NFL Sunday takeaways: Cowboys jolt Vikings back to Earth with a 40-3 pummelling

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How ’bout them Cowboys?

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Dallas improved to 7-3 and into a second-place tie with the New York Giants in the NFC East, with a resounding 40-3 victory at Minnesota.

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It was the most eye-popping result from Sunday afternoon’s slate of 11 NFL games.

The Cowboys’ victory was every bit that authoritative, too. Dallas outgained Minnesota 249-98 in jumping out to a 23-3 halftime lead, then poured it on with two more quick touchdowns early in the third quarter to effectively put the game away.

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It’s hard to say which was the more impressive Dallas offensive element — the passing attack or the run game.

Before he was yanked with victory well in hand, Dak Prescott completed 22 of 25 for 276 yards and two TDs, without a turnover. And running back Tony Pollard was elite, rushing for 80 yards on just 15 carries and catching six passes for 109 yards and two scores. Zeke Elliott added 42 yards on the ground and two touchdowns.

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Micah Parsons, the Cowboys’ second-year defensive phenom, sacked Kirk Cousins twice.

The Cowboys’ 37-point margin of victory was the second largest on the road in franchise history.

The Vikings fell to 8-2, and proved unable to ride any farther on a two-month wave of success packed almost weekly with late-game magic and individual heroics. Their seven-game win streak ended, then, with last week’s incredible win in overtime at Buffalo.

Dallas plays host to the New York Giants in this Thursday’s second game of the annual U.S. Thanksgiving tripleheader. Minnesota plays host to New England in Thursday’s nightcap.

NEW YORK TEAM WINS AT DETROIT …

It took a while, but the understandably distracted Buffalo Bills finally found focus at Ford Field in Detroit, and won their ‘home’ game over the Cleveland Browns, 31-23.

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The game was relocated Thursday, as one of the most devastating blizzards in U.S. history blew in off Lake Erie and dumped more than six feet of snow by Saturday morning on the Southtowns area of Buffalo, N.Y. — where the Bills’ stadium is located and where most players live.

Cleveland probably never had a better chance to knock off a top NFL team. But after opening the game with a touchdown, the Browns rolled over. They couldn’t stop a mediocre Bills rushing attack, as Buffalo scored outscored them 28-3 until the game’s final five minutes, when Cleveland scored two TDs to make the final score close.

Quarterback Josh Allen, who completed 18 of 27 for 197 yards and a touchdown, without a turnover, said of the team’s late-week distractions:

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“A lot of stuff (went on) behind the scenes, that no one will see or understand … It took a whole organization to be able to switch the game plans that fast, and get us here. And the neighbours and the good people of Buffalo, helping teammates dig out of their driveways and allowing them to get their cars out, so they can make it to the facility, so we can get on the plane to come here.

“We’ve got some resilient guys on this team … We play again here in four days, so we’ve got to get home, make sure we get some rest, recover the way we need to recover — and be ready to go again.”

Bills head coach Sean McDermott, in his postgame news conference, said of all the Buffalonians who helped the team gather and fly out Saturday afternoon, “We’re thinking of you guys, and that (win) was for you.”

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WHILE A DETROIT TEAM WINS AT NEW YORK …

At the same time as that beleaguered ‘home’ team celebrated a nice win at Detroit’s Ford Field, the Detroit Lions won for the third straight week — and convincingly, too, 31-18 on the road at the New York Giants.

It’s Detroit’s first three-game win streak since November 2017, and only the second time in the past 12 seasons the Lions have won road games in consecutive weeks, after last week’s 31-30 victory at Chicago.

“Yeah, we’ve got a little something going now,” Lions quarterback Jared Goff told NFL Network afterward. “I think the way we have won all three of them has been complementary football, team football. We got three turnovers today — timely turnovers — and we scored off one of them I believe … It’s a full team win (and) a lot of fun.”

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Detroit improved to 4-6, to rise into second place in the NFC North — well behind Minnesota, but now ahead of both Green Bay (4-7) and Chicago (3-8).

What does already surpassing last year’s win total (three) mean for this Lions team?

“Absolutely nothing,” Goff said. “It’s good progress. And I think the best thing is we’ve got some good stuff going on right now. A winning team is forming and it’s a lot of fun to be a part of.”

Detroit goes for its fourth straight win on Thursday, in the first game of the traditional U.S. Thanksgiving tripleheader, against Buffalo. Yes, the Bills — after flying home immediately after Sunday’s win over Cleveland — return on Wednesday. To play at Ford Field, their home away from home, where the Bills are 3-1.

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ACTUAL KICK-RETURN TOUCHDOWNS!

Seemed as though we’d never see them anymore. But two games Sunday were won by teams aided immeasurably by second-half kick returns.

The New England Patriots broke a 3-3 tie at home with the New York Jets in dramatic fashion, when Marcus Jones returned a punt 84 yards for the winning touchdown with only five seconds left. It was the first punt-return score in the NFL this season.

