NFL: Dallas Cowboys beaten by Arizona Cardinals as Miami Dolphins impress in week nine

Tony Romo had to watch on from the sidelines as the Dallas Cowboys slipped to a second straight defeat, going down 28-17 to the Arizona Cardinals in week nine of the NFL season.

With a back injury ruling out their starting quarterback, the Cowboys struggled on offence with Brandon Weeden under centre, not managing an offensive touchdown until 68 seconds from the end of the contest.

In contrast Carson Palmer was superb for the Cardinals, who at 7-1 now stand alone as the top team in the NFC and have now won their last four on the spin. It is their best start to a campaign in 30 years.

Veteran quarterback Palmer threw for three touchdowns, helping the visitors turn around an early 10-0 deficit in Texas as they responded to falling behind by double digits by putting up the next 28 points.

John Carson, Jaron Brown and Andre Ellington all scored through the air for the Cards, while Marion Grice added a TD on the ground when he went in from one-yard out with just over four minutes to play.

Weeden, signed in the off-season having been released by the Cleveland Browns, connected with Dez Bryant from three yards out to give the final scoreline a more respectable look. Dallas’ other trip into the end zone came when Tyler Patmon picked off Palmer and went 58 yards early in the first quarter.

Running back DeMarco Murray – the leading rusher in the NFL by some distance - was held to 79 yards on 18 carries for Dallas. They slip to 6-3 with all three of their defeats this year coming at home.

Miami nice

Elsewhere in Sunday’s early games, the Miami Dolphins produced a stunning result as they thrashed the slumping San Diego Chargers 37-0 at Sun Life Stadium.

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Ryan Tannehill threw for 288 yards and three touchdowns while the Dolphins’ defence dominated, intercepting rival quarterback Phillip Rivers three times. San Diego has now lost their last eight trips to Miami, as well as three in a row this season.

The Chargers – who now sit at 5-4 for the season – gave up four turnovers and mustered just 178 offensive yards in total.

Mark Sanchez came off the bench to help the Philadelphia Eagles record a 31-21 win on the road in Houston, the quarterback throwing two touchdown passes, although he was also intercepted twice, after replacing the injured Nick Foles.

Jeremy Maclin finished with 158 yards and two touchdowns on six receptions for the Eagles, starting the scoring with a 59-yarder from Foles before then combining with Sanchez on an eight-yard effort in the fourth quarter that put his team out of sight in Texas.

Meanwhile, Rookie Jeremy Hill managed 154 yards and two touchdowns – including a 60-yarder in the fourth quarter – as the Cincinnati Bengals defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars 33-23.

The Kansas City Chiefs (5-3) handed the New York Jets a seventh successive defeat, triumphing 24-10 at Arrowhead Stadium to deny Michael Vick a win in his first start for the visitors, while the Cleveland Browns improved to 5-3 with a 22-17 win over the Tampa Buccaneers (1-7).