While the Cowboys built a big lead after three quarters last Sunday, the fourth quarter was rather uneventful as they cruised to a 44-22 win over Washington.
Meanwhile, in the city where they'll be traveling this week, Denver had a much different fourth quarter, in fact one of the craziest in NFL history. The Broncos staged one of the biggest comebacks in NFL history to beat the Giants 33-32, scoring all of their points in the fourth.
Denver is now 5-2 and will host the Cowboys at 3-3-1, featuring several offensive weapons, including a former Broncos standout.
That will be one of the storylines for the week, as we detail five each for the Broncos and Cowboys.
Broncos
Historic Finish – The Broncos set an NFL record on Sunday for the most fourth-quarter points after being shut out the previous three quarters. Denver found themselves down 19-0 heading into the fourth quarter against the Giants, only to record a historic comeback, rallying to beat the Giants on a last-second field goal, 33-32 – scoring all of the points in the fourth. Denver is now 5-2 and have won eight straight games at home.
Greenlaw suspended– One of the players the Cowboys tried to sign in free agency was linebacker Dre Greenlaw, who opted for the Broncos. But he is not expected to play after getting a one-game suspension from the NFL for unsportsmanlike conduct that occurred immediately following the Giants win, stemming from an altercation with an official. Greenlaw has appealed the ruling, forcing the NFL to make a decision this week.
Denver play-calling – Head coach Sean Payton reiterated again this week that he has no plans of changing the play-calling duties despite the offensive issues. Payton has been the play-caller on offense since he became the head coach. However, Payton did say he expects the offense to improve and the staff will continue to work on things to improve the offensive consistency. The Broncos rank 11th in total offense this year, but 19th in the passing game.
Nix running – He might not be the fastest quarterback in the NFL, but Bo Nix has been a weapon for the Broncos with his legs. In fact, Payton has said the Broncos have even schemed up designed runs for Nix, who had two rushing touchdowns in the fourth quarter Sunday, giving him three this year. He's averaging about 25 rushing yards a game, close to his average last year as a rookie. Again, Nix isn't someone that you'd have to regularly use a "spy" on defense but he can pick up first downs, whether the play is designed or not.
Not since 1992 … – The NFL didn't even have a salary cap in place, the Cowboys had won just two Super Bowls and Dak Prescott wasn't even born yet – the last time the Cowboys won a game in Denver. Obviously, they don't play often in Mile High but 33 years is still a long time. The Cowboys beat Denver 31-27 late in the season in 1992 and eventually won their first of three Super Bowls in a four-year span. Since then, the Cowboys lost in Denver in 1998, 2009 and 2017. It's also been 30 years since the Cowboys have beaten Denver at all. The last win was a home game in 1995. But here's a note if the Cowboys do win – the last four wins over the Broncos, have all resulted in Super Bowl appearances later that season.
Cowboys
Over 500? – The Cowboys have hit the .500 mark on three occasions this year but have yet to get over the hump with a winning record. A reason for that could also be the fact the Cowboys have yet to win two straight games. But after an impressive 44-22 win over the Commanders Sunday, the Cowboys hit the road in Denver looking to get to 4-3-1. To that, they'll have to win at Denver for the first time in 33 years and also end the Broncos' eight-game winning streak.
MVP numbers – It's still way early for MVP talk but Dak Prescott is definitely putting up those kind of numbers after seven games. What he doesn't have so far is a great win-loss record to go with it. That could change as the season goes on and if the Cowboys do pile up some wins, it's likely Dak's numbers will get even better. But after seven games, Dak leads the NFL in completions (185) and ranks second in passing yards (1,881) and touchdown passes (17).
Javonte Returns - "I don't even want to talk about." That was Javonte Williams' playful line following the Cowboys' win over Washington Sunday, which wasn't too early to field questions about the upcoming return to Denver, where he played the first four years of his career. Williams said that with a smile, knowing the storylines that are surrounding this game. Williams isn't just back in Denver, but he's the NFL's second-leading rusher at 592 yards with seven total touchdowns. Denver has been solid in the running game behind J.K. Dobbins, who is seventh in the NFL with 523 rushing yards.
Defensive turn?– The Cowboys are still last in the NFL in total defense, yielding 401.2 yards per game and rank 30th against the run, an area that was supposed to be fixed with the addition of Kenny Clark in the Parsons trade. But after seven games, the defense is still struggling – however, Sunday's win over Washington was a step in the right direction. Not only did the Cowboys get plenty of stops, but four sacks and two turnovers, including a DaRon Bland interception for a score, his sixth Pick 6 of his career. It wasn't perfect, but considering the Cowboys' offensive prowess, just slight improvements on defense could help this team stack up a few wins.
Dynamic Duo – Is there a better 1-2 receiving duo in the NFL? It's hard to think another team has a pair of weapons like CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens. The combo has only played three full games together this year and in those games, the Cowboys are averaging 34.6 points per game. Lamb had gone over 100 yards in each of those games and Pickens saw a slight decrease in his production last week when Lamb returned to the lineup, but he still ranks fourth in the NFL with 607 yards and tied for second in TD catches with six. And because of that and the NFL's second-leading rusher in Williams, it's opened up room for tight end Jake Ferguson, who leads all tight ends in catches (51) and TD receptions (six).
