FRISCO, Texas – On Sunday night in the Meadowlands, Cowboys QB Dak Prescott will begin his 11th season as Dallas' quarterback against the same team he started his career against a decade ago: The New York Giants.
Time changes everything, and that's been true over the past 10 years for Prescott, the Cowboys and the Giants. Still, some things remain the same, like Prescott's appreciation for another season getting to lead Dallas onto the field.
"Blessed. Super blessed," Prescott said. "A lot of hard work. I can't say it's by any surprise, just from the amount of work and detail that I put into my job and just trying to get better each and every day. Thankful, thankful for all the different opportunities to play this game, thankful for all the different teammates I've had throughout the years, and lastly hungry and excited to make this the best one."
On the other sideline this Sunday will be John Harbaugh, this time in blue and red as he prepares to begin his era of being the head coach for the New York Giants. Prescott has only played against Harbaugh twice in his career, but his teams have an identity.
"Tough," Prescott said. "He's obviously coached a lot of winning teams. To me, you expect the game to go into the fourth quarter. That's kind of our message, you can't win it in those first three, so be ready and do whatever it takes to go get it in the fourth. Anytime you're playing a good coach like that and his winning history, you've got to be ready for it."
Not only is Harbaugh new to New York, but so is most of his coaching staff. Defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson, who was on the same staff as Brian Schottenheimer in St. Louis from 2012-2014, is calling the shots for the Giants defense.
Preparing for what Wilson's defense with New York has included looking back at some of the concepts that Wilson's defenses in the past, especially the last two seasons that Wilson's spent as the Titans' defensive coordinator.
"It's a first game, I can't say I'm going in expecting this, this and that, right?" Prescott said. "I'm going in there focused on our game plan, ready for whatever they throw at us with answers to whatever they give us to be our best. I know if we do that, whatever they throw at it, we'll be enough."
Helping Prescott's case regardless of what is thrown at him are CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens, who will begin their second season playing alongside one another Sunday night. While some receivers are adamant on getting a certain number of touches, Prescott has seen Lamb and Pickens take a selfless approach to their production together.
"There's no egos," Prescott said. "Both of those guys are selfless. They want to see each other succeed, they're probably each other's biggest cheerleaders to that extent. They're brothers, and that relationship extends. That one's special, but it extends throughout the receiver room. It extends to the offensive line. We've got a really unique group in just how close we are and just how much we care for each other, and I think their relationship is the epitome of that."
As Prescott enters his 11th season, he's on the precipice of setting yet another record. With six touchdown passes, Prescott will surpass Tony Romo as the franchise leader in passing touchdowns with 249.
When asked what he wants his legacy to be after his career is in the books, the records mean nothing next to bringing a Super Bowl back to Dallas.
"I want to be present," Prescott said. "And I think if I handle that and take care of my job, people will remember whatever they want to remember in this world and this life. I can just do the best I can do with whatever opportunity I'm given… I want to win the big game, that's my focus, that's what I care about, that's what I'll hang my hat on when it happens."
Prescott will face the Giants for the 18th time in his career as a starter on Sunday night, where he's amassed a 14-3 record against them.
The answers for the Cowboys-Cardinals trivia questions leading up to Monday's Week 8 game.
1) The Cowboys own a .629 winning percentage all-time in season openers. Where does that rank among NFL teams? Over their previous 66 seasons, Dallas has posted a 41-24-1 record, a .629 winning percentage that ranks second overall in NFL history. Only Denver's mark of .641 is better (41-23-1). While the two teams have faced each other four times in Week 2, which included a 31-21 win for the Cowboys on Sept. 10, 1995, they have never faced off in a season opener.
2) Christian Parker is making his debut as the team's defensive coordinator in Sunday night's matchup against the Giants. Who is the longest-tenured defensive coordinator in Cowboys history While Tom Landry designed the famed Flex defense and largely called the plays on both sides of the ball, Ernie Stautner served as his lead defensive coach for 18 years, from 1971 to 1988. Tough as nails, Stautner was truly the emotional force behind the famed Doomsday Defense. As a player, he spent 14 seasons as a defensive lineman with the Steelers, earning nine Pro Bowls and a spot on the NFL's Team of the Decade for the 1960s before eventually being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
3) Throughout his career, Von Miller has played in 12 season-opening games. How many total sacks has he recorded in those Week 1 matchups? In his 12 season-opening games, Von Miller has racked up 11 sacks, which that total alone is more than all but four other players on the Cowboys roster have for their careers. Of those 11, Miller had a three-sack performance against the Seahawks in 2018 and a two-sack effort in 2021 at the Giants, both while playing for the Broncos. He also notched two more sacks in 2022 versus the Rams when he was with the Bills.
