NFC East Week 1 Winners & Losers: Dallas Cowboys an Early Embarrassment

Week 1 of the 2026 NFL season is officially in the books after an interesting opening slate that saw the league's first-ever game in Australia and some record-setting scoring numbers between the Chicago Bears and Carolina Panthers.

In the NFC East, all four teams played within the division to kick off the season.

The Dallas Cowboys faced the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium while the Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders played a thriller at Lincoln Financial Field.

Here are the biggest winners and losers in the NFC East from Week 1:

Winner: New York Giants

New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart — New York Giants running back Devin Singletary (26) and quarterback Jaxson Dart (6) celebrate after scoring a touchdown against the Dallas Cowboys during the fourth quarter at MetLife Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

If you want to get more specific, Jaxson Dart, Cam Skattebo, and new head coach Jim Harbaugh all classify as winners here, but the entire Giants franchise and fanbase should feel ecstatic about Week 1's 28-20 win over the Cowboys.

The Giants have routinely come up short against Dallas over the past few years, most notably in a 40-0 loss at home to begin the 2023 campaign.

The fact that Sunday night's win came two days after the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks makes this moment even sweeter for a Giants fanbase that has experienced nothing but disappointment since winning the Super Bowl during the 2011 season.

Loser: Dallas Cowboys Defense

Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Christian Parker at training camp at River Ridge Playing Fields. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Despite only losing by one score, it's hard to imagine a much worse season opener for the Cowboys, particularly on the defensive end.

The talk all offseason was that the defense had taken a major step forward under up-and-coming new defensive coordinator Christian Parker. Instead, Dallas had one of the worst defensive performances in the NFL since Week 1 of last year,

The Giants didn't exactly do anything otherworldly on offense; they simply out-muscled the Cowboys all night and did seemingly whatever they wanted on any given down.

New York certainly deserves tons of credit but for a Dallas defense that apparently became much improved this offseason, it was a massive season-opening failure.

Winner: Eagles OC Sean Mannion

The Eagles offense had a lot to prove headed into Week 1 under new offensive coordinator Sean Mannion.

It's just one game but the Eagles look to be trending in the right direction on offense after escaping the Washington Commanders in a 24-22 win.

Jalen Hurts finished 14 of 25 passing for 203 yards, three touchdowns, and most importantly, no interceptions.

It wasn't the most explosive day for an Eagles team that played its first game in the post-AJ Brown era but there's a lot for Philly fans to feel positive about.

Loser: Washington's Slow Start

Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) runs the ball against Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Zack Baun (53) during the first half at Lincoln Financial Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels put on a show in the second half against Philadelphia but it was four straight punts in the first half that ultimately proved to be the difference in Washington's heartbreaking loss to the Eagles.

Altogether, Washington had five three-and-outs against the Eagles. Just one of those drives ending differently would have made all the difference in an upset win on the road to start off the year.

The Commanders should certainly confident about where things could be headed two seasons removed from making it to the NFC Championship but the Week 1 loss is no doubt disappointing.

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