FRISCO, Texas – Week 1 provided a first look of what a Dallas Cowboys game would look like in 2020, but Week 2 should be a bit of a different story.
Beautiful as it is, SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles was not allowed to host any fans for last week's 20-17 loss to the Rams. When the Cowboys open at AT&T Stadium against Atlanta on Sunday, that won't be the case.
With NFL attendance being regulated by the COVID-19 restrictions in each franchise's respective state, the Cowboys have long been tabbed as one of the teams that can allow fans to attend home games.
But if Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones knows how many fans to expect for Sunday's game, he isn't ready to say.
"We'll just continue to play it by ear and see how it goes," Jones said Tuesday on 105.3 FM The Fan.
Week 1 provided a small glimpse of what socially distanced attendance will look like. The Kansas City Chiefs allowed 16,000 fans – roughly 25% of their capacity – to attend the season opener last Thursday night. The Jacksonville Jaguars also allowed 25% capacity for their win against Indianapolis.
This weekend, three other teams will get a chance to try it out. The Colts intend to allow 2,500 fans to attend their home opener, while the Miami Dolphins allow 20% capacity.
The Cowboys are the third team, and are notably the only one not to reveal details about their arrangements.
Asked about it further on Tuesday morning, Jones said the primary focus of the weekend is safety. But he also indicated that this first game is hopefully one step in a larger roll out.
"Safety and, frankly, perception has something to do with this weekend. We want to not only be safe – and we will be, make no mistake about that. I use that word, we will be safe," he said. "But No. 2, I want to create the perception that in the new season, this is the first step – it's a tiny baby step. And as we move on into our games and into the season, we'll read the status of the vaccines, we'll read the status of any new safety measures that we can come up with. And we will expand as we go, hopefully. That's the way this season's going to be. We're going to option quarterback it all the way through."
One of Jones' favorite phrases is the classic "tolerance for ambiguity," so it's no surprise he's not bothered by the fluidity of the situation.
If anything, it'll be interesting to see what the starting point for an AT&T Stadium crowd looks like on Sunday.
Don't miss the chance to see the Cowboys at AT&T Stadium when they take on the Atlanta Falcons in the first regular season home game of the 2020 season on Sunday, Sept. 20th. Click HERE to buy your tickets now!
Details on all of the health and safety procedures you can expect at AT&T Stadium this season can be viewed at www.DallasCowboys.com/safestadium.
