A Perfect Opener For NFL, Eagles

Since the turn of the century, no NFL club has had more standalone primetime games than Jerry Jones’ Cowboys,  and No. 2 is Jeffrey Lurie’s Eagles, a franchise that has reached preferred status with three Super Bowl appearances in the past eight years, and a roster full of stars led by one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in quarterback Jalen Hurts, as well as a deep supporting cast headlined by splashy playmakers Saquon Barkley and A.J. Brown.

The 2025 leadoff hitter for the league as a whole is guaranteed to deliver a massive audience, even by NFL standards.

For Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni, his home opener is also a nice hand in that all Philadelphia has to do is hold serve at one of the most difficult places to play in the league on the night a championship banner will be unfurled against a once-proud franchise that hasn’t reached the big game in nearly 30 years. 

The Cowboys are also in flux on the field after moving on from veteran coach Mike McCarthy and tabbing unlikely nepo baby, Brian Schottenheimer, to handle the North Dallas 53  in his first game as a head coach.

From that on-field perspective there were much more difficult opponents that could have been selected on what shapes up as a murderer's row for the Eagles.

There is the ultra-talented and presumably healthy Detroit team, the emerging Washington Commanders with rising superstar Jayden Daniels, a rematch with Kansas City where Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid would have been seeking revenge after being stymied in Super Bowl LIX, or an LA Rams team that was a Jalen Carter sack away from potentially upsetting the Eagles in the divisional round back in January.

The Cowboys have gotten better with veteran quarterback Dak Prescott returning from hamstring surgery and talented receiver George Pickens added to hel take some of the offensive load off of CeeDee Lamb.

The Dallas defense will also be healthier than the decimated unit from last season, headlined by the always dangerous Micah Parsons. However, the Cowboys were installed as an early seven-point underdog for good reason.

The Eagles have the best of both worlds in this matchup with the opportunity to spike the football in front of Jones while also staring atop the NFC East against a lesser team right out of the blocks.

Evidently, championships come with privileges.