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The NFL season kicks off Thursday, with the Philadelphia Eagles<\/a> hosting the Dallas Cowboys<\/a> at 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC\/Peacock.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Cowboys are coming off a tumultuous offseason, where they hired rookie head coach Brian Schottenheimer and traded edge-rusher Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers.\u00a0<\/p>\n Unsurprisingly, “America’s Team” is an underdog heading into its game against the defending Super Bowl champions. As of Wednesday evening, FanDuel Sportsbook lists the Eagles as an 8.5-point favorite. Still, the Cowboys could pull off the upset. Here are five ways they can do so:<\/p>\n After Prescott became the league’s highest-paid player ($60M annually)<\/a> in 2024, he looked underwhelming. The 32-year-old QB went 3-5 in eight starts and posted a below-average 41.9 QBR before suffering a season-ending hamstring injury against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 9.\u00a0<\/p>\n Thursday’s matchup against the Eagles could be a perfect opportunity for Prescott to get off to a much better start in 2025. He has dominated the NFC East rival throughout his career. Per StatMuse<\/a>, he’s 9-4 against Philadelphia and has completed 66.8% of his passes for 3,402 yards, 24 touchdown passes and eight interceptions.\u00a0<\/p>\n Philadelphia, of course, is a much better team than it’s been in the past, but Prescott still doesn’t fear the Eagles. In February,\u00a0<\/a>he suggested there isn’t a gap between Dallas and Philadelphia. Shredding the divisional rival’s defense would help him back up that claim.\u00a0<\/p>\n Brown missed a significant chunk of training camp after suffering a hamstring injury in early August.<\/p>\n The Eagles are listing the three-time Pro Bowler as active for Thursday, and he has said he expects to play.<\/a> After missing so much time, though, Brown could look rusty against a Dallas secondary that features star cornerbacks Trevon Diggs and DaRon Bland. Bland may want to earn his money<\/a> after signing a four-year, $92M deal on Monday.<\/p>\n The Eagles’ passing offense will become much less effective if Brown isn’t rolling. He finished with 67 receptions for 1,079 yards and seven TD catches in 13 games last season.\u00a0<\/p>\n Many Cowboys fans probably wish they had kept Parsons instead of Clark, whom they acquired in the blockbuster trade with Green Bay.<\/a> But they’ll appreciate him if he helps Dallas solve one of its biggest defensive issues: the inability to stop the run.<\/p>\n Per TeamRankings<\/a>, the Cowboys ranked 29th in the league in rushing yards (137.1) last season. Dallas owner Jerry Jones has said that Clark gives the team a “better chance to stop the run”<\/a> than Parsons did.\u00a0<\/p>\n That’s debatable, but the point stands: Clark is reliable against the run. The three-time Pro Bowler had a career-high nine stuffs in 17 games last season. (A stuff is a tackle on a running play that results in no gain or negative yards.) The Eagles offense could indeed sputter if he makes star RB Saquon Barkley go backwards a few times.\u00a0<\/p>\n In May<\/a>, the Pittsburgh Steelers sent Pickens to the Cowboys. While talented, he wore out his welcome in Pittsburgh because of maturity concerns.<\/p>\n The former Georgia Bulldogs star is entering the final year of his rookie contract, which may force him to be on his best behavior. Pickens doesn’t seem keen on<\/a> trying to prove anything this upcoming season.\u00a0<\/p>\n Regardless, if Pickens and Cowboys four-time Pro Bowl WR CeeDee Lamb jell in Week 1, the Eagles secondary could be in for a challenging night. The former Steeler had 174 receptions for 2,841 yards and 12 TD catches in three seasons with Pittsburgh.\u00a0<\/p>\n One of the few negatives of winning a Super Bowl is that other teams poach your coaching staff. The Eagles lost<\/a> offensive coordinator Kellen Moore after he became the New Orleans Saints HC in February.\u00a0<\/p>\n Philadelphia subsequently promoted Kevin Patullo to replace Moore. He has familiarity with the organization, having served as a pass game coordinator and associate head coach over the past four seasons. However, the 44-year-old assistant will be making his play-calling debut for the Eagles on Thursday.\u00a0<\/p>\n1. Cowboys QB Dak Prescott goes off<\/strong><\/h2>\n
2. Eagles WR A.J. Brown seems rusty<\/strong><\/h2>\n
3. Cowboys DT Kenny Clark helps stymie the run game<\/strong><\/h2>\n
4. WR George Pickens looks like Cowboys’<\/strong> best offseason acquisition\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
5. Play-calling changes disrupt Eagles’ offensive flow<\/strong><\/h2>\n