DAK PRESCOTT DIDN’T discuss it afterward, as a result of by the point he threw his second interception firstly of the fourth quarter towards the Lions, the Cowboys trailed by 31 factors. It did not matter to the field rating that the $240 million quarterback confronted a second opponent — the solar — as he took a deep shot at midfield on fourth down, or that as an alternative of discovering his personal receiver Jalen Brooks, he discovered Lions security Brian Department.
“He is staring proper into the solar,” Tom Brady mentioned as Fox’s broadcast confirmed the replay of the decide.
It was Oct. 13 in Arlington, Texas, earlier than the tip of daylight financial savings time, so the solar was starting its lengthy descent simply earlier than 6 p.m. Central Time, by the southwest home windows of AT&T Stadium.
A month later, on the subsequent 3:25 p.m. recreation at AT&T, the solar claimed one other couple of Cowboys towards the visiting Eagles, this time round 4:45 p.m. as these southwest-facing home windows framed the setting solar with two minutes left within the second quarter.
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On second down from Philadelphia’s 3-yard line, the solar momentarily blinded tight finish Jake Ferguson and receiver CeeDee Lamb as they turned to face quarterback Cooper Rush from the east finish zone. Ferguson put his arms as much as give up simply because the ball sailed previous him on the aim line. Lamb was huge open crossing behind Ferguson deep in the long run zone however could not react in time. After the ball fell untouched to the turf, he pointed two fingers to his eyes.
“I could not see the ball,” Lamb mentioned after the loss, confirming what he’d gestured after he missed the ball in the long run zone. “The solar.”
Lamb emphatically declared a perception that curtains within the southwest-facing home windows would assist him do his job. “One thousand p.c,” Lamb mentioned.
Cowboys proprietor Jerry Jones dismissed the solar as an element to be addressed by way of curtains, drapes or maybe giant Venetian blinds — “Let’s simply tear the rattling stadium down and construct one other one. Are you kidding me?” — even when Lamb, his teammates and a few of Dallas’ opponents may imagine in a different way.
At AT&T Stadium, through the center and later chunk of the NFL season, the solar travels the precise path of the soccer area, from northeast to southwest, and the 5 panels of 120-foot tall glass within the southwest finish zone funnel the large star’s fireplace onto the sphere because it descends to the horizon.
The New York Giants arrive Thursday (3:25 p.m. CT, Fox) as the primary workforce for the reason that Eagles to play within the late-afternoon time slot at Jerry World. A workforce spokesperson for the Giants declined to make their director of soccer knowledge and innovation accessible to speak about how New York prepares to play a late-afternoon recreation at AT&T, citing aggressive causes. They don’t seem to be eager about serving to anyone else determine it out. That is as a result of the Giants and others inside the league, together with the Cowboys themselves, spend time scouting the solar in Arlington.
The character of the scouting stories fluctuate, the info on the impression of the sunshine streaming by these Arlington home windows is open to interpretation. However loads of individuals across the league will let you know that the solar at A&T Stadium… sure, it is a factor.
“That f—ing glare coming by that finish zone within the afternoon is f—ing ridiculous,” Chiefs tight finish Travis Kelce mentioned on his “New Heights” podcast. “Completely ridiculous. It is just like the glass makes it f—ing like unfold extra. It is just like the solar is greater and brighter than it is ever f—ing been.”
BRICE BUTLER, WHO performed receiver at Jerry World for elements of 4 seasons from 2015-2018, thinks this entire dialog is ineffective as a result of Jones isn’t going to place up curtains.
“It sucked, however our coaches would say, you simply gotta make performs,” Butler mentioned. “You are paid to make performs, so…”
Again in 2017, Butler mentioned he talked to Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones about addressing the difficulty after a win towards the Chiefs the place he and Dez Bryant each misplaced balls to the solar. “Dak threw me a pleasant rope 9 ball [fade route], and I used to be open,” Butler says now. “I used to be attempting to catch within the solar, and I squeezed my arms closed proper because the ball acquired to my hand, so I did not catch it.”
Jerry Jones says the solar equally impacts each groups, and he has seen each Cowboys gamers and opponents drop catches or interceptions, so he would not see the use in altering something.
The distinction this season is that every thing that may go mistaken has gone mistaken in Dallas. Because the frustration builds with every blowout loss, the nuisance of the solar at AT&T is up for reexamination.
AT&T is considered one of solely two NFL stadiums constructed on a southwest-northeast axis, and it’s the solely NFL area that has a clear southwest finish zone. The one different area on that axis, Huntington Financial institution Discipline in Cleveland, has a stable wall blocking the southwest finish zone.
Nineteen of 30 NFL stadiums have finish zones located on a north-south axis. It is most typical for NFL recreation pure lighting to alter from shady to sunny because the solar crosses the north-south area on a principally horizontal path. One aspect is shaded, and one aspect is bathed in solar. Residence groups will usually strategically place their bench on the aspect that’s shaded within the afternoon so their gamers can keep out of the warmth. And in some instances, equivalent to Miami’s Exhausting Rock Stadium, the engineers truly designed the construction to guard the house sideline within the shade for your complete afternoon, whereas the guests are compelled to sweat it out within the solar. 13 of these 19 north-south stadiums are outside, so the solar is overhead.
