PITTSBURGH — He hated the eight months of exhausting rehabilitation, and the team that made him go through it. Carson Palmer didn't play the way he wanted against the team he dislikes the most, but the result couldn't have been more satisfying.

Alternating between brilliant and awful, the Cincinnati quarterback threw two touchdown passes to T.J. Houshmandzadeh less than a minute apart midway through the fourth quarter following Pittsburgh turnovers and the unbeaten Bengals rallied for a 28-20 victory yesterday over the Super Bowl champions.

"We're a better team than we were last year and we expected to come in here and win this game, but it took everything we had," Bengals running back Rudi Johnson said.

Especially from Palmer, whose focus has been on the Steelers almost since the moment Kimo von Oelhoffen tore apart his knee by rolling atop it early in Pittsburgh's playoff victory in January. Palmer had three fumbles, two interceptions and was sacked six times, yet overcame them with four touchdown passes while going 18 of 26 for 193 yards.

"I didn't take anything personal into this game," said Palmer, who during the offseason said how much he hated the Steelers. "I didn't come in here thinking, 'It's payback time, let's get these guys.' I came in here thinking it's a divisional game and let's get a win."

Chris Henry, the wide receiver hurt on the same play as Palmer, wasn't as diplomatic.

"We planned on coming back this year and beating Pittsburgh two times," said Henry, who caught Palmer's other two TD passes among his five receptions.

For the Bengals (3-0), it's one down and one to go. The Bengals and the Baltimore Ravens (3-0) already own two-game leads in the AFC North over the Steelers (1-2), who couldn't withstand a second mediocre game in seven days by their own rehabilitating quarterback.

Ben Roethlisberger, recovering from an offseason motorcycle accident and appendicitis attack, was an ineffective 18 of 39 for 209 yards and three interceptions. Kevin Kaesviharn made the third and final pickoff, on a third-and-10 from the Bengals' 16 with Pittsburgh trying to drive for the tying score in the closing seconds.

"I put a lot of pressure in myself to produce," Roethlisberger said. "There were a lot of ebbs and flows, but I think today was a big step for me."

COLTS 21, JAGUARS 14

INDIANAPOLIS — Peyton Manning threw for one touchdown and ran for another in the second half, and Terrence Wilkins returned a punt 82 yards for a TD to help the Colts (3-0) rally past the Jaguars (2-1).

"You do have to stay poised," Manning said after Indianapolis had only three first-half series and nine offensive plays in the first 27 minutes. "Offensively, we've been in enough games to know it's going to be a four-quarter game, and you've got to move on."

Manning finished 14 of 31 for 219 yards and one TD, and also scored on a bootleg to seal the victory midway through the fourth quarter.

Jacksonville relied on the rushing tandem of veteran Fred Taylor and rookie Maurice Jones-Drew. Taylor rushed 21 times for 74 yards, and Jones-Drew had 13 carries for 103 yards and four receptions for 32 yards, including a 7-yard TD catch late in the game.

RAVENS 15, BROWNS 14

CLEVELAND — As Matt Stover jogged onto the field, the Ravens' worries were over. A few seconds and 52 yards later, Stover had given them three points and their first 3-0 start.

"I've always called him Automatic Stover," linebacker Ray Lewis said.

True to his nickname, Stover kicked a 52-yard field goal with 20 seconds left to beat the Browns (0-3), who led 14-3 entering the fourth quarter.

Steve McNair was 23 of 41 for 264 yards and threw a 3-yard TD pass to Todd Heap on the first play of the fourth to start Baltimore's comeback.

Charlie Frye was 21 of 33 for a career-high 298 yards but was sacked seven times and intercepted in the end zone with 3:21 to play.

BRONCOS 17, PATRIOTS 7

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Jake Plummer, the quick target of boo-birds after two bad performances, threw touchdown passes of 83 and 32 yards to Javon Walker as the Broncos (2-1) handed the Patriots (2-1) their first loss.

Tatum Bell rushed for 123 yards on 27 carries and Plummer was 15 of 30 for 256 yards, getting his first two TD passes of the season.

"There was no difference, just go out and play," Plummer said. "We had a good game plan ... it just happened to work this week."

But the credit goes as much to a Denver defense that shut down Tom Brady and a Patriots offense that was without several of its few options — rookie receiver Chad Jackson, the team's only deep threat, was out with a hamstring problem and running back Corey Dillon left in the first half with an arm injury.

Brady, hampered by a running game that got 50 yards, was 31 of 55 for 320 yards, much of it late against a prevent defense.

JETS 28, BILLS 20

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Quarterback Chad Pennington capped three drives of 58 yards or more with touchdowns, and linebacker Victor Hobson's 32-yard fumble return for a score helped the Jets (2-1) turn back the Bills (1-2).

The Jets won despite allowing 475 yards offense, while managing a mere 256 of their own, including a meager 74 yards rushing. They overcame career outings by running back Willis McGahee, who had 150 yards rushing, and J.P. Losman's 328 yards passing.

"Sometimes you're going to bend. And the important thing is not to break," New York coach Eric Mangini said. "Obviously, we want to improve on the bending part."

The difference for the Jets was the offense, which had five three-and-outs but efficiently led three long touchdown drives. Pennington didn't need a third consecutive 300-yard passing game to pull this one out, instead finishing a modest 19 of 29 for 183 yards passing and a touchdown.

It was the eighth time in Bills history that they had a 100-yard rusher, 100-yard receiver (Lee Evans, with 107, and Roscoe Parrish, 104) and a 300-yard passer.

DOLPHINS 13, TITANS 10

MIAMI — Daunte Culpepper endured five sacks, threw no touchdown passes and still managed to put a positive spin on his latest erratic performance.

"It's always good to win, no matter how you get it, by 20 points or by one," said Culpepper who led a 50-yard drive that set up a field goal that helped the Dolphins (1-2) edge the Titans (0-3).

Miami's Ronnie Brown rushed for 90 yards, including a 27-yard gain to set up a tie-breaking 39-yard field goal by Olindo Mare with 3:39 left. But for much of the day, the Dolphins' best weapon was punter Donnie Jones, who averaged 52.7 yards on six kicks.

Tennessee's Kerry Collins passed for 269 yards and his first touchdown this season.