The Cowboys conditionally traded their fifth-round selection to the Oakland Raiders for wide receiverBrice Butler and the Raiders' 2016 sixth-round selection. The pick swap occurred after Butler spent six games on the Cowboys' 53-man roster in 2015.
The Cowboys traded a sixth-round selection to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for the 49ers' 2015 seventh-round selection.
A hard-fought game, the Cowboys fell short trying to win their home opener against the Giants, dropping to 0-1 and losing to the Giants at AT&T Stadium for the first time since 2012.
Ezekiel Elliott struggled to find holes all game, but managed to record his first NFL touchdown. The Dallas defense failed to contain the Giants rushing attack. The game also saw the return of Victor Cruz, who caught the game-clinching touchdown pass from Eli Manning.
Dallas' final play, a 14-yard catch & run to Terrance Williams, put them in field-goal range, but he stayed in-bounds and time expired.
Week 2: at Washington Redskins
Week Two: Dallas Cowboys at Washington Redskins – Game summary
DAL – Sean Lee 6 solo tackles, 4 assists, 1 pass deflected
WAS – Bashaud Breeland 9 solo tackles, 1 assist, 0.5 tackles for a loss, 2 passes deflected
Rookie quarterback Dak Prescott was impressive in his second NFL start, rushing for a touchdown and playing mistake-free football as Dallas evened its record at 1-1 with a win over its long-time rival.
Barry Church's interception of Kirk Cousins in the end zone late in the fourth quarter sealed the deal.
Week 3: vs. Chicago Bears
Week Three: Chicago Bears at Dallas Cowboys – Game summary
Period
1
2
3
4
Total
Bears
0
3
7
7
17
Cowboys
10
14
0
7
31
at AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
Date: September 25
Game time: 7:30 p.m. CDT
Game weather: Played indoors (retractable roof closed)
Dallas won its first home game in over a year as it dispatched of the Bears, who were without normal starting quarterback Jay Cutler and instead started Brian Hoyer.
Ezekiel Elliott ran for 140 yards on 30 carries in just his third NFL game and Dak Prescott threw his first NFL touchdown pass to Dez Bryant.
To this point, Prescott has thrown 99 passes without an interception, second only to Carson Wentz's 102 for the Eagles, which is a NFL record for a rookie.
Week 4: at San Francisco 49ers
Week Four: Dallas Cowboys at San Francisco 49ers – Game summary
The Cowboys rallied from an early 14-point hole to win over the 49ers on the road, winning their third straight game in the process.
Ezekiel Elliott went over the century mark again, rushing for 138 yards and a touchdown.
Week 5: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Week Five: Cincinnati Bengals at Dallas Cowboys – Game summary
Period
1
2
3
4
Total
Bengals
0
0
0
14
14
Cowboys
7
14
7
0
28
at AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
Date: October 9
Game time: 3:25 p.m. CDT
Game weather: Played indoors (retractable roof closed)
This game was never really in doubt, as Dak Prescott extended his consecutive passes to begin a career without an interception streak to 155, trailing only Tom Brady all-time.
Ezekiel Elliott rushed for 134 yards on only 15 carries, including a 60-yard touchdown run. The win put Dallas a half-game ahead of the Eagles for first place in the NFC East.
Week 6: at Green Bay Packers
Week Six: Dallas Cowboys at Green Bay Packers – Game summary
It was the third straight year that the Cowboys traveled to Lambeau to face the Packers. Despite Dak Prescott being picked off for the first time this season, he still managed 247 passing yards and three touchdowns. He also passed Tom Brady's all time record of consecutive pass attempts to start a career without an interception.
Ezekiel Elliot pounded the Green Bay Packers number one ranked run defense with 157 yards on 28 carries
The Dallas defense dominated the Packers, forcing four Green Bay turnovers. It was the first time since 2008, and second time in franchise history that the Cowboys had won at Lambeau. With the 30-16 victory, the Cowboys went 5-1 heading into the bye week.
Week 8: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Week Eight: Philadelphia Eagles at Dallas Cowboys – Game summary
Period
1
2
3
4
OT
Total
Eagles
3
10
7
3
0
23
Cowboys
7
3
3
10
6
29
at AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
Date: October 30
Game time: 8:30 p.m. CDT/7:30 p.m. CDT
Game weather: 84 °F (29 °C), clear skies — retractable roof open
Hoping to continue their winning streak, the Cowboys hosted the Philadelphia Eagles in a primetime matchup duel between Dak Prescott and Carson Wentz. Jason Witten's touchdown in overtime sealed the victory to the Cowboys, who went 6-1; this was the Cowboys first victory against the Eagles at AT&T Stadium since 2012.
Week 9: at Cleveland Browns
Week Nine: Dallas Cowboys at Cleveland Browns – Game summary
The winless Browns had no answer for Dak Prescott who threw 4 touchdown passes in a 35-10 win and improving the Cowboys 7-1 for the first time since 2007.
Week 10: at Pittsburgh Steelers
Week Ten: Dallas Cowboys at Pittsburgh Steelers – Game summary
A classic rivalry since the 1970s, the Cowboys traveled to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers, who were coming off a three game losing streak (including a loss to the Baltimore Ravens the previous week). With the win, the Cowboys extended their winning streak to eight games for the first time since 1977. Ezekiel Elliott reached 1000 yards in this game and rushed for the game winning touchdown under 30 secs. The Cowboys also clinched a non-losing season as they now have the best win-loss record in the NFL.
Week 11: vs. Baltimore Ravens
Week Eleven: Baltimore Ravens at Dallas Cowboys – Game summary
Period
1
2
3
4
Total
Ravens
7
3
0
7
17
Cowboys
0
10
7
10
27
at AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas
Date: November 20
Game time: 12:00 p.m. CST
Game weather: Played indoors (retractable roof closed)
The Cowboys returned home to take on the Baltimore Ravens. Ezekiel Elliott surpassed Tony Dorsett's record of 1,007 rushing yards as a rookie. With the win, the Cowboys extended their winning streak to nine games for the first time in the team's franchise history. The win also saw the Cowboys beat the Ravens for the very first time.
In the traditional Thanksgiving game, the Cowboys hosted the Washington Redskins, who had just came off a victory against the Green Bay Packers. In a game of catch-up, the Redskins never led; however, they made a valiant effort in the fourth quarter to take the lead. The Cowboys held them off and won the game, thus extending their winning streak to ten games for the first time in franchise history.
Week 13: at Minnesota Vikings
Week Thirteen: Dallas Cowboys at Minnesota Vikings – Game summary
The Cowboys traveled to Minnesota to take on the struggling Vikings following their loss against the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving. In a rather tightly contested game that saw penalties on Dallas and strong Vikings defense, the Cowboys nevertheless managed to win and thus extended their historical win streak to eleven games. This was also the first time since 1995 in which Dallas had won at Minnesota.
Week 14: at New York Giants
Week Fourteen: Dallas Cowboys at New York Giants – Game summary
^ abDetroit finished ahead of Tampa Bay for the No. 6 seed and qualified for the last playoff spot based on record vs. common opponents—Detroit's cumulative record against Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles and New Orleans was 3–2, while Tampa Bay's cumulative record against the same four teams was 2–3.
^ abNew Orleans finished ahead of Philadelphia based on better record vs. conference opponents.
^When breaking ties for three or more teams under the NFL's rules, they are first broken within divisions, then comparing only the highest-ranked remaining team from each division.
