Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones would not be drawn on an update on the franchise's interest in Odell Beckham Jr but simply said "stand by" in a sign a decision is close.

The Cowboys have been involved in a drawn-out courtship with Beckham, who has been a free agent since leaving the Los Angeles Rams after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in last season's Super Bowl triumph.

The wide receiver appeared close to a move to the Cowboys after undergoing a physical earlier this month.

Beckham's ACL injury has created doubt about his availability, although the 30-year-old said last week he sees no point in playing regular-season games, with a view to a playoffs impact.

That situation seems to have stalled the move but Jones hinted that it may be close after the NFL owners meetings wrapped up.

"I don't want to talk about that but stand by," Jones said. "This thing could break."

The Cowboys are second in the NFC East with a 10-3 record on the back of a four-game win streak and Jones is bullish Beckham could make an impact when the pressure is on.

"Great players make great plays," Jones said. "Great ones make exceptional plays and so I hope we advance here where a handful of great plays, if I may be arm waving about it, could be the difference in a world championship."

The Cowboys, who could clinch a playoff spot with victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, have not won a Super Bowl since 1995, when they won three in five years.

The Dallas Cowboys have signed wide receiver T.Y. Hilton despite ongoing links to fellow veteran Odell Beckham Jr.

Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones suggested last week he will not be rushed into a move for Beckham and has subsequently added experience at wide receiver in four-time Pro Bowler Hilton.

The 33-year-old, who spent 10 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, has been a free agent since the start of the season but joins a Cowboys receiving group including CeeDee Lamb and Michael Gallup.

"Great addition," said Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy, who added Hilton has a chance to play on Sunday versus the Jacksonville Jaguars. 

"We'll get him out there Wednesday and get him acclimated. ... He had a workout. Everything passed with flying colours. The timing is right. He's ready to go."

Hilton boasts five 1,000-yard seasons, including an NFL-best 1,448 yards in 2016 for the Colts, but has not played since 2021 for Indianapolis.

He caught just 23 passes for 331 yards and three touchdowns last season, though is only one of 15 players in the Super Bowl era to have at least three touchdown catches in the first 10 seasons of his career.

That experience may prove vital for the Cowboys, who have long been on the hunt for another receiver to join a roster that also includes Noah Brown, Jalen Tolbert, James Washington and KaVontae Turpin.

It remains unclear what Hilton's arrival means for three-time Pro Bowler Beckham, who is not expected to be fit for the regular season after not playing since tearing his ACL in the Super Bowl earlier this year.

The Cowboys are 10-3 and on a four-game winning streak heading into Week 15 as Dallas mounts a charge for what could be a deep playoff run.

The Dallas Cowboys were the biggest favourites on Sunday, but they needed a touchdown drive in the final minute to defeat the Houston Texans 27-23.

Dallas entered the game at 9-3, coming off a 54-19 pounding of the Indianapolis Colts, while the Texans were 1-10-1 and coasting towards the number one pick in the NFL Draft.

The Cowboys entered the game as 17-point favourites, but the game did not follow the script, with Houston hanging 20 points on one of the league's best defenses in just the first half.

They did it with a touchdown run from rookie Dameon Pierce, before backup quarterback Jeff Driskel came in and threw a 28-yard score to Amari Rodgers, and a pair of Ka'imi Fairbairn field goals gave them a 20-17 lead at the break.

Tony Pollard had both of the Cowboys' first-half trips to the end zone – one through the air and one on the ground – before the second half turned into a defensive struggle, with no touchdowns until the final 46 seconds.

Trailing by three, the Cowboys got the ball back on the two-yard line with 3:20 on the clock, marching 98 yards down the field in 11 plays, culminating in a two-yard, game-winning rushing touchdown from Ezekiel Elliott to spare his side any embarrassment.

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott ended up completing 24 of his 39 passes for 284 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, while receiver Chris Moore was a standout for the Texans with 10 catches for 124 yards.

