The defending-Super Bowl champion Giants will open the 2012 regular season against the team they beat to win the NFC East in the last game of the 2011 regular season.

The NFL announced on Tuesday that the Cowboys will travel to MetLife Stadium for the division game to open the 2012 campaign. The game will be played on Wednesday, September 5 and air on NBC.

The Giants beat the Cowboys in two dramatic games a year ago — a 37-34 comeback win in Week 14 in Cowboys Stadium and 31-14 victory on the last Sunday of the season to clinch the division title. The Giants followed that game with four consecutive playoff victories, capped by a 21-17 win over the Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI.

The NFL opener has been on Thursday nights in recent years, but because President Barack Obama is slated to speak at the Democratic National Convention on September 6, the league chose to move the game up a day.

Home teams are 8-0 since the NFL began starting the season at the stadium of the defending champions in 2004.