Football

Eli Manning passed for 303 yards and two touchdowns, leading the Giants to their fourth straight win, 31-10 over the hapless Atlanta Falcons on Monday night. The Giants (4-2) took control after a wild first quarter in which the teams combined for 24 points. New York scored the final 24 points to send the Michael Vick -less Falcons tumbling to their fifth loss in six games. The Giants have bounced back after starting the season with losses to Dallas and Green Bay, but they must be mindful of the collapse that knocked them out of the playoffs a year ago. A five-game winning streak had the Giants at 6-2 midway through the 2006 season, but they managed just two more wins the rest of the way.

In a rare battle of 5-0 teams, the New England Patriots stomped the Dallas Cowboys as badly as everyone else they've faced this season, winning 48-27 Sunday behind a career-best five touchdown passes from Tom Brady. Although the Patriots put up their most points in 23 years, the game wasn't as lopsided as the score indicates - which is what makes this victory so impressive. They won by three touchdowns despite giving up their most points of the season and trailing in the second half for the first time all year. Brady was 31-of-46 for 388 yards. His five TDs tied a franchise record and gave him an NFL record with at least three in each of the first six games of the season. However, he was sacked as many times (3) as he'd been all season; on one, he lost a fumble that Dallas returned for a touchdown. What made his performance special was the way he responded to that third-quarter deficit: touchdown, field goal, touchdown, field goal, touchdown. The last score came with 19 seconds left, a 1-yard run by first-year running back Kyle Eckel that Brady celebrated with two huge fist pumps.

Cornerback Charles Woodson scooped up the ball - and lifted the spirits of the Green Bay Packers' suddenly sagging offense. Woodson's 57-yard fumble return in the third quarter gave the Packers the go-ahead touchdown in a 17-14 victory over the Washington Redskins at soggy Lambeau Field on Sunday. With Green Bay's previously top-ranked passing offense sputtering and the Packers trailing 14-10 late in the third quarter, defensive lineman Corey Williams stripped Redskins receiver Santana Moss on an end-around. Woodson picked up the ball and ran to the end zone. The Packers (5-1) won despite an off day from Brett Favre , who became the NFL's career interception king with an errant pass picked off by Redskins safety Sean Taylor in the third quarter.

NFL scores