Eagles run up the score

The Philadelphia Eagles showed no mercy on their way to a dominant 48-22 demolition of the New York Giants, improving their league-best record to 12-1.

All of the Eagles' offensive stars got in on the act, starting with potential MVP Jalen Hurts, who threw for 217 yards and two touchdowns, while adding a rushing touchdown with his seven carries for 77 yards.

Running back Miles Sanders racked up 144 yards and two touchdowns from his 17 carries, while their two top receivers – A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith – were on the receiving end of both of Hurts' touchdown passes.

The Eagles' defense also collected seven sacks, with three to Brandon Graham, to leave the Giants (7-4-1) with three losses and a tie from their past four outings.

Lions keep their playoff hopes alive

The Detroit Lions have now won five of their past six after defeating the NFC North-leading Minnesota Vikings 34-23.

Jared Goff played arguably his best game of the season, taking no sacks and committing no turnovers while passing for 330 yards and three touchdowns, with D.J. Chark enjoying a terrific day on the outside for 94 yards and a touchdown from his six catches.

It was a day to remember for first-round draft pick Jameson Williams, as the first catch of his NFL career went for a 41-yard touchdown, having only made his debut last week after beginning the season with a torn ACL.

The Lions are now 6-7, and are well and truly in the NFC wildcard hunt, only one game off the pace.

The San Francisco 49ers looked destined to contend for a Super Bowl because of their astute move to invest in a quarterback insurance policy for Trey Lance.

Now with Jimmy Garoppolo, whom they kept around after attempting to trade away, likely also on the shelf for the rest of the season with a broken foot, the NFL world is left wondering whether one of the best rosters in the league can still go deep in the postseason with rookie seventh-round pick Brock Purdy at quarterback.

The early signs are promising, with Purdy stepping in for Garoppolo against the Miami Dolphins in Week 13 and producing a composed display in a 33-17 win that pushed the Niners' record to 8-4.

An enforced switch from Garoppolo to Purdy, the last pick in this year's draft, is an obvious downgrade, but how does it impact the 49ers' hopes of reaching the playoffs and Super Bowl?

Stats Perform can answer that question by looking at its rest-of-season (ROS) projection.

To generate the ROS predictions, every future game is projected to give a predicted win percentage for each team across its remaining games. The projections are calculated by looking at each team's quarterback and performance in terms of yards added in expected passing situations as well as team values for pass protection/pass rush, skill position players/coverage defenders and run blocking/run defense.

The projected win percentages are then aggregated to produce the forecasted standings, which suggest all is not lost for the 49ers.

Still Purdy Good

Purdy was poised, decisive and accurate after replacing Garoppolo, fostering hope he can help keep the 49ers in the Super Bowl hunt despite his inexperience at the highest level.

The ROS projection does not see the Niners winning the Super Bowl, giving San Francisco less than a one per cent chance to lift the Lombardi Trophy with Purdy under center.

However, the 49ers are still given an average win total of 10.5, putting them as the third seed as NFC West champions. With the division rival Seattle Seahawks projected to win 9.76 and end the season as the sixth seed, it would set up a mouthwatering Wild Card matchup.

The 49ers have done most of the hard work in their playoff pursuit and have a dominant defense that ranks first in EVE (our Efficiency Versus Expected metric).

As such, the Niners are still likely to make the playoffs, with ROS giving them a 95 per cent shot. What happens after that is up in the air with Purdy at the helm.

Chiefs Still Reign

The Kansas City Chiefs' loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 13 dropped them out of the No. 1 seed in the AFC, with the Buffalo Bills once again in control of the conference.

ROS, though, expects the Chiefs to reassume the top spot by the end of the season.

The Chiefs are given a projected average win total of 12.8, the highest in the AFC and ahead of the Bills' 12.4.

On the NFC side, ROS does not project any slip-ups from the 11-1 Philadelphia Eagles, who are predicted to win 15.1 games and finish well clear of the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC East. The Eagles also have an NFL-best 35 per cent chance of winning the Super Bowl, with the Chiefs second at 18.8 per cent. 

