The Associated Press
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott signals first down in overtime against the Giants on Sunday.
ARLINGTON, Texas — Dak Prescott wasn’t thinking late in a wild duel with Russell Wilson about his long personal winning streak against the New York Giants, and probably not about the prospect of Brian Schottenheimer’s first victory as a head coach.
Plenty of time afterward to savor both.
Brandon Aubrey kicked a 46-yard field goal on the final play of overtime after a tying 64-yarder to end regulation, and the Dallas Cowboys beat the Giants 40-37 to cap a thrilling back-and-forth between star quarterbacks Sunday.
The Cowboys (1-1) extended the winning streak against their NFC East rival to nine games — the longest active streak in the NFL among division opponents — and Prescott beat the Giants (0-2) for the 14th consecutive time since losing both starts against them as a rookie in 2016.
Schottenheimer — son of the late Marty Schottenheimer, a 200-game winner as an NFL coach — now needs 199 to catch his dad after spending a quarter-century as an NFL assistant.
“Told him that game was the epitome of him and his coaching staff, just the resiliency he has,” Prescott said. “He deserved that first win. Tough one to get. Fun one to get. Very fun one to get. I know he’ll never forget it. I won’t forget it. I’m sure every guy in that locker room won’t forget this one.”
Prescott was right about how his coach would feel.
“Cool way to win your first game,” Schottenheimer said. “The words that Dak and the players said to me after the game is why it’s so special. I expect the first of many, but I’ll remember this one forever because of the fight of these guys.”
Overtime was on the verge of going scoreless after the teams combined for five consecutive go-ahead TDs in the final 12 minutes of the fourth quarter, including a scoring toss apiece from Prescott and Wilson in the final minute.
Then Wilson made his only big mistake on a huge day — 450 yards passing, 2 shy of his career high, and three touchdowns a week after his Giants debut ended with New York as just the second NFL team to go three consecutive season openers without getting in the end zone.
The Giants just needed a field goal to win when Wilson threw an ill-advised deep ball with pressure, and Donovan Wilson intercepted it at the Dallas 30 with 2 minutes left in OT.
Dallas moved into what is chip-shot range for Aubrey on a 14-yard scramble from Prescott, who missed the final nine games of last season with a torn hamstring.
