How have the Cowboys Head Coaches fared in their 1st game?

On Thursday, September 4th, the Dallas Cowboys will open the 2025 season in Philadelphia. They get to watch the Eagles celebrate their Super Bowl win.

Then they have to try to spoil the party by beating them.

Dallas will be led onto the field for the very first time by new head coach Brian Schottenheimer. It will be his first-ever game in that role at any level of football.

How did the first games go for the previous nine head coaches in Dallas Cowboys’ history? Let’s take a walk down memory lane.

Tom Landry (1960)

Tom Landry has the honor of being the head coach for the franchise’s first-ever game.

He also had the honor of having to scramble together a team made up of retired players, other team’s scraps, and anyone off the street that looked fit enough to run more than five yards.

On Saturday, September 24th at the Cotton Bowl, Landry’s Cowboys took on the Pittsburgh Steelers. They stunned the Steelers with two quick touchdowns for a 14-0 lead.

Pittsburgh rallied for a 35-28 victory.

Jimmy Johnson (1989)

Jimmy Johnson took on the task of rebuilding America’s Team almost from scratch. Only a few players that had been on the 1988 roster were in uniform on Sept. 10, 1989.

On that Sunday afternoon, the Cowboys took on the Saints in New Orleans.

It ended with an ugly 28-0 loss. Punter Mike Saxon (83.3) had a better QB rating that day than Troy Aikman (40.2).

Barry Switzer (1994)

In the shocking aftermath of the Jerry Jones-Johnson divorce, Barry Switzer led Dallas on September 4, 1994, north to Pittsburgh.

Unlike Landry’s debut, the Steelers put up little fight against the Cowboys in a 26-9 Dallas win.

Chan Gailey (1998)

Gailey’s debut on Sept. 6, 1998, like Landry’s, took place at home. Unlike Landry, his was at Texas Stadium and against the Phoenix Cardinals.

The Cowboys cruised to a 38-10 victory.

Dave Campo (2000)

Dave Campo’s first game was an ominous precursor of what was to come for the next three seasons.

Hosting Philadelphia on Sept. 3, 2000, the Cowboys were steamrolled 41-14 that afternoon. It was the first of his 33 losses against only 15 wins that Campo would oversee.

Bill Parcells (2003)

Bill Parcell’s era got off to a promising start on Sept. 7, 2003. Dallas held a 7-3 lead over Atlanta at Texas Stadium.

The Falcons departed with a 27-13 victory, however.

Wade Phillips (2007)

Wade Phillips, a defensive coach, saw his debut with the Cowboys on Sept. 9, 2007 turn into a Wild West shootout against the Giants.

The Cowboys, playing at home at Texas Stadium, outlasted New York 45-35 on four Tony Romo touchdown passes.

Jason Garrett (2010)

After a 1-7 start to the 2010 season, Phillips was fired. On Nov. 14th, Jason Garrett led the team in his first game as head coach.

Like Phillips, his win would come against the Giants, a 33-20 victory up in New York.

Mike McCarthy (2020)

On Sept. 13, 2020, Mike McCarthy’s first game was against the Rams out in Los Angeles.

Dak Prescott would get out dueled by Jared Goff in a 20-17 loss.

The Final Numbers

Coming into Schottenheimer’s debut this fall, the Cowboys’ record for the first game for a new head coach stands at 4-5.

An upset win on the road in Philadelphia would even that record. It would also give Schottenheimer and his team a huge confidence boost too.