THE New Orleans Saints suffered a shock 31-21 defeat to the previously winless St Louis Rams and the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the New England Patriots in NFL action on Sunday.

MICHAEL VICK had a rough return to Atlanta last night, suffering a concussion along with defeat as the Falcons beat the Philadelphia Eagles 35-31 in the Georgia Dome on Sunday night.

IN SPITE of the lockout cloud which overshadowed the off-season, the NFL machine cranks into gear this weekend, a little creaky but right on schedule.

IT WASN’T supposed to be like this.

MICHAEL VICK got the better of Peyton Manning as the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Indianapolis Colts 26-24 in gridiron’s NFL, but the match was overshadowed by a sickening injury to Austin Collie.

Animal rights activists have lashed out at Oscar winner Jamie Foxx after he recently spoke out in defence of dog fighting ring leader Michael Vick.

TOM BRADY threw for 269 yards and a touchdown, while Asante Samuel picked off three passes as the New England Patriots beat Chicago 17-13 in a showdown of American football division leaders on Sunday.

ATLANTA, Kansas City and Tampa Bay all won their NFL games in dramatic fashion Sunday with late field goals, including Matt Bryant’s 62-yarder as time expired to lift the Bucs over Philadelphia.

WHILE Cincinnati and the New York Giants battled to key division victories in the NFL on Sunday, Indianapolis remained unbeaten and clinched a play-off berth.

Oprah Winfrey is the world’s most powerful celebrity, according to a list compiled by business magazine Forbes.

The Philadelphia Eagles filtered their pressure from past championship game failures squarely on the shoulders of Michael Vick.

THE Tampa Bay Buccaneers have scuppered Atlanta’s hopes of locking up a division title with weeks to spare in the National Football League.

Rookie quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and the Pittsburgh Steelers ended the 21-game winning streak of the New England Patriots with a 34-20 victory.

REIGNING Super Bowl champions Tampa Bay Buccaneers nearly dug themselves out of a huge hole, but finally saw their NFL playoff hopes buried in a 30-28 loss to Atlanta at the weekend.

RICKY WILLIAMS carried a franchise-record 42 times for 153 yards and a touchdown and Miami used an overwhelming defensive performance to post a 17-7 victory over AFC East rivals Buffalo in the NFL on Sunday night.

TENNESSEE’S Joe Nedney made the most of his third chance Saturday, kicking the game-winner on his second overtime try as the Titans defeated Pittsburgh 34-31 and left the Steelers crying foul in the National Football League play-offs.

TENNESSEE'S Joe Nedney made the most of his third chance Saturday, kicking the game-winner on his second overtime try as the Titans downed Pittsburgh 34-31 and left the Steelers crying foul in the NFLeague playoffs.

DONOVAN MCNABB, the National Football League’s highest-paid player, returns to quarterback for Philadelphia today when they take on another team with an explosive quarterback talent - Atlanta - in the playoff second round.

OAKLAND and Tennessee captured division NFL titles on Sunday, but the playoff puzzle was still missing plenty of pieces after the penultimate weekend of the gridiron season.

A.J. FEELEY threw two touchdown passes and linebacker Carlos Emmons returned a fumble for a touchdown as the Eagles clinched the NFC East title with a 34-21 victory over the Washington Redskins.

BRETT FAVRE sparked NFL pace-setters Green Bay to a seventh consecutive win on Sunday while Issac Bruce celebrated his 30th birthday by rallying St. Louis to victory.

REIGNING Superbowl champions, the New England Patriots, overcame an early 10-0 disadvantage, then blew a 14-point fourth quarter lead before finally eking out a 41-38 overtime win over Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.