Saints 49, Cowboys 17: Drew Brees threw for 392 yards and four touchdowns as host New Orleans steamrolled Dallas.

Brees (34-of-41) completed 19 consecutive passes at one point and led four consecutive touchdown drives in the first half for the Saints (7-2), who got two scores apiece from running backs Pierre Thomas and Darren Sproles. Mark Ingram rushed for 145 yards and a touchdown while Marques Colston had seven catches for 107 yards and a TD as New Orleans set an NFL record with 40 first downs.

Tony Romo was 10-of-24 for 128 yards with a touchdown and DeMarco Murray rushed for 89 yards and a score for the Cowboys (5-5), who allowed a franchise-record 625 yards and fell into a tie with Philadelphia for first place in the NFC East. Romo had only 20 yards passing and Dallas was limited to four first downs in the opening half as the Saints kept the ball for more than 20 1/2 minutes.

Murray's 7-yard run in the first minute of the second quarter put the Cowboys on top 10-7, but Dallas was unable to slow the Saints. Brees responded by tossing a 1-yard scoring pass to Thomas before Sproles scored twice in the final 92 seconds of the half for a commanding 28-10 lead.

After New Orleans' first possession of the third quarter ended in a missed field goal, Brees directed a six-play, 92-yard drive that Mark Ingram capped with a 4-yard run to balloon the lead to 35-10. Dallas finally interrupted the scoring spree on Romo's 21-yard TD pass to Terrance Williams in the final minute of the quarter, but Brees threw a 52-yard strike to rookie Kenny Stills to make it 42-17 with 12:43 to play.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Brees and Colston became the seventh QB-receiver tandem to combine for 60 TD passes. Brees' four scoring tosses gave him 349 for his career and moved him past New England's Tom Brady (347) for fourth place on the all-time list. ... Cowboys LB Sean Lee, who entered the weekend tied for the league lead in tackles (90) and interceptions (four), exited with a left hamstring injury early in the second quarter and LB Justin Durant suffered a hamstring injury in the third. ... Dallas DE DeMarcus Ware struggled with the strained quadriceps that caused him to miss the previous three games, while Saints TE Benjamin Watson left in the third quarter with a concussion.