Broncos dominate Cowboys
Denver coasts to victory after building a 30-0 lead on the road
ARLINGTON, Texas — Jonathon Cooper and the Denver defense pestered Dak Prescott a lot more than the rookie’s first two sacks in the NFL showed.
The final score wasn’t much of a reflection of the Broncos’ dominance either.
Teddy Bridgewater threw for a touchdown and had a sneak for another, and the Broncos stymied the NFL’S No. 1 offense when it mattered in a 30-16 victory Sunday, ending the Cowboys’ six-game winning streak.
Prescott returned after missing a game with a strained right calf but couldn’t get the Cowboys (6-2) moving until two meaningless late touchdowns that merely avoided what would have been their worst shutout loss at home since 1985.
“Those guys had the right mindset, which you have to when you’re playing against an offense that’s that good,” Denver coach Vic Fangio said. “They bought into what we had to do to have a chance to slow them down. We did more than slow them down.”
The Broncos (5-4) made Prescott uncomfortable in their first game since trading star pass rusher Von Miller, and with sacks leader Malik
Reed (hip injury) inactive.
Denver also began without left tackle Garett Bowles (ankle) and lost right tackle Bobby Massie and right guard Graham Glasgow to ankle injuries. Glasgow was taken off on a cart with an air cast on his lower left leg on the final play of the first half.
Still, the Broncos got their offense moving with the running game. They handed Dallas its first double-digit deficit of the season at 13-0 on Bridgewater’s 41-yard touchdown pass to Tim Patrick, who beat Trevon Diggs at the goal line.
The lead reached 30-0 in the Broncos’ seventh consecutive victory in the series, a streak that goes back to 1995. Prescott threw two touchdown passes to Malik Turner in the final five minutes.
“The message is don’t take the cheese, and frankly we were outcoached, we were outplayed all the way through,” Dallas coach Mike Mccarthy said. “This is the first time I’ve felt clearly our energy didn’t exceed our opponent. That’s disappointing.”
The Cowboys were 0-for-4 on fourth downs, including failures on their first two possessions. Receiver Amari Cooper had his first drop of the season to force one of those failed fourth downs and Dallas finished with a season-low 290 yards — about half with the game decided.
“You take the field with a little anger, honestly,” Bridgewater said, referring to Dallas’ early fourth-down tries. “They’re saying our offense is not going to score. We talked about it in the huddle and we used it as motivation.”
Bridgewater finished 19 of 28 for 249 yards with several big throws that helped the Broncos convert 8 of 15 third downs.