FRISCO, Texas -- The 42nd chapter of the Cowboys-49ers rivalry will be written at AT&T Stadium on Sunday, as Dallas looks for consecutive wins for the first time this season.
It'll be no easy task against 7-1 San Francisco, who is atop the NFC and has won four straight games against the Cowboys. Both the 49ers and Cowboys have multiple former players and coaches from each side, as DT Osa Odighizuwa and former DC Matt Eberflus make their first return trips to Dallas, and LB Dee Winters will face his former team with a star on his helmet.
After the Commanders' 24-21 win over the Giants on Thursday night, New York's lead in the NFC East has shrunk slightly. With a win over San Francisco, the Cowboys and Giants would have the same number of wins on the season with 5, and could make things very interesting down the stretch.
Here are the DallasCowboys.com staff's predictions in this week's Gut Feeling:
Nick: This is a game between two teams that have been quite the opposites for quite some time. San Francisco is everything you want in terms of consistency, playing disciplined, limited sacks and turnovers and then playing relentlessly on defense. The Cowboys have been nothing close to consistent this year, evident by a 4-5 record and failure to win two straight games.
For the Cowboys to win this one, it would mark a second straight victory, but also the biggest one in years. The Cowboys have struggled to beat the likes of Tampa Bay, Houston, Indy and Arizona. So how are they gonna compete with the 49ers, who will come in and try to take over AT&T Stadium?
My answer is that they probably won't. The Cowboys might hang in there for a while but over the course of 60 minutes, I think the 49ers are too strong and balanced. I've got the 49ers winning, 38-27.
Tommy: This is a tough matchup for the Cowboys. With a banged up secondary, I think the 49ers' ability to push the ball downfield with five receiving options on over 60% of their offensive snaps presents a problem that Dallas will struggle to consistently have answers to. Plus, if Brock Purdy is able to get the ball out of his hands quickly, that takes away a lot of what has been success for the Cowboys in recent weeks which is their pass rush. On the flip side, Dallas' offense should be able to find their plays in the passing game against a banged up San Francisco secondary, but it's going to be tough to run the football against Osa Odighizuwa, DeForest Buckner and Fred Warner. If Dallas wants to win this game, they'll need to force multiple turnovers, control the clock by running the football and find the end zone, all things that the 49ers haven't allowed other teams to do much of this season. For that reason, I think San Francisco wins their fifth straight against Dallas. 49ers, 34-24.
Josh: I don't like the look of it. I don't like how good the 49ers are, I don't like how bad the Cowboys are. Most of the predictions I'm seeing are that the Cowboys are going to fight and fight but come up short. I'm not expecting anything close to a fight, unfortunately. The San Francisco 49ers are a well-coached, disciplined team that is more than capable of handling success (especially without taking penalties on said success). Brian Schottenheimer's situational play calling will be exposed against Raheem Morris if the 49ers get off to a quick start. And vice-versa in the chess match of one of the NFL's truly elite offensive minds in Kyle Shanahan against a rookie DC in Christian Parker who has drawn the short straw all year long in terms of injuries... potentially without Joey Porter Jr.... again. The whole situation is 'jacked up.' The 49ers will limit mistakes and penalties, and likely won't turn the ball over. If the Cowboys can match them in that regard, they might have a shot. Still, I think this will be a sobering example of how far away the Cowboys really are from being contenders. 49ers 42, Cowboys 17.
Patrik: I'll be honest with you here, as I always am: I think this game will be much closer than people might think. Something tells me that despite the roller coaster ride the Cowboys have been on so far in 2026, that they'll give the 49ers a run for their money, combined with the potentiality that San Francisco walks into this matchup thinking they already have the game won — a flaw that cost them the their first loss when the Falcons made them swallow a bowl full of crow with a side of humble pie. That said, the 49ers know how to finish close games, and the Cowboys are still trying to prove they consistently can. It appears George Pickens is a go and if he's used early, the Cowboys will have enough firepower to create some mismatches against Fred Warner and Co. This will likely turn into a bit of a shootout that comes down to who wins the takeaway margin and who, gulp, can minimize penalties. This game will come down to the bounce of the ball and/or one ill-timed penalty and, for that reason, I think the consistently more disclipined team will win (but, and this is a big one: six or fewer penalties and Dallas shocks the world, I believe). 31-28, The Other Team
