WOULD RATHER BE IN CLEARWATER
Brian Dawkins and the Denver Broncos are 4-0.
Dawkins faced a familiar foe this afternoon in Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys. The result? An impressive defensive performance and a 17-10 victory.
Denver trailed 10-0 in the first quarter when Fox's Pam Oliver observed that Dawkins had given the defense a pep talk on the sidelines. We've seen a few of those around these parts in the past.
On the very next Cowboys' possession, the Broncos forced a Romo fumble. Dallas didn't score another point all day.
The Broncos had five sacks, forced two turnovers and allowed just three of 14 third-down conversions.
To be fair, it wasn't all Denver's defense. Romo looked uncomfortable throughout, missing open receiver after open receiver. The Cowboys still had a chance to win with time winding down as he found Sam Hurd for a 53-yard gain, but they got no closer than the 2-yard line after a pair of Romo incompletions.
Wide receiver Roy Williams was the recipient of a big hit on one of Romo's off-target throws in the fourth quarter. He was not on the field during the Cowboys' final drive.
Dallas, 2-2, travels to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs next week before its bye in Week 6.
Giants 27, Chiefs 16
Meanwhile, quarterback Eli Manning suffered a bruised heal in the Giants' 27-16 victory over the Chiefs in Kansas City this afternoon.
According to Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News, the team is optimistic he'll be back next week.
“I don’t know exactly what it is,” Manning told Vacchiano. “We’ll find out more tomorrow. I can walk around. I can move around. There is some discomfort.”
Manning went to the ground after completing a pass to wide receiver Hakeem Nicks that went for a 54-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. It didn't appear that he was touched on the play. On TV, it looked like the injury was sustained when he was planting his feet.
Manning did not return to the game. He went 20-for-34 on the day, with three touchdowns and an interception.
The Giants had an easy time with Kansas City, which looked just as bad as it did last week against the Eagles at the Linc.
Manning has been impressive during the Giants' 4-0 start, with eight TDs and two INTs.
The Giants are one of five undefeated teams, having won three in a row on the road. They return to the Meadowlands next week to face the Raiders before a big Week 6 matchup at the Saints.
The Giants and Eagles don't face one another until Nov. 1 when New York travels to the Linc.
