NFL: Cowboys turn back Ravens, Bills edge Bengals and Redskins rout Packers

Dak Prescott threw three touchdown passes, two to Dez Bryant, in the first game with Tony Romo as his backup, and the Dallas Cowboys set a franchise season record with their ninth consecutive win, beating the Baltimore Ravens, 27-17, on Sunday in Arlington Texas.

The Cowboys (9-1) punted on their first four possessions — a first this season — against the NFL’s No. 1 defense. They marched 92 and 88 yards on their first two drives of the second half to break a 10-10 tie. Both drives ended with TD passes to Bryant , who had six catches for 80 yards.

Prescott completed 27 of 36 passes for 301 yards; it came a week after his first 300-yard game. He was 14-for-15 passing in the second half after the sluggish start for the Dallas offense.

The Ravens (5-5), who lost to Dallas for the first time in five games in franchise history, controlled the tempo most of the first half. Baltimore stayed close on Joe Flacco’s five-yard scoring pass in the fourth quarter to Steve Smith, who became the 14th player with 1,000 career catches. But Dallas’ third possession of the second half took more than six minutes before Dan Bailey’s 21-yard field goal for a 10-point lead with 1:50 remaining.

NFL rushing leader Ezekiel Elliott broke the Dallas club rookie rushing record of 1,007 yards set by Tony Dorsett in 1977. That’s the same year the Cowboys set the previous franchise mark with an 8-0 start. Dallas won the Super Bowl that season.

Redskins 42, Packers 24

Kirk Cousins went deep late and often, throwing for 375 yards and three touchdowns as Washington pulled away from free-falling Green Bay at Landover, Md.

Cousins and the Redskins (6-3-1) have won six of their past eight games going into a showdown with the NFC East-leading Dallas Cowboys, the winners of nine in a row. The Packers (4-6) have lost four consecutive games and five of six, allowing 30 or more points in all of those defeats.

Washington’s Robert Kelley ran for a career-best 137 yards and three touchdowns against a Green Bay defense that allowed completions of 70, 53 and 44 yards. Cousins was 21 of 30, connecting with Pierre Garcon, DeSean Jackson and Jamison Crowder for touchdowns and becoming the franchise leader in 300-yard games.

Aaron Rodgers was 26 of 41 for 355 yards and three touchdowns, but he couldn’t keep up with what his defense gave up. Washington gained 517 yards and converted on 64 percent of third-down attempts.

Chants of “We Want Dallas!” filled FedEx Field in the final minutes after Cousins completed a 53-yard pass to Crowder, and Kelley got his third touchdown. The Redskins have a quick turnaround as they visit the Cowboys on Thanksgiving.

Bills 16, Bengals 12

LeSean McCoy ran seven yards for a touchdown before injuring a thumb, and Buffalo got just enough out of it depleted offense to win in Cincinnati.

The Bills (5-5) had lost three straight heading into their bye week. Their ragged win on Sunday preserved their hopes of a long-awaited playoff spot.

Playing their first game in nearly a month at Paul Brown Stadium, the Bengals (3-6-1) couldn’t move the ball consistently or make an extra point. They also lost receiver A.J. Green to an injured right hamstring on the first pass of the game; he was taken off on a cart.

Buffalo’s defense clinched it by knocking down Andy Dalton’s desperation pass into the end zone on the final play. The Bengals managed only five first downs while being shut out in the second half.

The Bills lost two of their top offensive players in the first half. Receiver Robert Woods suffered a knee injury as he was tackled after a catch. McCoy hurt his left thumb late in the half.

Giants 22, Bears 16

Eli Manning threw a go-ahead 15-yard touchdown pass to rookie Sterling Shepard in the third quarter as New York rallied for its fifth consecutive win with the victory in East Rutherford, N.J.

Manning, who completed 21 of 36 passes for 227 yards, also threw another third-quarter touchdown to Will Tye, Rashad Jennings scored on a two-yard run and Robbie Gould kicked a 46-yard field goal on a day he missed two extra points.

The Giants (7-3) also got a second-half shutout from their defense and a game-clinching interception from Landon Collins as injuries on the offensive line finally caught up with the Bears (2-8) and left Jay Cutler under constant pressure.

The winning streak is New York’s longest in the regular season since 2010, while the Bears’ starts matches their worst since 2002.

Patriots 30, 49ers 17

Tom Brady threw for 280 yards and four touchdowns and New England beat San Francisco in Brady’s first road game against the 49ers team he rooted for as a boy.

Brady found Danny Amendola for a five-yard touchdown to start the fourth quarter then later hit Malcolm Mitchell on a 56-yard score for his fourth TD pass.

Brady also threw short touchdown passes to Julian Edelman and James White on his first two possessions and completed 24 of 40 passes. The AFC East-leading Patriots (8-2) bounced back from last week’s loss to the Seahawks on a rainy day at Levi’s Stadium.

Edelman caught a four-yard TD pass for the first score of the game, breaking away from Keith Reaser to the corner and just keeping two feet inbounds. He finished with eight receptions for 77 yards and Mitchell four catches for 98 yards.

