NFL: Texans pound 49ers

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - One early mistake did nothing to rattle Matt Schaub.

Schaub stepped back to pass on the first play of the game and threw right to 49ers linebacker Ahmad Brooks a few yards away. After that rare blunder, Houston's reliable quarterback was spot-on.

Schaub recovered after the early interception, leading the Texans on scoring drives in each of their next three series in a 30-7 exhibition rout of the rebuilding San Francisco 49ers on Saturday night.

"We had a lot of early mistakes and turnovers but guys bounced back and made plays," Schaub said. "I think that shows the maturity of our team that those mistakes aren't going to linger."

Troy Nolan made two interceptions for new defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, returning the first pick 73 yards for a touchdown to give the Texans 24 straight first-half points after they fell behind 7-0.

Schaub enhanced an already impressive preseason, going 16 for 24 for 180 yards and a touchdown for the unbeaten Texans (3-0). So far, Houston looks very much like an AFC contender, although the Texans had to remove 2010 NFL rushing leader Arian Foster when his troublesome hamstring began bothering him again late in the first quarter.

Coach Gary Kubiak is optimistic Foster will be ready for the opener Sept. 11 against the defending AFC South champion Indianapolis Colts.

"We don't think it's anything worse than what we were dealing with before," Kubiak said of Foster, who sat out the first preseason game.

San Francisco quarterback Alex Smith wound up 2 for 6 for 17 yards, just 4 more yards in the air than he lost in two sacks.

There weren't very many people to boo him this time.

The Candlestick Park stands were about one-third full a week after things turned violent and two men were shot in a parking lot after the 49ers beat the Bay Area rival Oakland Raiders 17-3.

Backup Colin Kaepernick then got his shot for San Francisco. He didn't look much better than Smith.

Kaepernick, the team's second-round draft pick out of Nevada, threw the interception to Nolan on his fifth play from scrimmage and third pass attempt after two previous incompletions.

Smith returned for a three-and-out and then another series in which he threw an interception in the closing seconds of the first half.

Running back Frank Gore, hoping for a new contract before the Sept. 11 opener with defending division champion Seattle, didn't play.

Lions 34, Patriots 10

DETROIT - Matthew Stafford threw for 200 yards and two touchdowns in less than a half, leading Detroit to a preseason victory over New England.

Tom Brady struggled, connecting on just over half of his passes for 145 yards with a TD and an interception for New England (2-1).

The Lions and their sellout crowd at Ford Field were clearly fired up for the nationally televised game against the elite Patriots.

Stafford and Detroit's defensive front were impressive in the third preseason game, one that both teams treated like a real game for much of the first half.

The Lions (3-0) know they can't get too excited about exhibition results because they were undefeated in the 2008 preseason and went on to become the NFL's first 0-16 team.

Cowboys 23, Vikings 17

MINNEAPOLIS - Gerald Sensabaugh had an interception and a hand in a special teams touchdown for Dallas, Tony Romo connected often with Dez Bryant, and the Cowboys beat Minnesota.

Testing out the new turf under the replaced roof at the Metrodome in the first game in the building since a snowstorm last December severely damaged the 29-year-old stadium, Donovan McNabb and the rest of Minnesota's offensive starters were sharp.

But Sensabaugh stopped a long drive by diving to catch a pass batted at the line by Jason Hatcher for an interception at the Dallas 19 in the second quarter.

Just a few minutes earlier, Sensabaugh leaped high at the line and appeared to tip Ryan Longwell's 47-yard field-goal attempt. Orlando Scandrick was in the backfield, too, and was officially credited with the block.

Alan Ball picked up the rolling ball and grabbed it again after losing control before running the remaining 20 yards for a score. Romo went 15 for 20 for 141 yards in one half, firing five passes for 67 yards to Bryant.

Dallas is 2-1, and Minnesota 1-2.

Steelers 34, Falcons 16

PITTSBURGH - Pittsburgh wide receiver Antonio Brown continued his electrifying preseason, catching four passes for 137 yards and two touchdowns in the Steelers' victory over Atlanta.

Brown scored on passes of 77 and 44 yards from quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and set up another touchdown with a lengthy kickoff return as Pittsburgh's starters looked sharp for the second straight week.

Roethlisberger finished 11 of 16 for 214 yards and the two touchdowns in one half.

Atlanta quarterback Matt Ryan squeezed an entire game's worth of action into two quarters, completing 22 of 42 passes for 210 yards with a touchdown and an interception against a banged-up Pittsburgh secondary missing starting cornerbacks Bryant McFadden and Ike Taylor.

Pittsburgh improved to 2-1, and Atlanta dropped to 0-3.

Titans 14, Bears 13

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Seventh-round draft pick Tommie Campbell returned an interception 90 yards for a touchdown to help Tennessee rally to beat Chicago.

The Bears (1-2) out gained the Titans (2-1) 416-220, but Tennessee came up with two interceptions. Campbell, a cornerback from Division II California (Pa.) picked off Caleb Hanie's pass late in the third quarter and ran up the left sideline untouched to put Tennessee ahead to stay.

Chicago's Jay Cutler played one series into the third quarter and was 13 of 21 for 170 yards with his one interception coming on the opening drive. Matt Forte ran 17 times for 74 yards and a touchdown, but Marion Barber hurt his calf early and did not return.

Bills 35, Jaguars 32, OT

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) - Rian Lindell hit a 40-yard field goal with 3:04 left in overtime to lift Buffalo past Jacksonville in a game nearly 4 hours long.

Lindell's kick came after Jacksonville's Josh Scobee missed a 53-yard attempt.

It was a back-and-forth game in which Buffalo squandered a 17-point first-half lead and had to overcome a 15-point deficit.

With much of the crowd gone by halftime, Tyler Thigpen forced overtime by hitting Paul Hubbard on a 4-yard touchdown pass with 38 seconds left, then hooking up again for a 2-point conversion.

Buccaneers 17, Dolphins 13

TAMPA, Fla. - Rudy Carpenter threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to Nathan Overbay with 3:11 remaining, giving Tampa Bay the victory over Miami.

Josh Freeman directed a TD drive just before the half to finish on a positive note. Connor Barth kicked a 28-yard field goal for the Bucs (2-1), who overcame 15 penalties in a performance not nearly as crisp as they'd hoped for coming off last week's sloppy, lopsided loss to New England.

Brandon Marshall scored on a 60-yard reception from Chad Henne.

, and Dan Carpenter kicked field goals of 21 and 47 yards for the Dolphins (2-1), who were penalized 11 times themselves.