Football fans undeterred by COVID, came from all over for Dallas Cowboys’ home opener
Football fans from across the state, and around the country, who made the trek to AT&T Stadium in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic for Sunday’s home-opener witnessed a topsy-turvy game in which the Dallas Cowboys came back from a 20-point deficit to emerge with an improbable 40-39 victory as time expired.
AT&T Stadium was far from filled, but the announced crowd of 21,708 made up for it in the amount of noise they generated. The crowd made for the largest attendance the NFL has seen this season.
The safety precautions instituted amid the coronavirus pandemic limited the 80,000-seat stadium to about 25% capacity. The health guidelines did not deter fans from coming out, of course. The Cowboys’ faithful from around the Metroplex, as well as from Houston, Atlanta, New Mexico and North Carolina — were decked out in team colors — descended on Arlington to witness their team host the Atlanta Falcons.
The Cowboys rewarded the fans who came out with an ugly start, and deficits of 20-0 and 29-10, before the team got on track late in the fourth quarter, en route to the wild 40-39 comeback win that was decided on the game’s final play.
The Falcons led 20-0 after the first quarter by taking advantage of three Cowboys’ lost fumbles. The Cowboys showed a little fight in the second quarter, but still took a 19-point deficit into halftime. In fact, it wasn’t until the final five minutes of the game when the Cowboys really got their act together. Down 39-24, they scored 16 points in a flurry of action, including touchdowns by Dalton Schultz and Dak Prescott.
The play of the game, however, came on an onside kick with under two minutes remaining and the Cowboys trailing 39-37. Greg Zuerlein’s squib kick was improbably recovered by C.J. Goodwin to give Dallas the ball at its 46. A few plays later, Zuerlein kicked a 46-yard, game-winning field goal as time expired to give the Cowboys the heart-stopping victory.
It made the day of devoted Cowboys fans who traveled near and far to attend the home opener.
Alfredo Gomez, 46, and family drove up from Temple to see his first Cowboys game in person. The tickets were a Father’s Day gift from his son-in-law. Gomez and his group of six were all wearing face coverings as they walked up to stadium.
But was Gomez concerned about the coronavirus? “Not really,” he said. “I’m just a Cowboys fan.”
Groups of fans appeared to be spread throughout the stadium, from the lower bowl to the highest nosebleed seats. Fans were limited to the area of their seats and were required to wear face coverings if they left their seats.
“I just want to thank those 21,000-plus fans that showed up today,” Prescott said after throwing for 450 yards, the third most in his career. “I don’t know if I’ve been in many games like this. To be able to get the win and those fans that stayed the whole game and didn’t give up on us. They were a huge difference. I know the team fed off of that, and I know late in that two-minute drive after the onside kick, it was simply just incredible. It was an incredible game to be a part of, but I think the team just showed their faith and resilience in each other.”
That faith goes to the fans, too.
Jason, 53, and his son Owen, 15, drove up from The Woodlands. Owen was born into a Cowboys-loving family, just as his dad was. (Sorry, Houston Texans.) Why make trip?
“It’s opening weekend, why not?” said Jason, who made the three-hour drive Sunday morning. The pandemic didn’t concern them and neither did the safety guidelines. “Just not too worried about it. Whatever they make us do, [is fine].”
For some the game was a chance create additional generations of Cowboys fans, regardless of how old the fans were.
Diane Hope, 70, from Charlotte, N.C., wasn’t going to let the pandemic get in the way of her attending her first Cowboys game. She flew in with a friend and her daughter.
Meanwhile, Kendrick Parks, 47, a devout Cowboys fan from Atlanta flew in from Georgia to attend the game with his 5-year-old grandson Caden. Parks said they’ve been planning on attending the home-opener, Caden’s first Cowboys game, for about the last eight months..
“We come here all the time,” Parks said. “I’m teaching my grandson to be a Cowboys fan. “I think they have sanitized the stadium really good and we’ll be separated. I trust them. If not, I wouldn’t have brought my grandson.”
This story was originally published September 20, 2020 at 1:28 PM.
