The Dallas Cowboys open the 2026 season under the Sunday Night Football lights at MetLife Stadium, meeting the New York Giants in a matchup steeped in NFC East history. Kickoff is 7:20 p.m. CT (8:20 p.m. EDT) on NBC - the first SNF telecast of the year.
Sunday will be the 13th time Dallas has opened a season against New York. The Cowboys lead the all-time series 78-48-2. The most recent meeting came Jan. 4, when the Giants won 34-17 at MetLife Stadium in the regular-season finale, Dallas Sports Journal reported in its Week 1 preview material.
Those numbers set the frame. The immediate storylines are newer: John Harbaugh's first game as Giants coach, the status of receiver Malik Nabers after a torn ACL, and a Cowboys roster that is talking playoffs again after missing the postseason the previous two seasons.
Primetime opener at the Meadowlands
The Associated Press package carried by KERA News cast the night as the first test of Dallas's stated aspirations. Quarterback Dak Prescott said the vibes around the Cowboys are good and pointed the focus inward rather than at New York's coaching change.
"Obviously it's a new coaching staff over there and new personnel right on defense and just different spots," Prescott said, per KERA News / AP. "It's about us. It's about our focus. It's about the team that we've built this whole offseason and the work that we've put in throughout training camp and this week, as well. Excited for that opportunity."
Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart has described the primetime stage as an opportunity he has been waiting for, according to the same AP report. Harbaugh arrives after 18 seasons in Baltimore. Schottenheimer went 7-9-1 in his first season in Dallas and split two games with New York last year, Dallas Sports Journal noted.
Last season's records - Dallas (7-9-1) and the Giants (4-13) - appear in the AP need-to-know block as the baseline both clubs are leaving behind.
Nabers return watch
Nabers is nearly a year removed from tearing his ACL in New York's Week 4 win over the Los Angeles Chargers last season. He played four games in 2025 and finished with 18 receptions for 271 yards, Dallas Sports Journal reported. Over two seasons he has 127 receptions for 1,475 yards and nine touchdowns after New York selected him sixth overall in 2024.
This week he has been a full participant on the Giants' practice report, listed with a knee designation alongside four other New York players who were also full. Harbaugh said Wednesday that Nabers practiced in full and took contact, according to Dallas Sports Journal.
Even so, neither Nabers nor Harbaugh will confirm whether the 23-year-old will be in uniform Sunday, the AP reported via KERA News.
Odell Beckham Jr. is also in the mix for New York after his journey around the NFL, per the AP. How that receiver group looks Sunday will shape the Meadowlands atmosphere the wire preview described as potentially charged.