If this projection is accurate, Dallas would face the prospect of playing the NFC South champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers on the road in the Wild Card round despite a 12-win campaign.

A dangerous Wild Card

ROS still appears to lack belief in the defending AFC champion Cincinnati Bengals despite a third successive win over the Chiefs.

Cincinnati are predicted to finish second in the AFC North behind the Baltimore Ravens with a projected average win total of 10.42. The margin is razor-thin, though, with the Ravens' total at 10.43.

The Bengals have just a 2.4 per cent chance to win the Super Bowl, according to the projection.

Yet with Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati offense catching fire in recent weeks, the Bengals loom as an extremely dangerous potential Wild Card team and the projected addition of the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets to the playoffs would make for one of the most fascinating AFC postseasons in recent memory.

By contrast, the recent tie between the New York Giants and Washington Commanders is unlikely to strike fear into the heart of any NFC contenders. They will renew acquaintances in Week 15, and it is the former who is projected to ultimately win out in their battle for the seventh seed and seal a Wild Card clash with the Minnesota Vikings.

The Giants have an average projected win total of 8.3 compared to 8.2 for the Commanders as the projection suggests a losing record will be good enough for at least one team to reach the postseason.

Odell Beckham Jr. does not "see the point" in playing regular-season games and will prioritise finding a new team before the playoffs after holding talks with the Dallas Cowboys.

The wide receiver has been a free agent since sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament injury while winning the Super Bowl with the Los Angeles Rams last season, though he looked likely to join the Cowboys after undergoing a physical on Monday.

However, Beckham was left without a contact offer following his visit to Dallas, with reports suggesting the team harbour concerns over his availability for the remainder of the season.

The 30-year-old scored the first touchdown of Super Bowl LVI in February, having missed the previous year's postseason through injury, and he is content with being a big-game player.

Asked whether he would find a team before the end of the campaign during an appearance on Thursday Night Football, Beckham said: "I haven't made the decision. 

"I would like to be in a stable environment, get up at 6am and leave at 6pm for four weeks and then let's talk about it.

"I've played football for a long time. I'm not saying I couldn't step in and play regular season, but I don't see the point. I really don't. 

"I'd rather play when that pressure is on, I'd rather play when the lights are on. I went through the whole of the playoffs [last season].

"After having my first bad playoff experience, all I wanted to do was clear that off my name."

Odell Beckham Jr's future is not on a timeline for Dallas Cowboys general manager Jerry Jones, after the wide receiver hinted he could yet move to Texas.

The free agent, who has been without a club since winning the Super Bowl with the Los Angeles Rams last season, has spent the past two days in contact with the team.

After undergoing a physical on Monday, Beckham attended a Dallas Mavericks match alongside Cowboys players, where he suggested a move could be a "good possibility."

But Jones says there is no deal on the table yet for the three-time Pro Bowl pick, who has not played since tearing his ACL in the Super Bowl earlier this year.

"By no means are we at a position to say, 'close,' or where we are," he said. "We're just discussing the many options that are there."

Asked if Beckham could play this season if he was to sign imminently, Jones sidestepped a direct answer, adding: "I'm going to keep that one at bay because that's degree.

"It's a lot different if you play one play or if you played or are available for a week and that week be the Super Bowl week, than if he's available the next week.

"I would say that's a point of discussion - a player's own belief of where he is in becoming ready to play is real big.

"I just think this is an opportunity that is rare because of his availability. But one way or the other, there's not a failure here. I'm talking about the actual signing or not signing. There's no disappointment here."

The Cowboys are 9-3 for the season to date, and lie second in NFC East behind the Philadelphia Eagles, with their next match against state rivals the Houston Texans on Sunday.

Odell Beckham Jr implied there is a strong chance he will be signing with the Dallas Cowboys after being spotted with Cowboys players at a Dallas Mavericks game on Monday.

Beckham, 30, has not played since last season's Super Bowl, where he caught a touchdown in the Los Angeles Rams' 23-20 win over the Cincinnati Bengals.

