There were high expectations for the rebuilt Dallas Cowboys defense coming into the 2026 season opener. Meeting those expectations, though, will have to wait another week.
Which perhaps shouldn't be a big surprise after the Cowboys fell, 28-20, to the New York Giants. Consider that the new defensive coordinator with a new scheme and a whole batch of new players hadn't played together in a real game before, with the starters not taking the field during the preseason.
That all led to a defensive effort that provided too many bad memories from last year, as Dallas struggled to stop the run, failed to get consistent pressure, and looked lost in the secondary an uncomfortable number of times.
Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart completed 79.3% of his passes for 230 yards and three touchdowns for a 134.2 passer rating. But he was just as dangerous on the ground, rushing for 54 yards, while running back Cam Skattebo added 81 more and a touchdown. As a group, New York averaged 4.5 yards per carry for a total of 165.
Yet the real thorn in the collective side of the Dallas defense may have been Isaiah Likely. The Cowboys seemingly had no answer for the Giants' tight end, as he pulled in eight catches for 78 yards and two touchdowns.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the ball, while the Cowboys offense was one of the best in the business a season ago, they, too, didn't seem totally in sync in their first taste of game action this year. Javonte Williams topped a ground attack that averaged just 3.8 yards per carry, with the returning starter earning only 41 rushing yards himself.
In the passing game, Dak Prescott, under regular pressure, completed 64.7% of his attempts for 175 passing yards with two touchdowns and an interception, his passer rating coming in at 84.8.
Overall, the Giants were simply more physical, outgaining the Cowboys in total yards, 394 to 244, and dominating the time of possession, 36:40 to 23:20.
First Quarter
The game got off to a shaky start for the Cowboys as the offense managed just 41 yards on its first two possessions. Even worse, in between those tries, the Giants marched right down the field and into the end zone, thanks to a 10-play, 83-yard drive.
The big blow came when Dart took off around the left end and picked up 22 yards, which then had another 15 tacked on when linebacker DeMarvion Overshown was called for unnecessary roughness after hitting Dart out of bounds. Four plays later, Skattebo went untouched across the goal line for an early 7-0 lead.
Second Quarter
On its third series, Dallas finally got a little momentum going on offense, although three New York penalties gifted the Cowboys 67 yards. The last of those was a 19-yard pass interference call that set the team up with a first-and-goal at the Giants' 2-yard line. That provided an easy pitch-and-catch for Prescott and CeeDee Lamb to even the score.
Then, after missing out on two previous attempts at turnovers – one a potential interception, the other a possible fumble recovery – the Dallas defense came up with its first takeaway of the young season. Defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, hustling up from behind, punched the ball loose from running back Tyrone Tracy, the fumble flying right into the arms of cornerback Shavon Revel.
The Cowboys now had possession at their own 16-yard line with just under two minutes remaining, but that's when disaster struck. Under pressure, Prescott scrambled to his right and tried to heave the ball out of bounds. Instead, throwing off his back foot, his toss didn't reach the sideline, allowing New York safety Jevón Holland to pick off the pass.
And then, for whatever reason, confusion seemed to take over on the Dallas defense as Dart completed three straight passes to targets who were completely uncovered. The last of those went to Likely, who was alone in the back of the end zone.
In short, it couldn't have been much easier for the Giants to head into the half with a 14-7 lead.
Third Quarter
Getting the ball to start the third frame, Dart and company double-dipped by promptly upping their lead to 21-7. The quarterback completed all five of his passes for 49 yards during the 12-play, 74-yard drive. His last throw was another touchdown connection with Likely, this time a dump-off from two yards out.
Of course, the Cowboys weren't about to go quietly into the night, and Prescott responded by leading his troops on a 12-play, 75-yard series. He found Lamb for completions of 13 and 15 yards, George Pickens for 11 and Williams for 10 more. The latter would then get the scoring honors, rumbling the last yard to narrow the deficit to 21-14.
Fourth Quarter
However, the physicality of the Giants was slowly but surely wearing down the Dallas defense. Again, the Cowboys were just unable to get off the field, as New York came right back with another trip to the end zone. Dart took off running on the first four plays of the series, but it was three short dump-off passes to a wide-open Devin Singletary in the left flat that supplied the points, with the running back scoring from nine yards out on the last of those throws.
Now facing a two-score deficit and with their rivals eating up massive chunks of time, the Cowboys had to get going offensively. And they did. The team needed just over two minutes to reach pay dirt, the touchdown coming when Prescott found Williams alone on the left side for the 17-yard score.
But on his way to the end zone, Williams clearly taunted the Giants defense, which resulted in an undisciplined and unnecessary 15-yard penalty. With Brandon Aubrey now forced to try his extra point from 15 yards farther back, he pushed his kick wide right, leaving the Cowboys down by eight, 28-20.
Not that it mattered much. The Cowboys never saw the ball again, as the Giants ran off the final 5:16 of game clock to secure the victory. Dallas only had two possessions in the second half and scored both times, but it just wasn't enough.
