ARLINGTON, Texas — The only drama at the end of this one was whether rookie DeMarco Murray would set the Dallas Cowboys’ franchise rushing record, a remarkable feat considering it has gone from Hall of Famer Tony Dorsett to NFL rushing king Emmitt Smith.
Murray indeed pulled it off, running through a shoddy St. Louis Rams defense for 253 yards, including an early 91-yard touchdown that got the Cowboys started toward a 34-7 victory Sunday.
Murray ran for the most yards in the NFL this season and the ninth-most in league history. His touchdown was the second-longest run in team history, topped only by the NFL-record 99-yarder by Dorsett in January 1983. Murray also had the most yards ever against the Rams, replacing Jim Brown on that list.
“I never thought in a million years that I’d ever have a day like this,” Murray said. “This is what I’ve been working hard for since my Pop Warner days.”
As impressive as Murray’s performance was, it came against the Rams, who fell to 0-6 and came in with the NFL’s worst defense against the run. They had allowed 163 yards per game, more than 20 yards more than anyone else.
For Dallas (3-3), the real satisfaction was ending a two-game losing skid and emphatically breaking a stretch of 11 consecutive games decided by four points or fewer.
“It was the first one where we could take a knee to win,” receiver Miles Austin said. “It’s a good feeling.”
Saints 62, Colts 7
NEW ORLEANS — Drew Brees completed 31-of-35 passes for 325 yards and five touchdowns, and the New Orleans Saints set a franchise record for points and victory margin.
For the first time as a head coach, Sean Payton spent the game up in the coaches’ booth, where he could sit comfortably with his broken left leg propped up. He called the plays from there and obviously had to like what he saw from his new vantage point.
Bears 24, Bucs 18
LONDON — Matt Forte ran for 145 yards and a touchdown and Chicago held on at Wembley Stadium.
Jay Cutler threw for 226 yards and a touchdown and the Bears (4-3) intercepted Josh Freeman four times to win their second game in a row.
The Buccaneers (4-3) lost for the second time in three years in London.
Tampa Bay scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to pull within three points. But after a 25-yard field goal by Chicago’s Robbie Gould, Freeman was picked off with 37 seconds left by D.J. Moore.
Panthers 33, Redskins 20
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Cam Newton ran for a touchdown and threw for another in the second half to help Carolina.
Jonathan Stewart also ran for a third-quarter touchdown for the Panthers (2-5), who for the first time all year found themselves playing with the lead almost the entire way.
Washington’s John Beck threw for 279 yards and scored on a short keeper in his first start in four years. But he didn’t get the Redskins (3-3) back to the end zone again until they were down 30-13.
Steelers 32, Cardinals 20
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Ben Roethlisberger threw 95 yards to Mike Wallace for the longest pass play in Steelers history and Pittsburgh (5-2) won its third straight while handing Arizona its fifth consecutive loss.
Roethlisberger, 26-of-39 for 361 yards, also had TD passes of 12 yards to Heath Miller and 4 yards to Emmanuel Sanders in the first game between the teams since Pittsburgh’s 27-23 thriller over the Cardinals in the 2009 Super Bowl.
Kevin Kolb threw a pair of touchdown passes for the Cardinals (1-5), his first in three games, but he missed several open receivers and, with a blitzing LaMarr Woodley in his face, drew an intentional grounding call in the Cardinals’ end zone for a safety.
Texans 41, Titans 7
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Arian Foster ran for 115 yards and two touchdowns and added 119 more receiving with a 78-yard TD as Houston moved back into first place in the AFC South.
The Texans (4-3) snapped a two-game skid even with Pro Bowl receiver Andre Johnson missing his third straight game and fullback James Casey his second due to injuries. Matt Schaub threw for 296 yards and two TDs.
Tennessee (3-3) has lost two straight. Chris Johnson had 18 yards on 10 carries and was booed by the hometown crowd.
Browns 6, Seahawks 3
CLEVELAND — Phil Dawson converted two field goals of more than 50 yards and had two others blocked, but it was enough as Seattle (2-4) managed just 137 yards of offense and had the ball for only 17:04. The Associated Press