His contract expired after that game, and he opted to take his time this season before choosing where he would like to play, waiting to see who would emerge as a Super Bowl contender.

The Cowboys are 9-3 this season and boast arguably the best defense in the NFL, with only the San Francisco 49ers having a case for a superior unit.

Essentially a lock for the playoffs now, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has spoken publicly about meeting with Beckham and trying to convince him to bolster the team's receiving corps, where things get relatively shallow after top option CeeDee Lamb and capable number-two Michael Gallup.

At the Mavericks game, ESPN reporter Tim McMahon claims to have asked Beckham what the Cowboys' chances are of signing him, and he replied "it's a good possibility".

The Dallas Cowboys' defense woke up in the second half to run away with a 54-19 home win against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, led by former Colts safety Malik Hooker.

The win improved the Cowboys' record to 9-3, good enough for third in the NFC, trailing only the Philadelphia Eagles (11-1) and the Minnesota Vikings (10-2) in the race for the one seed.

It was the Colts leading early, with Matt Ryan's 14-yard touchdown pass to Ashton Dulin giving them a 10-7 lead at quarter-time after their opening field goal was answered by a CeeDee Lamb touchdown catch for the Cowboys.

Tony Pollard put the Cowboys back in front when he forced his way into the endzone from the two-yard line, before Hooker seized full control of the game when he intercepted Ryan with one minute remaining in the first half, allowing the Cowboys to add another touchdown ahead of the break.

Michael Gallup was the recipient of that score in the final seconds of the half, and after an Alec Pierce touchdown cut the Cowboys' lead to 21-19, Gallup snagged his second of the game for some breathing room.

Things would go from bad-to-worse from there for the Colts as their next four drives resulted in turnovers.

Hooker added a fumble recovery and defensive touchdown to his big day, and the next two drives would both end in interceptions by fifth-round rookie DaRon Bland, icing the game and setting up some garbage-time stat-padding.

Dak Prescott completed 20 of his 30 passes for 170 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, while Pollard rushed 12 times for 91 yards and two scores, and Ezekiel Elliott added 17 carries for 77 yards and a touchdown of his own.

With just six weeks left of the regular season schedule, the drama in the NFL continues to ramp up.

The playoff picture is wide open and Week 13 action presents clashes between a number of sides who each boast a winning record this season.

Victories this week would provide a considerable boost for those teams' hopes of continuing beyond the regular campaign.

A huge divisional rivalry between the Washington Commanders and New York Giants is the pick of the action, while there is also a rematch from last season's AFC Championship game with the Kansas City Chiefs seeking redemption against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Stats Perform has delved into the numbers for those matchups along with some of Sunday's other big games.

New York Jets (7-4) @ Minnesota Vikings (9-2)

The Jets head to Minnesota with an 8-3 record against the Vikings, though have lost the last two meetings – including a 37-17 loss in the last meeting in 2018, which marked the most ever points scored by the Vikings in this series.

Defensive strength has been key for the Jets this season, with last week's 31-10 victory over the Chicago Bears being the fourth time this year where they have held their opponents to 10 or fewer points – the last time they had such a sequence was five games in 2010, which was also their last season with a trip to the playoffs.

The Jets defense will be tested against the Vikings' aerial threat, however, with Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen each catching touchdown passes in the Thanksgiving win over the New England Patriots – the ninth time each player has had a receiving TD in the same game, which marks the most of any NFL teammates since Jefferson's 2020 debut.

A win against the Jets would see head coach Kevin O'Connell join Jim Caldwell and Jim Harbaugh as the only men this century to earn 10 wins in 12 or fewer games to start their career as an NFL head coach.

Washington Commanders (7-5) @ New York Giants (7-4)

A series sweep for Washington last season was the franchise's first against the Giants since 2011, leaving the Commanders looking for their first win streak of at least three games against New York since a four-game streak that ended in 2000.