The solar units immediately west on the autumn equinox, this 12 months on Sunday, Sept. 22, when the Cowboys hosted the Ravens at 3:25 p.m. However daily after the primary day of fall till the primary day of winter, the solar strikes south to take up a decrease place within the sky.
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“This time of 12 months, the solar angle is low sufficient that the solar truly can stream into your home windows,” mentioned Rick Mitchell, chief meteorologist for NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Value.
Mitchell notes the way in which canines and cats curl up in that vivid, heat patch of solar in the home this time of 12 months. “As soon as they discover that, they’re like, ‘Oh, that is heavenly,'” he says. “It would not occur all 12 months. That is sort of what that is.”
The Cowboys have performed a disproportionate quantity of video games whereas the solar is setting at house, owing to the workforce’s reputation amongst tv viewers and the presence and time of the annual Thanksgiving recreation. Since 2009 when AT&T Stadium opened, the Cowboys have performed 43% of their house video games within the 3 p.m. central time window, and 22 house video games within the 3:25 p.m. time slot, primarily reserved for nationally televised video games, probably the most of any workforce not within the AFC or NFC West.
Thursday’s 3:25 CT recreation towards the Giants is subsequent on the schedule, and it is proper on the time of day and interval of the 12 months the meteorologist cites as an impactful time for the solar.
“It is simpler for the solar’s rays to beam by that massive set of home windows that they’ve in that finish zone,” Mitchell says. “And that is why it isn’t as massive of a deal earlier within the fall. Plus, the solar units earlier. When soccer season first begins, sundown might be 7:30. However we’re simply at that good storm of the 12 months for these rays to have an effect on AT&T Stadium.”
ONE EXECUTIVE FROM an NFL membership gave ESPN a tip for researching this story: Verify late-afternoon video games and what course the groups that lose the coin toss select.
Many spend time scouting this, as a result of they imagine there’s a potential edge to achieve when you understand precisely the place the solar might be. And the prevailing idea is, if the solar is within the receiver’s eyes, it might value you factors.
When Dallas performed Philadelphia on Nov. 10, the solar wasn’t going to be an element within the second half with a 5:29 p.m. sundown. So when Dallas gained the coin toss and selected to obtain — not the extra frequent option to defer — it meant Philadelphia acquired to decide on the course — to defend the west aim — which meant they’d be defending the east aim within the second quarter, the place the solar can be within the eyes of the Cowboys receivers.
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In 26 possibilities to decide on area course in video games at AT&T Stadium since 2020, opponents had a reasonably even distribution of course — 11 occasions east and 15 occasions west. For the late afternoon window, opponents selected to defend the west aim eight occasions and the east aim thrice, and in 4 video games after the clocks modified, thrice Dallas opponents selected to defend the west aim within the first quarter and put the solar in Cowboys’ receivers eyes within the second quarter.
However attempting to find out a workforce’s solar technique is not so simple as monitoring their selections. As a result of from the start of September to the tip of October, sundown strikes up an hour (whereas from the tip of daylight financial savings by mid-January, it solely modifications by 25 minutes in Dallas), and that variance implies that completely different parts of the sport might be impacted by solar.
When Dallas hosted Baltimore within the late-afternoon window on Sept. 22, the solar affected the groups primarily within the second half of the fourth quarter, however three weeks later, with sundown half-hour earlier, the solar began to glare within the third quarter and subsided 10 minutes into the fourth quarter.
Jones is adamant that the Cowboys additionally know the place the solar is once they exit for the coin toss and make their selections. Their latest observe document makes it unclear whether or not that data is far of an element.
Of the 14 occasions Dallas has chosen a area course at AT&T since 2020, regardless of the time of the sport or the week on the calendar, Mike McCarthy’s Cowboys have chosen to defend the east aim all however as soon as. This suggests their selection would not have a lot to do with the solar’s ever-changing path throughout the stadium and thru the southwestern home windows.
And within the late-afternoon time slots which have fallen post-daylight financial savings time, Dallas selected to defend the east aim seven of eight occasions, which implies that the solar can be of their receivers’ eyes when trying again on the quarterback for a lot of the second quarter when it is the brightest. Possibly Dallas prefers the solar just isn’t in its QB’s eyes, however a workforce spokesperson declined to make any Cowboys staffer accessible to speak about it, citing aggressive causes.
“The workforce has a system and course of in place that we make the most of relating to pictures of the solar, timing and various different particulars,” the spokesperson mentioned.
Dallas’ offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer is in his third 12 months with the Cowboys and advised reporters that the workers talks in regards to the solar “on a regular basis,” however he’d by no means skilled it impression a play like that till Week 10 of this 12 months when Ferguson and Lamb have been blinded.
