Giants Beat Bills in NFL Week 6; Lions Lose First, Packers Stay Unbeaten

The New York Giants beat the Buffalo Bills on a last-minute field goal for their first victory over a team with a winning record, while the Green Bay Packers stayed undefeated and the Detroit Lions suffered their first loss of the National Football League season.

Ahmad Bradshaw rushed for three touchdowns and Lawrence Tynes kicked a 23-yard field goal with 1:35 remaining as the Giants beat the Bills 27-24 yesterday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

The Giants improved to 4-2 and moved into first place in the National Football Conference’s East Division with Washington’s 20-13 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. New York’s first three wins this season came against teams with a combined 3-13 record. The Bills are now 4-2.

“We came together as a team,” Giants quarterback Eli Manning told reporters. “Guys made the plays and it’s a big win. At 4-2, we feel like we’re in a good spot.”

The Lions, who were 5-0 for the first time since 1956, lost 25-19 at home against the San Francisco 49ers. Alex Smith threw a six-yard touchdown pass to Delanie Walker with 1:51 remaining to give the 49ers a 22-19 lead at Ford Field in Detroit. Frank Gore rushed for 141 yards and a touchdown as San Francisco improved to 5-1.

49ers coach Jim Harbaugh, who had a brief altercation with Lions counterpart Jim Schwartz after the game, is the fourth rookie coach since 1970 to start 5-1 after his team opened the previous season 1-5 or worse. He joins Jim Mora (2004 Atlanta Falcons), Al Groh (2000 New York Jets) and Bum Phillips (1975 Houston Oilers).

Packers Start 6-0

The Super Bowl-champion Packers improved to 6-0 for the first time since 1965 as Aaron Rodgers threw three first-half touchdown passes in a 24-3 win over the St. Louis Rams, who slumped to 0-5. Green Bay is the seventh defending champion to start the following season with six straight wins and the first since the 2007 Indianapolis Colts.

The New England Patriots lifted their home winning streak to 20 games by beating the Dallas Cowboys 20-16 on Tom Brady’s eight-yard touchdown pass to Aaron Hernandez with 27 seconds left. New England improved to 5-1 while the Cowboys are 2-3 and have lost two straight games. It was the 116th victory for Brady and Patriots coach Bill Belichick, tying Hall of Famers Dan Marino and Don Shula for the most wins by a quarterback-head coach duo since the Super Bowl era began in 1966.

The Atlanta Falcons scored 17 fourth-quarter points to beat the Carolina Panthers 31-17. Michael Turner rushed for 139 yards and two touchdowns for the Falcons, including a 2-yard score with 1:56 left that followed the third interception of the game thrown by Panthers rookie quarterback Cam Newton.

Brees’s Interceptions

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat New Orleans 26-20 by forcing four turnovers, including three interceptions of Saints quarterback Drew Brees.

The Cincinnati Bengals defeated Indianapolis 27-17 to improve to 4-2 -- matching their win total from last season -- and drop the Colts to 0-6. Carlos Dunlap returned a fumble 35 yards for a touchdown with 2:22 left to seal the Bengals’ win.

The Pittsburgh Steelers stayed even with the Bengals in the AFC North with a 17-13 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Rashard Mendenhall rushed for a season-high 146 yards and a touchdown as the Steelers opened a 17-0 first-half lead.

The Eagles halted their four-game losing skid with four interceptions of Redskins quarterback Rex Grossman, including three by Kurt Coleman. LeSean McCoy rushed for 126 yards and a touchdown for the Eagles (2-4). The Redskins fell to 3-2.

The Oakland Raiders held off the Cleveland Browns 24-17 to improve to 4-2, and the Baltimore Ravens have a 4-1 record after beating the Houston Texans 29-14. The Chicago Bears routed the Minnesota Vikings 39-10 in last night’s game as Devin Hester scored two touchdowns, including one on a 98-yard kickoff return at Soldier Field.

The Jets, after a three-game road losing skid, host the Miami Dolphins tonight in the final Week 6 game.

To contact the reporter on this story: Erik Matuszewski in New York at matuszewski@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Michael Sillup at msillup@bloomberg.net