Sunday night’s NFC East opener in East Rutherford has all the ingredients for a tense, weird Week 1 finish, and the Cowboys come in with the brighter expectations even after a 7-9-1 season that left them second in the division and out of the playoffs for the second straight year.
Dallas is entering Year 2 under Brian Schottenheimer with a roster that looks more dangerous on paper after trading for outside linebacker Rashan Gary, franchise-tagging wide receiver George Pickens and re-signing defensive tackle Quinnen Williams to a monster extension. As usual, the Cowboys’ ceiling is tied to Dak Prescott being healthy, and that keeps the pressure high heading into 2026.
The Giants are starting over with John Harbaugh in charge after moving on from Brian Daboll, and they’re bringing plenty of young talent into the new season. Jaxson Dart is at quarterback, Cam Skattebo is in the backfield, Malik Nabers is on the outside, and Brian Burns, Abdul Carter and Kayvon Thibodeaux give New York a nasty edge-rushing group.
For the eighth time since 2012, these teams are meeting in Week 1. And there are three reasons to think Sunday night could get wild.
First, KaVontae Turpin looks primed to break one. The former TCU undrafted free agent bounced around the IFL, FCF, TSL, ELF and USFL before getting his NFL shot with the Cowboys in 2022, and he’s turned himself into one of the league’s premier return men.
He led the NFL in kick return yards in both 2024 and 2025, and his 1,814 yards last season were the second-most in a single NFL season. He’s also piled up Pro Bowl honors in 2022, ’24 and ’25, plus first-team All-Pro recognition in ’24 and a second-team selection in ’25.
With the dynamic kickoff rules creating more return opportunities and more touchdowns in recent seasons, the setup is there for Turpin to take one all the way against New York.
The second call goes to Dart, and it’s a legs prediction. The 23-year-old took over as New York’s starter in Week 4 of last season, made 12 starts and finished 4-8.
He also went through five(!) concussion tests over that stretch and was checked for one during the Giants’ first preseason game this summer.
Dart has made it clear he isn’t changing his style.
“This is football,” Dart said last season when asked about his style of play. “Like, I’m going to get hit if I’m in the pocket or outside the pocket.
I feel like I played this way my whole life. It shouldn’t be any shocker to anybody if you followed along with my career.
We’re not playing soccer out here. You’re going to get hit.
Things happen. It’s just part of the game.”
That approach helped him score nine rushing touchdowns as a rookie, tied for second among quarterbacks behind only Josh Allen, and against a Cowboys defense that gave up 24 rushing touchdowns last season - most in the NFL - the prediction is that Dart gets into the end zone twice on the ground.
The final call is that New York gets out front, but Dallas finishes the job. That part may not sound shocking, especially with John Harbaugh’s history of late-game issues, but the Cowboys showed plenty of fight last season. They erased the Giants in Week 2 with 10 points in the final 53 seconds before winning in overtime, and they also stormed back from 21 down against the Eagles in Week 12 behind Prescott’s 354-yard passing night.
So even if the Giants strike first, the Cowboys are expected to keep coming. The prediction here is a Dallas comeback and a 24-21 road win at MetLife Stadium.
In Other News...
Cowboys Trade Deadline Hope Just Got Much Tougher For Jerry Jones
The Cowboys have spent much of this stretch keeping an eye on the leagues biggest defensive names, and Maxx Crosby has been near the top of that list for good reason. Dallas was among the finalists when trade talks around the star edge rusher picked up earlier, and Jerry Jones has made clear he is willing to look for help if it can raise the ceiling of a defense that still needs impact talent.
But the path to any blockbuster just got a lot murkier. The Rams also tried to get involved, only to hear Crosby tell them and other interested teams that he does not want to be dealt and would prefer to stay with the Raiders, which leaves Dallas in a familiar holding pattern as the November 10 deadline approaches. The Cowboys have not closed the door on revisiting the chase, but for now the biggest obstacle is not price, it is whether Crosby is even available in the first place. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Have A Cornerback Opportunity That Could Come At A Cost
Cornerback help is the kind of thing that can reshape a defense fast, and Joey Porter Jr. has suddenly entered the conversation as a name worth watching. Contract talks between Porter and the Pittsburgh Steelers are reportedly stalled, and he is open to playing elsewhere, which is enough to put several teams on alert. The Steelers have been willing to listen to trade offers, but their asking price has kept the market quiet so far.
For the Cowboys, the appeal is obvious. They have cap space and draft capital, two things that can make a bold trade more realistic if they decide Porter is the right fit. The cost is the real question, though, because Pittsburgh is said to be seeking a premium pick, and Dallas would have to decide how much it wants to pay for a cornerback opportunity that could strengthen the roster but also reshape how it handles its future draft resources. [Read more 🡒]
Javonte Williams Could Be The Cowboys' Sunday Night X-Factor
Sunday Night Football gives the Cowboys a chance to keep sorting out roles in a matchup with the Giants that has plenty of fantasy angles attached to it. Javonte Williams is one of the names drawing attention because of how player usage can tilt a slate like this, while Brandon Aubrey remains part of the conversation for Dallas managers looking at the kicking game in a contest that could feature plenty of scoring chances.
The Giants bring their own lineup questions, with uncertainty around Nabers availability shaping how people build around their passing attack. For Dallas, that creates a little more room for alternative pass catchers to matter, and it also keeps the focus on how the Cowboys may choose to spread opportunities in a game that looks useful for daily fantasy players trying to squeeze value out of every snap. [Read more 🡒]