Giants vs. Cowboys: NFC East rivals square off on 'Sunday Night Football' in John Harbaugh's debut

The league kicks off the first Sunday night of the season with a familiar matchup that now has plenty of new faces Sep 12, 2026 at 8:41 pm ET • 5 min read Week 1 of the 2026 NFL season is finally here, and the first "Sunday Night Football" matchup of the year is a familiar one: the Dallas Cowboys at the New York Giants. This will be the two NFC East rivals' ninth Week 1 meeting across the last 20 seasons, the most common Week 1 meeting between two teams in that span. That stretch includes seven primetime games and six Sunday night matchups. Dallas is a perfect 8-0 all-time in Week 1 primetime games against the Giants, which includes winning the last two by a combined score of 59-3, thanks in large part to a 40-0 beatdown at MetLife Stadium in 2023. The 2026 edition of this matchup could be different, perhaps because so much has changed for both squads in terms of both coaching staffs and personnel. Before we dive into some of the key storylines, here is how you can watch the first "Sunday Night Football" matchup of 2026. Where to watch Cowboys vs. Giants liveDate: Sunday, Sept. 13 | Time: 8:20 p.m. ETLocation: MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, NJ)TV: NBC | Streaming: Fubo (try for free)Follow: CBS Sports AppOdds: Cowboys -3, O/U 48.5 via DraftKings SportsbookDallas' new look defenseThe Cowboys were the NFL's worst scoring defense in 2025, surrendering 30.1 points per game. That's why owner/general manager Jerry Jones and head coach Brian Schottenheimer completely overhauled their defense from the top down. Matt Eberflus was sent packing after just one season, and the Cowboys hired Christian Parker away from Vic Fangio's Philadelphia Eagles defensive staff to rebuild their unit. Parker drastically changed how play calls are communicated on top of turning over essentially half of the defensive personnel. Nearly half, 46.2%, of the snaps taken on the Cowboys' 2025 defense are by players no longer on the team, per the Dallas Morning News.The new player acquisitions include Pro Bowl edge rusher Rashan Gary, first-round rookies Caleb Downs and Malachi Lawrence, Super Bowl 50 MVP edge rusher Von Miller and the San Francisco 49ers' 2025 tackles leader in Dee Winters (101). "The growth, it's like night and day. Starting in OTAs, and starting the first week of training camp, getting a chance to go against one of the best offenses in battle every single day has helped us tremendously," Cowboys Pro Bowl defensive tackle Quinnen Williams said. "The mindset coming from the coaches, top down to the players and to the leadership, has been drastically changed. It's just fun, man. I just can't wait to see the process and the results from all the hard work. But, we're not done yet." John Harbaugh runs the GiantsThe New York Giants have a Super Bowl champion head coach for the first time since Tom Coughlin's last season in 2015 after hiring longtime Baltimore Ravens boss John Harbaugh. He built the team in his image this offseason with a few players from his Ravens days -- fullback Patrick Ricard, tight end Isaiah Likely, punter Jordan Stout -- while reinforcing the front lines of both lines of scrimmage by drafting linebacker Arvell Reese (fifth overall) and offensive lineman Francis Mauigoa (10th overall) in the top 10. "Yeah, tough. Yeah, tough. He's obviously coached a lot of winning teams. So to me, you expect the game to go into the fourth quarter and it's kind of our message," Cowboys Pro Bowl quarterback Dak Prescott said of Harbaugh. "You can't win it in those first three, so be ready and do whatever it takes to go get it in the fourth. And anytime you're playing a good coach like that and his winning history, you've got to be ready for it."Cowboys fired up for safety Caleb Downs' NFL debutThe Giants' selection of Mauigoa 10th overall led to Ohio State Buckeyes All-American safety Caleb Downs falling to Dallas at No. 11. Since his selection, everyone in the building has raved about Downs' development. "Man, [I] probably sound like a broken record. The way he prepares, the way he practices is not like, I don't want to say any. It's not like most rookies I've been around. It's different," Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer said. "There's a different mindset. There's a different competitive fire in this kid. He craves coaching. He cannot get coached enough. And I think at the end of the day, that's why he's such a good player. I think you look at him and just the way he's always played the game, he plays it with instincts. ... He works his butt off at studying the X's and the O's part of it. So unique young man, very special talent."Pro Bowl wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, one of Dallas' biggest stars who is accustomed to the massive weight of expectations that come with being a Cowboy, is just as confident in Downs' ability to thrive. "Just getting confident, man. He's just getting confident within himself," Lamb said. "As you can see, we started in the spring. Just been battling him ever since. The first words that I told him when I saw him was, 'Let's work. I know what I expect of you. I know what I expect of myself and I know what you expect of yourself. So they got you in this position.' We drafted you first round, and I know everything that, all the pressure that he's feeling, I felt and I have no doubt that he's going to go out there and ride." Malik Nabers' availabilityNew York's top playmaker may or may not play on Sunday night despite practicing fully every day this week. The Giants still listed Nabers as officially questionable because the Pro Bowler may or may not be fully comfortable returning from the torn ACL he suffered last season. "I've been wanting to play for so long now, but at the end of the day, I can't put my career at risk," Nabers said. "I gotta take that into account. There's a lot of football that I still have left to play. Making a split decision on when do I think I'm able to go out there and perform rather than just going out there -- I think the coaches know that, I know that I have a lot more football to play. So just being conscious of making sure I'm at the right standpoint of going back out there." PredictionNabers' status will significantly tilt the outcome. If he's not playing, Dallas could dominate New York in a big way. If he plays on a pitch count, the Cowboys would still have a pretty sizable edge. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott lights up when he faces the Giants, winning 14 of his 17 starts against them, including 14 consecutive games that he has started AND finished. Prescott, Lamb and the explosive George Pickens cook New York's inconsistent cornerbacks early and often, per usual, while Dallas' defense limits the damage Jaxson Dart can do with his dual threat abilities. Pick: Cowboys 31, Giants 17