In the past couple NFL seasons, there has been a growing discourse surrounding the Dallas Cowboys and their seemingly flawed stadium layout. AT&T Stadium, who holds one of the highest capacities out of any other NFL stadium, is designed in a way that doesn't block the sunlight when they play in the afternoon.
Season after season, clips go viral that show Cowboy's players seemingly being blinded by this sunlight as the ball is coming their way, most notably last season versus the Eagles, where Ceedee Lamb indicated that he couldn't see a wide-open touchdown throw that was coming his way.
With all of these clips being circulated, we've seen that the media has started to run with this narrative that AT&T stadium is a form of self-sabotage for the Cowboys. However, the stats tell an entirely different story.
Since 2022, the Dallas Cowboys have played in 14 home games in the afternoon slate, and the Cowboys have a staggering 11-3 record in that span. And while AT&T Stadium notoriously holds the title as being one of the best home-field advantages in the sport, numbers have shown that the Cowboy's have actually played better in this sunlight, not worse.
The Cowboys overall home scoring average in the past three seasons has been an impressive 28.0 ppg, with their defense allowing an average of close to 24.0 ppg in that same time frame. When reducing this sample size to only games within the afternoon slate, the Cowboys' versus their opponents' scoring averages to 29.4 ppg and 23.0 ppg, respectively.
The difference is undoubtably minuscule, but the point remains: the Cowboys score more and give up less when the sunlight is out.
Every NFL stadium has a unique quirk that gives the home team some sort of advantage. Whether it's the Denver Bronco's and their altitude advantage, or the Seattle Seahawk's deafening crowd noise, there is always something intangible that team's use to gain a competitive edge.
However, none of these are as unique as what AT&T Stadium offers for the home team. The Seahawk's don't practice with that crowd noise, and Bronco's players practice with extra precaution incase the altitude becomes too much for their players to handle. In the case of the Dallas Cowboys though, these player's have become accustomed to fighting through the sunlight.
These afternoon games have become something that Cowboy's players have to experience 3-4 times a year, whereas other teams only find themselves in this predicament maybe once or twice every couple of seasons. So, when a team is forced to travel to AT&T to play in the afternoon, stats show that many teams aren't prepared for when that sunlight shines through.
The Dallas Cowboys are 3-0 this season so far in these types of games, with impressive wins over the Chiefs and the Eagles. Even in a shaky season, with all of this volatility surrounding the Cowboys, their record in these home afternoon games show that the sunlight has only bolstered this home field advantage that much more.
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