The Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles kicked off not just their own seasons, but the NFL season as a whole Thursday night. With the Cowboys not quite being able to complete the comeback and losing 24-20, let’s see what some of the bigger takeaways are:

George Pickens Unremarkable in Debut

For most of the off-season, the biggest move that the Cowboys made was their acquisition of George Pickens from the Pittsburgh Steelers for a 2026 third round pick. As the first true secondary receiver in Dallas since Amari Cooper, the expectations were high going into Thursday. Unfortunately, Pickens didn’t quite meet them.

By recording three catches for 30 yards on four targets in his Cowboys debut, Pickens didn’t make the impact on the box score that many were hoping for. Perhaps his biggest contribution was drawing some attention away from CeeDee Lamb. 

Consistently double teamed all last season, Lamb went for seven catches and 110 yards on 13 targets and would have had more if not for some late game drops. And so, while his stats don’t show it, Pickens was able to be a net positive last night, and his long track record of success gives reason to be optimistic that his own numbers will improve.

The Cornerback Group is Solid to Start Season

The Cowboys cornerbacks entered the seasons as perhaps the position group with the biggest boom or bust potential on the team. Trevon Diggs is back, but will he be the same player? And if so, how quickly can he reach that level? Kaiir Elam was recently a first-round pick for a reason.

Conversely, the Bills essentially dumped his salary back in March for a reason as well. Shavon Revel is talented, but when will he be ready to make his debut? And of course, will DaRon Bland continue his ascension to the NFL’s elite? And how will he respond after being handed a $92 million dollar contract this week? 

For as many questions as this group had, they provided encouraging answers. Overall, the cornerbacks did well last night, giving up only 152 passing yards to Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts. Notably, 51 of those yards came on one chunk play to Jahan Dotson. They also limited the Eagles star wide receiver duo of AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith to a combined four catches for 24 yards all night.

Yes, it’s only one game, and it is best to keep excitement to a reasonable level. The season is a marathon, not a sprint after all. But there are reasons to believe that this group, even if not a massive strength, will at the very least not be a liability this season.

Clarity in the Running Backs Room

The Cowboys made a concerted effort to reshape their running back room this season. Out were Rico Dowdle and Ezekiel Elliot (again), in were Javonte Williams, Miles Sanders, and Jaydon Blue. The question, of course, was who amongst the new faces would be the primary ball carrier. It seems that we have an answer.

After last night, Javonte Williams is the clear leader in the backfield moving forward. He was given 15 carries, including all goal line carries. And while the box score shows he was not the most efficient, recording only 54 yards and averaging 3.6 yards per carry, Williams was clearly the favorite of head coach Brian Schottenheimer. 

Miles Sanders was the only other running back to receive any carries. He started out with a bang, ripping off a 49-yard run to get the ball down to the Eagles' 11-yard line. Unfortunately, five plays later, he fumbled the ball away. He did not see another carry all night.

All of these takeaways come with one very important caveat: it’s one game. Each of these takeaways, positive and negative, could be a sign of things to come. Or we could be looking back on this game in a month wondering how they happened at all.

With that said, even in a loss, there are plenty of things to be encouraged by for Cowboys fans. Clean them up, and it could be a surprisingly fun season.