It feels like just over 250 days ago that the New York Giants were pummeling the you-know-what out of the Dallas Cowboys in a meaningless 34-17 Week 18 win at MetLife Stadium. Oh, wait. That's because it was.
Fast forward eight-plus months, and the G-Men are getting ready to welcome their favorite NFC East punching bag (did someone say Jerry Jones?) back to North Jersey for a primetime Week 1 showdown on Sunday night. Only this time, the game is significantly more meaningful. Which changes things only by a lot.
Sunday night’s matchup will mark the 12th time the Giants and Cowboys have opened the season against each other. If John Harbaugh wants his first game as Big Blue’s head coach to end with a win, he’ll have to do something New York has managed just once in the previous 11 tries.
Giants have spent 61 years getting bullied by Cowboys in Week 1
Harbaugh probably doesn’t give a rat's bottom about what happened between the G-Men and Cowboys on Sept. 19, 1965. And why would he? He was four days away from his third birthday, Lyndon B. Johnson was president, and the Giants floundered their way to a 31-2 loss in their first-ever season opener against Dallas. Unfortunately, that was only the beginning.
In the 10 season-opening meetings since, Dallas has gone 9-1, bringing the Cowboys’ all-time record against Big Blue in Week 1 to a borderline offensive -- and seemingly illegal -- 10-1. They’ve outscored the Giants 387-209 over those 11 games, averaging just over 35 points per contest. Talk about starting off on the wrong foot.
And somehow, the recent history is even grosser.
The Cowboys have won the last three Week 1 meetings in 2017, 2019, and 2023 by a combined score of 94-20. That includes the infamous 40-0 beatdown at MetLife three years ago, which I’m sure everyone was desperately hoping to be reminded of today. You’re welcome.
New York’s lone victory came in 2016, when Eli Manning threw three touchdown passes and the G-Men narrowly escaped AT&T Stadium with a 20-19 win. That’s it. Sixty-one years of season-opening meetings between these two teams, and Big Blue has exactly one win to show for it. It's maddening.
The good news is that no amount of history will factor into what happens under the lights on Sunday. This is a completely different team in a completely different season. There’s a new coaching staff, new players, and another chance to finally turn the tables.
The last time these two teams met, NY sent Dallas home with an embarrassing 34-17 loss. That might’ve been nothing more than a meaningless Week 18 game, but considering the Giants are 4-16 against the Cowboys since 2016, we’ll take what we can get.
Harbs was brought to East Rutherford to turn around a team that’s synonymous with losing. Snapping 61 years of season-opening misery against a division rival like Dallas would be one heck of a way to officially kick off the Harbaugh era.
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