WEEK 3 · Fri 08/28 · 7:00 PM CDT
Saints
New Orleans Saints
AT
Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
SAINTS: Roster | Depth Chart | Stats
COWBOYS: Roster | Depth Chart | Stats
On Friday night, the New Orleans Saints will conclude a preseason that featured grueling padded practices, non-padded workouts focused on correction, three joint practices and three preseason games against teams with explosive offenses and extensive commitment in the meeting rooms, training room and weight room. This phase of meticulous preparation will all come to an end when New Orleans plays at the Dallas Cowboys, the club's final dress rehearsal before they return to action to begin their regular season 16 days later to travel play the Detroit Lions at Ford Field.
Despite being natural geographic rivals, the Saints and Cowboys have met only seven times in the preseason, with Dallas taking four meetins. This is the first time the Saints will play Dallas in the preseason since 2006 and the first time they travel to play the Cowboys for an exhibition since 1978.
SAINTS vs. COWBOYS PRESEASON SERIES HISTORY
The Saints and the Cowboys will face off for only the eighth time in the preseason. Dallas extended the lead in the series to 4-3 with a 30-7 win over the Saints in a contest played in Shreveport's Independence Bowl on August 21, 2006. This will be the first time the Saints play the Cowboys in Dallas since a 24-14 New Orleans loss on August 18, 1973.
THE LAST REGULAR SEASON MEETING
Saints 44, Cowboys 19; Sept. 15, 2024 @ AT&T Stadium - The New Orleans Saints rode four touchdowns from running back Alvin Kamara and near-perfect passing from quarterback Derek Carr to a dominating 44-19 victory over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.
It was the Saints' second overwhelming victory to start the season as the first-team offense scored on 15 consecutive possessions before punting in the fourth quarter Sunday. New Orleans ended Dallas' 16-game home winning streak as the Cowboys dropped to 1-1. FULL GAME RECAP
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SAINTS vs. COWBOYS STATISTICAL COMPARISON
2025 NFL Regular Season League Rankings
| Saints | COWBOYS | |
|---|---|---|
| Record | 6-11 | 7-9-1 |
| Scoring Avg. (NFL Rank) | 18.0 (28) | 27.7 (7) |
| Opp. Scoring Avg. (NFL Rank) | 22.5 (16) | 30.1 (32) |
| Total Off. (NFL Rank) | 313.6 (23) | 391.0 (2) |
| Rushing Off. (NFL Rank) | 94.3 (28) | 125.6 (9) |
| Passing Off. (NFL Rank) | 219.3 (13) | 266.3 (2) |
| Total Def. (NFL Rank) | 299.8 (9) | 377.0 (30) |
| Rushing Def. (NFL Rank) | 120.6 (19) | 125.5 (23) |
| Passing Def. (NFL Rank) | 170.2 (4) | 251.5 (32) |
| Punt Return Avg. (NFL Rank) | 9.1 (20) | 6.3 (30) |
| Kickoff Return Avg. (NFL Rank) | 25.2 (22) | 25.6 (18) |
| Turnover Margin (NFL Rank) | -4 (23t) | -9 (29t) |
| Possession Avg. | 28:36 | 30:12 |
| Touchdowns | 31 | 51 |
| Penalties | 118 | 133 |
| Penalty Yards | 920 | 1,136 |
| Opp. Penalties | 116 | 134 |
| Opp. Penalty Yards | 913 | 1,142 |
SAINTS vs. COWBOYS CONNECTIONS
Saints Head Coach Kellen Moore played for the Cowboys from 2015-17 and then served on the team's coaching staff from 2018-22.
Saints Offensive Coordinator Doug Nussmeier, Tight Ends Coach Chase Haslett, Senior Offensive Assistant Scott Linehan, Quarterbacks Coach Scott Tolzien and Assistant Wide Receivers Coach Kyle Valero all served on the Cowboys coaching staff. Moore, Valero, Nussmeier and Saints Run Game Coordinator T.J. Paganetti served on the same Eagles coaching staff in 2024 with Cowboys Defensive Coordinator Christian Parker. Moore and Paganetti tutored Cowboys G Trevor Keegan as a rookie in Philadelphia in 2024.
Saints C/G Erik McCoy prepped at Lufkin HS and starred at Texas A&M.
Saints LS Zach Wood prepped at Rowlett HS, played at SMU and was on the 2016 and 2017 Cowboys offseason rosters.
New Orleans Assistant Special Teams Coach Kyle Wilber played for the Cowboys from 2012-17. Wilber played with Cowboys LS Trent Sieg with the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders from 2018-21.
Saints S Elliott Davison prepped at Tyler Lee (Tyler, Texas) HS and played at Incarnate Word and UTSA.
Dallas Running Backs Coach Derrick Foster served in the same position with the Saints in 2024 and served on Saints Defensive Coordinator Brandon Staley's Los Angeles Chargers coaching staff alongside Moore, Nussmeier, Saints Offensive Line Coach Brendan Nugent and Cowboys Defensive Backs Coach & Defensive Coordinator Derrick Ansley.
Saints Defensive Line Coach Bo Davis served in the same position at Texas from 2021-23 and coached at UTSA in 2017.
