When was the last time the Cowboys played in the season opener? All about Dallas' franchise history

The NFL revealed on Monday that the opening game of the 2025 season would pit the Dallas Cowboys and the reigning Super Bowl champions, the Philadelphia Eagles. After failing to make the playoffs in 2024, the Cowboys will start the campaign against the Eagles, who swept them by a combined score of 75-13 last season.

Dallas has played in the season opener twice, the most recent in 2021, so they are relatively accustomed to it. The team last faced Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who won the 2021 Super Bowl, on the road in the opening game of a new season.

It was Dak Prescott's first game back after a horrific injury to his right ankle sustained in 2020. After throwing for 391 yards and three touchdowns, the star quarterback nearly helped the Cowboys win, but the Buccaneers scored a game-winning field goal to secure a 31-29 victory.

Dallas finished the 2021 season with a 12-5 record and won the NFC East, overcoming the setback of losing the season opener. However, the team was defeated by the San Francisco 49ers in the first round of the playoffs.

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Meanwhile, Philadelphia has only played on opening day once (2018), after winning the Super Bowl the previous season. The Eagles defeated the Atlanta Falcons in the season opener.

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Full list of the teams the Dallas Cowboys will face in 2025

The Dallas Cowboys are expected to make a run to the playoffs in 2025, even though they completely missed out on the postseason last year.

Dallas' schedule presents significant challenges as they'll face every team in the AFC West and NFC North. However, if everything goes the Cowboys' way, they could contend for a wild-card berth.

Having Dak Prescott, whose 2024 campaign ended early due to a hamstring injury, back is a huge boost for the team.

Below is the list of all the teams the Cowboys will face at home:

New York Giants

Washington Commanders

Green Bay Packers

Kansas City Chiefs

Philadelphia Eagles

LA Chargers

Minnesota Vikings

Arizona Cardinals

Away games:

Philadelphia Eagles

New York Giants

Washington Commanders

Chicago Bears

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Las Vegas Raiders

New York Jets

Carolina Panthers

About the author

Habib Timileyin has been an NFL journalist at Sportskeeda for 2 years. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in English, and found himself drawn to the NFL about a decade ago.

Habib's favorite team is the Cincinnati Bengals and he particularly enjoyed their run to the Super Bowl in the 2021 season. The 2016 Super Bowl between the Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots is his most favorite of all time, and if given a chance to go back in time, he would love to witness the Patroits’ incredible comeback from being 28-3 down to winning 34-28.

Habib admires Tom Brady for his journey from being in a low draft position to achieving immense success in the game. His favorite coach of all time is Bill Belichick.

Habib likes to study intricate details of a story before reporting on it, and compares information among several reputable sources to ensure accuracy. When he's not writing about the NFL, Habib is likely watching Soccer, Basketball or enjoying a good movie on sports.

Know More

Dallas Cowboys Fans! Check out the latest Cowboys Schedule and dive into the Dallas Cowboys Depth Chart for NFL Season 2024-25.

Edited by Victor Ramon Galvez