4) First-round draft pick Caleb Downs, a safety by trade, could get the start in Week 1 at the Giants, although if he does, it will likely be in the slot. Regardless, who was the last rookie safety for the Cowboys to start in his very first NFL game? While Byron Jones started 11 games in 2015 and Jeff Heath did so nine times in 2013, neither was in the starting lineup on opening day. But Patrick Watkins was on the field from the get-go in 2006, starting the first six games of his NFL career and eventually nine overall that season. Roy Williams, the team's first-round pick in 2002, started all 16 games in his rookie campaign.
5) How many times have the Cowboys shut out their opponent on Sunday night? Of the 84 times the Cowboys have played on Sunday night, they have shut out their opponent twice. And surprisingly, both came on the road at a division rival. The first time was on Dec. 27, 2009, when they beat Washington, 17-0. The second and last occasion happened on Sept. 10, 2023, in a 40-0 destruction of the Giants that saw DaRon Bland record his first career pick-6. For the record, Dallas has only been shut out once on Sunday night, falling at the Patriots, 12-0, on Nov. 16, 2003.
6) Which Dallas player holds the record for most starts in a Sunday night game? Jason Witten has started more Sunday night games than any player in Cowboys history, which is really no surprise considering he holds the team record with 255 career starts overall. Tyron Smith edged out Zack Martin for second place, 33 to 31, while DeMarcus Ware comes in at number four with the most starts among defensive players, totaling 27.
7) Who is the only Cowboys player to rush for more than 100 yards in a Sunday night season opener? Ezekiel Elliott opened the 2017 season with a 104-yard rushing effort in a Sunday night matchup on Sept. 10 against the Giants. But that's not all. He also totaled 36 receiving yards off of five catches to help the Cowboys take down their NFC East rival, 19-3.
8) The Cowboys have previously opened their season against the Giants 12 times. How many of those games has Dallas won? For whatever reason, the Cowboys have simply dominated the Giants in their season-opening matchups, winning 11 of those 12 games with the lone loss coming on Sept. 11, 2016. Overall, Dallas has outscored the New York club by a per-game average of 32.8 points to 15.5. On Sept. 18, 1966, behind Bob Hayes' 195 receiving yards and two touchdowns, the Cowboys defeated the Giants, 52-7, which is tied for the third-largest margin of victory in franchise history.
9) Dallas has played at the Giants six times on a Sunday night. Which quarterback has thrown the most career touchdowns in those games? Although the Cowboys have faced the Giants 15 times overall on Sunday night, only six of those games have been held on New York's home turf, with Dallas posting a 3-3 record. In turn, Tony Romo played in two of those games during his career, throwing a pair of touchdowns in a loss on Oct. 1, 2012. He then followed that with four more in a Nov. 23, 2014, win for a combined six touchdowns to lead the pack. Danny White totaled three with Vinny Testaverde and Dak Prescott each earning one.
10) Sunday's showdown in New York will mark the sixth time the Cowboys have opened their season on Sept. 13. And among those previous five outings, Dallas also played the Giants on Sunday night to start the 2015 schedule. In that game, what unlikely running back helped the Cowboys to victory with 140 all-purpose yards? Lance Dunbar didn't gain a single rushing yard in this game, but he did have eight catches for 70 yards and also returned three kickoffs for another 70, his 140 total all-purpose yards becoming the second-highest mark of his career. Forty of those receiving yards came on the Cowboys' final possession, a drive that ended when Tony Romo threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Jason Witten with only 13 seconds remaining to secure a 27-26 come-from-behind win.
11) Who scored the Cowboys' first touchdown of the season in 2023 during a 40-0 blowout over the Giants?**
The Cowboys started the game on defense and appeared on the verge of allowing a field goal before it was blocked by Juanyeh Thomas. The ball rolled around before it was scooped it up reserve cornerback Noah Igbinoghene, who raced 58 yards to the end zone for the first touchdown of the season. The Cowboys never did allow a point and scored 40 of their own to earn a 40-0 win. Igbinoghene played just five games for the Cowboys that season.
