Trivia Thursday: Dallas-Giants rivalry answers 

14 September 2025: Brandon Aubrey (17)
of the Dallas Cowboys during their regular season 40-37 overtime win against the New York Giants at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Photo by James D. Smith/Dallas Cowboys

Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith (22) runs for 46 yards in traffic (32 rushes for 168 yards for the day) during an NFL football game against the New York Giants, Jan. 2, 1994 in East Rutherford, N.J. The Cowboys defeated the Giants 16-13 in overtime. (Paul Spinelli via AP)

3) The Cowboys' 27-14 win at the Giants in the NFL's 2012 season opener featured the only time this has happened in franchise history.

Originally scheduled to be held on Thursday night, Sept. 6, the game was moved up to Sept. 5 so it wouldn't conflict with President Barack Obama's speech at the Democratic National Convention. Because of that, this marks the only time in Cowboys history the team has played on a Wednesday. Although if it was up to Kevin Ogletree, Dallas might have done so more often. The receiver, who grew up in Queens, had 114 receiving yards and two touchdown catches, both career highs, to lead the Cowboys' winning effort. And he was inspired in part by his older brother, Calvin, who was in a New York hospital recovering from a gunshot wound suffered during an attack the previous January. Kevin visited him in the hospital that afternoon prior to his big game.

4) In a 31-7 win at the Giants on Sept. 21, 1998, this player returned both an interception and a punt for touchdowns, the only player in Cowboys history to do so in the same game.

Playing in front of a national television audience in this Monday night showdown, Deion Sanders was indeed Prime Time. He earned the game's first touchdown on a 59-yard punt return in the second quarter, and then wrapped up the scoring with a 71-yard pick six in the fourth. Behind that amazing effort, he became the last player in NFL history, and just the third ever, to reach the end zone on punt and interception returns in the same game. Just for good measure, he also had four tackles and a fumble recovery on defense and caught a 55-yard pass on offense that would lead to yet another touchdown, making him the only player in league history to ever record such a statistical game.

5) The only game in their inaugural season of 1960 that the Cowboys didn't lose came in a 31-31 tie at the Giants on Dec. 4. Who scored three touchdowns on the day to lead the team?

The Giants had little answer for L.G. Dupre, who came into the game having scored only one touchdown all season. But the Cowboys' running back had a 5-yard rush in the first quarter, caught a 21-yard scoring pass from quarterback Eddie LeBaron in the second and then took a 23-yard throw to the end zone in the fourth. DuPre's three touchdowns were a career high and, having also tacked on a 38-yard reception, so were his 82 receiving yards as well.

6) Which Cowboys quarterback suffered a broken wrist during a 17-14 loss at the Giants on Nov. 2, 1986, effectively ending Dallas' hopes of reaching the playoffs?

The Cowboys had a 6-2 record and the NFC's top offense when they went into New York to face the Giants, who were also 6-2. But midway through the first quarter, Danny White (No. 11) was sacked, which not only caused a fumble but also broke his wrist. Lost for the season, the Cowboys not only fell to the Giants, but went 1-6 over their remaining seven games to finish 7-9. That marked the team's first losing since 1966, breaking a string of 20 consecutive winning campaigns. Meanwhile, New York would go undefeated the rest of the way to win Super Bowl XXI.

7) Who owns the longest interception return in Cowboys history with a 101-yard pick six at the Giants on Nov. 14, 2010?

Bryan McCann's name popped up a few weeks ago during our Lions trivia as he returned a punt 97 yards for a touchdown on Nov. 21, 2010, against Detroit, the second longest in franchise history. But one week before at the Giants, he stepped in front a pass 1-yard deep in the end zone and went the distance for another score, his 101-yard interception return the longest ever for the team. Those two touchdowns may have been the only ones of his NFL career, but his name remains etched in Cowboys record books.

8) Five years later, what former Cowboy returned a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown to give the Giants a 27-20 win on Oct. 25, 2015?

Dwayne Harris, who was with Dallas from 2011-14, is still the Cowboys' all-time leader in kick return average (26.5), eighth in kick return yards (2,040) and tied for 10th in kick return attempts (77). But he signed as a free agent with the rival Giants prior to the 2015 season and enacted a little revenge in this one. Not only did he have two catches for 43 yards, but Harris also returned three kicks for 149 more, his 49.7 yards per return average being the second-highest mark by an opponent in Cowboys record books. That included a 100-yard return with just over seven minutes left in the game to give New York the victory.

9) What kicker set the Cowboys record for field goal attempts in a game and tied the mark for field goals made in a 35-32 overtime victory at the Giants on Sept. 15, 2003?

Billy Cundiff was busy in this one as he split the uprights on seven of his eight field goal attempts in this matchup against the Giants, which equaled and set Cowboys records, respectively. And he was truly the hero in this Monday night showdown as he tied the game as the clock hit zeros with a 52-yarder, and then gave Dallas the win thanks to a 25-yard field goal in overtime. Among kickers with at least 50 field goal attempts for the Cowboys, Cundiff ranks eighth in club record books with a 73.2 percent success rate.

