Patriots overcome Brady injury to clinch win

BOSTON (Reuters) - The New England Patriots survived an apparent serious knee injury to MVP quarterback Tom Brady to beat the Kansas City Chiefs 17-10 on the opening weekend of the NFL season on Sunday.

Brady injured his left knee midway through the first quarter when hit by Kansas City safety Bernard Pollard. He fell to the ground and grabbed his knee before limping off the field.

Local media reported Brady had possibly torn the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee and could be out for the season. The Patriots would not confirm the reports.

New England coach Bill Belichick said after the game the 31-year-old was undergoing tests and no update was available on his condition.

"We will see how that turns out," Belichick told reporters.

Pollard said: "All I heard was him scream and yell."

"I knew something was wrong," he added. "That (stinks) because he is a great player."

Back-up Matt Cassel replaced Brady and threw a 10-yard second-quarter touchdown pass Randy Moss, giving New England a lead they never relinquished.

Sammy Morris scored on a five-yard run and Stephen Gostkowski kicked a 37-yard field goal with 2:30 left to seal victory for the Patriots, who were undefeated in the 2007 regular season before losing to the New York Giants in the Super Bowl.

Kansas City pulled within 14-10 on Damond Huard's 13-yard touchdown pass to Dwayne Bowe early in the fourth quarter before Gostkowski's field goal.

Nick Novak kicked a 40-yard second-quarter field goal for the Chiefs, who lost starting quarterback Brodie Croyle to a shoulder injury in the third quarter.

Brady completed seven of 11 passes for 76 yards before the injury. He missed the pre-season while recovering from a foot problem.

* Former Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre came back from retirement to throw two touchdown passes in the New York Jets' 20-14 win at Miami.

* The Carolina Panthers shocked the San Diego Chargers 26-24 on Jake Delhomme's game-ending touchdown pass to Dante Rosario.

Delhomme found Rosario in the end zone for the 14-yard score as time expired. Philip Rivers threw three touchdown passes for San Diego, including two in a four-minute span that gave the Chargers a 24-19 lead with 2:27 remaining in the game.

* The Chicago Bears surprised the Indianapolis Colts, winning 29-13 as rookie running back Matt Forte rushed for 123 yards, including a 50-yard first-quarter touchdown.

* The Dallas Cowboys cruised to a 28-10 road win over the Cleveland Browns behind Tony Romo's 320 yards passing and Marion Barber's two short touchdown runs.

* Drew Brees threw three touchdown passes, including a game-clinching 42-yarder to Reggie Bush, in a 343-yard performance that gave the New Orleans Saints a 24-20 win over visiting Tampa Bay.

* Donovan McNabb passed for 361 yards and three touchdowns in the Philadelphia Eagles' 38-3 rout of the visiting St Louis Rams.

* The Pittsburgh Steelers rolled past the Houston Texans 38-17 with Willie Parker running for three touchdowns and Ben Roethlisberger passing for two more in a near-perfect 13-of-14 performance.

* The Tennessee Titans' defense sacked Jacksonville quarterback David Garrard seven times and intercepted him twice in a 17-10 home win over the Jaguars.

* The Atlanta Falcons beat the Detroit Lions 34-21 behind Michael Turner's two touchdowns.

* The Buffalo Bills, energized by Roscoe Parrish's 63-yard second-quarter punt return for a touchdown, crushed the Seattle Seahawks 34-10.

* The Arizona Cardinals pulled away from the San Francisco 49ers in the second half for a 23-13 road victory.

(Writing by Gene Cherry in Salvo, North Carolina; Editing by Ed Osmond and Greg Stutchbury)