Last week, Dallas Cowboys fans felt the impact that other teams’ games can have. On Monday night, while we were still reeling from Dallas’ big letdown in Brazil, the Eagles crashed and burned against the Bears. It lifted our spirits, kept the NFC East more manageable, and has us looking ahead to Week 4 with greater optimism.
In addition to a much-needed win for Dallas against the Houston Texans, what else should Cowboys fans be rooting for this week?
NFC East teams
- Rams d. Eagles
- Cardinals d. Giants
- Colts d. Commanders
This is an easy week to freely root against our
divisional rivals. Despite offseason hype, the Rams are just 1-2, making a Philly loss far more important to all of the Cowboys’ goals. And if the Eagles drop two straight, especially with this one at home, can you imagine how that crowd is going to turn on them?
The Giants got a gift last week with the Titans, who may be the worst team in the league, and are at 2-1. While they’re far from a great team themselves, the Cardinals will present more of a challenge. How Jameis Winston reacts to New York’s acquisition of J.J. McCarthy will be interesting to see.
Washington’s coming off a huge upset over Seattle, but this week’s opponent won’t take them lightly. Indianapolis is also 1-2 but just a game back of Jacksonville in the very winnable AFC South. The key matchup will be how QB Daniel Jones, who already has three interceptions this year, handles the Commanders’ opportunistic defense.
NFC vs. NFC
- Bucs d. Packers
- Panthers d. Lions
- Falcons d. Saints
In the Battle of the Bays, whose continued despair is better for the Cowboys? Dallas plays both of these teams soon: Tampa next week and the Packers in Week 6. The Bucs are 0-3 and down to backup QB Jalon Daniels. Even if they get a win and some confidence this Sunday, they still face a short week traveling to Dallas for Thursday Night Football.
Meanwhile, Green Bay is on the verge of collapse. Matt LaFleur is under fire, Jordan Love is shaky, and there’s renewed mockery of Micah Parsons. If they beat Tampa, weak as they might be, it could stop the bleeding and perhaps help them find momentum again. But a loss? That just might send them into a total spiral, and that would be great for the upcoming game against Dallas and for removing an obstacle from NFC contention.
Wanting Carolina over Detroit is a simple choice. The Lions are 2-1 and the Panthers are 1-2, plus Detroit is more likely to hit a stride and become a problem in the NFC. If the Cowboys can get to 2-2 this week, it’d be nice to be looking up at as few other teams as possible.
The Falcons and Saints are both 1-2 and neither is particularly threatening, so this kind of a toss-up. New Orleans feels a little closer to figuring some things out and being a tough team, so we’ll root against Kellen Moore’s crew.
NFC vs. AFC
- Jets d. Bears
- Dolphins d. Vikings
- Broncos d. 49ers
- Chargers d. Seahawks
The AFC could help Dallas out a lot this week! Minnesota and San Francisco are still undefeated, while Chicago and Seattle are 2-1. If the Cowboys can get their stuff together and go on a run, we’d love for things like home-field advantage and even the number-one seed to still be on the table. Any or all of these NFC contenders getting knocked down a peg would be positive for us.
AFC vs. AFC
- Browns d. Steelers
The Cowboys’ future draft picks are getting more entangled with Pittsburgh all the time, with the Joey Porter Jr. trade just the latest development. We still own the Steelers’ 2027 fourth-round pick, so we’ll keep rooting for them to lose and push that pick as early into Saturday afternoon as possible.
The rest of the AFC-only matchups have no real impact on Dallas, so root according to your fantasy teams or whatever other personal feelings you have.
