Cowboys vs. Eagles TNF Start 'Em, Sit 'Em: AJ Brown, DeVonta Smith, George Pickens, Dallas Goedert, Jake Ferguson, Javonte Williams, Jaydon Blue, Jalen Hurts

September 4, 2025

Fantasy football start em, sit em lineups advice for the Cowboys vs. Eagles Thursday game in Week 1 (2025). NFL matchups analysis and TNF starts/sits for Week 1.

The 2025 NFL season and the fantasy football season kick off on Thursday night when the Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles host the Dallas Cowboys. As the Eagles receive their rings and unveil the Super Bowl banner, this normally elite matchup will have some extra spice on opening night. Two of the best offenses in the league and teams with overflowing options for fantasy football will be going head-to-head to open 2025.

The Eagles open the season looking to defend their title and copy and paste their efficient run offense into the new season. The Cowboys, on the other hand, have apparently decided to punt on defense this season and will rely on a high-flying passing game led by some new additions.

I will bring you Thursday Night Football analysis all season, focusing on who to start, who is on the fence, and who should find the bench. Let's dive into this kickoff Thursday night matchup for the 2025 season. You can also check out our Friday start 'em, sit 'em matchups article, and our main Week 1 start 'em, sit 'em matchups article for all other games. Good luck in your first 2025 fantasy football week, RotoBallers!

Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles

Thursday September 4th, 8:20 PM ET

Notable Injuries:

• Jaydon Blue (RB) - Dallas Cowboys - Questionable (ankle)
• Miles Sanders (RB) - Dallas Cowboys - Questionable (shoulder)
• DeVonta Smith (WR) - Philadelphia Eagles - Questionable (groin)
• A.J. Brown (WR) - Philadelphia Eagles - Questionable (hamstring)

Cowboys vs. Eagles Matchup Breakdown

When you go back and look at the numbers from the 2024 season, it's no surprise the Philadelphia Eagles won the Super Bowl in February. On defense, they were third in the league in opponents' touchdowns per game and opponents' trips to the red zone. On offense, they were eighth in yards per game and first in time of possession.

Your 2025 Captains 🌟 pic.twitter.com/0LSl7QrfhX

— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) August 29, 2025

The Dallas Cowboys, you might have heard, decided it was a good idea to trade away one of the game's best pass rushers instead of paying him, which means they enter the 2025 season with an elite offense and a miserable defense. The Cowboys passed 61% of the time in 2024 (sixth-most in the league) and were top 10 in passing yards, even with Dak Prescott missing nine games.

The Cowboys let Rico Dowdle and Ezekiel Elliott go, and replenished their running back room with Javonte Williams, Miles Sanders, and rookie Jaydon Blue. The Eagles were fourth in the league, allowing only 101 rushing yards per game last year, so expect the Cowboys to throw well over 60% of the time in this game.

Must-Starts for Fantasy Football Lineups

Dak Prescott (RB, DAL)

Two Dallas Cowboys quarterbacks combined to throw 594 passes in 2024. Joe Burrow (652 passes) and the Bengals were the only team that threw more in the entire NFL. Even when Dak Prescott went down, the Cowboys were slinging it. Now with another elite wide receiver in George Pickens, I hope Dak has been getting his arm warmed up, because he is likely to cross 625 passes this year if he plays every game.

The Cowboys are more than a touchdown underdog in this game, so the passing roller coaster is certainly set to start in Week 1. Prescott isn't much of a threat to run anymore, so he should settle in as a full-time pocket passer, counting on the elite route running from CeeDee Lamb and Pickens to keep their team moving down the field.

CeeDee Lamb (WR, DAL)

Lamb was a consensus top-6 draft pick this offseason for good reason. He is top-10 among all wide receivers in target share, targets, receptions, yards, yards after the catch, routes won, and expected fantasy points. He was on pace for over 170 targets before missing the last two games of the season last year, and now has Pickens on the other side to take the defense's attention away from time to time. Not many players have a case that they could be the best player in fantasy football in a season, but Lamb is one of them.

Draft CeeDee Lamb. You won’t regret it. pic.twitter.com/PFMJ6qEPsx

— SleeperCowboys (@SleeperCowboys) August 30, 2025

George Pickens (WR, DAL)

Pickens has never been in a better situation than he is in for the 2025 season. He is one of the biggest "crystal ball" players of the year. If we knew he would get a 26% target share and be top-5 in deep targets like he was in 2024, it's possible he tops 1,200 yards and 10 touchdowns this season. With hopefully all of the past drama of the Pittsburgh Steelers behind him, Pickens looks to be the deep threat option that the Cowboys have been missing for so long.

