Manning nearly perfect in Colts' rout
Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts offense haven't lost their touch.
The Super Bowl MVP appeared to be in midseason form Saturday night, throwing 3 first-half touchdowns and helping the defending champions control the ball in a 37-10 rout of the Detroit Lions in Indianapolis. It was just Indianapolis' second win in 13 preseason games.
In what was likely the final regular-season tuneup for Indy's starters, Manning was flawless. He completed 23 of 27 passes for 233 yards and converted six plays for first downs when he needed at least 10 yards.
Manning is now 31 of 40 for 331 yards and no interceptions in three weeks, and he was so efficient against Detroit that coach Tony Dungy uncharacteristically changed the script by pulling his starters at halftime. Dungy said he intended to use them into the third quarter.
For Detroit, it was nothing less than a nightmare.
Not only did the Lions look overmatched, they also lost three starters to injuries. Running back Tatum Bell, acquired in a March trade with Denver, left in the first quarter after hurting his right leg. Linebacker Boss Bailey and safety Daniel Bullocks departed in the second quarter, and none of the three returned.
Seahawks 30, Vikings 13: Matt Hasselbeck, playing for the first time since he had a single series in the exhibition opener two weeks ago, completed 12 of 17 passes for 129 yards and threw an interception in Seattle's victory over visiting Minnesota.
Seattle's starters -- particularly its offensive line -- looked far better than they did while getting run over in a 48-13 loss at Green Bay last week.
Vikings QB Tarvaris Jackson overcame a lost fumble on the game's first snap to complete 9 of 18 passes for 117 yards.
Chester Taylor ran for 61 yards on 8 carries as Minnesota's first-team offense scored 10 points and gained 220 yards in the first half plus one drive of the third quarter. Rookie Adrian Peterson ran 10 times for 41 yards.
Browns 17, Broncos 16: Brady Quinn (7 of 11, 81 yards) was efficient and effective for the second straight game, leading visiting Cleveland past Denver, although it probably wasn't enough to win him the starting job over Charlie Frye.
Jets 20, Giants 12: QB Kellen Clemens came off the bench in the second half and engineered two third-quarter touchdown drives against the Giants' backups to lead the Jets to a victory. A quarterback controversy may be brewing with the Jets because Chad Pennington was just 5-for-11 for 89 yards, 79 of which came on a pass to halfback Leon Washington on the first play from scrimmage.
Eli Manning was 17-for-25 for 146 yards and a TD for the Giants.
Texans 28, Cowboys 16: Matt Schaub and the Houston Texans became the first team to score a touchdown against Dallas' starting defense this preseason.
They didn't stop at just one.
Schaub (12-for-16, 109 yards) connected with Andre Johnson early in the second quarter and found speedy rookie Jacoby Jones just before halftime to lead the Texans to a 12-point win over the Cowboys.
Bucs 31, Dolphins 28: Jeff Garcia (4-for-10, 54 yards) threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to Joey Galloway on his third and final series during Tampa Bay's victory over host Miami. The Bucs' Carnell Williams carried four times for 25 yards -- after rushing for 3 yards on 4 attempts in the first two games.
Redskins 13, Ravens 7, game halted: Washington led host Baltimore 13-7 when play was suspended due to lightning with 11:38 remaining in the third quarter-- just after the stadium lights dimmed while an incomplete pass from Kyle Boller to Marcus Freeman was in mid-flight.
Officials monitored the weather radar to see if the game could be resumed, but most of the meaningful football had already been played. Both teams had sent mostly reserves onto the field in the second half after using their starters for the first.
Steve McNair went 14-for-19 for 98 yards for Baltimore. Derrick Mason had 5 catches for 31 yards.