Who are the 2 Most Important Dallas Cowboys in Week 2?

It is game day at AT&T Stadium for the first time this season as the Dallas Cowboys host the Washington Commanders in their 2026 home opener, a high-stakes matchup. Starting 0-2 is essentially a death sentence for the NFL playoffs, and both teams head into this one at 0-1.

Last week was a rough ride for Dallas, more so than for Washington, who lost narrowly to the Eagles; the Cowboys got bruised and battered by the Giants. Don’t let the 28-20 final score fool you.

Today, Dallas is going to be looking at their top guys to get this season back on track, but I think there are two in particular who hold the keys to a Cowboys win in their hands. Here, I’ll talk about them and why they are so important in Week 2.

1. George Pickens: Cowboys Star WR Unlocks Whole Offense, IF He Plays To His Standard

Pickens’s Week 1 Stats: 3 Catches, 28 Yards, 2 Drops.

Week 1 was as ugly a game as I’ve seen George Pickens play as a Cowboy, and it was headlined by the huge dropped pass late in the second quarter; that could have been a game-changing touchdown if he had just reeled it in.

Pickens’ lack of production and costly drops stunted the usually explosive Dallas offense and killed momentum; if the Cowboys want to win today, that cannot happen.

The star WR can’t let last week’s performance snowball into another bad week. He needs to turn things around and turn those deep balls from incompletions into huge chunk gains — if he can’t, I think you’ll see another struggle fest for what should be an elite Dallas Cowboys offense.

2. Rashan Gary: New Cowboy EDGE Must Make Bigger Impact in Week 2

Gary’s Week 1 Stats: 1 Solo Tackle, 1 QB Hit, 0 Sacks.

The pass rush in general for the Cowboys in Week 1 was abysmal, but Rashan Gary’s showing, or lack thereof, was especially notable. I mean, the guy literally had one solo tackle in four quarters of play; that’s not going to cut it.

It was also eerily familiar to his disappearance last season, when he went without a sack from Week 9 until the end of the season. We can argue if the Cowboys overpaid in their trade for Gary, but that’s irrelevant now. He simply needs to play better now that he is here as the “leader” of the EDGE room.

Jayden Daniels will be running today, and one of these pass rushers has to make a play or two (or more); they certainly didn’t last week.