Cowboys Vs. Giants 2012: Game Preview, Kickoff Time, TV Schedule And More

The 2012 NFL season kicks off Wednesday night with the Dallas Cowboys in the national spotlight as they travel to New Jersey to face the defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants.

Let's just say there's some bad blood in this one.

The NFC East rivalry has always been fierce, but the cards were stacked even higher this preseason when Cowboys' owner Jerry Jones was quoted in July at a pep rally saying, "Y'all should come to Cowboys Stadium and watch us beat the Giants' asses." The Giants, namely Mathias Kiwanuka, naturally took offense and turned Jones' comment into a public verbal sparring, saying the Giants have been doing all the ass-kicking. Jones responded with, well, affirmation of Kiwanuka's claim.

On the field, Tony Romo could be in a make-or-break year as the Cowboys' starting quarterback, one of the most scrutinized positions in all of sports. The window might be closing for Romo and an aging group of skill players around him, including an injured Jason Witten.

The Giants have no similar problems at quarterback, where two-time Super Bowl champion Eli Manning is the unquestioned leader.

NBC will televise the Week 1 game nationally, with local kickoff set for 7:20 p.m.

For more on the Cowboys, be sure to visit Blogging The Boys. And, for additional pro football coverage, head over to SB Nation's NFL hub.

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