The Dallas Cowboys have completed their West Coast portion of 2026 training camp in Oxnard, California, as well as two preseason tests against NFC West opponents, the Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals. The Cowboys won both games, both against opponents they will see again when it matters.
It is time to wrap up the NFC West when it comes to our regular season opponent preview series, concluding with the San Francisco 49ers. The Cowboys will host the 49ers in week ten, San Francisco’s first trip
to Arlington since a 2022 Wild Card game.
The 49ers knocked the Cowboys out of the playoffs the following year as well, the start of three straight home wins for Kyle Shanahan’s team against the Cowboys, getting the better of the Mike McCarthy/Dan Quinn defense 42-10 in 2023 and then McCarthy/Mike Zimmer in what proved to be the final year of McCarthy’s tenure and one and only season for Zimmer, 30-24.
This entire point in time for the Cowboys was defined very directly by how they played against the 49ers and other teams that brought the same type of physicality, failing to matchup in the trenches in numerous big games or play with enough creativity on offense.
This comparison has come and gone right at a point where the Cowboys are showing intention to dominate the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball unlike any of these other recent seasons, but also late enough where the 49ers have taken a step back from being the class of their division. Cowboys fans find themselves much more worried about back-to-back December games (with a bye in between) against the 49ers rivals, the Seahawks and the Rams.
What has caused these issues for the 49ers, and in what ways could they still be a surprise team in 2026? Let’s look at their offseason to find out.
49ers Key Free Agent Signings/Departures
*SIGNED IN FREE AGENCY
- WR Mike Evans
- LB Dre Greenlaw
- LB Luke Gifford (Re-signed)
- WR Deebo Samuel
- CB Nate Hobbs
- WR Christian Kirk
- RB Zamir White
*DEPARTED IN FREE AGENCY
- WR Jauan Jennings
- WR Kendrick Bourne
- RB Brian Robinson
- WR Skyy Moore
- DE Clelin Ferrell
- CB Jason Pinnock
- LB Curtis Robinson (Cowboys)
Another super interesting point of comparison to start with between the 49ers and Cowboys reveals itself when looking at this free agency incoming and outgoing list. Dallas not having the right mix at wide receiver or enough depth to their pass catching group has been something that’s held them back, and now the 49ers find themselves going through as drastic of a retool at WR as they’ve had under Shanahan.
Jauan Jennings, Kendrick Bourne, and Skyy Moore are gone, while Mike Evans, Christian Kirk, and the former bay area star Deebo Samuel are in. Klay Kubiak will be the new offensive coordinator trying to make it all tick, as the team seems poised to lean on the injury-prone Christian McCaffrey more than ever.
On defense, another new coordinator that was a former head coach has replaced Robert Saleh who had the same accolades, this time being Raheem Morris. Saleh’s defense saved the 49ers in countless games last season by playing above their talent level. The 49ers will look to lean into Morris’ pressure style of defense with Dre Greenlaw back in the fold, and former Cowboy Osa Odighizuwa acquired via trade.
Greenlaw and former running mate Fred Warner will have to be able to cover a lot of ground playing behind a defensive line that will prioritize getting up the field in Morris’ scheme, a line that still has Nick Bosa on the depth chart as well.
A lot of good pieces are still in place at key positions for this 49ers team, but all of the familiar ways where they’ve been known to have an edge against opponents in past championship-contending seasons feel like they’ve been subdued going into 2026. For a Cowboys team that has not been shy about showing off the strength of their culture this offseason in year two of Brian Schottenheimer’s tenure, coach Schotty has built this culture with a small but crucial core of players that have the skins on the walls from those past 49ers losses.
A week 10 win would be a massive boost to the confidence of this culture really meaning the Cowboys are different. With this game coming near the midpoint of the season, it will also be a good evaluation point to see how much Dallas is getting from their rookie class, with several picks getting off to a strong start this preseason. The 49ers will also likely need this injection of young talent to their roster to stay in contention through this point of the season, which brings us to their draft class.
