Emmitt Smith spent most of day in the locker room at Texas Stadium, his arm in a sling to protect a sprained left shoulder.

Steve Mariucci was shivering in the cold wind during the final moments at Candlestick Park.

Mike Holmgren was back at Lambeau Field, hoping against hope he'd be able to impress the friends who came to visit him.

So much for successful homecomings.

Smith returned to cheers from Dallas Cowboys' fans on Sunday, but his old team knocked the NFL's leading rusher out of the game in the second quarter and then beat his Arizona Cardinals 24-7.

''Just coming back here and seeing Texas Stadium and having a chance to play here in front of the Cowboys fans, it was wonderful,'' said Smith, who finished with minus-1 yards - the worst outing of his career. ''It will go down as one of the unique experiences I've ever experienced.''

Mariucci, coach of the Detroit Lions, was back in San Francisco for the first time since being fired after last season. He made it through the entire game, but the 49ers held on for a 24-17 victory.

''It was good to see them,'' said Mariucci, who was greeted by several 49ers after the game. ''It was little different to be on the other side of the field.''

Holmgren paid a second visit to Green Bay since leaving to coach the Seattle Seahawks. He left with a 1-1 record after Brett Favre threw two TD passes and the Packers rolled to a 35-13 victory over the Seahawks.

''A loss is a loss, but I have a lot of friends here and you want to do well in front of them,'' Holmgren said. ''I didn't do so well today.''

In a fourth homecoming, former Tampa Bay coach Tony Dungy and his unbeaten Indianapolis Colts will play the Buccaneers on Monday night.

Three other teams remained undefeated after Sunday's games:

At Arrowhead Stadium, Dante Hall returned a punt 93 yards for a touchdown with 8:20 left to lift Kansas City to a 24-23 win over Denver. The Chiefs (5-0) are off to their best start ever; the Broncos (4-1) lost their first game of the season.

With his game-winning punt return, Hall extended his NFL record of returning a kick for a touchdown to four straight games, and equaled the season record for kick returns for scores.

''He's a human highlight reel,'' Chiefs defensive end Eric Hicks said. ''He's like Michael Jordan. It's ridiculous. The play he made, really nobody was blocked on the initial part of the play. My God, I've never seen anything like that in my life.''

At the Georgia Dome, Gus Frerotte filled in again for the injured Daunte Culpepper and threw two TD passes as Minnesota (5-0) beat Atlanta 39-26.

Thanks to Stephen Davis, Carolina is 4-0. At Charlotte, Davis carried 30 times for 159 yards and a TD, including crucial first- down yardage late in the game after returning from a bout of cramps.

And then there was the Game of the Weak - Jacksonville 27, San Diego 21. Byron Leftwich threw for 336 yards and two TDs in his first start as the Jaguars (1-4) gave new coach Jack Del Rio his first win. The Chargers (0-5) and the idle New York Jets (0-4) are the NFL's only winless teams.

Cowboys 24, Cardinals 7

Quincy Carter threw for 277 yards and two TDs and the Dallas defense allowed just 151 yards and provided two safeties in a four-play span in the third quarter.

Dallas (3-1) was up by a touchdown when Smith went out, then pulled away for its first three-game winning streak since opening 1999 at 3-0. Arizona is 1-4.

''This game was nothing personal to Emmitt,'' said safety Darren Woodson, who spent 11 years playing with Smith. ''It was about beating the Cardinals.''

49ers 24, Lions 17

Jeff Garcia threw for one TD and ran for another and Terrell Owens caught five passes for 79 yards and a touchdown.

San Francisco (2-3) ended a three-game losing streak, while the Lions (1-4) lost their 19th straight road game.

Packers 35, Seahawks 13

Ahman Green helped out Favre with 118 yards rushing and two TDs.

''We needed this game for a lot of reasons, not who was on the other sideline,'' Favre said.

The Packers are 3-2; the Seahawks 3-1.

Patriots 38, Titans 30

Mike Cloud returned from a four-game suspension for violating the league's substance-abuse policy and ran for two TDs to lead New England (3-2) to a home win.

With a 31-27 lead, the Patriots sealed the game when Ty Law intercepted Steve McNair's pass and ran 65 yards for a score with 1:49 left. The Titans are 3-2.

Dolphins 23, Giants 10

The Giants shut down Ricky Williams (22 carries, 39 yards), but Olindo Mare kicked three field goals and James McKnight scored on a 68-yard reverse for the Dolphins (3-1).

New York (2-2) committed four turnovers at home, and lost kicker Matt Bryant to a pulled hamstring after he hit a 43-yard field goal to end the first half.

Bears 24, Raiders 21

Chicago (1-3) is unbearable no longer after Paul Edinger kicked a 48-yard field goal on the final play for the Bears' first win - and first celebration at new Soldier Field.

The Raiders (2-3), who blew an 18-3 halftime lead, got five field goals from Sebastian Janikowski. But he also missed the first extra point of his career and had a 47-yard attempt blocked.

Eagles 27, Redskins 25

Washington's rally fell a 2-point conversion short and Philadelphia (2-2) had its first win at its new stadium.

After John Hall kicked a 53-yard field goal to make it 27-19, the Redskins (3-2) recovered an onside kick and Patrick Ramsey hit Darnerien McCants on a 32-yard TD pass with 13 seconds left. Ramsey then overthrew Laveranues Coles on the 2-point try.

Donovan McNabb completed 16 of 30 passes for 157 yards and his first TD of the season. He was intercepted twice.