Sports

Saints’ Brees breaks Unitas TD-pass mark in win

Drew Brees broke a half-century-old record by throwing a touchdown pass in his 48th straight game, and the Saints defeated the Chargers 31-24 last night in New Orleans.

Brees’ 40-yard pass to Devery Henderson eclipsed the mark of 47 consecutive games with a touchdown pass set by Johnny Unitas from 1956-60.

“First of all, it’s a team record, not an individual record,” Brees said. “So many people were responsible for this, coaches and people in the organization. Certainly the man who held this record stands for everything great in this league. It couldn’t have happened in a better way.”

Brees finished with four touchdown passes, including three to Marques Colston, giving the seventh-year receiver a franchise-record 52 TD catches with the Saints (1-4).

At Brees’ request, the NFL allowed head coach Sean Payton, assistant head coach Joe Vitt and general manager Mickey Loomis — all serving various suspensions in connection with the NFL’s bounty investigation — to attend the game. They and Unitas’ son, Joe, saw Brees pass for 370 yards.

Dolphins 17, Bengals 13

In Cincinnati, Reshad Jones picked off Andy Dalton’s overthrown pass at midfield with 1:22 left to preserve a victory over the Bengals that ended two weeks of miserable finishes for the Dolphins.

Miami (2-3) had dropped its past two games in overtime, throwing away leads with turnovers.

49ers 45, Bills 3

In San Francisco, Alex Smith threw for a season-high 303 yards and three touchdowns as the 49ers (4-1) amassed a franchise-record 621 yards.

Bears 41, Jaguars 3

In Jacksonville, Charles Tillman and Lance Briggs returned interceptions for touchdowns — their second in six days — and Chicago (4-1) used stifling defense to overwhelm Jacksonville.

Vikings 30, Titans 7

In Minneapolis, Percy Harvin caught eight passes for 108 yards as the Vikings (4-1) beat Tennessee (1-4).

Seahawks 16, Panthers 12

In Charlotte, Russell Wilson threw a 13-yard TD pass to Golden Tate with 35 seconds left in the third quarter to lift the Seahawks (3-2).