Dak Prescott’s three touchdown passes sparked the Dallas Cowboys to a club-record ninth consecutive NFL victory on Sunday, while Tom Brady threw four touchdown passes in a triumphant homecoming for the the New England Patriots quarterback.
Prescott, a rookie who stepped in for injured Tony Romo and sparked the Cowboys to an NFL-best 9-1 start, completed 27 of 36 passes for 301 yards in a 27-17 home win over the Baltimore Ravens.
“It means we’ve got a great team who believes in ourselves,” Prescott said of having the NFL’s top record. “We’re not going to flinch. We’re not going to blink.”
Photo: EPA
Playing a day after attending his father’s funeral, Dez Bryant caught six passes for 80 yards, including two touchdown passes, while Cole Beasley added a touchdown reception as Dallas kept a two-game edge at the top of the National Football Conference North over the New York Giants, who downed the Chicago Bears 22-16.
“Been a challenging week for him and he has done a great job maintaining his focus,” Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said of Bryant.
Dallas running back Ezekiel Elliott ran 25 times for 97 yards against the NFL’s top rushing defense to break the Cowboys’ rookie rushing record of 1,007 yards set by Tony Dorsett in 1977.
“It means a lot,” said Elliott, who has an NFL-high 1,102 rushing yards this season, within reach of Eric Dickerson’s all-time NFL rookie rushing mark of 1,808 yards.
The Ravens fell to 5-5, but still share the American Football Conference North lead with the Pittsburgh Steelers, who beat the winless Cleveland Browns 24-9 to grab a share of top spot.
Dallas led only 24-17 before a six-and-a-half-minute march late in the fourth quarter resulted in a field goal to create the final margin.
“We should beat this team,” Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco said. “We should beat this team and I’m not kidding.”
New England kept pace with the Cowboys in the fight for the NFL’s rest record, improving to 8-2 with a 30-17 triumph in San Francisco in Brady’s first game in the region where he grew up.
Brady completed 24 of 40 passes for 280 yards and four touchdowns, while LeGarrette Blount rushed for 124 yards on 19 carries.
Colin Kaepernick completed 16 of 30 passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns for the 49ers (1-9), who matched a club record with their ninth consecutive loss.
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