Jalen Hurts (QB, PHI)

Care to take a guess at which defense was so bad in 2024 that they allowed the most rushing yards and rushing touchdowns to opposing quarterbacks? That's right, the Dallas Cowboys. They gave up 10 rushing scores to the position last season, including two to Hurts in the only game he played against them. The Cowboys were also bottom-10 in passing touchdowns allowed, so this is pretty much a dream matchup for Jalen Hurts managers.

Saquon Barkley (RB, PHI)

The Cowboys allowed the fourth-most rushing yards per game to opponents last season (137.1) as well as the sixth-most receiving yards to the position (650). If you have given any thought to sitting Saquon Barkley in this game, reach out to me and let's have a private consultation about how you set the players in your starting fantasy football lineup.

OH MY! YOU JUST GOT BARKLEYED™️@saquon | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/xyib70rth4

— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) November 3, 2024

A.J. Brown (WR, PHI)

The hamstring injury that A.J. Brown picked up a couple of weeks ago in training camp is a little bit worrisome. But Brown is returning to practice ahead of Week 1, and if the Eagles believe he is fit to play in the first game of a very long season, then we should be comfortable starting him. In his 13 games played, Brown was second among all wide receivers with a 34.4% target share last year. The Eagles don't want another round of drama with Brown complaining about his targets, so expect them to keep him happy this year.

DeVonta Smith (WR, PHI)

Apart from cumulative receiving yards, the seasons for Brown and DeVonta Smith looked very similar in 2024. Smith finished with 833 yards and eight touchdowns, and while he is quite the boom-or-bust player, he is a threat to break a long touchdown every single game. The Dallas secondary ranks in the bottom 10 everywhere you look, so Smith gets a bump up to must-start status in what could be a shootout.

Possible Starts for Fantasy Football Lineups

Jake Ferguson (TE, DAL)

Jake Ferguson will be a sneaky strong tight end option in 2024 if the Cowboys' offense is deployed the way everyone thinks it will be. He was 10th in targets, ninth in yards after the catch, and 12th in receptions last year, and now should get the quarterback upgrade of Prescott all season. But the Eagles were one of the best teams in the league against tight ends, allowing the third-fewest fantasy points per game in 2024. Ferguson is borderline in 12-team leagues, but in 10-team leagues, there should be better options in Week 1.

Dallas Goedert (TE, PHI)

The Philadelphia Eagles were 26th in total targets to tight ends last season. You can make a case that was partially due to the fact that Dallas Goedert missed seven games, but really, they just don't gameplan for Goedert the way they do for Barkley or the wide receivers.

Consider Sitting for Fantasy Football Lineups

Javonte Williams (RB, DAL)

Javonte Williams played all 17 games in 2024 and totaled just 513 rushing yards. He was 54th in true yards per carry and 37th in yards per touch. The efficiency was nonexistent, so he would have to get there on volume against the Eagles, and I just don't see that happening in this offense scheme.

Jaydon Blue (RB, DAL)

There are many in the fantasy football community, including myself, who believe Blue and his explosive play ability will lead the Cowboys' running backs by season's end. But against this rush defense and coming off an ankle injury suffered in training camp, this is not the place to deploy Blue in his first NFL game.

JAYDON BLUE, HOW DO YOU DO?!?! 🔥

A 77-YARD TOUCHDOWN TO MAKE IT A TWO-SCORE GAME VS. CLEMSON 😱 pic.twitter.com/cCzmh6V5W2

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) December 22, 2024

There is a scenario in this game where Blue catches seven or eight passes because the Cowboys are trailing and in catch-up mode for the entire second half. But a situational rookie with a nagging injury is not a safe start.

Jahan Dotson (WR, PHI)

In 2024, Brown and Smith each had at least 90 targets despite playing only 13 games each. Jahan Dotson had 33 targets in 17 games. This is traditionally a low-volume passing attack and such a narrow passing tree that there is no room for a third wide receiver to make a fantasy difference.

Kirksey’s Thursday Night Football Picks

Current Spread: PHI -7.5
Over/Under: 47.5

In addition to the natural rivalry and hatred between these two teams, the offensive firepower and the opening night adrenaline of both teams have me leaning toward the over in this game. I don't see how the Cowboys offense can stop the elite four-man rotation the Eagles have between their quarterbacks, running back, and wide receivers.

Since 2020, the opening kickoff game of the season has reached 47 points in four out of five games, since it's typically two of the best teams the NFL can offer. Since the weakest unit on the field in this game will be the Cowboys' defense, give me the Eagles winning by a score of 31-21.

The Pick: PHI -7.5, OVER 47.5

2024 Overall Record (including Thanksgiving games):
Spread (10-9), Over/Under (11-7-1)

More Fantasy Football Analysis