Cowboys, Commanders look to avoid 0-2 start in NFC East clash

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) There's a sudden sense of urgency as the Washington Commanders and Dallas Cowboys renew an old NFC East rivalry with both teams staring at an 0-2 start in division games.

The Commanders and coach Dan Quinn are trying to find the form of the 2024 season, when they reached the NFC championship game, while the Cowboys and quarterback Dak Prescott want to get back to where they were the year before that when Quinn was in charge of their defense.

In other words, a pair of non-playoff teams from a year ago will try Sunday to bounce back from season-opening road losses. Dallas fell to the New York Giants and Washington is on the road again after losing to Philadelphia.

“There’s definitely must wins in this league,” Prescott said. “You don’t want to say it, and at the end of the day, if it didn’t happen, there’s still time. There’s a lot of opportunity. But yeah, just from this team, all the changes, all the excitement, we’ve got to go win.”

The Cowboys never had a lead as their overhauled defense looked just as woeful as a season ago, particularly while never getting a stop in the second half and giving the Dallas offense just two possessions after halftime.

The Commanders trailed for good from the early moments of the second quarter in Jayden Daniels' return from injury, and came up a 2-point conversion short of getting even in the final two minutes against the two-time defending division champions.

“The message I kind of hit with the team is I wanna see us level up,” Quinn said. “There were definitely some things that I liked. I liked how hard we played, toughness, but I also think, man, there’s a lot we can grow on.”

Washington (0-1) at Dallas (0-1).

When/where to watch: Sunday, 4:25 p.m. EDT, Fox.

Latest odds: Cowboys by 3 1/2.

Against the spread: Commanders 1-0; Cowboys 0-1.

Last week: Commanders lost to the Eagles 24-22; Cowboys lost to the Giants 28-20.

Last meeting: Cowboys beat Commanders 30-23 on Dec. 25, 2025, in Washington.

Series record: Cowboys lead 81-49-2.

Daniels vs. the Dallas defense. The first game under new defensive coordinator Christian Parker was a borderline disaster for the Cowboys. Among the many breakdowns was turning quarterback Jaxson Dart loose around the end on multiple bootlegs. Dart also had a fabulous overall game, going 23 of 29 with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Daniels is even more dangerous than Dart, so a similar effort from Dallas will result in another ugly outcome for Parker.

- The Cowboys haven't started 0-2 since 2010, when Wade Phillips was fired as coach with a 1-7 record as Dallas went on to a 6-10 finish.

- The only time Quinn started 0-2 in nine seasons as a head coach was 2020, when he was fired in Atlanta following an 0-5 start. That was four years after the Falcons reached the Super Bowl, losing to New England.

- While the Cowboys hired Parker after firing Matt Eberflus following his only season, the Commanders have two new coordinators in David Blough on offense and Daronte Jones on defense. Jones interviewed with the Cowboys before they picked Parker. Dallas' Klayton Adams is in just his second season as an offensive coordinator, although he doesn't call the plays. Head coach Brian Schottenheimer does.

- The Cowboys are 25-5 against NFC East teams at home since Prescott took over as the starter in 2016. That .833 winning percentage in the division is the best in the NFL over that span. Prescott is 13-2 against the Commanders, and one of those losses was a meaningless regular-season finale when Dallas had clinched a playoff spot during the 2023 season.

- Washington's Terry McLaurin needs 25 yards receiving to become the 11th receiver among active players to reach 7,000 for his career. He's trying to become the first Washington receiver with six 1,000-yard seasons.

- Prescott needs four touchdown passes to become the franchise leader. Tony Romo holds the current mark at 248. Assuming Prescott gets there, the only notable QB franchise record he won't have is wins. Three-time Super Bowl winner Troy Aikman had 94 regular-season victories, 11 more than Prescott.

- Commanders linebacker Sonny Styles and Cowboys safety Caleb Downs will be back on the field together. The rookie first-round draft picks were teammates at Ohio State last season. Styles, the seventh overall choice last spring, had a sack and two tackles for loss in his debut. Downs, the 12th pick, crushed Dart on a blitz and forced a fumble that the Giants recovered.

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