NFL Week 1 Recap: Giants Beat Cowboys, Jets Win at Titans
Regular-season football is back in New Jersey, and both MetLife tenants opened Week 1 with a win. On Sunday, September 13, the Giants hosted the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford and won 28-20 in front of the home crowd. Earlier in the day, the Jets traveled to Nashville and beat the Tennessee Titans 23-10 on the road. Both New York teams that share MetLife are now 1-0. Below is a recap of each game, followed by an honest look at how the pre-game angles this page laid out actually held up. Lines move every week, so confirm the current number in the FanDuel app before you bet the next slate.
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Cowboys at Giants: Giants Win 28-20 on Sunday Night Football
The Giants opened the 2026 regular season at home and beat the Dallas Cowboys 28-20 on Sunday, September 13 in the Sunday Night Football window at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford. It was an NFC East opener under the prime-time lights, and the Giants handled the first divisional test of the year in front of their own crowd to move to 1-0.
What happened. New York got the result at home in a marquee slot, holding off Dallas for an eight-point win. The two teams combined for 48 points, so this opener was not the low-scoring rock fight that season games can sometimes turn into.
How the pre-game angle graded. This page leaned toward looking past the more famous name in a prime-time marquee game, and that directional read pointed the right way: the Giants took care of business at home. The under lean was the weaker part of the call. With 48 combined points on the board, the rusty-offense, points-are-hard thesis did not really show up in this one, so anyone leaning under on the strength of a Week 1 slowdown would have been fighting the game that actually unfolded.
Jets at Titans: Jets Win 23-10 on the Road in Nashville
The Jets opened their season on the road and beat the Tennessee Titans 23-10 on Sunday, September 13 at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee. It was an early-window, non-conference opener away from MetLife, and the Jets handled the road environment to start the year 1-0.
What happened. New York controlled its road opener and won by 13. The sides combined for just 33 points, a lower-scoring game than the Giants played later that night.
How the pre-game angle graded. Both directional reads on this page held up better here. The preview weighed whether the market was leaving room on the visitors, and backing the Jets would have paid off, since they won outright in Nashville. The cautious-total instinct also fit the game that unfolded: 33 combined points is the kind of lower-scoring Week 1 script the page flagged, so leaning toward a quieter scoreboard lined up with the result.
Betting Takeaways from Week 1
- Fading the marquee name paid once. The Giants, the less-hyped side on paper in a prime-time slot, came through at home, a reminder that public attention on a famous opponent can leave value on the other side.
- Road teams can open strong. The Jets won outright in Nashville, so writing off a Week 1 visitor by default would have missed a clean road result.
- Totals were a split. The Giants game reached 48 combined points while the Jets game stopped at 33, a reminder that the Week 1 under is a lean and not a rule.
- Line movement still tells a story. Numbers get sharpened all week, and where a line travels from open to kickoff shows where money is going, whatever the final ends up being.
- Keep stakes measured. One 1-0 weekend for the home-state teams does not change the math. Treat betting as entertainment and set your limit before you place anything.
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Bottom Line
Both New Jersey teams opened Week 1 with a win on Sunday, September 13. The Giants beat the Cowboys 28-20 in prime time at MetLife in an NFC East opener, and the Jets won 23-10 on the road at the Titans in Nashville, leaving both MetLife tenants at 1-0. The pre-game angles this page laid out landed differently across the two games: fading the marquee name pointed toward the Giants and paid off, backing the road Jets would have worked, and the Week 1 under was a mixed bag from one game to the other. As always, confirm every number in the FanDuel app before you place, and bet within a budget you have set in advance.