EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Odell Beckham Jr. provided the spectacular, then Tony Romo and Dez Bryant trumped it.
Romo threw two touchdown passes to Bryant, the winner from 13 yards with 1:01 remaining, lifting the Dallas Cowboys to a comeback 31-28 victory over the New York Giants.
Romo threw for two TDs in the third quarter and Barry Church’s interception helped turn things in the Cowboys’ favor. But the Giants (3-8), trailing 24-21, staged a 93-yard drive capped by Adrien Robinson’s first career TD catch. That 1-yard score with 3 minutes remaining could have snapped New York’s slide that now is at six losses.
Back came Dallas (8-3) on an 80-yard march in which Romo never was pressured as he searched for receivers. He found Bryant in the back of the end zone to win it.
Dallas, which was treated to chants of “Let’s Go Cowboys!” in the second half from hundreds of fans in Cowboys garb, is 5-0 on the road. New York, meanwhile, was eliminated from division contention.
Thanks to Beckham’s incredible one-handed catch, one of the rookie’s two first-half touchdowns, New York built a 21-10 halftime lead.
But Romo hit Cole Beasley with a short pass that he turned into a 45-yard score, and the quarterback’s 31-yarder to an uncovered Bryant put Dallas on top for the first time.
Beckham left briefly in the fourth quarter with a back problem, but returned for the next series. He wasn’t involved in any key plays on that TD drive to retake the lead, and Beckham finished with 10 receptions for 146 yards.
His right-handed stab of Manning’s 43-yard rainbow pass could be the catch of the year. The rookie, who regularly practices such receptions, outreached veteran cornerback Brandon Carr at the goal line and tumbled backward into the end zone to make it 14-3.
“I have seen him make catches like that all the time (in practice),” coach Tom Coughlin said.
BRONCOS 39, DOLPHINS 36
DENVER — Peyton Manning threw three of his four TD passes to Demaryius Thomas and C.J. Anderson ran for 167 yards and the go-ahead score in the Denver Broncos’ win over the Miami Dolphins.
Anderson’s 10-yard run with 5:01 left gave the Broncos (8-3) their first lead of the game at 32-28. T.J. Ward’s 37-yard interception return of Ryan Tannehill’s pass set up Wes Welker’s insurance TD catch.
Manning became the third player in NFL history with touchdown passes in 50 consecutive games, joining Drew Brees (54) and Tom Brady (52). He completed 28 of 35 passes for 257 yards and no interceptions on a cool Colorado evening.
PATRIOTS 34, LIONS 9
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Tom Brady threw for 349 yards and two touchdowns in a pass-heavy offense against the NFL’s stingiest rushing defense and the New England Patriots stretched their winning streak to seven games with a victory over the Detroit Lions.
The Patriots led 24-6 at halftime as Brady repeatedly found wide-open receivers while the Lions struggled on offense. For the second straight game, Detroit failed to score a touchdown.
49ERS 17, REDSKINS 13
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Carlos Hyde ran for a go-ahead 4-yard touchdown with 2:59 remaining, and San Francisco barely squeaked by the lowly Washington Redskins with a win that kept them in the thick of the playoff chase.
A fourth-down conversion in their own territory away from losing, the Niners finally capitalized with a rare touchdown in the final period on the way to their third straight victory.
PACKERS 24, VIKINGS 21
MINNEAPOLIS — Eddie Lacy rushed for 125 yards on 25 carries, both season highs to help Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers hang on against the Minnesota Vikings.
Lacy scored twice, on a run in the first quarter and a catch in the fourth. Then, he rumbled through the line for two first downs to drain the clock after the Vikings (4-7) cut the lead to three with 3:23 remaining.
Rodgers threw two touchdown passes and again avoided a turnover for the Packers (8-3), who stayed out of a potential trap against a struggling team with a game next week against surging New England.
BROWNS 26, FALCONS 24
ATLANTA — Brian Hoyer shook off three interceptions, leading the Cleveland Browns down the field in the final minute to set up Billy Cundiff’s 37-yard field goal as time expired to beat the Atlanta Falcons.
Taking advantage of the last of Hoyer’s picks, the Falcons drove for Matt Bryant’s 53-yard field goal with 44 seconds remaining to seize the lead.
But Hoyer completed four straight passes, the last of them to the Falcons 19, and spiked the ball with 5 seconds left. Cundiff trotted on and made his fourth field goal of the game for the Browns (7-4).
EAGLES 43, TITANS 24
PHILADELPHIA — Josh Huff returned the opening kickoff 107 yards, LeSean McCoy ran for 130 yards and the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Tennessee Titans.
Huff’s return was the longest in franchise history and the 10th non-offensive touchdown for Philadelphia this season.
Mark Sanchez threw for 307 yards and one touchdown in his third start for the injured Nick Foles. He has 300 yards passing in three straight games, tying a team record.
BENGALS 22, TEXANS 13
HOUSTON — Andy Dalton threw for 233 yards and a touchdown and A.J. Green had 121 yards receiving on a career-high 12 receptions to give the Cincinnati Bengals a win over the Houston Texans.
The Bengals (7-3-1) led throughout, but Houston (5-6) cut the lead to three points late in the third quarter before Cincinnati tacked on two field goals in the fourth quarter to secure the win.
COLTS 23, JAGUARS 3
INDIANAPOLIS — T.Y. Hilton celebrated the birth of his first child with a 73-yard TD catch, spurring a second-half turnaround that allowed Indianapolis to pull away from Jacksonville.
Andrew Luck was 21 of 32 for 253 yards with one score, but his streak of consecutive 300-yard games ended at eight — one short of Drew Brees’ NFL record.
BEARS 21, BUCCANEERS 13
CHICAGO — Matt Forte rushed for two touchdowns in the third quarter, and the Chicago Bears beat Lovie Smith and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Jay Cutler threw a 2-yard TD pass to Alshon Jeffery as the Bears (5-6) scored 21 straight points to erase a 10-0 halftime deficit. Forte had a 13-yard run that put Chicago ahead to stay, and then added a 1-yard plunge that made it 21-10.
CHARGERS 27, RAMS 24
SAN DIEGO — Marcus Gilchrist intercepted Shaun Hill at the goal line with 56 seconds left to preserve the San Diego Chargers’ victory against the St. Louis Rams that helped tighten the AFC West race.
Gilchrist jumped the route as Hill tried to force a pass to Kenny Britt, who also was covered by Shareece Wright, on second-and-goal from the 4. Hill had beaten Gilchrist on a 7-yard TD pass to Stedman Bailey with 2:04 left that pulled the Rams within three points.
By wire sources