Predicting the Cowboys' Primetime Games Ahead of 2024 Schedule Release
It's a shock that a 12-5 year was a disppointment for the Dallas Cowboys last season, but the team's struggles against top contenders and incredible playoff implosion made fans happy to move on from 2023.
Unfortunately, Cowboy Nation isn't the most optimistic right now with the team losing several key free agents and making no huge outside additions. That being said, anything can happen with the offensive and defensive talent this squad features.
Ahead of the impending schedule release that's expected later this week, here are potential primetime games Dallas could receive in 2024.
1. Philadelphia Eagles (Road)
Many around the league are excited to see how the NFC East shakes out this season after Philadelphia's busy offseason. The Eagles saw their division crown stolen by the Cowboys in 2023, but coaching changes, plus big-name signings like Saquon Barkley and Bryce Huff, have Nick Sirianni's squad in position for a strong comeback.
These two fierce rivals fighting over the NFC East title makes these contests must-see TV every year, but especially so in this moment given they're both contenders to come out of the conference.
Schedule makers love tapping into rivalries for primetime affairs, and both teams boasting huge fan bases makes them a shoo-in for another premium time slot. After Philly went on the road last year for Sunday Night Football in Week 14, expect the 'Boys to travel in 2024.
2. Washington Commanders (Home)
Speaking of division rivals, the Washington Commanders have created even more bad blood between them and Dallas after this offseason. Washington has tapped ex-Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn as its new head coach, and he's since gone on to steal several pending Dallas free agents for his move to the nation's capital, including center Tyler Bidasz.
All of this animosity over player and coach poaching will make for an incredible primetime game. Just imagine the Dallas crowd's boos when the Commanders take the field with Quinn leading them -- it's going to be nasty.
3. San Francisco 49ers (Road)
The Cowboys are set to go through a gauntlet of a schedule in 2024 after finishing first place in their division. Unfortunately, that includes a rematch with the San Francisco 49ers.
The reigning NFC champions absolutely wiped the floor with Dallas when they met early on last season, crushing Mike McCarthy's squad 42-10 in Week 5. That beatdown -- which was a primetime game on NBC -- highlighted the flaws that would prevent the Cowboys from being taken seriously as a Super Bowl threat throughout the rest of the year.
The assumptions drawn from that contest ultimately proved to be right after Dallas was embarrassed in the first round of the playoffs.
However, this second date with San Francisco gives the Cowboys a chance to exorcise some demons. Most players in the locker room know how much that blowout loss stung last year. If they can channel that hurt into a winning performance, that'd certainly send a statement about Dallas' chances of hanging with the NFC's top dawgs this year.
4. Detroit Lions (Home)
The Detroit Lions are one of those legitimate NFC threats the Cowboys need to impress against to be taken seriously.
Detroit made it all the way to the conference championship game this past postseason and gave the 49ers a run for their money before falling 34-31. The Lions haven't sustained any major losses and addressed some needs in the draft, making this contender even better for 2024.
Now, Dallas actually took down Detroit last season, as these teams played an incredibly tight contest in Week 17. The ending of that game generated controversy, but that still doesn't take away from the fact the Cowboys came out on top at the end of the day.
The Lions will surely be hungry for revenge, and Dallas should be ready to prove to the rest of the league that its victory wasn't a fluke. That sets the stage for an epic rematch in primetime.