With the eighth Sunday of the NFL season over, these two teams put on the most impressive performances of week eight. The Buffalo Bills defeated a sloppy Oakland Raiders team to continue their unexpected start to the season, while the Dallas Cowboys went on the road and handily defeated their-banged up divisional rivals in the Washington Redskins.
Buffalo Bills
The Oakland Raiders jumped out to an early 7-0 lead in the first quarter against the Buffalo Bills.
Buffalo then scored 27 unanswered points against to make it 27-7 at the beginning of the fourth quarter. This included a Tyrod Taylor rushing touchdown, a touchdown pass to receiver Andre Holmes, and two Steven Hauschka field goals.
They also forced three turnovers in this span, including a forced fumble that rookie linebacker Matt Milano returned 40-yards for a touchdown. Oakland would score in the fourth quarter to make it 27-14, but the Bills defense would force them to turn it over on downs the next time they had the ball.
Running back LeSean McCoy would then break off a 48-yard rushing touchdown to extend the lead to 34-14 and the Bills defense would force their fourth and final turnover of the day to cap off the victory.
This victory moves the Bills to 5-2, which they have not done since the 2011 season. It is also the first time they have started a season 4-0 at home since 1995. Next up, they have a key divisional showdown on Thursday night against the rival New York Jets.
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins both entered Sunday's game sporting 3-3 records, with both needing the win to keep within shouting distance of the Philadelphia Eagles. On the Cowboys first offensive play, running back Ezekiel Elliott fumbled, leading to a Redskins field goal to take an early lead.
Elliott would redeem himself on the next drive, scoring on a 13-yard scamper to give Dallas the lead. Washington then countered with a one-yard touchdown run from Rob Kelley, Dallas drove down and missed a field goal and the Redskins add a field goal to take a 13-7 lead in the second quarter.
The Cowboys would then score 19 straight points, holding the Redskins scoreless until there was 4:35 left in the fourth quarter. Despite their domination, Dallas settled for four Mike Nugent field goals, keeping Washington in the game. Their touchdown late in the fourth made it 26-19 after they missed the extra point.
Dallas then ran the clock down, giving the ball back to Washington with 54 seconds left. They then picked off Kirk Cousins with Byron Jones returning the interception 21 yards to put an exclamation point on the Cowboys 33-19 victory. The Cowboys have now won two and a row, having seemingly found their mojo heading into to next week's difficult matchup in Kansas City.