CHARLOTTE, N.C. - He may be 32, but Ricky Williams is far from done. And even without Ronnie Brown, the once written-off Miami Dolphins are back in the playoff picture. Williams rushed for 119 yards and scored three touchdowns, and the Dolphins beat the Carolina Panthers 24-17 last night for their fourth win in six games. A day after learning Brown is lost for the season, the Dolphins (5-5) continued their surge after an 0-3 start behind Williams.

Bill Belichick defended his decision to go for it on fourth down as criticism mounted yesterday of the call that led to the New England Patriots’ stunning loss. The coach hailed as one of the NFL’s best was a target of columnists, talk-radio callers and two of his former players. Why, they all wondered, did he gamble with a six-point lead and just over two minutes to go against the Indianapolis Colts?

ASHBURN One is a 30-year-old veteran who keeps his battered body limber with mixed martial arts, treadmill work and Filipino fighting sticks. The other is a rookie who basically shows up and does his thing. Together, Andre Carter and Brian Orakpo have the Washington Redskins near the top of the sack charts. They’ve combined for 15 in nine games, including three in the win on Sunday that snapped a four-game losing streak.

PITTSBURGH The Bengals’ Cedric Benson will be the latest to attempt what many NFL running backs have repeatedly failed to do: run for 100 yards against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The timeworn expression that the season is a marathon and not a sprint? Attempting to sprint for 100 yards against the latest version of the Steel Curtain defense can be as trying and as frustrating as running a marathon.

As soon as Jay Cutler’s fifth interception landed in Michael Lewis’ hands and the clock ran out, Mike Singletary embraced his assistants with a huge sense of a relief. It wasn’t about beating his old Chicago Bears team. Samurai Mike was just thankful to get a victory of any kind after four straight losses by his San Francisco 49ers.

Tyrone Carter started in place of safety Ryan Clark as a precaution Monday night and made the big play that sparked the Steelers to their fifth straight win, taking the first of his two interceptions 48 yards for a touchdown in Pittsburgh’s 28-10 win over the Denver Broncos.

NEW ORLEANS—Every time Drew Brees and the Saints’ potent offense stumbles, New Orleans’ resurgent defense is right there to pick up the slack. The Saints intercepted three Matt Ryan passes, with Jabari Greer returning one 48 yards for the club’s sixth defensive touchdown this season, and New Orleans stayed perfect with a 35-27 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Monday night.

NEW ORLEANS—The Saints have tied their best start to a season. Drew Brees had 308 yards passing, Pierre Thomas scored two touchdowns and Jabari Greer returned an interception for a score to help the Saints improve to 7-0 with a 35-27 victory over the Atlanta Falcons last night. Only the 1991 Saints began a season with as many wins.

HOUSTON - Steve Slaton scored two touchdowns and Houston built a big lead before holding on for a 24-21 win over San Francisco yesterday. Former University of Virginia standout Matt Schaub’s 42-yard touchdown pass to Owen Daniels made it 21-0 in the second quarter, and the Texans took that lead into halftime. Schaub was 20 of 30 for 264 yards and two touchdowns. He leads the NFL in passing yards (2,074) and TDs (16).

Surely there’s no way the Philadelphia Eagles will lose to one of the NFL’s most dysfunctional franchises, even if the game is on the road. Oh, wait. They just did that. A week after laying a 13-9 egg against the Oakland Raiders, the Eagles (3-2) have another potential letdown game against the Washington Redskins (2-4). The Monday nighter has prime-time slaughter written all over it, with the Redskins coming off a distraction-filled week following the front office’s decision to strip coach Jim Zorn of the play-calling.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - The Arizona Cardinals are heading to another desert of sorts this weekend - the one 5 miles west of New York City. If anything has been a wasteland for the Cardinals since their move from St. Louis to Phoenix in 1988, it’s been Giants Stadium. The Cardinals have played in the 33-year-old structure that serves as home to the Giants and Jets 17 times since the move and won twice - both against the Giants. The last win came in 1999.

MIAMI—This would be a good time for the Miami Dolphins to unveil the defensive equivalent of the wildcat, whatever that might be. Nothing tried so far has slowed the New Orleans Saints. The Dolphins face the NFL’s highest-scoring team tomorrow and could use a wildcat-style surprise. “Put 11 linebackers in the game,“ Miami linebacker Channing Crowder suggested. “Blitz Crowder every play.“

PITTSBURGH—Steelers safety Troy Polamalu returned to practice after sitting out two days to rest his still-healing left knee. Polamalu practiced yesterday with the Steelers’ starters and is planning to play tomorrow against the unbeaten Minnesota Vikings. He did not practice Wednesday or Thursday. The five-time Pro Bowl safety tore the medial collateral ligament in his left knee Sept. 10 against Tennessee. He returned Sunday to make an interception against Cleveland.

OAKLAND, Calif. - Louis Murphy sprinted upfield and laid out a defender with a punishing block. Not satisfied, he caught up to the play again and delivered a second block that allowed Zach Miller to cruise into the end zone on an 86-yard catch-and-run. For an offense criticized for lacking big plays, intensity and leadership, a rookie receiver gave the Oakland Raiders all three in one play that answered the skeptics.

The NFL has fined Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis for a helmet-to-helmet hit delivered to Cincinnati Bengals receiver Chad Ochocinco.