When the Dallas Cowboys open the 2024 season – their 65th in the NFL — in Cleveland on Sept. 8th, they will have two streaks in play.
First, they will look to win their second straight season-opening game after dropping three in a row from 2020-23.
Second, they will look to beat the Browns for the fourth straight time to open a season – without a loss.
They will also be looking to win back-to-back season-openers on the road for the first time since the 2008 and 2009 seasons. And they will try to avoid dropping two straight games to Cleveland as well.
The Browns rolled to a 49-28 win over Dallas at AT&T Stadium in 2020.
Dallas trailed 41-14 going into the fourth quarter in that game. Two late Dak Prescott passes cut the lead to three with just under four minutes to play.
But an Odell Beckham 50-yard run sealed the victory for Cleveland.
Against The Browns
The Cowboys will enter the game with the Browns holding an all-time 18-14 record over Dallas.
Most of that damage was done in the 1960s, before the NFL and AFL merged and the teams were both in the NFL.
The Browns won 14 of the first 19 meetings – including two of the three playoff meetings – in that decade. Cleveland won the first four encounters.
The Cowboys broke through with a 45-21 win at the Cotton Bowl on Dec. 2, 1962, but then dropped the next seven games against the Browns.
Dallas went on a four game winning streak. Cleveland answered by winning the last three games against the Cowboys before the 1970 merger.
The teams have only met 13 times in the years following the Browns move into the AFC. The Cowboys are 9-4 against Cleveland in those contests.
They are 4-1 against the Browns since Cleveland was awarded a new Browns’ franchise after the original franchise moved to Baltimore and became the Ravens.
At home, Dallas is 9-8 against Cleveland – 5-2 post-merger – with a 432-403 scoring advantage. On the road, Dallas has won just five of the 15 games.
Cleveland has outscored Dallas 324-252 in those 15 contests.
The most points Dallas has scored at home against Cleveland is 52 – in a 38-point playoff game victory. On the road, Dallas’ high is 35 points – the last time Dallas played at Cleveland in 2016.
The lowest scoring game between the two teams occurred on Dec. 12, 1970, when Dallas won 6-2 in a game played at Cleveland.
Opening Week History
The Cowboys are 40-23-1 overall in season openers dating back to their first-ever game at the Cotton Bowl on September 24, 1960.
That game saw them lose 35-28 to the Steelers. This year they are on the road against one of the Steelers AFC North rivals.
And Dallas will be playing Pittsburgh a month later.
This will be the fourth time that the Cowboys will open a season against the Browns – with all four games being played in Cleveland.
In 1967, Dallas opened the year with a 21-14 victory. In 1991, the Cowboys got a pair of short Troy Aikman TD passes and four Ken Willis field goals for a 26-14 victory.
The last season-opener between the two teams came in 2008.
Dallas scored 21 unanswered points for an easy 28-10 victory.
For this season-opener the Cowboys will enter with a 22-12 record in opening games played on the road. They are 18-11-1 at home.
Dallas opened the 2023 on the road against the Giants with a 40-0 rout.
They had dropped two road games to the Rams (2020) and Buccaneers (2021) before losing at home to Tampa Bay to open the 2022 season.
The Cowboys last home season-opening win came against the Giants in 2019. Prescott’s four TD passes led the way to a 35-17 victory.
The last back-to-back season opening wins on the road came with the 28-10 victory over the Browns in 2008, followed by a 34-21 win over Tampa Bay in 2009.
Streaking Along
From 1965 to 1981 – a total of 17 straight seasons – the Cowboys won every single season-opening game. Tom Landry was at the height of his coaching powers.
Even after losing to Pittsburgh at Texas Stadium in 1982, Dallas rebounded by winning their next four season openers.
It was during that run that they won eight straight home season openers and 11 straight road season-openers.
The Cowboys have lost three-straight road season openers on three different occasions. They had one run of three straight season-opening losses at home from 2000-2003.
Dallas has faced the Giants the most times to start a season, holding an 11-1 record over their NFC East rivals.
Washington is second most with nine meetings and Dallas is 6-2-1 in those games. The Cowboys have faced the Cardinals and Steelers six times each and is 3-3 against both teams.
Cleveland will move into a tie with the Eagles at facing Dallas four times to open a season. The Cowboys are 3-1 against Philadelphia.
My Prediction
(based on rosters as of today)
The Cowboys will begin the season on the wrong foot. The Browns will snap the Cowboys season-opening streak against the city of Cleveland.
Predicted season record: 0-1.
