Cowboys swarm feeble Giants
Tough guy Jason Witten scored the game’s only touchdown while setting another franchise record for the Dallas Cowboys.
Ezekiel Elliott took care of the tough yards, churning out another 100-yard game two days after learning that his six-game suspension over a domestic-violence case is on hold.
Witten and Elliott helped Dallas produce points, and the Cowboys shackled a New York offense missing dynamic receiver Odell Beckham Jr. in a 19-3 victory over the visiting Giants on Sunday night.
“You just enjoy the journey,” said Witten, who began his 15th season by breaking Hall of Fame receiver Michael Irvin’s club record of 11,904 receiving yards. “I’m just trying to devour where I am at this moment. It’s a great time in my life.”
Elliott, last year’s NFL rushing leader, had a rugged 104 yards on the ground and another 36 receiving in a game that he knew he would get to play regardless of a federal judge’s ruling in his bid to have the NFL’s punishment overturned.
“You just have to block it out,” said Elliott, who could play the entire season depending on the next legal move by the NFL. “You just have to focus on being the guy I need to be for this team. I think I am good for this locker room.”
Quarterback Dak Prescott was turnover-free while throwing for 268 yards as the Cowboys dominated their NFC East rival that swept them last season, when the Cowboys went 13-3 and topped the NFC behind the sensational rookie years for the quarterback-running back duo. Dan Bailey kicked four field goals.
Eli Manning didn’t have Beckham in his 200th straight start after his top target sprained his left ankle in a preseason game. The Giants were outgained in the first half 265 yards to 49, with just two first downs, while falling behind 16-0.
“We have plenty of players who can make plays on the offense outside of Odell,” head coach Ben McAdoo said. “That’s no excuse.”
Manning was 28-for-37 for 211 yards with an interception and con- nected with Brandon Marshall just once, late on a desperation drive.
Witten scored the Cowboys’ touchdown on a 12-yard catch and finished with seven receptions for 59 yards. Witten, already the franchise leader in catches, now has 1,096 receptions for 11,947 yards.
Steelers 21, Browns 18: Ben Roethlisberger threw two touchdown passes to tight end Jesse James as visiting Pittsburgh, with minimal help from running back and summer holdout Le’Veon Bell, held off Cleveland. Roethlisberger improved to 21-2 in his career against the Browns, who gave their rivals all they could handle — a positive sign for head coach Hue Jackson and Cleveland fans after a 1-15 season. The Browns couldn’t stop Pro Bowl wide receiver Antonio Brown, who had 11 receptions for 182 yards and made a leaping catch in traffic for 38 yards with 2:26 left to seal Pittsburgh’s win. Cleveland rookie quarterback DeShone Kizer, who also ran for a TD, had cut the Browns’ deficit to three on a 3-yard TD pass to Corey Coleman and a two-point conversion.
Eagles 30, Washington 17: Carson Wentz threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns as the second-year quarterback guided visiting Philadelphia in a sloppy season opener. Wentz was 26-for-39 and threw an interception that Ryan Kerrigan returned for a touchdown. Wentz still made fewer errors than Washington’s Kirk Cousins, who was intercepted at the goal line and fumbled twice.
Lions 35, Cardinals 23: Matthew Stafford threw two touchdown passes to rookie Kenny Golladay in the fourth quarter in Detroit. The Lions picked off three of Carson Palmer’s passes, returning one for a score. They also knocked Arizona running back David Johnson out of the game after forcing him to fumble in the third quarter. The Cardinals scored the first 10 points and led 17-9 late in the third quarter before giving up 26 straight points. Stafford’s first pass was returned 82 yards for a touchdown by Justin Bethel, but the player with the NFL’s richest contract bounced back. Stafford was 29-for-41 for 292 yards and threw 45- and 10-yard TD passes to Golladay, along with short TD passes to Theo Riddick and Cal alum Marvin Jones.
Ravens 20, Bengals 0: Baltimore’s rebuilt defense picked off Andy Dalton four times and forced him to fumble, making it easy for Joe Flacco in his return from a back injury. The Ravens ended a five-game losing streak in Cincinnati by pressuring Dalton into matching his career high for interceptions, three of them in the first half. The Ravens got two touchdowns 24 seconds apart late in the half to take control, with Jeremy Maclin scoring on a 48-yard reception. The overriding question was how Flacco would hold up after missing all of camp and the preseason with a back problem. Baltimore’s defense made sure he didn’t have to do much. Flacco was 9-for-17 for 121 yards with an interception against a defense missing suspended linebacker Vontaze Burfict and cornerback Adam “Pacman” Jones.
Bills 21, Jets 12: Tyrod Taylor threw two touchdown passes and the new-look Bills won in Sean McDermott’s debut as host Buffalo’s head coach. Mike Tolbert also scored on a 1-yard run, and Buffalo’s defense had three interceptions, including linebacker Ramon Humber picking off Josh McCown’s pass to thwart a two-point-conversion try in the third quarter.