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Cowboys find home crowd to their liking
December, 22, 2014
By Todd Archer | ESPNDallas.com
IRVING, Texas -- AT&T Stadium will host a playoff game for the second time in its six years.
Last week that might not have been the best thing for the Dallas Cowboys, who are the NFL’s only undefeated team on the road.
After Sunday’s 42-7 win against the Indianapolis Colts, maybe it is a good thing.
“I feel very comfortable with our team playing at home and I would rather play at home, believe me,” quarterback Tony Romo said. “There are just a lot of advantages go it. With the crowd the way it is, it is special.”
That wasn’t the case early in the season when fans of the San Francisco 49ers, Houston Texans and New Orleans Saints made it difficult at times for the Cowboys’ offense to perform well at home.
With Sunday’s win, the Cowboys avoided a second losing home record since moving to Arlington, Texas, in 2009. They finished 4-4 and snapped a three-game home losing streak. It was their first home win since Oct. 19 when they beat the New York Giants.
“The crowd was amazing,” cornerback Brandon Carr said.
Coach Jason Garrett tried to minimize the home woes during the week, but he did change up the Saturday schedule, making it fall more closely in line with how the Cowboys operate on the road. Players were required to check in to the Gaylord Texan in Grapevine, Texas, earlier than they had for normal home games.
Was that the difference? No. Romo said the difference wherever and whenever the Cowboys play has been execution.
In 2009, the Cowboys closed the year with a 24-0 shutout against the Philadelphia Eagles and then repaid the favor six days later in a 34-14 wild-card victory against their NFC East rivals.
The Cowboys won’t know for sure who will come to AT&T Stadium for the playoffs for the wild-card round or a potential divisional game should the Cowboys gain a bye if things fall right in Week 17, but they know they will have the crowd.
“If they bring that same energy to the playoff game; and I think it is going to be rocking,” Romo said, “we can provide a challenge for whoever comes in here.”
December, 22, 2014
By Todd Archer | ESPNDallas.com
IRVING, Texas -- AT&T Stadium will host a playoff game for the second time in its six years.
Last week that might not have been the best thing for the Dallas Cowboys, who are the NFL’s only undefeated team on the road.
After Sunday’s 42-7 win against the Indianapolis Colts, maybe it is a good thing.
“I feel very comfortable with our team playing at home and I would rather play at home, believe me,” quarterback Tony Romo said. “There are just a lot of advantages go it. With the crowd the way it is, it is special.”
That wasn’t the case early in the season when fans of the San Francisco 49ers, Houston Texans and New Orleans Saints made it difficult at times for the Cowboys’ offense to perform well at home.
With Sunday’s win, the Cowboys avoided a second losing home record since moving to Arlington, Texas, in 2009. They finished 4-4 and snapped a three-game home losing streak. It was their first home win since Oct. 19 when they beat the New York Giants.
“The crowd was amazing,” cornerback Brandon Carr said.
Coach Jason Garrett tried to minimize the home woes during the week, but he did change up the Saturday schedule, making it fall more closely in line with how the Cowboys operate on the road. Players were required to check in to the Gaylord Texan in Grapevine, Texas, earlier than they had for normal home games.
Was that the difference? No. Romo said the difference wherever and whenever the Cowboys play has been execution.
In 2009, the Cowboys closed the year with a 24-0 shutout against the Philadelphia Eagles and then repaid the favor six days later in a 34-14 wild-card victory against their NFC East rivals.
The Cowboys won’t know for sure who will come to AT&T Stadium for the playoffs for the wild-card round or a potential divisional game should the Cowboys gain a bye if things fall right in Week 17, but they know they will have the crowd.
“If they bring that same energy to the playoff game; and I think it is going to be rocking,” Romo said, “we can provide a challenge for whoever comes in here.”