Four consecutive wins on the road have seen Washington hold their opponents to 54 points total in those contests, marking the first time they have won four straight road games while allowing fewer than 60 points since 2001.

The Giants head into the contest having lost their last five against divisional opponents, standing just 1-7 in that regard over the past two seasons. That makes them just one of two teams without multiple wins in divisional games over that span (also Denver Broncos, 1-8).

Saquon Barkley remains the biggest threat for the Giants and sits just eight rushing yards short of his third 1000-yard season, where he would join Tiki Barber (6), Rodney Hampton (5) and Joe Morris (3) as the only Giants with at least three such seasons for the team.

Tennessee Titans (7-4) @ Philadelphia Eagles (10-1)

Philadelphia host the Titans on the back of a six-game winning run against AFC opponents dating back to last season, matching the Eagles' longest such streak in franchise history.

Last time out against the Green Bay Packers, the Eagles scored a touchdown in four of their five trips to the red zone – with Philadelphia leading the NFL in touchdown efficiency in the red zone this season, scoring in 29 of 40 trips (72.5 per cent).

Tennessee, meanwhile, have rushed for fewer than 100 yards in each of their last three games, matching their longest streak since Mike Vrabel became head coach in 2018.

In the 20-16 loss to the Bengals last time out, Derrick Henry fumbled but was it was recovered. Of the 39 players with at least 200 offensive touches since the beginning of last season, Henry, Leonard Fournette and Christian McCaffrey are the only three to have not lost a fumble.

Kansas City Chiefs (9-2) @ Cincinnati Bengals (7-4)

Two meetings last season saw the Bengals win by three points in both contests, including in the AFC Championship game in Kansas City, with the Chiefs' last road win against the Bengals coming in 1984 – losing six straight since.

A 26-10 home victory against the Los Angeles Rams last week saw Travis Kelce catch his 12th touchdown pass of the season, with no other tight end having more than five this term. The largest all-time gap between a league leader and second place stands at six (Rob Gronkowski in 2011 and Antonio Gates in 2004).

The Bengals overcame the Titans 20-16 on the road last week, giving Cincinnati their first three-game winning streak of the season. Since 2018, they stand 3-34 when scoring 20 or fewer points in a game, but two of those wins have come against Tennessee.

Cincinnati have converted 78.1 per cent (25-for-32) of their third downs this season when needing fewer than four yards, the best mark in the league. However, they've also allowed opponents to convert such third downs at a 76.5 per cent rate (26-for-34), the worst record in the league.

Elsewhere…

The Miami Dolphins head to San Francisco with a 4-3 record on the road against the 49ers, the second-best such record by any team behind the Carolina Panthers (7-4).

The Los Angeles Rams host the Seattle Seahawks having won eight of the last 10 clashes between the two divisional rivals, with Seattle's last victory on the road in this matchup coming in Week 5, 2017.

An overtime victory over the Seahawks last week was the second in a row for the Las Vegas Raiders, having beaten the Denver Broncos in OT in Week 11. No NFL team has ever won three consecutive games in overtime going into the Raiders' latest battle with the Los Angeles Chargers.

The Dallas Cowboys host the Indianapolis Colts on the back of a four-game spell with at least 400 net yards, with only one longer streak in team history – running eight games in that regard in 2016.

LeBron James has questioned why the media have not asked him about the controversial photo of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.

The Washington Post published a photograph last month of Jones, as a 14-year-old, amid a crowd of white pupils attempting to block black students from North Little Rock High School in 1957.

The now-80-year-old says he was merely an observer and did not engage in discrimination, during a period where US schools were undergoing desegregation.

Speaking after the Los Angeles Lakers' 128-109 win over the Portland Trail Blazers however, James asked why reporters had not asked for his opinion on the matter, in contrast to the Kyrie Irving scandal earlier this season.

"I got one question for you guys before you guys leave," he said. "I was thinking when I was on my way over here, I was wondering why I haven't [had] a question from you guys about the Jerry Jones photo.

"But when the Kyrie [Irving] thing was going on, you guys were quick to ask us questions about that."

