The Cowboys are staring at the bottom of the NFC East after a Week 1 loss that exposed a lot more than just a bad afternoon.
Dallas opened the season 0-1 for the second straight year and, once again, is already chasing inside the division. In 2025, the Eagles dealt them that first setback, and the Cowboys eventually finished second in the NFC East at 7-9-1. This time around, the early damage came from the Giants, who beat Dallas in frustrating fashion and put the Cowboys in last place in these power rankings.
There was no shortage of blame to go around. The offense had problems, including a pair of drops from George Pickens, but the defense drew the biggest concern. Christian Parker’s first game as defensive coordinator went poorly, with the Giants controlling the Cowboys all night and taking advantage of every opening.
Brian Schottenheimer said he’s not ready to panic, but he also made it clear the team has to be better. Dallas gets a quick chance to answer the criticism with the Washington Commanders coming to town this weekend, and if the defense doesn’t take a major step forward, the situation could get ugly fast.
Washington didn’t exactly start clean either, but the Commanders showed more fight than the final score might suggest. They erased an early mess before falling 24-22 to the Eagles after an unsuccessful two-point conversion. Even in defeat, there’s a different feeling around Washington than there is around Dallas after Week 1.
The Giants, meanwhile, earned plenty of praise for the way they handled business. John Harbaugh showed why he’s a Super Bowl winner and one of the league’s most respected coaches, and his team made the most of Dallas’ weaknesses. The Cowboys will get another useful test this week, though, when they face the Los Angeles Rams on Monday Night Football.
At the top of the division, the Eagles remain the standard. They’re the back-to-back NFC East champs and have won the division three times in the last four years.
It may not always be clean, and Nick Sirianni and Jalen Hurts are often under the microscope, but the results keep coming. Philadelphia held off Washington in Week 1 and still looks like the team everyone else is chasing entering Week 2.
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ESPN Just Reignited An NFL Double Standard Debate Fans Know Well
ESPNs Monday Night Football coverage of the Broncos-Chiefs game briefly shifted away from the action when sideline reporter Laura Rutledge explained why Denver defender Jonathon Cooper was unavailable, noting his placement on the commissioners exempt list after domestic violence charges. The mention instantly turned a routine injury-and-availability update into something much bigger, because it touched on one of the NFLs most sensitive and inconsistently handled issues.
Former Broncos safety Justin Simmons was quick to criticize ESPN for bringing Coopers legal situation into the broadcast, and the reaction rippled well beyond the sideline report. Some former players and fans defended the network, arguing the explanation was relevant context for his absence, while others zeroed in on the broader double standard debate that always seems to follow when similar situations come up with different players and different teams. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Rookie Already Drawing Heat At The Worst Possible Time
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The evaluation was mixed. Pro Football Focus had Barham as the fourth-highest-graded defender on the roster, which is a promising sign for a player making his first appearance, but one missed effort on a crucial play quickly became part of the conversation after it helped set up a touchdown. If Overshown remains out, the Cowboys may have to lean on Barham again soon, which makes the next few games an important test for how quickly he can turn raw opportunity into trust. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Suddenly Have More Than One Problem After Week 1
The Cowboys came out of Week 1 with more than a loss on the ledger. Dallas looked unsettled on both sides of the ball against the Giants, with the offense unable to find much rhythm around Dak Prescott and the defense failing to provide the usual cushion the team expects early in the season. It was the kind of opener that leaves a staff sorting through several different issues at once instead of one clean fix.
DeMarvion Overshowns injury only added to the unease on a defense already trying to regain its footing, and even Brandon Aubreys status as a reliable edge has started to draw more attention after the shaky showing. For a team that entered the season expecting to compete right away, the challenge now is figuring out which problems are temporary and which ones might linger long enough to shape the next few weeks. [Read more 🡒]