10) In Dallas' 24-14 win at the Giants on Oct. 10, 1976, the two teams combined for just 31 passing attempts, the third-lowest total in franchise history. What former Cowboys quarterback started for New York that day? This marked the grand opening of the Giants' new stadium in East Rutheford, New Jersey. Roger Staubach completed 13 of 15 passes for Dallas in the game while former teammate Craig Morton connected on eight of his 12 attempts. When Morton left in the fourth quarter due to an injured knee, Norm Snead then came in for the Giants and completed all four of his passes. So while there were only 31 attempts, the three combined to complete 80.6 percent of their throws, the highest combined completion percentage in Cowboys record books.

11) Counting this upcoming matchup, how many times have the Cowboys finished their regular season schedule at the Giants?

This will mark the 12th time that the Dallas has traveled to New York to face the Giants in their regular season finale. Over the previous 11 matchups, the Cowboys have gone 5-6 with their last win coming on Dec. 30, 2018. In that one, quarterback Dak Prescott threw four touchdown passes in a game for the first time in his career, the last of which was a 32-yard toss to Cole Beasley with just over a minute remining to give his side the come-from-behind win. The Cowboys have also hosted the Giants in the final game on three occasions, earning a 1-2 record. The last of those closed out the 1999 campaign.

12) At the Giants on Nov. 9, 1980, this Cowboys running back ran for 183 yards, one of only nine players in NFL history to rush for at least 180 against the New York Football Club. Who was it?

On a rainy day that limited the Cowboys passing attack to just 155 yards, Tony Dorsett carried the load and averaged 7.6 yards per carry on his way to the second-highest rushing effort of his career. That performance also included a pair of touchdowns, the second of which gave Dallas a 35-28 lead heading into the fourth quarter. But the Giants, who had a 1-8 record coming into the game, tied the score and then kicked a field goal with just 1:07 remaining to steal a 38-35 win.

13) Which Cowboys player has the most career receiving yards against the Giants?

Tight end Jason Witten is the leader on the board with 1,641 receiving yards, although he played 32 games against the club, 12 more than anyone else in the top 10. Bob Hayes is second with 1,395 yards in just 17 games, his 22.9 yards per catch average tops among the group. Hayes also recorded 19 touchdown catches versus the Giants, the most in franchise history. Witten is the only other player to reach double-digits in scoring receptions against New York, totaling 16.

14) Down 14-6 midway through the fourth quarter, Roger Staubach led the Cowboys to a last-second 16-14 victory at the Giants on Nov. 4, 1979. How many game-winning drives did Captain Comeback have during his Hall of Fame career?

Staubach connected with Drew Pearson on a 32-yard touchdown pass with 2:24 on the clock, but when the Cowboys got the ball back, they were sitting at their own 9-yard line with only 1:49 remaining. No problem. The quarterback quickly marched his troops 86 yards down the field in eight plays before Rafael Septien kicked a 22-yard field goal with 6 seconds left for the victory. This would be the second-to-last game-winning drive of Staubach's career, as he would retire after the 1979 season with 21 to his credit. That total ranks third in Cowboys history behind Tony Romo (29) and Dak Prescott (26).

15) Which Cowboys linebacker set a franchise record with 22 team-credited tackles at the Giants on Dec. 11, 2016?

If ever there was a defensive nemesis for Giants fans, it was Sean Lee. Not only did the Cowboys coaching staff credit him with 22 combined tackles in this game, he was also tabbed with 17 solo takedowns, which is a team record as well. According to Pro Football Reference, among those who have played for Dallas in the Jerry Jones ownership era, Lee has been credited by the NFL with more tackles against the Giants than another other Cowboys player – and by a wide margin. He totaled 143 tackles in just 17 games versus New York while Bradie James ranks second with only 112 in the same number of contests.

16) Three years after Billy Cundiff gave the Cowboys a walk-off win over the Giants in the Meadowlands, what other veteran kicker buried the Giants on the road with a last-second kick to beat New York in 2006?

Martin Gramatica signed with the Cowboys in midseason after the team waived Mike Vanderjagt. Gramatica booted the game-winner against the Giants for a thrilling 23-20 win on Dec. 3, giving Dallas its fourth-straight win.

**17) What undrafted running back, whose brother was a Pro Bowl linebacker, scored on an 81-yard touchdown catch in a road win over the Giants in 2017?

Rod Smith, the brother of Jaylon Smith, caught an 81-yard touchdown pass from Dak Prescott, the fourth-longest TD reception in franchise history by a running back.

**18) Dez Bryant caught the game-winning TD from Tony Romo to beat the Giants in the 2014 game at the Meadowlands. But what was the most famous moment from that game?

In a game remembered mostly for Odell Beckham's incredible one-handed catch in the first half, it was the Cowboys that rallied for the 31-28 win, capped off by a Dez Bryant touchdown with just over a minute to play.