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Monday, September 11 2006 @ 06:11 AM CDT
Peyton Manning won family bragging rights over younger brother Eli by guiding the Indianapolis Colts to a dramatic 26-21 win over the New York Giants on Sunday.
The NFL season opener between two teams tipped as Super Bowl contenders was also hyped as the 'Manning Bowl', pitting two brothers against each other as starting quarterbacks for the first time in league history.
"It was a great game... a good win for our team," Peyton Manning told reporters. "But I'm just glad it's over and I'm looking forward to the next regular season game.
"This wasn't a regular game."
Indeed, the build-up to the start of the new season, which began in earnest on Sunday with a slate of 13 games, centered around the Manning brothers.
With their mother and father, former NFL-quarterback Archie Manning, watching from the stands, Peyton completed 25-of-41 passes for 276 yards, including a two-yard touchdown strike to Dallas Clarke, to claim family honors.
At the end of the game, Eli and Peyton hugged each other on the Giants Stadium field as dozens of photographers swarmed around them to capture the historic moment.
Eli Manning completed 20-of-34 attempts for 247 yards, including TD passes to Plaxico Burress and Jeremy Shockey, while Tiki Barber rushed for 110 yards on 18 carries.
Adam Vinatieri, who signed with Giants in the off-season after helping the New England Patriots to a pair of Super Bowls with his clutch field goal kicking, booted four field goals of 26, 32, 32 and 48 yards on his New York debut.
BUSH SHINES
In Cleveland, Reggie Bush ran for 61 yards on his NFL debut and John Carney booted four field goals as the New Orleans Saints beat the Browns 19-14.
Bush, the Heisman trophy-winning running back from USC, lived up to the immense hype surrounding his professional unveiling, putting his arsenal of offensive skills on full display.
The second overall pick in this year's NFL draft carried the ball 14 times, including the longest run of the game of 18 yards.
He also caught a team-high eight passes for 58 yards and returned three punts for 22 more yards.
Bush, however, had to share the spotlight with Carney, who connected on 43, 25 and 21-yard field goals in the opening half to stake the Saints to a 9-0 lead, then nailed a 20-yarder with less then six minutes remaining to clinch victory.
Quarterback Drew Brees, who left the San Diego Chargers to join New Orleans as a free agent in the off-season, also made a successful debut, hitting rookie Marques Colston with a 12-yard pass for the team's only touchdown of the game in the third quarter.
Brees completed 17-of-31 passes for 136 yards with one TD and one interception to help earn Sean Payton his first win as Saints head coach.
Forced to play all of last season on the road after Hurricane Katrina severely damaged the SuperDome, the Saints will return home on September 25 when they host the Atlanta Falcons at their rebuilt stadium.
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