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Giants (0-0) Cowboys (0-0)
The Cowboys finished last season second in
the NFC East with a 7-9-1 record. They won only three road games, and lost the
other six. The Cowboys will be trying to correct those numbers starting this Sunday,
when they visit with the Giants.
The Giants did well in preseason play, but
that doesn't guarantee anything moving on to the regular season. The Giants fans
watching at home, and those sitting at MetLife Stadium, would like to see them
get off to a good start this season by chalking up a win in this opening game
with the Dallas Cowboys. Dallas
Cowboys
In 2023 the Cowboys finished in
first place in the NFC East, and the way their offense and defense had been playing,
many thought they could make it to the Super Bowl. The Cowboys offense ranked
5th in total offense, and most important, first in points scored. The Cowboys
went on to lose in their Wild Card playoff game with the Green Bay Packers.
In 2024 the Cowboys numbers weren't nearly as good, and they finished third in
the division with a 7-10 record. Brian Schottenheimer replaced Mike McCarthy as
head coach for the 2025 season. There was no quick turnaround, and the Cowboys,
at 7-9-1, finished up with their first back to back losing seasons in 23 years.
Christian Parker is the new defensive coordinator for 2026. Dallas
Cowboys Offense
Dak
Prescott played in only 8 games in 2024, but he was back to full strength last
season, making good use of his two top receivers, George Pickens and CeeDee Lamb.
Lamb was dealing with injuries, missing some games, and was targeted the second
lowest amount of times in his six year career with the Cowboys. Pickens was new
to the team after playing in Pittsburgh for three years, and gave it his all.
He was there for Prescott, pulling in the most targets, yards, and touchdowns
in his career. Tight end Jake Ferguson also had a career year, in catches, and
touchdowns. With 8, he was just one short of Pickens team leading 10. Ryan Flournoy
was the fourth leading receiver on the team, and had 4 touchdowns.
The running
game was also on the mark, with Javonte Williams playing in his first year with
the Cowboys. After spending three seasons with Denver, he was the top running
back for the Cowboys, with 252 carries for 1201 yards, averaging 4.8 yards a carry
with 11 touchdowns. The rushing yards were the most a running back had for the
team since 2019. Those numbers were the best in Williams career, and he also caught
two touchdowns. Malik Davis was the second leading runner, and he had 2 touchdown
runs. The Cowboys passing offense had finished 2nd in the league. They were 9th
in rushing, and 7th in total points, averaging 27.7 points a game. Dallas
Cowboys Defense
The
Cowboys offense wasn't the reason they were losing games last year. Jerry Jones
had made some skilled offseason moves. One move that didn't work out well was
having defensive end Micah Parsons traded away a week before the season started.
Parsons had played all his four years with the Cowboys, having 12 or more sacks
each season, and opposing teams had to account for him. A midseason trade for
Quinnen Williams gave the defense a boost, but it was too little too late.
They had last ranked 3rd in the league with 52 sacks when Parsons was playing.
That dropped to 35 without him, and Jadeveon Clowney, who led the team with 8.5
of those sacks, is gone now. The new defensive coordinator is expected to improve
the pass rush, working with linebacker Donovan Ezeiruaku in his second year. They
also brought in Rashan Gary from Green Bay, 9, 7.5. 7.5 sacks in his last three
years, and Von Miller, who had 9 last year with Washington.
The Cowboys expect
linebacker Malachi Lawrence to make an immediate impact. Lawrence was selected
in the first round of the draft. The passing defense was poor last year, ranking
in last place in the NFL, and they came up with only 6 interceptions. The secondary
got a big boost when they drafted Caleb Downs, also in the first round, and the
talented safety will be a starter. Free agent safety Jalen Thompson was signed
in the offseason, and he should make a difference. The team gave up 511 points
last year, the most in the NFL, and the Cowboys feel they have done their best
to move on from that. NY
Giants
In 2011 the Giants
finished first in the NFC East division, and they have not done that since. They
did go on back then to win in Super Bowl XLVI, and Eli Manning was the MVP. Giants
fans today aren't thinking Super Bowl, but they would like to see them at least
have a winning season. That's happened only two times since that Super Bowl victory,
and ten other seasons had double digit losses. The Giants went through four head
coaches during that span, and now for 2026, it's John Harbaugh's turn.
Harbaugh
would not have signed on if he didn't like what he saw in the Giants organization.
