Jay Ajayi ran for 77 yards and one touchdown on Eagles debut
Monday 6 November 2017 07:01, UK
Carson Wentz threw four touchdown passes as the Philadelphia Eagles routed the Denver Broncos 51-23 on Sunday.
Corey Clement had three scores on the day, while fellow running back Jay Ajayi - recently acquired in a trade with the Miami Dolphins - had a 46-yard TD run on debut.
The Eagles (8-1) dismantled the league's top-ranked defense, racking up 419 yards, to win their seventh straight game and head into a bye week with the best record in the NFL.
Brock Osweiler started at quarterback for the first time this season for the Broncos (3-5) but threw two interceptions as Denver slipped to its fourth straight defeat, and fifth in six.
In contrast, Wentz was 15 of 27 for 199 yards, notching his third four-TD performance in the past five weeks - his first TD came when flipping a 32-yard pass to Alshon Jeffery to give the Eagles a 7-3 lead while, later in the first quarter, Osweiler threw his first pick, setting up a short catch-and-run score for Clement from the 15-yard line.
Wentz then stretched Philadelphia's lead on a 27-yard connection with tight end Trey Burton in the second quarter before Ajayi burst through for his home run TD down the left sideline to see the Eagles lead 31-9 at the half. It was not only Ajayi's first touchdown run on the season, but also the first the Broncos defense had allowed.
They soon allowed a second, early in the third quarter, as undrafted rookie free agent Clement ran into the endzone from two yards out, before Wentz connected with Jeffery again on a six-yard pass to make the score even uglier for Denver fans, at 44-9.
The Broncos scored a couple of consolation TDs in the fourth quarter - Demaryius Thomas caught his first touchdown pass in a year, and linebacker Brandon Marshall ran the ball in from 19 yards after a Von Miller strip sack of Eagles back-up Nick Foles, who came in as relief for Wentz with the game over.
The Eagles had the final say though when Clement rumbled in for his third score of the game on a four-yard touchdown run.
Elsewhere, in the other early games in the NFL....
Rams 51-17 Giants
Quarterback Jared Goff threw four touchdown passes as Los Angeles (6-2) steamrolled New York (1-7).
The 51 points represented the most the Giants have given up in a home game since 1999, when Washington scored 50.
Falcons 17-20 Panthers
Christian McCaffrey and Cam Newton scored on short touchdown runs as the Panthers (6-3) wiped out an early 10-0 hole to Atlanta (4-4) to win for the second week running.
Newton completed 13 of 24 passes for 137 yards. He was the game's leading rusher with 86 yards on nine carries.
Buccaneers 10-30 Saints
Rookie running back Alvin Kamara scored two touchdowns and accounted for 152 yards of offense as the Saints ?(6-2) recorded their sixth consecutive victory.
Tampa Bay quarterback Jameis Winston was knocked out of the game late in the first half as Tampa Bay (2-6) lost its fifth straight.
Ravens 20-23 Titans
Tennessee (5-3) edged Baltimore (4-5) to remain tied with Jacksonville for first place in the AFC South.
After earning a 16-6 lead by the half, the Titans managed just one first down in its first four possessions of the second half. But their defense carried the load after the break, allowing just a three-yard touchdown pass from Joe Flacco.
Colts 20-14 Texans
Jacoby Brissett and T.Y. Hilton connected on a pair of long scoring strikes as Indianapolis (3-6) snapped a three-game losing skid in beating Houston (3-5).
The Colts still had to hold off a late Houston comeback though, with linebacker Jabaal Sheard recording a sack and forcing fumble on Texans quarterback Tom Savage - in for the injured Deshaun Watson - on the final play from the Indianapolis seven-yard line with seven seconds left.
Bengals 7-23 Jaguars
Jacksonville (5-3) utilized a quality defensive effort and an efficient outing from quarterback Blake Bortles for their first win at home as they defeated Cincinnati (3-5).
Jacksonville's defense held the Bengals (3-5) to 148 yards and Bortles completed 24 of 38 passes for 259 yards with a touchdown.
Jaguars cornerback Jalen Ramsey and Cincinnati receiver A.J. Green were both ejected in the final seconds of the first half for getting into a brawl on the field.