The Jets mustered only 103 total yards on the day, with second-year QB Zach Wilson once again totally flummoxed by the defences Bill Belichick and his defensive coaches threw at him. Wilson completed only nine passes on the day.

Afterward he was asked if he felt the Jets offence let down the magnificent effort of its defence to hold the Pats offence to three points, only to lose.

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“No,” Wilson said coldly.

Quick advice to Wilson: Look and see where that kind of arrogant defiance got Baker Mayfield.

Shortly after the game, NFL Network said the Patriots fear centre David Andrews might have suffered a serious, season-ending thigh injury. He’ll undergo further testing Monday.

The other dramatic kick-return touchdown came when the Atlanta Falcons needed it most, after falling behind 17-7 late in the second quarter to visiting Chicago. Cordarrelle Patterson returned Carlos Santos’ kick 103 yards for the score, to propel Atlanta to an eventual 27-24 win.

It was Patterson’s ninth career kickoff return touchdown — which sets a new NFL record, breaking the mark of eight he’d shared with Josh Cribbs (2005-14) and Leon Washington (2006-14).

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“We had a lot of good plays in special teams today,” Bears head coach Matt Eberflus said in all seriousness afterward.

Well, other than Patterson’s game-changing kickoff-return score, yeah.

EAGLES ESCAPE INDY WITH COMEBACK WIN

Philadelphia nearly lost for the second time in seven days, but rallied from a 13-3 deficit early in the third quarter at Indianapolis to win, 17-16, on a seven-yard Jalen Hurts quarterback draw with 1:20 left.

The newly bolstered Eagles interior defensive line played a big role. Only days earlier the club signed two aged veterans toward that end, Ndamukong Suh and Linval Joseph. Suh and Joseph played a bunch, too, combining for seven tackles — including a shared sack of Matt Ryan early in the third quarter.

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Veteran Eagles pass rusher Brandon Graham, who had a huge sack on the Colts’ unsuccessful final drive, said he was thrilled to play alongside two defenders he has long admired.

“It’s cool when you really just take a step back and (think), wow, I’m playing with Suh, I’m playing with LJ, who I remember winning a Super Bowl with the Giants,” Graham said. “ou just never know how it’s going to come full circle. So I’m thanking, enjoying the moment, and yeah man, let’s just keep getting these dubs.”

Jeff Saturday fell to 1-1 as interim Colts head coach.

“Too many mistakes,” he said. “Can’t play a team that good and give them that many opportunities.”

Philadelphia retained its best record in the league, now 9-1, while the Colts dropped to 4-6-1, farther from the current AFC playoff threshold record of 6-4.

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STAFFORD CONCUSSED YET AGAIN?

This is not good.

Matthew Stafford left the Los Angeles Rams’ 27-20 loss at New Orleans, after getting crunched on a sack midway through the third quarter. This was the 34-year-old quarterback’s first game back after missing last week with a concussion.

Stafford was examined in the Rams’ sideline tent, and did not return — with a suspected concussion.

Rams head coach Sean McVay afterward said Stafford will undergo further testing Monday in Los Angeles before a determination is made whether Stafford is deemed concussed.

Meantime, Andy Dalton made a strong case to remain the Saints’ starting passer, with a practically flawless performance — 21-of-25 for 260 yards, three touchdowns and no turnovers.

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“If you can play on time at the quarterback position and get the ball out,” a now heavily bearded Dalton said, “good things can happen.”

EXTRA POINTS

Baltimore won a boring defensive battle at home against Carolina, 13-3. Ravens QB Lamar Jackson scored the game’s only touchdown with 7:16 left, on a one-yard keeper. Ravens left tackle Ronnie Stanley injured his left ankle when Jackson got pushed into him from behind by a Panthers defender. Jackson said Stanley told him afterward he was doing well … Baltimore improved to 7-3 to remain alone in first in the AFC North. Cincinnati remained a game back in the division, at 6-4, following a 37-30 win at Pittsburgh, which fell to 3-7. Joe Burrow threw for 355 yards and four TDs in a winning effort … Following a solid 23-10 win at Houston, Washington head coach Ron Rivera named Taylor Heinicke the team’s starting quarterback going forward, after his fourth win in five starts, following the Commanders’ 2-4 start behind now-injured Carson Wentz … In a matchup of arguably the NFL’s two most disappointing teams, the Las Vegas Raiders beat the Broncos in overtime in Denver, 22-16, on Derek Carr’s 35-yard TD pass to a wide open Davante Adams just three snaps into the extra period. Both teams are now 3-7 … University of Tennessee’s Hendon Hooker — expected to be one of the top quarterbacks taken in next April’s NFL Draft — tore his left ACL Saturday night at South Carolina. Hooker probably won’t be healed enough to throw for scouts prior to the draft, now little more than five months away.

John Kryk writes a weekly newsletter on NFL matters. That’s where you can first see his straight-up picks each week. You can have the newsletter automatically dropped into your email inbox on Wednesdays simply by signing up — for free — at https://torontosun.com/newsletters/

JoKryk@postmedia.com

@JohnKryk

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