Along with that, their their losing seasons gave them high draft positions for
their selections, and the Giants have signed a number of talented players. Harbaugh
has brought in assistant coaches who have the proven experience to be successful
at player development. Giants
Offense
Jaxson Dart is coming off his rookie
year, and has been learning how new offensive coordinator Matt Nagy likes to run
things. For one thing they've had him getting used to working more under center.
The footwork is a bit different than taking shotgun snaps. Last year Dart had
12 starts, and did not play in all the games, but he had the second most rushing
yards on the team with his 86 carries, and 38 of them were first downs. Nine others
were touchdowns. Dart's 5.7 yards a carry, beat out all the running backs, including
Tyrone Tracy Jr. He also had 9 rushing touchdowns. John Harbaugh
likes to have a strong running game, but he's unlikely thinking this is the way
to go about it.
Tracy played in 15 games. had the most carries with 173 for
740 yards, with 2 touchdowns, and 39 first downs. Devin Singletary had 119 carries
for 437 yards, and 5 touchdowns. Cam Skattebo also came up with 5 touchdowns on
101 carries for 410 yards, playing in only 8 games. Skattebo had a season ending
ankle injury, and before that happened he led the running backs in yards after
contact. All the runners will benefit from having former Ravens fullback Patrick
Ricard on the team, as well as inserting two tight ends on the field for run blocking.
To that end, they signed tight end Isaiah Likely, a free agent from the Ravens,
who can also catch the ball. He and third round draft pick wide receiver Malachi
Fields will be big available targets for Dart. The Giants must feel confident
that Malik Nabers is set to go. Earlier in the week they released Darius Slayton,
the longest-tenured player on the team. Nabers was the top receiver in 2024, in
targets, catches, yards, and touchdowns. He played in only four games last year
after suffering a torn ACL Odell Beckham Jr.
is back on the team, and the Giants have signed Darnell Mooney. The offensive
line looks more solid with the addition of first round pick. right guard Francis
Mauigoa. If the Giants offense can manage to stay healthy, they will be tough
to handle in all areas. Giants
Defense
Defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson
has his work cut out for him. The defense is up against Dak Prescott, and to name
just one thing, Prescott threw for 404 completions last year, more than any other
quarterback in the NFL. Will the Giants secondary hold up? The Giants knew it
was a problem last year. They picked up veteran cornerback Greg Newsome, and feel
they have Deonte Banks back on track to be what the Giants felt they had when
they drafted him. Paulson Adebo was added last year, but the cornerback was held
back dealing with a knee injury.
Upfront pressure would be great, and the Giants
have the ability to do that in a number of ways. Edge rushers Brian Burns, Abdul
Carter, and Kayvon Thibodeaux are ready to go at it. Burns led the team with 16.5
sacks last year, is coming off a career-high 16.5 sacks, and had the most tackles
for a loss. Carter was a rookie, and came on strong near the end of the season.
He had 4 sacks, and kept bringing the pressure. Thibodeaux played in 10 games,
and had 2.5 sacks. The last time he played in all the games, Thibodeaux had 11.5
sacks. Last year the team finished 15th in the league with 39 sacks.
The Giants
also added linebacker veteran Tremaine Edmunds, and Arvell Reese with their first
pick in the draft, the fifth player taken. This is one tough group, and though
Wilson isn't big on calling for blitzes, it will be tempting. More likely, he'll
keep the Cowboys guessing, because disguising defenses is more his style. The
Cowboys starting left guard, Tyler Smith will be out for this game, so that won't
help them. They also just placed running back Malik Davis on injured reserve,
so that works in favor of the Giants, who have been poor with their run defense
over the past few years. Overall
Opening
day games are tough for both teams. The Giants overhauled their coaching staff
in the off season, and the Dallas Cowboys mostly had to work on their defensive
unit. The Cowboys had to travel, but are favored to win. John Harbaugh has enough
experience to get a team playing at its best, and with the Ravens, he had 4–1
record against the Cowboys. Heck, Jaxson Dart's last game of the season was a
34-17 win over the Cowboys, so we'll see. NFC
East Games
Sunday at 4:30pm Commanders
(0-0) at Eagles (0-0)
Sunday at 8:20pm Cowboys (0-0) at Giants (0-0)
The
Eagles and Cowboys are the NFC East teams favored to win in these games.
Check out.
Giants
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Next Games
Sept
21 Giants at Rams
Sept 27 Titans at Giants
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