This Christmas Day opener is purely about rivalry with Dallas and Washington, as both have been eliminated from playoff contention. After disappointing seasons for both teams, these last two weeks of 2025 are about finishing strong and looking toward the future. This is the first time Dallas has missed the postseason in back-to-back years since 2019 and 2020.
Dallas (6-8-1) has an explosive offense, ranking No. 1 in passing behind Dak Prescott’s 4,175 yards and No. 2 in total offense across the league. However, the defense has been a letdown once again, giving up the third most yards per game at 380.1 and the second most points per game with 30.3. The Cowboys beat the Commanders earlier this season, so sweeping them would be a ray of sunshine on an otherwise cloudy season.
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It’s been a rough, injury-riddled season for Washington (4-11), and that goes double for second-year quarterback Jayden Daniels. After shutting Daniels down for the season due to injury, all the Commanders have to play for now is pride. Backup quarterback Marcus Mariota is also dealing with multiple injuries after leaving Saturday’s loss to Philly. Despite having just four wins following a 12-win season where Washington also advanced to the NFC championship game, beating the rival Cowboys would help ease some tension as the offseason quickly approaches.
Cowboys-Commanders start time: 1 p.m. ET
Location: Northwest Stadium | Landover, MD
TV channel, live stream: Fox, NFL+
Follow along with Yahoo Sports for live updates, highlights and more as the Cowboys and Commanders kick off the Christmas Day slate:
Live4 updates
Thu, December 25, 2025 at 8:49 AM PST
Tarohn Finley
Washington Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. will not play in Thursday’s game against the Dallas Cowboys. Rodriguez was a late addition to the injury report with an illness.
In last week’s 29-18 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, Rodriguez rushed for 63 yards and a touchdown.
With Rodriguez inactive, expect rookie running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt and Jeremy McNichols to receive the bulk of the carries. Croskey-Merritt had 25 rushing yards and a touchdown against the Eagles.
Kate Magdziuk
The NFL announced the 2026 Pro Bowl rosters on Tuesday, with Cowboys wide receiver George Pickens earning the first Pro Bowl selection of his career in his first season with the team.
Through 15 games, Pickens ranks third in the NFL with 1,342 receiving yards on 88 catches with nine receiving touchdowns (seventh in the league). Pickens currently ranks as the overall WR4 in Yahoo Fantasy leagues.
All are career-high marks for the fourth-year wideout, who’s in the final year of his rookie contract following an offseason trade to the franchise from the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The real question will be how Jerry Jones will handle Pickens’ upcoming contract negotiations, having just traded away star edge rusher Micah Parsons after negotiations for a historic payday fell through.
The team is also paying star wideout CeeDee Lamb a contract that ranks third among receivers with a $34 million AAV.
Other Cowboys to make the cut include quarterback Dak Prescott — his fourth selection — as well as guard Tyler Smith, defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and kicker Brandon Aubrey.
Thu, December 25, 2025 at 8:34 AM PST
Yahoo Sports Staff
With less than 90 minutes remaining until the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders kick off on Christmas afternoon, each team has announced its Week 17 inactives for gameday.
Here’s a look:
Cowboys inactivesCommanders inactives
QB Sam Hartman (Emergency QB)
Thu, December 25, 2025 at 8:30 AM PST