Quincy Morgan caught a 50-yard desperation pass from Tim Couch, then waited as officials upheld the play on review to give the Browns a 21-20 victory over the Jaguars on Sunday.
Morgan fought off tight coverage from Fernando Bryant on the final play. As the two fell to the ground, Morgan cradled the ball to his body with his right hand. Side judge Bill Spyksma signaled touchdown.
The ball looked as if it might have touched the ground as Morgan hit the turf, but after a review of about 90 seconds, referee Ron Winter said there was no indisputable evidence to overturn the play.
PHOTO: AP
Phil Dawson kicked the extra point for the one-point margin, and the Browns (7-6) pulled within a half-game of Pittsburgh in the AFC North. The Steelers lost to Houston 24-6.
49ers 31, Cowboys 27
In Irving, Texas, Terrell Owens made a juggling catch of a 3-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter, then caught an 8-yarder with 12 seconds left, as the 49ers clinched their first NFC West title since 1997.
Although Owens' first TD catch put the 49ers (9-4) ahead, they fell behind by 10 before Jeff Garcia brought them back.
Bucs 34, Falcons 10
In Tampa, Florida, Brad Johnson threw for 276 yards and four touchdowns, and the NFL's No. 1 defense shut down Michael Vick for the second time this season as the Bucs ended the Atlanta Falcons' eight-game unbeaten streak.
Raiders 27, Chargers 7
In San Diego, Rich Gannon and Jerry Rice overwhelmed the San Diego Chargers' young stars as the Raiders took take sole possession of first place in the AFC West.
Chiefs 49, Rams 10
In Kansas City, Missouri, Dante Hall returned a kickoff and a punt for a touchdown, one week after running back a punt 90 yards for a score, as the Chiefs eliminated the Rams from playoff contention.
Texans 24, Steelers 6
In Pittsburgh, Aaron Glenn scored twice on long interception returns, and the Texans gained just 47 yards -- the fewest ever by a winning team in NFL history.
Eagles 27, Seahawks 20
In Seattle, Duce Staley ran for 100 yards and third-string quarterback A.J. Feeley threw for 190 yards and two touchdowns as the Eagles held Matt Hasselbeck in check.
Patriots 27, Bills 17
In Foxboro, Massachusetts, Tom Brady outplayed former teammate Drew Bledsoe for the second time this season as the Patriots took over first place in the AFC East.
Jets 19, Broncos 13
In East Rutherford, New Jersey, Laveranues Coles went over 1,000 yards receiving and made a spectacular diving touchdown catch, keeping the New York Jets' dim playoff hopes alive with a comeback victory.
Titans 27, Colts 17
In Nashville, Tennessee, despite sore ribs that kept him from practicing for a second straight week, Steve McNair threw for 237 yards and a touchdown to lead the Titans.
Saints 37, Ravens 25
In Baltimore, Deuce McAllister ran for 127 yards and three touchdowns, and the Saints capitalized on a litany of Baltimore miscues in their win.
Giants 27, Redskins 21
In Landover, Maryland, the Giants took advantage of five Washington turnovers to keep their minuscule playoff hopes alive.
Cardinals 23, Lions 20, OT
In Tempe, Arizona, Bill Gramatica kicked a 42-yard field goal with 10:48 left in overtime as the Arizona Cardinals snapped a six-game losing streak. It was the 21st game this season to go to overtime, tying the 1995 league record.
Panthers 52, Bengals 31
In Charlotte, North Carolina, Steve Smith scored three touchdowns -- two on punt returns -- and had a career-high 313 total yards to lead the Carolina Panthers to victory.
Packers 26, Vikings 22
In Green Bay, Wisconsin, Tony Fisher's 14-yard touchdown run in the final 1:06 gave Green Bay its first lead of the game on a chilly Lambeau night.
Darren Sharper picked off Daunte Culpepper's desperation pass as time expired and returned the ball 66 yards before finally going down at the Minnesota 16.
The bad blood between the border rivals boiled over at that point as Vikings tight end Jim Kleinsasser gave a two-handed shove to Packers safety Marques Anderson near the Minnesota bench.
As players from both teams converged to break up the fracas, or join in, Vikings defensive tackle Chris Hovan exchanged words with Packers quarterback Brett Favre near the Packers' tunnel.
Taiwanese world No. 1 women’s doubles star Hsieh Su-wei on Saturday overcame a first-set loss to win her opening match at the Madrid Open. Top seeds Hsieh and partner Elise Mertens of Belgium, with whom she last month won her fourth Indian Wells women’s doubles title, bounced back from a rocky first set to beat Asia Muhammad of the US and Aldila Sutjiadi of Indonesia 2-6, 6-4, 10-2. Hsieh and Mertens were next to face Heather Watson of the UK and Xu Yifan of China in the round of 16. Thirty-eight-year-old Hsieh last month reclaimed her world No. 1 spot after her Indian
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Chen Yi-tung (陳奕通) secured a historic Olympic berth on Sunday by winning the senior men’s foil event at the 2024 Asia Oceania Zonal Olympic Fencing Qualifiers in United Arab Emirates. Chen defeated Samuel Elijah of Singapore 15-4 in the final in Dubai to secure the only wild card in the event, making him the first male Olympian fencer from Taiwan in 36 years and only the sixth Taiwanese fencer to ever qualify for the quadrennial event. The last appearance by a Taiwanese male fencer at the Olympics was in 1988, when Wang San-tsai (王三財) and Cheng Ming-hsiang (鄭明祥) competed in Seoul. The
A soccer jersey carrying a national map including disputed Western Sahara has become a hot commodity in Morocco after a diplomatic dispute with Algeria. Retailers said RS Berkane jerseys have been flying off the shelves after a Confederation of African Football (CAF) Cup match against Algerian club USM Alger was canceled last month over the jerseys. “We are overwhelmed by the influx of messages and requests,” said Brahim Rabii, representative of the official RS Berkane jersey distributor. Algeria broke off diplomatic relations with Morocco in 2021, partly over the issue of Western Sahara. The former Spanish colony is largely controlled by Morocco, but claimed