Terrell Owens caught two third-quarter touchdown passes and another in the fourth to power the Dallas Cowboys to a 34-6 win over the Houston Texans on Sunday.

The win helped the Cowboys avenge an embarrassing loss to their in-state rivals four years ago and reminded everyone why owner Jerry Jones signed the volatile receiver.

Owens' touchdowns covered three, 21 and two yards, and his celebrations grew with each.

He did a little dance after the first, which gave Dallas (3-2) its first lead, and even shared a hug with his latest sparring partner, passing game co-ordinator Todd Haley. He capped his second score by standing on the bench with his arms extended, then went all out on the third.

Owens marched to one of the star logos in the end zone and struck the arms-out, look-at-me pose that once got him in trouble in Texas Stadium. This time, cheers followed and Owens responded by giving the ball to a fan in the stands. He then ran back to the bench waving his arms, drawing louder cheers and a standing ovation.

Elsewhere in the NHL it was: New York Giants 27, Atlanta 14; Carolina 23, Baltimore 21; Detroit 20, Buffalo 17; New Orleans 27, Philadelphia 24; Seattle 30, St. Louis 28; Tampa Bay 14, Cincinnati 13; Tennessee 25, Washington 22; Pittsburgh 45, Kansas City 7; San Diego 48, San Francisco 19; New York Jets 20, Miami 17; and Denver 13, Oakland 3.

At Irving, Texas, Houston (1-4) led 6-3 at halftime, reviving visions of a stunning 19-10 victory over Dallas in the first game in Texans history back in 2002.

But they didn't have it in them again, with turnovers on three straight drives _ including two interceptions by David Carr _ keeping them from scoring again, and the defence allowing the Cowboys to score on five of their six second-half possessions.

Until Sunday, Owens' Dallas tenure was marked mostly by problems: The hamstring injury that landed him on a stationary bike and off the field for most of the pre-season, a fine for being late to work, an accidental overdose and a shouting match this week with Haley.

Tension seemed to be mounting again as Owens went nearly the entire first half without a catch and with passes rarely coming his way. Then Haley and Drew Bledsoe quickly made up for it.

Owens capped the first drive of the second half by snagging a three-yard pass in the end zone while getting grabbed and jabbed so much that cornerback Lewis Sanders was penalized for pass interference. Owens was too busy dancing to notice the flag. When he returned to the bench, Owens hugged Haley and patted coach Bill Parcells on the backside.

There was plenty to savour, most importantly the fact that the score put Dallas ahead for the first time, 10-6. It also was Owens' second touchdown of the season and his first in Texas Stadium as a member of the Cowboys.

Giants 27, Falcons 14

At Atlanta, Tiki Barber ran for 185 yards, Jeremy Shockey caught two touchdown passes and New York scored the game's last 24 points in a win over the Falcons.

The Giants (3-2) fell behind 14-3 when Warrick Dunn broke off a club-record, 90-yard touchdown on Atlanta's first play of the second half but New York dominated the Falcons (3-2) the rest of the way.

Eli Manning threw two interceptions in the first quarter but rebounded to go 17-of-30 for 180 yards. Atlanta QB Michael Vick was sacked seven times.

Panthers 23, Ravens 21

At Baltimore, Jake Delhomme threw for a career-high 365 yards and two touchdowns in leading Carolina (4-2) to its fourth straight win. Steve Smith had eight catches for 189 yards and a touchdown, and John Kasay kicked three field goals.

The Panthers limited Baltimore (4-2) to 80 yards rushing.

Lions 20, Bills 17

At Detroit, Roy Williams had 10 receptions for 161 yards _ both career highs _ and scored a touchdown while Kevin Jones ran for a season-high 127 yards and a score as the Lions got Rod Marinelli his first win as head coach.

The Lions (1-5) outscored the Bills (2-4) by four points in the fourth after being outscored 47-14 in the final quarter in their previous five games.

Saints 27, Eagles 24

At New Orleans, John Carney hit a 31-yard field goal as time expired to lead the Saints over Philadelphia.

Joe Horn amassed 110 yards on six catches and did shoulder-shaking TD dances after catches of 14 and 48 yards. The Saints (5-1) enter their bye week in first place in the NFC South.

Drew Brees completed 27-of-37 passes for 275 yards and three touchdowns and did not take a sack against a defence that has 23 already this season.

Donovan McNabb, off to a torrid start this season, was 19-of-32 passing for 247 yards and two touchdowns for the Eagles (4-2). He was sacked three times.

Seahawks 30, Rams 28

At St. Louis, Josh Brown kicked a 54-yard field goal as time expired and Seattle beat the Rams.

Matt Hasselbeck threw three TD passes as the Seahawks (4-1) regained first place in the NFC West. Hasselbeck was 19-of-34 passing for 268 yards and no interceptions.

St. Louis (4-2) dominated the first half and led 21-7 midway through the third quarter, but the Seahawks scored the next 20 points.

Buccaneers 14, Bengals 13

At Tampa, Fla., Michael Clayton dove into the end zone with 35 seconds remaining to give Tampa Bay (1-4) its first win. The catch was initially ruled incomplete but was overturned after a replay, which showed the ball firmly in Clayton's hands as he flew through the air.

The Bengals (3-2) marched into Bucs territory in the closing seconds, but Shayne Graham's 62-yard field goal attempt as time expired was short and off the mark.

Titans 25, Redskins 22

At Landover, Md., Vince Young rallied Tennessee (1-5) from an 11-point first-half deficit in the upset of Washington (2-4).

Rob Bironas kicked three field goals, including a 30-yarder with 5:11 to play that decided the game, and Travis Henry ran for a career-high 178 yards on 32 carries with one touchdown.

Young, the No. 3 overall draft pick from Texas making his third start, engineered an attack that generated 344 yards. He completed 13 of 25 passes for 161 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions, easily his best day as a pro.

Steelers 45, Chiefs 7

At Pittsburgh, the Steelers (2-3) looked more like the team that won the Super Bowl last winter. Ben Roethlisberger threw his first two touchdown passes since the AFC championship game in a rout of the Chiefs (2-3) that snapped a three-game losing streak.

Roethlisberger went 16-of-19 for 238 yards and TDs of 47 yards to Nate Washington and 13 yards to Hines Ward.

Chargers 48, 49ers 19

At San Francisco, LaDainian Tomlinson set a franchise scoring record with a career-best four rushing touchdowns, and Phillip Rivers passed for a career-high 334 yards and two more scores.

Antonio Gates and Vincent Jackson caught scoring passes from Rivers, who was practically perfect as the Chargers rolled to their first 4-1 start since 2002. Rivers went 29-of-39 with a poise beyond his five career starts, easily picking apart an injury-riddled secondary on a defence that already has allowed 194 points.

Jets 20, Dolphins 17

At New York, after taking a 20-3 lead, the Jets (3-3) barely held on to win at home. Laveranues Coles caught two touchdown passes and Mike Nugent kicked a pair of 33-yard field goals for the Jets.

Joey Harrington led the Dolphins (1-5) on two long scoring drives in the fourth quarter, getting within a field goal on Ronnie Brown's one-yard touchdown run. Miami had a chance to tie, but Olindo Mare came up short on a 51-yarder.

Broncos 13, Raiders 3

At Denver, Jason Elam kicked two field goals, Tatum Bell ran for a short touchdown and Champ Bailey picked off another key pass to lead the Broncos over struggling Oakland.

The offence-challenged Broncos (4-1) haven't allowed a touchdown in three home games and they're the only team NFL team since 1940 to start off a season by yielding just one TD through five games.

The Raiders fell to 0-5 for the first time since 1964.