49ers 2026 Draft Class
- Round 2, Pick 1 (33 Overall): WR De’Zhaun Stribling
- Round 3, Pick 6 (70 Overall): EDGE Romello Height
- Round 3, Pick 26 (90 Overall): RB Kaelon Black
- Round 4, Pick 7 (107 Overall): DT Gracen Halton
- Round 4, Pick 27 (127 Overall): OT Carver Willis
- Round 4, Pick 39 (139 Overall): CB Ephesians Prysock
- Round 5, Pick 14 (154 Overall): LB Jaden Dugger
- Round 5, Pick 39 (179 Overall): OT Enrique Cruz
For a team without a first-round pick, the 49ers still did a good job in April of bringing in high value prospects at positions of need with talent floors capable of seeing the field in 2026. Their top pick was an extension of the retool they’re going through at wide receiver, bringing in Ole Miss’ De’Zhaun Stribling.
The duo of Stribling and newcomer Christian Kirk, and of course George Kittle at tight end, puts the 49ers in good position to get back to something they’ve also shredded opposing defenses with the ability to do – attack the seams and create run-after-the catch opportunities over the middle.
Romello Height is another piece to the pass rush puzzle for Morris to move around, while the defense also found help on all three levels with Ephesians Prysock at corner in the fourth round and the instinctual Jaden Dugger at linebacker in the fifth.
Kaelon Black could prove to be one of the highest value picks of the draft, as the 49ers always find a way to get their backs involved, and Black has the big play potential and versatility to earn a role.
With the Rams punting on immediate help with their first-round pick and going quarterback instead, and the defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks using their first two picks on a running back and safety, the 49ers getting this 2026 draft class up to speed and contributing quickly could be their biggest key to remaining in contention for the division.
49ers 2026 Coaching Staff
*New to staff this season:
- Defensive Coordinator Raheem Morris
- Special Teams Coordinator Brant Boyer
- Defensive Backs Ray Brown
- Assistant Head Coach (Defense) Matt Eberflus
- Defensive Pass Game Coordinator Jerry Gray
The 49ers have good continuity returning in the secondary, but in addition to learning a new scheme overall with Raheem Morris, they’ll have a new defensive backs coach coming from the college ranks, Ray Brown, a new pass game coordinator, Jerry Gray, and last year’s Cowboys defensive coordinator “flavor of the season”, Matt Eberflus.
When it comes to the 49ers coaching staff, the general consensus is that as long as Kyle Shanahan is the one leading them into battle, they’ll always be prepared, a tough opponent to beat, and control the game with their offense as Shanahan calls the plays.
The Cowboys will equally have an offensive-minded play-calling head coach in 2026, as well as a new defensive coordinator and staff on that side of the ball. It will be telling which side in this head-to-head matchup this season feels better about their overall coaching situation by week 10, and one way to evaluate that is which head coach has the most distractions to deal with beyond calling their offenses. At this exact moment, it feels like the 49ers margin for error with a lot of their new hires, depth chart changes, and roster health is something the Cowboys could take advantage of with some good injury luck of their own, adding to the reasons this would be a statement win for Dallas at home.
This game will be the start of three straight home games for the Cowboys, versus the 49ers, the Titans, and then Thanksgiving against the Eagles. Starting it off with a win as the calendar turns to mid-November would sure be a good way to start the homestand.
The 49ers showed a season ago they can never be counted out, winning six of their last seven games en route to knocking the Eagles out of the playoffs on Wild Card weekend in Philly. In a league where sometimes teams need to score 30 points a game to be taken seriously as playoff contenders, the 49ers also held seven opponents under 20 points last year and five more under 25.
How much they can win on the outside or get a pass rush in critical moments of a game are still major concerns for San Francisco, but it feels like no matter what there are always high stakes around any Cowboys-49ers matchup, and despite all the new faces that doesn’t look like it’s changing in 2026.
Previous 2026 Opponent Previews:
Philadelphia Eagles
New York Giants
Seattle Seahawks
Arizona Cardinals
Baltimore Ravens
Washington Commanders
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Los Angeles Rams
