In case you have been living under a rock, football is officially back.

In week one the Dallas Cowboys are facing their rival, the New York Giants. These are two teams that many would agree are battling for second and third place in the division with a chance at stealing the Philadelphia Eagles' division title. 

It's worth remembering the Cowboys made some big changes this off-season.

Notably, they fired offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, who got scooped up in less than 24 hours by the Los Angeles Chargers. They also released former top-five pick running back Ezekiel Elliott and made plenty of changes to the coaching staff. So what are some things to look for in week one for the Cowboys?

We got you covered.

Cowboys head coach takes the reigns

The absolute first thing I am keeping an eye on is who many consider to be on the hot seat: Mike McCarthy himself. He is taking over play-calling duties for Kellen Moore and he is establishing a rendition of the West Coast offense, and calling it "Texas Coast."

The firing of Kellen Moore had many fans split as it was one of the biggest controversies of the offseason. Many say he is to blame for the failures of the offense over the past couple of years, and others do not. The last time McCarthy called plays was during his tenure in Green Bay, where he was from 2006-2018.

Will he be successful or will he hold this Cowboys offense back? Will changes be drastic or will they happen under the radar? Time will tell. 

Bouncebacks for Michael Gallup, Jalen Tolbert

The second thing I am looking for is the resurgence of the wide receiver room. It's safe to say Michael Gallup, didn't have the year that many expect coming back from his torn ACL. For the year he finished with 39 catches, 424 yards, and four touchdowns. That would be the second-worst season of his career (the only one worse was 2021 where he missed seven games). Can Gallup get back to where he was pre-ACL? Can he be the contested catch/downfield threat that this offense needs?

Gallup isn't the only receiver I'm looking at, however. The other one would be Jalen Tolbert. Many people are guilty of expecting Top 100 draft picks to contribute and be impactful right away. The reality of it, not every player can do that, some need time to adjust. 

Let's hope that is the case with Jalen Tolbert. While it is important to give players time to adjust. It's definitely disheartening that a top-100 pick was inactive for more games than he had catches in his rookie year. Tolbert was inactive for eight games last year, compared to his two receptions on the season. 

The good thing is just about the only direction Tolbert can go is up. Can he find his way to be WR4 on this team? It doesn't seem like a big ask, but we will find out as the season goes on.

Fewer interceptions for Dak Prescott

The last thing I am keeping an eye on is can Dak Prescott cut down on the turnovers. Staples in the West Coast offense are slant routes, flat routes, and crossing routes. It uses the running backs on short passing routes to get the defense to spread out, then it will attack them deep. 

The Cowboys have the offense to do this. They have Tony Pollard, and Deuce Vaughn who are both more than capable receivers; and they recently brought in Brandin Cooks, who is notably a deep threat to stretch defenses. A big part of the West Coast offense is speed and timing, thus it requires your QB to be accurate. The way to help your QB in this offense is to have receivers who can separate, and separate quickly. 

Do the Cowboys have the personnel to help Dak succeed or will he be the subject of blame for Cowboys fans yet again? We will see.

Cowboys vs. Giants: Five matchups to watch in Week 1

It all starts up front.

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