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Cardinals have had Cowboys’ number since leaving the NFC East

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The Dallas Cowboys’ opponent in the third week of the 2023 season will be another long-time nemesis. The Cowboys will travel to Phoenix and battle the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on Sept. 24th.

It will be the 91st regular season meeting between the two teams and 92nd overall.

Dallas will enter the game with an overall record of 56-34-1 against the Cardinals, and a scoring advantage of 2083-1611.

The Cowboys are 32-13 at home, with an 1137-757 edge on the scoreboard and 24-21-1 with a 946-854 lead away from Dallas.

The Team Formerly From Chicago

When the two teams met for the first time, in St. Louis on Oct. 23, 1960, the Cardinals had just moved south from Chicago.

Dallas came up on the short end of a 12-10 score that day.

The teams would be moved into the same division the following season and would remain division rivals through the end of the 2001 season.

The Cowboys would struggle with the Cardinals in the early 1960s, dropping their first six contests, before finally defeating St. Louis, 28-24 on Dec. 15, 1963, in St. Louis.

Dallas would dominate the series the rest of the time the Cardinals called St. Louis home.

Jim Cooper
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach (12) runs run in a game against the St. Louis Cardinals, 1977. Cowboys Jim Cooper (61) runs along with Staubach; Cardinals Charlie Davis (76) and Ron Yankowski (78) give chase. (AP Photo)

Before the Cardinals took flight to Phoenix after the 1987 season, Dallas held a 32-18-1 record overall in the series.

In games played in St. Louis, Dallas was 14-11-1 and 18-7 against St. Louis in games played in Dallas. The Cowboys were just 4-5 against St. Louis at the Cotton Bowl, but an impressive 14-2 at Texas Stadium.

Dallas won its last meeting against the St. Louis Cardinals at Texas Stadium, 21-16, on Dec. 27, 1987, on a pair of Herschel Walker 11-yard touchdown runs and a five-yard run by quarterback Steve Pelluer.

The Cowboys last game at Busch Stadium on Sept. 13, 1987 saw the Cardinals score three touchdowns in the final two minutes to hand Dallas a 24-13 defeat.

By The Time I Get To Phoenix

Dallas continued their dominance over the Cardinals despite the team relocating west to Arizona. The Cowboys won eight of the first 11 meetings at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe.

Dallas lost the last four games played in Tempe however, including a 9-6 overtime loss on Oct. 20, 2002.

It was the first time the teams had met as non-division foes and the last time Dallas would play the Cardinals at Sun Devil Stadium.

This year’s game in Glendale will be the sixth meeting between the teams at State Farm Stadium with Dallas just 2-3 in games played there.

In games played as division foes, Dallas is 52-26-1 against the Cardinals but 4-8 when they are in different divisions.

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Dallas Cowboys quarterback Ben DiNucci (7) throws against the Arizona Cardinals during the second half of an NFL preseason football game, Friday, Aug. 13, 2021, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)

The Cowboys did win the first time they played in Glendale, a 27-10 win on Nov. 11, 2006, and won the last meeting between the teams in Arizona, 28-17, on Sept. 25, 2017.

The teams are 10-10 overall in games played in Arizona and 24-16 overall since the team left St. Louis.

Dallas has lost the last three games played against the Cardinals at home — all three coming at AT&T Stadium — but still hold a 14-6 advantage in games played in Dallas thanks to a 14-3 record at Texas Stadium.

One Lone Playoff Meeting

Like as was the case with the Giants, the Cowboys have only met the Cardinals once in the postseason in 63 years.

On Jan. 2, 1999, Arizona rolled to a relatively easy 20-7 victory at Texas Stadium. Jake Plummer threw for two touchdowns.

Troy Aikman’s next-to-last playoff game — his final postseason game would be a loss to the Vikings the next year — was a forgettable three-interception performance.

Richard Paolinelli

Staff Writer

Richard Paolinelli is a sports journalist and author. In addition to his work at InsideTheStar.com, he has a Substack -- Dispatches From A SciFi Scribe – where he discusses numerous topics, including sports in general. He started his newspaper career in 1991 with the Gallup (NM) Independent before going to the Modesto (CA) Bee, Gustine (CA) Press-Standard, and Turlock (CA) Journal -- where he won the 2001 Best Sports Story, in the annual California Newspaper Publishers Association’s Better Newspapers Contest. He then moved to the Merced (CA) Sun-Star, Tracy (CA) Press, Patch and finished his career in 2011 with the San Francisco (CA) Examiner. He has written two Non-Fiction sports books, 11 novels, and has over 30 published short stories.

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