately.”
Sunday was a real-life horror show for the high-flying Jets and the once-mighty Dallas Cowboys, a pair of teams that began the season with high hopes playing in the Super Bowl.
The Jets (5-2) fell 9-0 to the Green Bay Packers (5-3) at their New Meadowlands Stadium in New Jersey. It was only their second loss of the season but their mistake-riddled performance raised questions about the potency of their offence. Quarterback Mark Sanchez completed only 16 of 38 passes and had two interceptions as the Jets turned the ball over three times in Packers territory.
The Packers had 123 total yards less than the Jets but that hardly mattered as Green Bay’s Mason Crosby kept the score ticking over with three field goals.
“Green Bay is one of the top teams but they’re playing at our place and we have to win these games,” Jets coach Rex Ryan said. “I don’t care who we play. If you play at our place, we should win. That was disappointing.”
This season’s Super Bowl will be in Dallas’s new stadium in Arlington but the Cowboys’ (1-6) push to become the first team to play in their home stadium in the championship already looks grim with the season reaching the halfway point.
Dallas were thrashed 35-17 at home by the Jacksonville Jaguars (4-4) after a performance that brought jeers from their own supporters, perhaps wishing the ghosts of previous Dallas teams would come back to life.
Jaguars quarterback David Garrard tied a club record with four touchdown passes, while the Cowboys could only manage two late consolation touchdowns against a Jacksonville team with the worst defensive record in the NFL.
“I’m very, very sorry to our fans,” Cowboys owner manager Jerry Jones said. “You should have better than this. You should be able to tell that I won’t rest until we’ve figured some things out that get us in a different spot.”
The Tennessee Titans (5-2) and the Seattle Seahawks (3-3) both stayed on top of their divisions despite losses against lower-ranked opponents. The Titans, who lead the AFC South, fell 33-25 to the San Diego Chargers (2-5) and the Seahawks were thrashed 33-3 by the Oakland Raiders (3-4).
Ryan Succop kicked a field goal as time expired in overtime to give the the Kansas City Chiefs (5-2) a 13-10 win over the Buffalo Bills (0-7), the only winless team in the NFL, although their latest loss was tinged with a sense of cruelty.
Rian Lindell nailed what would have been he game-winning field goal in overtime but a Chiefs timeout moments before his attempt forced him to do it again. Lindell’s second chance from 53 yards hit the upright.
The Detroit Lions (2-5) chalked up their second win of the season when they clawed their way to a win over the Washington Redskins (4-4). Matthew Stafford threw four touchdown passes in his first game back after a shoulder injury in a season-opening loss at Chicago and completed 26 passes for 212 yards.
Dan Carpenter had five field goals as the Miami Dolphins (4-3) earned a 22-17 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals (2-5) to remain perfect on the road this season.
Josh Brown kicked four field goals and rookie quarterback Sam Bradford threw two touchdown passes as the St Louis Rams (4-4) grabbed a 20-10 win over the Carolina Panthers (1-6) and LeGarrette Blount ran in a pair of touchdowns as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-2) earned a 38-35 victory over the Arizona Cardinals (3-4) 38-35.