Irving was suspended by the Brooklyn Nets in early November after posting links to material containing anti-Semitic depictions, including a documentary.

"When I watch Kyrie talk and he says, 'I know who I am, but I want to keep the same energy when we're talking about my people and the things that we've been through,' and that Jerry Jones photo is one of those moments that our people, black people, have been through in America," James continued.

"I feel like as a black man, as a black athlete, as someone with power and a platform, when we do something wrong, or something that people don't agree with, it's on every single tabloid, every single news coverage, it's on the bottom ticker. It's asked about every single day.

"But it seems like to me that the whole Jerry Jones situation, it's just been buried under 'Oh, it happened. Okay, we just move on.'

"I was just kind of disappointed that I haven't received that question from you guys."

Thursday's Thanksgiving showdown between the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Giants broke a 32-year-old record as the most-watched regular season game in NFL history.

According to Nielsen, the afternoon showcase on one of America's biggest holidays averaged 42million viewers, surpassing the December 3, 1990 Monday Night Football fixture between the Giants and the San Francisco 49ers.

The Cowboys ended up coming from behind at half-time to storm home for a 28-20 win, improving their record to 8-3 in the process.

Having not won a playoff game since 2018, the current Cowboys roster is arguably their best of the past decade, featuring franchise talents at quarterback with Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb at wide receiver and edge-rusher Micah Parsons, who is the favourite to win Defensive Player of the Year.

All-in-all, it was the most-watched slate of games ever on Thanksgiving, with the three contests averaging 33.5m viewers to break the 1993 Thanksgiving record of 32.9m, when there were only two games played.

Odell Beckham Jr's move to the Dallas Cowboys is a step closer with team owner Jerry Jones admitting he held a "good meeting" with the free agent on Thursday.

The 30-year-old wide receiver has been heavily linked with the Cowboys along with the New York Giants.

Jones said after Thursday's 28-20 win over the Giants that he had spoken to Beckham, albeit by phone rather than an in-person visit.

"We had a good visit today, that's it," Jones told reporters. "I don't have a timeframe there."

Beckham has not played since last season's Super Bowl triumph with the Los Angeles Rams, where he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament injury.

Jones conceded it was unclear if Beckham would be available to play this season, with the Cowboys' latest win improving their record to 8-3.

"We'll see. We'll have to see," Jones said. "I haven't gotten the benefit of his rehab work and where he is."

The Cowboys have not won the Super Bowl since winning three in four years from 1992 to 1995, when they traded for Charles Haley and Deoin Sanders during that era.

"I don't want to make comparisons but Odell could help us," Jones said. "I believe that right now. Now, we've got to make it fit and that's the challenge here."

Dak Prescott believes the Dallas Cowboys have a championship-level defense after another lockdown performance in the second half of their 28-20 Thanksgiving win against the New York Giants.

Prescott was solid, completing 21-of-30 passes for two touchdowns and two interceptions, with both of his scores coming in the third quarter to tight end Dalton Schultz.

His touchdown passes on back-to-back drives quickly turned a 13-7 half-time deficit into a 21-13 lead by the end of the third quarter, and the Cowboys did not concede a point in the second half until a consolation touchdown in the final 10 seconds.

Their defense was led by last year's Defensive Rookie of the Year and current Defensive Player of the Year favourite, Micah Parsons, who sacked Giants quarterback Daniel Jones twice to take his season tally to 12 – the second most in the league.

It comes one week after the Cowboys' defense manhandled the Minnesota Vikings en route to a 40-3 demolition, and Prescott said that defensive group gives them a chance to be great.

"I'm as confident as I can be," he told reporters after the Giants win. "I always have been with this team.

"It doesn't matter what [outsiders] say about what they believe in, I know what this team is capable of – especially with this defense we have.

"We've just got to continue to keep our heads down, take it one day at a time, and one game at a time. We control everything that's in front of us."

