DALLAS (13-6) at NEW YORK GIANTS (10-8-1)
Sunday, 8:20 p.m. EDT, NBC
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK NFL LINE: Cowboys by 3 1/2.
SERIES RECORD: Cowboys lead 73-48-2.
LAST MEETING: Cowboys beat Giants 28-20 on Nov. 24, 2022, in Arlington, Texas.
COWBOYS OFFENSE: OVERALL (11), RUSH (9), PASS (14), SCORING (4).
COWBOYS DEFENSE: OVERALL (12), RUSH (T16), PASS (1), SCORING (6).
GIANTS OFFENSE: OVERALL (18), RUSH (4), PASS (26), SCORING (14).
GIANTS DEFENSE: OVERALL (25), RUSH (27), PASS (14), SCORING (22).
TURNOVER DIFFERENTIAL: Cowboys plus-10; Giants plus-3.
COWBOYS PLAYER TO WATCH: RB Tony Pollard plays his first game as the lead back after the offseason departure of two-time rushing champion Ezekiel Elliott in a cost-cutting move. Pollard is playing on the $10.1 million franchise tag. He emerged as the most potent playmaker in the backfield last season, but Pollard hasn’t been tested without the benefit of Elliott’s presence. Elliott was better in pass protection.
GIANTS PLAYER TO WATCH: QB Daniel Jones made a bad offense go last season. He had career highs with 3,205 yards passing, 15 touchdowns passes and a 92.5% rating. The five-year veteran also ran for 708 yards and seven TDs. At home, he accounted for 16 TDs and three interceptions.
KEY MATCHUP: The Cowboys offensive line against the Giants front seven. Dallas ran for 345 yards in the two games last season and gained a total of 821 yards. New York failed to get a sack in the two games and Dalllas held the ball for about average of 33 minutes. New York added beef in the offseason, signing tackles Rakeem Nunez-Roches and A'Shawn Robinson, inside linebacker Bobby Okereke, while adding adding linebackers Isaiah Simmons and Boogie Basham in cutdown day deals.
KEY INJURIES: Cowboys: LG Tyler Smith (hamstring tightness), S Donovan Wilson, who missed all of the preseason after straining a calf, and DE Sam Williams (toe) missed practice Wednesday. ... Giants: All the starters practiced. A couple of backups were limited by minor injuries.
SERIES NOTES: The Cowboys have have won four straight and 11 of the past 12. New York's only win was a 23-19 decision on Jan. 3, 2021. Dallas is 10-1 against the Giants in openers. The teams haven’t met in an opener since 2019. They started the season against each five times in a six-season span from 2012-17.
STATS AND STUFF: The Cowboys are coming off consecutive 12-win regular seasons for the first time since the last of four in a row in 1995. Dallas won the Super Bowl that season. …Pollard’s 5.2 yards per carry ranked third in the NFL last season. His 5.9-yard average per touch (rushes and receptions) was the best in the league. … WR CeeDee Lamb’s 10 100-yard games tied Dez Bryant for the second most in franchise history through three seasons. … New WR Brandon Cooks is looking to become the first NFL receiver to get a 1,000-yard season with five different teams. … Two-time All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons begins his bid to join Reggie White as the only players with at least 13 sacks in each of his first three seasons. … DE DeMarcus Lawrence has 10 sacks in 15 games against the Giants. … K Brandon Aubrey is set for his NFL debut, replacing Brett Maher. A former MLS player, the 28-year-old kicked in the USFL before joining the Cowboys. ... The Giants are coming off their first postseason trip since 2016. ... Their 9-7-1 record under then-rookie coach Brian Daboll was their first winning season since 2016. ... RB Saquon Barkley ran for career-high 1,312 yards and scored 10 TDs last season. ... WR Darius Slayton’s 724 yards receiving led New York. ... WR Isaiah Hodgins had a TD catch in four of his past five games. ... TE Darren Waller makes his Giants debut and it is highly anticipated. He has been Jones' top option in training camp and the preseason. He has 19 TDs in 74 games. PK Graham Gano was 29 of 32 on FG attempts last season. ... DT Dexter Lawrence set career highs in tackles (68) and sacks (7 1/2) last season. ... Leonard Williams is one of three defensive linemen (Aaron Donald, Cam Jordan) with 40-plus tackles in each of the past eight seasons. ... ILB Bobby Okereke had a career-high 149 tackles with the Colts last season. ... Edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux had four sacks, two forced fumbles and two recovered fumbles as a rookie. ... Fellow OLB Azeez Ojulari had 5 1/2 sacks and three forced fumbles playing in seven games. ... Rookie cornerbacks Deonte Banks (No, 24 overall) and sixth-round Tre Hawkins may start.
FANTASY TIP: Cowboys QB Dak Prescott owns the Giants. He has a 10-game winning streak against them since losing both meetings as a rookie in 2016. Those were two of Dallas’ three losses that regular season. … During the 10-game run, Prescott has thrown 22 touchdowns and five interceptions against New York, His next victory will tie Danny White for the fourth most in the regular season in franchise history at 62.
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