New York receiver Odell Beckham jnr’s “catch of the season” put the Giants in control against the Cowboys on Sunday, but Tony Romo produced another late scoring drive to lead Dallas to a 31-28 win at MetLife Stadium.
Trailing 28-24 with three minutes remaining, Romo led the Cowboys on an 80-yard drive and found Dez Bryant for the game-winning 13-yard touchdown.
The win kept the Cowboys (8-3) tied with Philadelphia for first place in the NFC East, while the Giants (3-8) dropped their sixth straight game.
The defeat will be hard to swallow for the Giants, who started well and led 14-3 early in the second quarter after Beckham’s second touchdown of the game.
The rising rookie shrugged off a Cowboys defender who was grabbing his shirt, and leapt backwards into the end zone to corral the ball one-handed from Eli Manning’s pass.
Beckham finished with 146 receiving yards, including the stunning 43-yard scoring catch, and his two touchdowns helped the Giants to a 21-10 halftime lead.
Rally
Dallas rallied, scoring 14 straight points in the third quarter to seize a 24-21 advantage, only for New York to respond again, Manning tossing a one- yard touchdown to Adrien Robinson to cap a 93-yard drive with three minutes left to play.
Romo had four touchdown passes on the night, two to Bryant, as the Cowboys remained undefeated on the road at 5-0.
Defending Super Bowl champions the Seattle Seahawks handed the Arizona Cardinals just their second loss of the season with a 19-3 win in their NFC West clash on Sunday, despite quarterback Russell Wilson being sacked seven times.
The win keeps alive the slim hopes of Seattle (7-4) of catching the Cardinals (9-2), while the San Francisco 49ers kept themselves in contention with a 17-13 win over the Washington Redskins.
The only touchdown in Seattle came in the fourth quarter when Wilson, who had been sacked five times in the first half, found Cooper Helfet with a 20-yard pass to secure the win after four field goals from Steven Hauschka.
Rushing touchdown
The 49ers needed a four-yard rushing touchdown with 2:59 left from running back Carlos Hyde to get past the Redskins and scrape out a win ahead of Thursday’s Thanksgiving clash with the Seahawks in San Francisco.
In the NFC North, running back Eddie Lacy scored two touchdowns and rushed for 125 yards as the Green Bay Packers took sole control of the division with a 24-21 win over the Minnesota Vikings.
The Packers move to 8-3, giving them top spot in the division after the Detroit Lions fell 34-9 to the New England Patriots.
The Patriots’ win was their seventh straight and their 15th consecutive at home.
In the AFC West, Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos had to come from behind in the fourth quarter to beat the Miami Dolphins 39-36.
Manning finished with four touchdowns for 257 yards while Dolphins’ quarterback Ryan Tannehill threw three touchdowns and ran in another while throwing for 228 yards.
The Cleveland Browns’ impressive campaign continued as a 37-yard field goal from Billy Cundiff at game’s end gave them a 26-24 win at the Atlanta Falcons and moved them to 7-4.
The Cincinnati Bengals remain just ahead of the Browns in the AFC North after they won 22-13 against the Texans in Houston. Bengals’ AJ Green had 121 yards receiving and quarterback Andy Dalton threw for one touchdown and 233 yards, although he also threw an interception in the third quarter, which was returned 60 yards for a score by Texans’ corner Johnathan Joseph.
The Indianapolis Colts took advantage of Houston’s loss to move clear in the AFC South (7-4), after a 23-3 win over struggling Jacksonville.
In the NFC East, Eagles quarterback Mark Sanchez passed for 307 yards and a touchdown as Philadelphia (8-3) beat the Tennessee Titans 43-24.