Seahawks 26, Eagles 15

Russell Wilson passed for 272 yards and a touchdown as well as caught a 15-yard touchdown pass from Doug Baldwin as Seahawks rolled past visiting Philadelphia.

Wilson became the first quarterback in franchise history to catch a touchdown, a perfect end-around pass from Baldwin to Seattle’s athletic QB as he ran down the left sideline and dove into the end zone to give the Seahawks a 23-7 lead.

Wilson scrambled and threw across his body to find Jimmy Graham on a 35-yard catch-and-run touchdown in the second quarter as Seattle (6-2-1) built a 16-7 halftime lead that was more than enough. Rookie C.J. Prosise had a 72-yard touchdown run on Seattle’s fifth offensive play — the longest run ever by a Seattle player since CenturyLink Field opened in 2002.

Wilson completed 18 of 31 passes with four of them going to Baldwin for 104 yards, along with the first touchdown pass of his career.

Philadelphia (5-4) lost its fifth straight road game as rookie quarterback Carson Wentz was provided an education on facing one of the best defenses in the NFL.

Wentz, who completed 23 of 45 passes for 218 yards, was good early, especially on Philadelphia’s first scoring driving that was capped by a four-yard TD pass to Zach Ertz in the opening moments of the second quarter. Wentz then went 5 of 14 for 25 yards and two interceptions during the rest of the second and the third quarter.

Vikings 30, Cardinals 24

Xavier Rhodes returned one of his two interceptions 100 yards for a touchdown and Cordarrelle Patterson took the second-half kickoff 104 yards for a score in Minnesota’s victory over visiting Arizona that stopped the Vikings’ four-game losing streak.

Minnesota (6-4) used those momentum-shifting plays they’d been missing to hold onto a first-place tie with Detroit in the NFC North, with a rematch against the Lions looming in four days. After fueling a 5-0 start with four return touchdowns, the Vikings didn’t produce any over their last four games.

Danielle Hunter had two of the team’s four sacks, the most by the Vikings since their most recent victory six weeks ago.

David Johnson rushed for 103 yards and a score and tacked on 57 yards and a touchdown receiving, but the Cardinals (4-5-1) netted only 27 yards after halftime. They fell further into the background of the NFC playoff picture with four more road games remaining.

Buccaneers 19, Chiefs 17

Jameis Winston sliced up a Kansas City defense missing top cornerback Marcus Peters, and Tampa Bay held on for a road victory that snapped the Chiefs’ five-game winning streak.

Winston threw for 331 yards to help set up four field goals by Roberto Aguayo, and hit tight end Robert Cross for a touchdown with just over 6 minutes left to give the Buccaneers (5-5) a cushion.

The Chiefs (7-3) marched swiftly downfield, and Alex Smith hit Albert Wilson with a short touchdown pass with just over two minutes left. But their defense couldn’t stop Mike Evans on third and three just moments later, and the big wide receiver’s sixth reception gave the Buccaneers a first down. By the time Kansas City finally forced a punt, there was eight seconds left in the game.

Alex Smith completed 23 of 30 passes for 268 yards in another inconsistent performance that included having a pass intercepted in the end zone midway through the fourth quarter. Spencer Ware was bottled up much of the afternoon, the bruising running back finished with 69 yards rushing.

Colts 24, Titans 17

Andrew Luck led Indianapolis and the defense held on for a victory over visiting Tennessee.

Indianapolis (5-5) evened its record by winning back-to-back games for the first time this season. And by earning their 11th straight victory in the series, the Colts climbed into second place in the AFC South.

For Tennessee (5-6) , it was more frustration against an old nemesis.

Luck completed 15 of 28 passes for 262 yards with two touchdowns and one interception as the Colts scored touchdowns on each of their first three possessions for a 21-0 lead.

Steelers 24, Browns 9

Le’Veon Bell scored on a one-yard touchdown run — long after time expired in the first half — and visiting Pittsburgh recorded eight sacks and snapped a four-game losing streak by beating winless Cleveland.

The Steelers (5-5) scored eight points with zeroes showing on the clock before halftime after they were awarded two extra plays because of defensive penalties against the Browns (0-11).

Steelers defensive tackle Javon Hargrave recovered a fumble by QB Josh McCown for a TD with 3:36 left to seal Pittsburgh’s win. The Steelers came in with a league-low 13 sacks before unloading on the Browns.

Bell finished with a season-high 146 yards rushing as the Steelers improved to 2-3 on the road and avoided an embarrassing loss to the NFL’s worst team. Ben Roethlisberger improved to 20-2 in starts against Cleveland, still paying for not drafting the Ohio native in 2004.

Lions 26, Jaguars 19

Eric Ebron had a go-ahead, one-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter and Detroit Lions held on to beat visiting Jacksonville.

Ebron’s first carry of his career, a handoff as he went from left to right after lining up as an off-the-line tight end, was set up by his career-long, 61-yard catch.

The Lions (6-4) have won five of six despite trailing in the fourth quarter of every game. For a change, Matthew Stafford didn’t have to lead a game-winning drive in the final minutes.

Jacksonville (2-8) has lost five in a row.