Season openers: a mixed bag.

If the Wade Phillips era doesn’t officially get underway with a win on Sunday at Texas Stadium against those hated New York Giants, don’t worry; it’s not necessarily a signal that bad times are coming.

In 47 season openers, Dallas is 30-16-1. Pretty good, right? But, the two most decorated coaches in Cowboys history walked off the field losers in their regular-season debuts.

In Dallas’ first ever regular-season game on Sept. 24, 1960, Tom Landry’s Cowboys fell at Pittsburgh 35-28. It was the first of eleven losses in what was a winless debut season, and also one of the closest (the Cowboys lost four games by 25 points or more).

In 1989, Jimmy Johnson started off his NFL coaching career on the wrong end of a shutout, a 28-0 loss at New Orleans. That was the first of 15 losses that season, in the first season in the Jerry Jones/Jimmy Johnson/Troy Aikman era, and also the worst season for Dallas since that 1960 season.

But, things turned soon enough for both coaches, and those losses (all of them) were quickly forgotten.

This isn’t to say that the Cowboys are on their way to winning the first pick in the draft on their own, or that Phillips is going to win two or three Super Bowls (can’t say I’d mind that though), but it is a little something to ponder.

How Previous Dallas Coaches Fared in Regular-Season Debuts

Tom Landry: 1960- lost 35-28 at Pittsburgh
Jimmy Johnson: 1989 - lost 28-0 at New Orleans
Barry Switzer: 1994 - won 26-9 at Pittsburgh
Chan Gailey: 1998 - won 38-10 vs. Arizona
Dave Campo: 2000 - lost 41-14 vs. Philly
Bill Parcells: 2003 - lost 27-13 vs. Atlanta
Wade Phillips: 2007 - ? vs. New York Giants

Another thing to ponder is that recent history hasn’t exactly been favorable towards the Cowboys when it comes to season openers. Despite that pretty lofty record in season openers, Dallas has lost six of their last seven curtain raisers. Dave Campo lost all three of his, including getting blown out in his first regular-season game as head coach in 2000 and a just as forgettable 19-10 loss at Houston in the Texans’ first regular-season game. And, Bill Parcells lost three of the four he was on the sidelines for, with the lone win coming in a 28-24 thriller at San Diego two seasons ago.

But, Sunday’s opener offers up a great chance to break a couple of bad trends, while continuing a good one.

The Cowboys have played the Giants four times in season openers, and have won all four of the matchups, with three being resounding routs.

In 1965 and 1966, Dallas picked up 31-2 and 52-7 blowouts over the Giants in season openers at home. In 1986, the Cowboys won 31-28 at home in the closest of the matchups, and the last time the two teams tangled to kick off a season, Dallas left the Meadowlands with a 35-0 shutout victory to begin their last Super Bowl championship season in 1995. That game was one of two occasions when the Cowboys recorded a shutout to start the season (the other was a 38-0 shutout of the then-Baltimore Colts in their 1978 season opener).

So, you’ve got to feel pretty good about what’s going to happen on Sunday night. Of course, the games are played on the field, and the Giants have a pretty solid team, so 35-0 or 52-7 might be asking a little too much (but 27-10 isn’t).

And, if not, well, it’s never too early to start putting away some champange for a little celebration in early February.