Defensive player: Adrian Wilson. The Arizona Cardinals safety had an all-pro night, leading an emerging defense that used four turnovers and three sacks to thwart the New York Giants. Wilson's line: five tackles, two tackles for losses, one interception and two passes defensed. The interception set up what proved to be the decisive TD.

Special teamer: Percy Harvin. The Minnesota Vikings rookie wideout contributed to the fourth-quarter drama at Heinz Field, answering the first of the Pittsburgh Steelers' long defensive TD returns in the fourth quarter with an 88-yard kickoff-return TD that quickly cut the gap to three points. Harvin's return, sandwiched between LaMarr Woodley's 77-yard fumble return and Keyaron Fox's 82-yard interception runback, marked the first time an NFL game included three returns of at least 75 yards in the fourth quarter.

Rookie: Shonn Greene. The New York Jets third-round pick responded after being pressed into action after Leon Washington suffered a broken leg vs. the Oakland Raiders. Greene had 144 yards and two TDs, helping the Jets become the first NFL team since 1975 to rush for 300 yards in back-to-back games.

Comeback player: Drew Brees. Three interceptions and a season-low 58.9 passer rating. No matter. The New Orleans Saints were down 24-3 at the Miami Dolphins but rallied behind their quarterback to stay unbeaten. Brees lobbied coach Sean Payton to go for it from the 1-yard line with five seconds left in the first half, then scored on a sneak.

Unsung hero: Owen Daniels. On a day when Houston Texans wide receiver Andre Johnson was taken out of the flow and knocked out in the fourth quarter with a chest injury, the fourth-year tight end picked up the slack with seven catches for 123 yards against the San Francisco 49ers, including a 42-yard TD.

Surprise: Just when it appeared the Carolina Panthers would get back to .500 with a third consecutive victory, along came the Buffalo Bills -- with backup quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick completing 50% of his passes for 123 yards in the win. Fitzpatrick didn't commit a turnover, which is the moral of the story after Carolina amassed 425 yards of offense. Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme had three more interceptions to raise his NFL high to 13.

Genius: Ken Whisenhunt. A year ago, Arizona was coming off its third consecutive loss on the East Coast. Well, they've figured something out. After Sunday's defeat of the Giants, the Cardinals have started the season 3-0 on the road for the first time since 1982.

Did you notice? Vikings fullback Jeff Dugan extended his arms and shoved back judge Richard Reels to the turf during Harvin's 88-yard kickoff return at Pittsburgh. Interestingly, it was Reels who threw the flag a few minutes earlier to call a tripping penalty on Dugan that wiped out Sidney Rice's go-ahead TD catch. The penalty became more devastating when it was followed by Brett Favre's fumble that Woodley returned 77 yards for a TD.

Stat: The Indianapolis Colts, on a franchise-record 15-game regular-season winning streak, are 6-0 for the fourth time in five years. The defense hasn't allowed a first-half TD since Week 2.