DENVER (AP) — Sean Payton didn't get to face his former quarterback Russell Wilson last week.
However he'll get to see plenty of his ex-running back Javonte Williams on Sunday.
Williams is having a career revival in Dallas, where he signed after the Broncos let him go during the offseason.
He'll try to help the Cowboys (3-3-1) end Denver's eight-game home winning streak, the longest in the league.
“It was just a good atmosphere,” Williams said of his four seasons in Denver, which featured an outstanding rookie season in 2021, an injured knee in 2022 and plodding comeback seasons in 2023 and ’24.
“I loved the team. I loved the staff, the coaches," Williams said. "I had a good time. It probably didn’t go the way I wanted it to go. I’m here now, so.”
In just seven weeks in Dallas, Williams has already tied his career high from his rookie season with seven total touchdowns. Williams is second in the NFL with 592 yards rushing and tied for third with six rushing TDs entering Week 8.
The Broncos are enjoying a resurgence in no small part to their revamped backfield of J.K. Dobbins and rookie R.J. Harvey. They're 5-2 for the first time in nine years and they sit all alone atop the AFC West for the first time since Week 4 of the 2016 season.
Both sides are excited for the reunion.
Broncos run-stuffer John Franklin-Meyers echoed many of his teammates' comments in saying he was proud of Williams: "I think it's a testament to his character. We all knew he was a good player. We saw what he did here and he got a fresh start, and it's working out for him. So, good for him, but we'll try to slow that down this week.”
“It’s going to be fun," Broncos cornerback Patrick Surtain II said. "It’s going to be exciting. I’m happy for him. Obviously it’s looking like he’s back to form, so it’s going to be a great matchup. I’m looking forward to that battle.”
So is Williams, who said he immediately clicked with Cowboys rookie head coach and play-caller Brian Schottenheimer while entertaining offers in free agency: “He just said he liked to run the ball, he liked to be physical. I felt like that was right up my alley. I like those things, too.”
Asked if he felt the Broncos moved on from him or he moved on from them, Williams said, “I feel like it was kind of just mutual. They wanted to go a different route. I felt like the Cowboys wanted me, so this is where I want to be.”
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott said he's “super proud” of Williams, “knowing everything that he went through, to battle back and not only battle back and play but to play at this level, such a high level. ... Super excited for this matchup.”
The Cowboys have lost seven consecutive times to the Broncos, whom they last beat in 1995.
Denver is coming off a comeback for the ages when they rallied from a 19-0 deficit after three quarters for a 33-32 win over the Giants last week. That made them the first team in NFL history to overcome an 18-point deficit in the final six minutes of the fourth quarter to win in regulation.
The flip side is they were awful for three quarters, continuing a disturbing trend of slow starts for Bo Nix's otherwise productive offense.
“Well, I just told the guys to start doing some of that fourth-quarter stuff a little earlier,” said Broncos offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi.
Prescott had five-game streaks without an interception twice when he was the 2016 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year. He hasn’t had a streak that long in the same season since then. Going without a pick against the Broncos would make it five in a row.
Including all 10 of those games from nine years ago, Prescott threw for three touchdowns twice. He’s had at least that many TD tosses in all four games on his current streak. If he does it again, he will join Wilson (Seattle, 2015) as the only quarterbacks with five consecutive games of at least three touchdown passes and no interceptions.
Receiver George Pickens and tight end Jake Ferguson are tied for second in the NFL with six TD catches. CeeDee Lamb has at least 100 yards in all three full games the receiver has played this season.
“I’m not trying to not make a big deal about he’s playing great, but that’s what we expect from Dak,” Schottenheimer said. “And he’s got incredible weapons. You see the trust that he has in these guys.”
Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey set an NFL record with his fifth career field goal of at least 60 yards, a 61-yarder against the Commanders. The week started with reporters asking Schottenheimer a question about Aubrey kicking at altitude for the first time.
“We’ll see how he practices. I don’t know yet. He might not be very good,” said Schottenheimer, who is developing a reputation for tongue-in-cheek answers. “I don’t know? I think he’ll probably be pretty good. Altitude might make it interesting.”
Aubrey, who is in just his third year, had his career long at 65 yards last season. That’s 1 yard shy of Justin Tucker’s NFL record.
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AP Pro Football Writer Schuyler Dixon contributed.
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