Dallas Cowboys notch record ninth straight NFL win

The Dallas Cowboys rolled to a franchise-record ninth straight win in the NFL as Dak Prescott led them to a 27-17 victory over the Baltimore Ravens.

With Tony Romo serving as his back-up for the first time, Prescott confirmed his place as the Cowboys’ natural starter by throwing for 301 yards and three touchdowns.

Running back Ezekiel Elliott, the NFL’s leading rusher, broke the Dallas rookie record of 1,007 yards — set by Tony Dorsett in 1977 — as he collected 97 to go to 1,102 on the season.

At 9-1, the Cowboys stay two games clear of the New York Giants in the NFC East after the Giants beat the Chicago Bears 22-16.

Eli Manning threw for 227 yards and two touchdowns as the Giants recorded their fifth straight win, though it was far from straightforward as Chicago led 16-9 at the break.

Giants kicker Robbie Gould made a 46-yard field goal but missed two extra points, while Chicago’s Connar Barth missed one — part of an epidemic of kicking woes across the NFL which saw a record 11 extra points missed in 10 games ahead of the late match between the Green Bay Packers and the Washington Redskins.

That is the most in the Superbowl era, although at the start of last season the extra-point attempt became the equivalent of a 35-yard field goal attempt, rather than from 18 yards.

Cincinnati’s Mike Nugent saw two PAT attempts hit the post against Buffalo, while there were also misses from Detroit’s Matt Prater, Jacksonville’s Jason Myers, Chicago’s Connor Barth, Minnesota’s Kai Forbath and Cleveland’s Cody Parkey.

New England’s Stephen Gostkowski missed and Seattle’s Steven Hauschka had an attempt blocked in the late games to bring the total to a record 11.

Despite Gostkowski's miss, the Patriots continued their dominance of the AFC with a 30-17 win over the San Francisco 49ers.

Tom Brady threw for 280 yards and four touchdowns in the 199th NFL win of his career, the joint second highest total of victories for a quarterback alongside Brett Favre. Another win will bring Brady level with Peyton Manning’s record.

Baltimore's loss allowed Pittsburgh to go level at the top of the AFC North at 5-5 after a 24-9 rout of the winless Cleveland Browns, who are now 0-11.

Le’Veon Bell rushed for 146 yards and a touchdown, while the Steelers had eight sacks, forcing Cleveland quarterback Cody Kessler from the game in the third quarter with a concussion.

The Seattle Seahawks continued their dominance of the NFC West with a 26-15 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.

Russell Wilson threw for 272 yards and a touchdown and, unusually, also caught a touchdown pass from Doug Baldwin — the first quarterback in the franchise’s history to do so.

The Kansas City Chiefs had their winning streak snapped at five games as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers left Arrowhead Stadium with a 19-17 win.

Jameis Winston threw for 331 yards and a touchdown while Roberto Aguayo kicked four field goals for the Bucs, dropping the Chiefs to 7-3 and leaving the door open for Oakland to go top of the AFC West if they can beat Houston on Monday night.

The Minnesota Vikings remembered what it was like to win as they beat the Arizona Cardinals 30-24, snapping a four-game losing streak which ruined their 5-0 start.

Xavier Rhodes took an interception return 100 yards for a touchdown and Cordarrelle Patterson took the second-half kick-off return 104 yards to the end zone.

The Detroit Lions were involved in yet another close game but this one went their way as they beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 26-19 — their fifth win out of six despite trailing in the fourth quarter every time.

Andrew Luck threw for 262 yards and two touchdowns as the Indianapolis Colts hung on for a 24-17 victory over the Tennessee Titans, their 11th straight victory against their division rivals and a win that evens their record at 5-5 this season.

The Buffalo Bills snapped a three-game losing streak to keep their playoff hopes alive with a 16-12 win over the Cincinnati Bengals, although they remain behind the Miami Dolphins in the AFC East after they beat the St Louis Rams 14-10.