Dallas @ Kansas City preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 11, 2009 ) Dallas 26, Kansas City 20

Kansas City Chiefs first-year head coach Andy Reid will make his home debut Sunday against a team he knows all too well in the Dallas Cowboys. Reid was 17-12, including the playoffs, in his 14 years at the helm in Philadelphia. His current crew opens up at Arrowhead Stadium after an impressive 28-2 rout at Jacksonville on Sunday that helped to erase the sting of last season's 2-14 mark and cast a heavy degree of optimism over the home opener.

Reid expects star running back Jamaal Charles, who left Week 1 with a quadriceps injury, to be in action, while the Cowboys have quarterback Tony Romo (bruised ribs) and wide receiver Dez Bryant (foot) on target to play through their respective injuries. Dallas rode its defense to a 36-31 win over the New York Giants on Sunday in a game that saw the Cowboys force six turnovers, two of which they returned for touchdowns.

TV: 1 p.m. ET, FOX. LINE: Chiefs -3. O/U: 46.5

ABOUT THE COWBOYS (1-0): As Bryant struggled through his mild left foot sprain in Week 1, Romo found plenty of other reliable targets, finding Miles Austin 10 times and tight end Jason Witten eight times, including twice for scores. The opportunistic Dallas defense also had three sacks, helping to offset 478 yards of offense - 428 through the air - for the Giants. Operating under new defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin, Dallas is already almost halfway to its 2012 total for takeaways (16), which was more than just three teams in the NFL, including the Chiefs and Reid's Eagles.

ABOUT THE CHIEFS (1-0): The opener also saw the Kansas City debut of quarterback Alex Smith, who was an efficient 21-of-34 for 173 yards and two touchdowns. Like Romo with the Cowboys, Smith had plenty of support from a defensive unit that recorded six sacks and two turnovers while limiting the Jaguars to 178 total yards. The Chiefs have lost their last two home openers by a combined score of 81-31.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Cowboys CB Morris Claiborne (shoulder) is questionable but expected to play.

2. Smith is 20-5-1 as a starter since 2011.

3. Dallas has won four of the last five meetings, including a 26-20 overtime win in 2009 at Kansas City in which Austin had a career-high 250 yards receiving.

PREDICTION: Cowboys 24, Chiefs 22