The Dallas Cowboys head to the Washington Redskins on Sunday afternoon, setting up an unusually important game for one that falls so early on the schedule.

The Cowboys have won eight of the last 10 meetings with the Redskins, including five straight in Washington. But Dallas has lost on the road every odd week this season, beginning with the opener at Carolina. Reversing that trend would boost the Cowboys into the lead in the NFC East going into their bye week. However, a loss could dump Dallas into third place in the NFC East with a couple of weeks for the bad vibes to fester.

Likewise, Sunday's game gives the Redskins, who come off a victory over the Carolina Panthers, a chance to be two games over .500 for the first time since they were 8-6-1 after Week 16 of the 2016 season. Washington is 27-25-1 since the start of the 2015 season. At this time last year, the Redskins were 3-2. The year before they were 2-3. They won two games in a row just twice last season and never three.