DENVER (AP) — A trio of rookies came up big in the Denver Broncos’ 44-24 rout of the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday for their fifth consecutive victory.
Running back R.J. Harvey scored three times; wide receiver Pat Bryant caught his first NFL touchdown pass, one of four thrown by Bo Nix; and first-rounder Jahdae Barron picked off Dak Prescott for his first interception in the pros.
“Our rookies did a great job,” said J.K. Dobbins, who ran for 111 yards on 15 carries to help Denver (6-2) extend its NFL-best home winning streak to nine games. “All the rookies, that’s a great confidence booster.”
For the veterans, too.
“It was dope seeing all the young boys do their thing,” receiver Courtland Sutton said. “I got a lot of love for all our rookies. We’ve got some really good rookies.”
Despite two TD runs from former Denver running back Javonte Williams, the Cowboys (3-4-1) lost for the eighth straight time to the Broncos, whom they haven’t beaten since the heyday of Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin in 1995.
“All the credit to them,” Prescott said, “but we didn’t play anywhere close to our standard.”
The Broncos, who lost star cornerback Pat Surtain II to a shoulder injury just before halftime, won the toss and chose to receive, a decision that backfired when Nix threw right at cornerback Trikweze Bridges, whose interception set up Brandon Aubrey’s short field goal.
From there — excluding a kneel-down at halftime — the Broncos scored on seven of their next eight possessions.
After Williams knifed in from a yard out to pull Dallas to 14-10, Harvey took a direct snap for a 1-yard TD. Nix followed that with a 24-yard, over-the-shoulder strike to Bryant for a 27-10 halftime advantage.
Nix’s second TD toss to Troy Franklin made it 37-17 and his 5-yarder to Harvey made it 44-17.
It looked as though Aubrey was going to get a shot at a long field goal, maybe even a record-breaker, before Prescott was picked off by Barron with 12 seconds left in the first half.
Williams’ second 1-yard TD run pulled Dallas within 27-17 in the third quarter.
Including their 33-point fourth quarter last week to stun the Giants, the Broncos have outscored their opponents 77-37 over their last five quarters.
“This is what we’ve been chasing,” Broncos right guard Quinn Meinerz said. “Complementary football on offense, defense and special teams. There’s still penalty things that we need to work through but this is what we’re capable of.”
The Cowboys were coming off a 44-22 win at Washington, and that inconsistency eats at them.
“We’ve got to find a way to be consistent, whether it’s at home, on the road, regardless, we’re too good,” Prescott said. “We got too many good players. We’ve got great coaches. (Jadeveon Clowney) was just saying in the locker room this roster should not be going up and down like we’re doing, and a guy like that, when he says it … that’s real, and so we’ve just got to look in the mirror.”
Unhappy homecoming
Williams ran for 41 yards on 13 carries for a 3.2-yard average. His two TDs Sunday gives him a career-best nine so far, but he was overshadowed by Denver’s new backfield of Dobbins and Harvey, who combined for 157 yards and two TDs on 22 carries as the Broncos outgained the Cowboys on the ground 179 yards to 108 yards.
“It felt familiar because I was there for four years,” Williams said. “But it was just another game for me.”
Still, Williams got a lot of love back in Denver, from the crowd to his former teammates, who are happy to see him return to his rookie form years after a devastating knee injury that waylaid his career.
“Shout-out to Javonte,” Broncos linebacker Justin Strnad said. “I was trying to talk to him and say good things to him while we were playing, when when tackling him. But the referees thought I was talking bad to him. But really happy for Javonte.”
Nix said he was proud of Williams: “He’s doing a great job this season. He was a great teammate of mine in Year 1. He helped me a lot in a lot of different situations. So, I’m happy for him.”
Injuries
Cowboys: S Alijah Clark left with injured ribs in the second half.
Broncos: Surtain, the reigning defensive player of the year, suffered a lower right leg injury in the first quarter but returned. He injured his left shoulder on a tackle just before halftime and was ruled out in the third quarter. … TE Nate Adkins (knee) left in the fourth quarter. Broncos coach Sean Payton declined to address the injuries but said he was pleased with how the backups played.
Up next
Cowboys: Host Arizona on Monday, Nov. 3.
Broncos: At Houston next Sunday.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
By ARNIE STAPLETON
AP Pro Football Writer