New Orleans Senior Vice President/Assistant General Manager-College Personnel Jeff Ireland had a seven-year stint (2001-07) with the Cowboys, his last three seasons as the team's Vice President/College and Pro Scouting after originally being hired as the club's national scout. Ireland, an Abilene native, was a placekicker at Baylor. Cowboys Dir. of Pro Scouting Alex Loomis, who graduated from LSU, is the son of Saints Exec. VP/GM Mickey Loomis.
Dallas Strength and Conditioning Coord. Harold Nash is a New Orleans native who played defensive back at Louisiana-Lafayette from 1989-92 and for the CFL's Shreveport Pirates from 1994-95.
Saints Def. Pass Game Coord. Terry Joseph served as the def. passing game coord. and secondary coach at Texas from 2021-24.
Saints WR Jordyn Tyson prepped at Allen (Texas) HS.
New Orleans EDGE Chase Young and DL John Ridgeway III and Cowboys QB Sam Howell were teammates with the Washington Commanders from 2022-23. Ridgeway was a fifth round draft pick of the Cowboys in 2022 out of Arkansas and started his NFL career in Dallas.
Saints DB Jordan Howden and Cowboys TE Brevyn Spann-Ford were college teammates at Minnesota.
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott, a former Haughton (La.) HS standout, played at Mississippi State.
Saints LB Jaylan Ford prepped at Lone Star (Frisco, Texas) HS and starred at Texas, where he was a teammate of Saints T Kelvin Banks Jr., DL Vernon Broughton and Cowboys RB Jaydon Blue and LB DeMarvion Overshown.
New Orleans DL Davon Godchaux, EDGE Anfernee Jennings and Dallas QB Joe Milton III were teammates with New England in 2024.
New Orleans Senior Defensive Assistant Peter Giunta and Dallas Head Coach Brian Schottenheimer served on the same St. Louis Rams coaching staff in 1997.
Dallas Tight Ends Coach Lunda Wells is a Baker native who played at Southern University from 2002-05 and was an assistant at Scotlandville (La.) HS from 2006-07 and at Louisiana State University from 2008-11. Giunta and Wells served on the same New York Giants coaching staff from 2012-14.
Dallas Passing Game Spec. Ken Dorsey tutored New Orleans G David Edwards, when he was offensive coord. in Buffalo in 2023.
New Orleans WR Bub Means and Dallas RB Israel Abikanda were college teammates at Pittsburgh.
Saints CB Jayden Price played with Dallas RB Hunter Luepke at North Dakota State.
New Orleans QB Spencer Rattler played with Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb, who is an Opelousas native at Oklahoma in 2019.
New Orleans QB Zach Wilson and Cowboys WR Tyler Johnson were teammates with the New York Jets.
Saints QB Tyler Shough, DE Myles Cole and EDGE Tyree Wilson played at Texas Tech. Wilson also played at Texas A&M from 2018-19 and prepped at West Rusk (New London, Texas) HS. Cole prepped at Evangel Christian (Shreveport, La.) HS.
Saints WR Jalen Moreno-Cropper played for the Cowboys from 2023-25. Cropper and Dallas DB DaRon Bland were college teammates at Fresno State in 2021.
Saints RB Kendre Miller, who prepped at Mount Enterprise (Texas) HS and then played at TCU, where he was a college teammate of Dallas WR KaVontae Turpin, OL Tyler Guyton and LB Dee Winters.
Saints S Justin Reid and Saints WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling, who played for the Saints in 2024, were teammates with the Kansas City Chiefs from 2022-23. Edwards, Cowboys LB Von Miller and Valdes-Scantling were teammates with the Bills. Edwards and Saints S Terrell Burgess played with Miller with the Los Angeles Rams in 2021. Reid and Dallas LB Curtis Robinson were college teammates at Stanford. Edwards and Burgess played with Dallas CB Derion Kendrick with the Rams in 2022.
Dallas Outside Linebackers Coach Chidera Uzo-Diribe went to training camp with the Saints in 2014.
Edwards played with Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson at Wisconsin.
Saints G Cesar Ruiz played with Dallas TE Luke Schoonmaker and LB Rashan Gary at Michigan.
Cowboys T Nate Thomas played at Louisiana-Lafayette.
Cowboys DT Jonathan Bullard played for the Saints in 2025.
Saints Assistant Defensive Line Coach Brian Young played at UTEP and was a teammate of Cowboys Special Teams Coordinator Nick Sorensen with the Rams from 2001-02. Staley and Sorensen served on the same San Francisco 49ers coaching staff in 2024.
New Orleans RB Devin Neal and Cowboys DTs Tommy Dunn and D.J. Withers were college teammates at Kansas State.
New Orleans EDGE Fadil Diggs and Dallas LB Justin Barron and DB Alijah Clark were college teammates at Syracuse.
New Orleans LB James Houston played at Jackson State in 2021.
New Orleans S Julian Blackmon and Los Angeles LB Isaiah Land were teammates with the Indianapolis Colts from 2023-24. Blackmon played with Dallas S Malik Hooker with the Colts in 2020.
New Orleans DL Brien Taylor and Dallas CB Devin Moore were college teammates at Florida.
Saints S Lorenzo Styles and Dallas S Caleb Downs were college teammates at Ohio State.
