Dallas Cowboys vs. NY Giants: Who else to watch in NFL Week 1?
With the advent of September comes another fall of professional football in the US.
The starts Wednesday night in the New Jersey Meadowlands as the defending their National Football Conference East rival, the Dallas Cowboys.
Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo sounds eager to begin the new season with a tough test.
"As a competitor and as an athlete, you love that you get to go back and challenge someone like that, especially the world champs. That's going to be a great test for our football team," Romo told .
The game will be televised by NBC, beginning at 8:30 p.m. Eastern time.
The NFL has a variety of story lines going into this first week of the season, including the Manning brothers.
After leading the Giants to their second Super Bowl win over the New England Patriots in the past four seasons last February, now has twice the number of championship rings as his older brother .
The elder Manning has moved on from Indianapolis to Denver after a neck injury and his contract ran out. The in Peyton's first game with his new team Sunday night. Last year, the Broncos, behind Tim Tebow, ended the Steelers' season in the first round of the AFC playoffs.
Other games of interest this weekend include a match-up next January, as the Green Bay Packers travel west to California to meet the San Francisco 49ers. It could be an offensive shootout featuring a pair of effective quarterbacks - the Packers' and of the 49ers.
There's a clutch of rookie QBs to watch, too.
The No. 1 draft choice last April, Andrew Luck, makes in Chicago. Luck is likely to be tested by a tough Chicago defense, but it's not certain yet if Chicago All-Pro linebacker Brian Urlacher will play. , due to knee surgery.
, the second pick in the draft by the Redskins, will lead Washington against the Saints in New Orleans Sunday. The Saint offense, led by , looks to produce a lot of points once again in 2012.
And the Seattle Seahawks will be captained, who makes will make his NFL debut Sunday in Arizona against the Cardinals. The 5-foot-11 Wilson is about the same height as Drew Brees (that's to say, small by NFL standards) but he's got impressive numbers in the preseason. He completed 63.5 percent of his throws, had five touchdowns and one interception. He also rushed for 150 yards.
The defending AFC champion Patriots on the road in Nashville Sunday with a game against the Titans. Patriots' All-Pro quarterback Tom Brady faces off against for Tennessee.
Finally, replacement officials are scheduled to work on the opening weekend of the NFL season. by the owners earlier this year as the two sides pursued a new contract. Now, the question is when will a deal be reached.
