Skip to content

2026 NFL schedule: Cowboys at Giants is Week 1 Sunday night game

The league on Monday announced the Sept. 13 matchup of NFC East rivals at the Meadowlands. The full schedule will be released Thursday with other games revealed in the coming days.

Tyrone Tracy Jr. and the Giants will open the season against Donovan Wilson and the Cowboys in prime time on Sept. 13.
Tyrone Tracy Jr. and the Giants will open the season against Donovan Wilson and the Cowboys in prime time on Sept. 13. Read moreAdam Hunger / AP

NEW YORK — The Dallas Cowboys are set to visit the New York Giants in the first Sunday night game of the 2026 NFL season on Sept. 13.

The league on Monday announced the Week 1 matchup of NFC East rivals at the Meadowlands in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The full schedule will be released Thursday with other games revealed in the coming days.

This is the eighth time in the past 15 years the Cowboys and Giants are opening the season against each other.

» READ MORE: How tragedy, near-music stardom, and his beloved hometown helped shape new Eagle Jonathan Greenard

Dallas is always a national television draw as “America’s Team,” and New York could get more prime-time exposure with Super Bowl winner John Harbaugh coaching and Jaxson Dart established as the franchise quarterback coming off his eventful rookie year. It is set to be Harbaugh’s Giants debut.

If healthy, it would also be the first meaningful game between Dart and Dak Prescott. While each started the season finale on Jan. 4, the teams were eliminated from playoff contention by then.

This also could be the NFL debuts for a pair of former Ohio State teammates: Giants linebacker Arvell Reese, taken with the fifth pick, and Cowboys safety Caleb Downs, drafted not long after at No. 11.

Dallas at New York also means neither of those teams will be the visitor at Seattle on Wednesday night, Sept. 9, when the defending champion Seahawks unveil their Super Bowl banner and kick off the season. Chicago, Arizona, Kansas City, the Los Angeles Chargers or a title-game rematch against New England are the remaining possibilities.

The Inquirer logo
Listen to the latest episode

The Eagles held a rookie minicamp over the weekend, which means that, for the first time this offseason, there are actual on-field football things to talk about. The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane and Olivia Reiner were on hand, and share what they learned from practice observations and locker room conversations. Plus, Jeff gives context to the recent departures of two key members of general manager Howie Roseman’s front office staff. Listen here.

Listen to all episodes here or wherever you get your podcasts.