Giants Set to Open John Harbaugh Era Against NFC East Foe

The New York Giants are going to open their 2026 regular-season opener–the first game of the John Harbaugh era–in primetime against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, September 13.

The Sunday Night Football clash between the two NFC East rivals will mark the 13th time that the two foes have opened the regular season against each other, and it will be the first time they have done so since 2023.

Dallas has won 11 of the 12 regular-season openers against the Giants. Starting quarterback Dak Prescott is 14-3 against the Giants, with the 14 wins representing a streak that began after his rookie season in 2016.

The Cowboys hold a 78-48-2 all-time record against the Giants. The Giants are 1-0 in postseason games against their foes, having beaten Dallas in the 2007 NFC Divisional playoff round.

Dallas has pretty much gotten the best of the Giants in their twice-annual meetings, winning 16 of their last 18 meetings dating back to 2017.

The two teams met in the 2025 regular-season finale at MetLife Stadium on January 4, 2026, with the Giants winning 34-17 to snap a nine-game losing streak against the Cowboys. The Giants will look to make it two in a row over the Cowboys for the first time since the 2016 regular-season.

The Giants have won just two of their last regualr-season openers, including a 20-19 win over Dallas in 2016, their last regular-season opening win over their division rivals.

New York, who will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of their 1986 Super Bowl championship team this season, has failed to score a touchdown in their last three regular-season openers, the worst game of which was their 40-0 embarrassment at home against Dallas to start the 2023 NFL campaign.

Harbaugh is known for having his teams ready to play right from the jump. He holds a 12-6 record in regular-season openers, all with Baltimore. He won his first five regular-season openers but saw his teams lose their last two by seven points or less.

Having been in the AFC North since being named the Ravens head coach in 2008, Harbaugh has never opened a season against the Dallas Cowboys or an NFC East team for that matter.

The full NFL schedule is set to be released on Thursday night at 8 PM ET.

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