Cowboys at Browns: What's Dallas' 'Troublesome Trio' in Week 1? Tracker

SEPT 7 TROUBLESOME TRIO This Cowboys franchise is 40-23-1 (.633) all-time in season-openers. That's the second-highest winning percentage in the league in that category behind Denver (40-22-1, .645).

That could be scary to the Browns in Sunday's Week 1, but ...

Last year, Dallas was just 4-5 on the road. Why? Because when the Cowboys played on the road and played on grass and faced a quality team ... Dallas lost.

Cleveland, meanwhile, was 8-1 at home. Meaning ... Sunday's game will be played on the road, on the grass, against a good team.

That's a three-way edge for the Browns.

SEPT 7 MARRIED How are coach Mike McCarthy and QB Dak Prescott - who led the league in touchdown passes (36), finished second in MVP voting, and had a 12-5 record last year - more and more like an old married couple?

In the sense that they, as McCarthy said this week in preparation for Week 1 at the Browns, have "an ability to finish each other's sentences.''

McCarthy is entering the second year serving as his own playcaller in Dallas, and the point in what they call the "Texas Coast Offense'' is that the coach and the QB speak the same language.

What are the differences in that "marriage relationship'' with Prescott from a play-caller/quarterback perspective in Year 2?

"I think you look at Week 1 last year, it was more about getting the plan set,” McCarthy said. "That's a maturation process, in my opinion, between any quarterback and play-caller where now, the conversation is always, 'What's next?'

"I think we all clearly get to that point, and I feel like we're definitely in that direction.”

SEPT 5 BELL RUNG The Cleveland Browns feel good about their wideout group that will line up against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday ...and they feel that way despite a late-week cut.

The Browns have ex-Cowboys star Amari Cooper and they acquired Jerry Jeudy in the offseason, so they have now waived wide receiver David Bell.

Bell was a third-round pick back in 2022, as the Browns selected him with the No. 99 overall pick that year.

SEPT 5 FREAK! Tyler Guyton was drafted by the Cowboys in the first round in April with the belief he'd soon start at left tackle. "Soon'' now comes Sunday in NFL Week 1. And that means so does Myles Garrett, aiming directly for QB Dak Prescott.

Guyton believes he's been armed with experience against top-tier players that could help in the game against Garrett.

"I've played against Micah (Parsons in practice) and (the Raiders) Maxx Crosby, and now I get to block Myles Garrett. I feel like I'm going to be myself and see what I can do," he said.

But make no mistake ...

"He’s a genetic freak and a great player," Guyton said.

SEPT 4 FINALLY? Ja'Marr Chase is practicing with the Bengals on Wednesday. ... finally.

He did nott work on the field at the end of last week or on Monday amidst his desire for a new contract extension that according to rumors has the Pro Bowl receiver wishing for "one cent more'' than Justin Jefferson's $35 million APY.

The Bengals, who see themselves as AFC North champion-caliber, play host to the Pats on Sunday in NFL Week 1.

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported Chase was in a team meeting for Week 1 preparation.SEPT 3 TV TOM Sunday NFL Week 1 is headlined by a 4:25 p.m. contest pitting the Dallas Cowboys against the Cleveland Browns. ... and the NFL broadcasting debut of Tom Brady is part of the story - as is his research binder.

Brady will be in the booth for the call of FOX's "America's Game of the Week." He joins FOX's No. 1 team with Kevin Burkhardt, Erin Andrews and Tom Rinaldi. ... and he will have tucked into his backpack - or maybe just his brain - more than 20 years of detailed notes.

“I basically kept every call sheet, scouting report from every game that I played by season in real time,” Brady said, harkening back to his Super Bowl-winning days with the Pats and the Bucs. “I think if I want to refer back to players or scheme or defense coordinators, you know, it’s all here …

"I’ll do the same thing as a broadcaster, I’m going to store information going into the season.”

SEPT 3 FUN! The Dallas Cowboys and right tackle Terence Steele have a "different'' definition of "fun'' than some.''

It's Cowboys at Browns in Week 1 on Sunday and that means Myles Garrett is back in business ... with the rebuilt Dallas O-line trying to stand in his way.

Said Steele said. "I'm probably more excited than I am nervous. I'm excited to be there with my team and put on a show. This O-line is going to be fun to watch."

The Browns hope it will be a "show'' because the Cowboys will be starting two rookies in the line in left tackle Tyler Guyton and center Cooper Beebe. And all they have to do is deal with Garrett (14 sacks a year ago) and a Browns defense that is trying to be the NFL's best.

AUG 30 UNSTABLE The Dallas Cowboys are being billed as "unstable'' thanks to a piece in The Athletic that paints owner Jerry Jones as the problem.

According to The Athletic's annual agent survey, Jones is the centerpiece of blame for the Cowboys shortcomings. The group voted Dallas as the third-most unstable franchise across the league.

"I don’t think they want to win above all," one agent said an agent. "Jerry wants to turn profits and make headlines. I think the game has passed him by."

We get it. One problem: Dallas does win. The Cowboys have gone 12-5 in each of the last three seasons, a record only the Chiefs can match.

But for Week 1? Browns fans hope it's true ... that the Cowboys are too "unstable'' to win. And really, once you see it that way ... isn't it sort of a silly notion?

AUG 28 IT'S RUSS The Steelers have made their choice. And it's Russ.

In big AFC North news, the starting in Pittsburgh is Russell Wilson, as the Browns rival has settled its in-house "QB controversy'' that also involved Justin Fields.

How long will it last? Let's get to Week 1, Steelers vs. Falcons, for a look.

AUGUST 28 - COWBOYS SIGNING—Just a day after trimming down their roster to the NFL's 53-man limit, the Dallas Cowboys have already made an addition. Well, kind of. It isn't an addition to their 53-man roster; instead, it is just to the practice squad, as they signed former four-time Pro Bowl Minnesota Vikings running back Dalvin Cook.

As first reported by NFL.com's Tom Pelissero, Cook, the 29-year-old, just visited and worked out for the Cowboys Tuesday. With Ezekiel Elliott, Rico Dowdle, and Deuce Vaughn on the roster, the Cowboys will stash Cook on their practice squad until he is ready to be activated.

The Cowboys are Cook's third team since being released from the Vikings, where he spent the first five years of his career. The former Florida State product compiled four straight 1,000-yard rushing seasons and made it to the Pro Bowl four times. However, as has been the case for many running backs in recent years, his production and health deteriorated as he aged.

That led to his release in June of last year. From there, he spent time with the New York Jets, rushing for just 214 yards on 67 attempts despite playing in 15 games, before he once again found himself a free agent. His release from New York saw him join the Baltimore Ravens for their playoff run.

AUGUST 27 - CEEDEE CONTRACT - After a weeks-long holdout, star receiver CeeDee Lamb returns to the Dallas Cowboys facility Monday as he signed his new contract. The former first-round pick was in training camp after a long absence from the Cowboys as he awaited an extension to his previously expiring contract.

However, after almost a month of waiting and even responding to some of Cowboys' owner Jerry Jones's odd comments, the two sides came to an agreement Monday.

According to reports, Lamb signed a four-year contract totaling $136 million, with an annual average value of $34 million. He became the league's second-highest-paid non-quarterback. Only Minnesota Vikings receiver Justin Jefferson ranks above him in terms of money.

The agreement on an extension now clarifies whether the Cowboys will have their star receiver in their Week 1 matchup versus the Cleveland Browns.