Despite the final result, it was a choppy first half for the Cowboys' offense, but star receiver CeeDee Lamb said that is never going to result in a dip in confidence.

"We've been preaching resilience," Lamb said. "That's our motto this year. Everything about this season has been revealing itself. Just understanding that we're always coming to battle, ready for whatever and we've got each other's back.

"[Prescott and I] are still building. I understand how late it is in the season, but we didn't have the first half [of the season, when Prescott was out injured]. 

"We still had a couple mishaps, but we came out victorious and had a couple completions in the clutch."

At 8-3, the Cowboys are almost assured of a spot in the postseason, where they will have a chance to win their first playoff game since 2018.

The Dallas Cowboys' defense woke up at half-time and took over the game against the New York Giants, carrying their side to a 28-20 victory on Thanksgiving.

Playing on the road, it was the Giants who led early, with two field goals and a Saquon Barkley goal-line touchdown giving the visitors a 13-7 lead at the long break.

What was a competitive contest in the first half turned into one-way traffic in the third quarter, with Cowboys tight end Dalton Schultz punctuating back-to-back drives with touchdown catches to jump ahead 21-13 heading into the fourth.

The last quarter was more of the same, adding another touchdown with a hand-off to backup tight end Peyton Hendershot from the two-yard line to complete the rout.

New York only had four possessions after half-time, resulting in a punt and two turnovers-on-downs, before a consolation touchdown in the final seconds with the game well-and-truly decided, as the Cowboys showed why many are picking them as the best defensive team in the NFL.

Defensive Player of the Year favourite Micah Parsons collected two of the Cowboys' three sacks on Giants quarterback Daniel Jones, taking his tally for the season to 12, trailing only Matthew Judon of the New England Patriots (13).

The Cowboys' two-pronged rushing attack also delivered, with Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard combining for 152 yards and a touchdown from 34 carries, while CeeDee Lamb led all receivers with six catches for 106 yards. Dak Prescott threw two touchdown passes with two interceptions on 21-of-30 passing for 261 yards.

The result breaks the tie between the two sides in the NFC East, with the Cowboys now owning sole possession of second place in the NFC East at 8-3, while the Giants slipped to 7-4.

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones declared his side unequivocally as Super Bowl contenders after a comprehensive 40-3 win over the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.

The Cowboys improved to 7-3 with the win against the 8-2 Vikings, who were on a seven-game win streak having knocked off the Buffalo Bills in overtime last week, in arguably the game of the season.

Dallas had suffered a shock 31-28 loss to the Green Bay Packers in Week 10 where they collapsed in the fourth quarter.

But Jones was full of belief after their win over the Vikings, fueled by two touchdowns each to Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard, keeping them in touch with NFC East leaders, the Philadelphia Eagles (9-1).

"A resounding yes. Yes. Unequivocally," Jones said when asked if the Cowboys were Super Bowl contenders.

"I think we've had adversity. We very easily could have more adversity… Yes, I think if we use the experience of what we're having in the season, then we're going to be playoff ready.

"But I sure do think that what I see out here right now is the team like that you could go get a Super Bowl with."

The Cowboys' 40-3 win was their largest road win in team history, coming against one of the two sides ahead of them in the conference.

"I too thought this game was going to tell us what we are," Jones said. "I don't know that we're that. I really don't. But I know this, that we're not a team that doesn't respond when it's wounded.

"Everybody thought against the Packers that we underplayed, and I think you saw what happened when we got out here tonight and the team all came together. We'll build from this."

Jones also discussed speculation about three-time Pro Bowler Odell Beckham Jr joining the Cowboys, revealing he will visit after their next game against the New York Giants.

"Certainly, it's time for us to sit down and visit," Jones said.

It has been reported that Beckham Jr, who is currently sidelined from an ACL injury sustained in last season's Super Bowl, will also visit the Giants after Thanksgiving.

Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell conceded the defeat was humbling for his side, who were kept scoreless for the latter three quarters.

"This league has a way of humbling any football team at any point in time if you don’t play good football," O'Connell told reporters.