Turner, Ryan rally Falcons past Eagles

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.

The former Atlanta quarterback left the game to a chorus of boos after shipping a series of knocks thatculminated in a collision with his own team mate Todd Herremans, forcing him out of the game while the visitors had the lead.

Mike Kafka took over for Vick and finished a touchdown drive that gave Philadelphia a 31-21 lead but running back Michael Turner and quarterback Matt Ryan inspired the Falcons to steadily claw back the deficit and ultimately edge ahead in the dying minutes.

It was equally rough for another NFC East quarterback although the Dallas Cowboys and Tony Romo ended up on the right side of a tight scoreline.

Playing with a fractured rib, Romo inspired the Cowboys to rally for a 27-24 overtime victory at the San Francisco 49ers.

It was an exact reversal of last Sunday night’s gut-wrenching defeat at the New York Jets with Romo’s fourth-quarter return inspiring his team mates and paving the way for a last-gasp Dan Bailey 48-yard field goal which forced the extra period.

Miles Austin’s three touchdowns receptions among his nine catches, leaping over a defender and divinginto the end zone to pull Dallas within 24-21 with just under seven minutes to play. The Washington Redskins continued their surprising start to the new season with a 22-21 victory over the Arizona Cardinals. The AFC had the overall game of the day, the Buffalo Bills continued to raise eyebrows with an exciting come-from-behind victory over the AFC West’s Oakland Raiders.

In-form quarter back Ryan Fitzpatrick found David Nelson wide open for a six-yard touchdown pass with 14 seconds left to secure a 38-35 win at the end of a 35-point second half which overturned a 21-3 half-time deficit.

Two of the other AFC East teams have opened with a 2-0 start with the New England Patriots particularlyimpressive in another Tom Brady-inspired performance.

His compelling duel with San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers was the highlight of a 35-21 home winalthough he fell short of Monday’s record-breaking performance against the Miami Dolphins.

Still though, Brady had three touchdown passes and tied for the third most yards passing in club history, going 31 of 40 with no interceptions as the Patriots scored on each of their four first-half possessions.

And Antonio Cromartie had two of the New York Jets’ four interceptions picked off from quarter back Luke McCown as the home side cruised past the Jacksonville Jaguars with a 32-3 victory while the Dolphins were beaten for the second week in-a-row at home, going down 23-13 to the Houston Texans.

In the AFC North, Super Bowl runners-up, the Pittsburgh Steelers bounced back from their opening day hammering by the Baltimore Ravens with a 24-0 win over the Seattle Seahawks while the Ravens crashed down to earth after a 13-26 reversal at the Matt Hasselbeck-inspired Tennessee Titans.

It was a nightmare day for the Kansas City Chiefs who lost 48-3 to the Detroit Lions while star running back Jamaal Charles suffered a possible season-ending knee injury.

Super Bowl champions Green Bay Packers recovered from an early deficit to win 30-23 against the Carolina Panthers for whom quarterback Cam Newton (432 passing yards, one TD, three interceptions) had another incredible yet fruitless performance.

Their respective divisional rivals, the Chicago Bears and the New Orleans Saints met at the Superdome with Drew Brees’ Saints emerging victorious, 30-13, making up for last week’s disappointing opener against the Packers.

There were also wins for Cleveland who beat the struggling Indianapolis Colts 27-19, Tampa Bay who piled on the misery for Minnesota (24-20) and Denver who slugged their way past Cincinnati, 24-22.