“It was one play,” he mentioned. “We’re aware of it, we discuss it and there are specific areas of the sphere the place it positively will get a bit harder. However we will not flip the ball over… “
Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore was a quarterback for the Cowboys from 2015-17 and was Dallas’ offensive coordinator from 2019-22, so he was acquainted with the solar’s sample forward of Philadelphia’s Week 10 win at Dallas.
“The solar performs a good function, so that you simply should name performs in accordance with it figuring out sure elements of the sphere at occasions could be a little bit difficult,” Moore advised reporters after the win. “We had it within the first quarter within the pink zone, however within the second quarter we have been going the opposite manner. “
When Jason Garrett coached the Cowboys from 2010-19, he says he was prepped on the solar’s motion by then-Cowboys soccer operations director Bruce Mays, who confirmed him photos of the solar every week.
“He would come into my workplace and say, ‘Hey, at 3:25 once we go, right here is the place the solar goes to be, after which 3:45 and 4,'” Garrett advised Professional Soccer Speak. “And it wasn’t solely what occurred final week, however final 12 months, and understanding we’re taking part in on Nov. 11, so that is the place the solar goes to be on Nov. 11.”
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Garrett advised PFT his technique to fight the solar for these late-afternoon video games was to defer if he gained the coin toss in order that his opponent may select to kick or obtain after which he’d be capable of select the course he needed to go.
“However the trickiest a part of this factor is, everybody says, ‘Oh, you need to be certain that your receivers aren’t trying into the solar,'” Garrett mentioned. “You perceive your receivers are a very powerful individuals to not look into the solar. However then your quarterback is trying into the solar.”
“You do not need the solar in your eyes, so far as your receivers, if it is the fourth quarter, as a result of you could have to throw the ball,” former Washington head coach Ron Rivera mentioned. “That is at all times one thing that you’d take into consideration. So in the event you get to make that selection, that is the course we need to kick.”
The solar is at all times going to be a consider an out of doors recreation, however a number of staffers for different golf equipment mentioned AT&T is in a tier of its personal for requiring solar scouting.
“That stadium is harder than different stadiums,” one opposing coach mentioned.
EACH STADIUM HAS its personal quirks that groups should put together for, equivalent to SoFi Stadium’s translucent roof, which might create some daylight points as nicely, Miami’s sweltering sideline, and people vivid lights at Kansas Metropolis at evening.
Final November, when Tyreek Hill tweeted about how onerous it’s to catch a soccer in Kansas Metropolis at evening, the NFL truly studied how stadiums have an effect on drop charges, and located Kansas Metropolis’s GEHA Discipline was the one stadium that had a statistically increased drop fee at evening than throughout different recreation occasions, and better than the league common drop fee. AT&T Stadium did not current any important anomalies within the league’s examine.
The daylight at AT&T controversy is quite a bit just like the turf vs. grass debate. Gamers converse out passionately in favor of grass and say that turf is tougher on their our bodies, however the knowledge would not present important proof that grass is definitely safer. Gamers have mentioned time and again that the solar is a matter at AT&T, and there is loads of anecdotal proof to level to, however the knowledge truly backs up Jerry Jones’ perspective that it is simply noise.
Per ESPN analysis, Cowboys and visiting groups aren’t worse at AT&T Stadium on the subject of dropped passes or fumbled punts. Cowboys receivers have truly dropped extra targets (4.4%) in video games outdoors of the late-afternoon window (common season and playoffs) at AT&T than they’ve in video games in that sunset-plagued window (3.4%)
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And the identical could be mentioned about division opponents, who’ve performed there as soon as annually because it opened in 2009. NFC East rivals have a 4.3% drop fee on targets in all non-afternoon video games at AT&T, an equivalent determine to their 4.3% drop fee in video games outdoors of late-afternoon video games in Dallas since 2009, and a 3.2% drop fee on targets in late-afternoon video games there.
And in video games like Eagles-Cowboys, performed at a time that carries the hazard of a receiver not seeing the ball in any respect, these numbers are equally unrevealing. The Cowboys have caught 68% of their targets in late-afternoon video games at AT&T and 68.3% of targets in all different video games there.
The solar’s injury simply feels extra pronounced now as a result of, as Butler places it, “the workforce sucks.”
Per ESPN analysis, two of the Cowboys’ three worst catch percentages in any late-afternoon house recreation with Prescott have come this season. Dallas caught 56% of targets from Prescott in two late-afternoon house video games this 12 months (Week 3 vs Ravens, Week 6 vs Lions), when earlier than this season, the bottom share of targets the workforce had caught from Prescott in these video games was 65% in 2021.
In all of their house video games this season, no matter begin time or quarterback, the Cowboys have caught simply 61% of their targets at house, which ranks thirty first within the NFL (solely the Browns are worse at 58%).
Jones will embrace the implications of this knowledge, not that it will matter a lot if it supported the other perspective. The proprietor has mentioned a number of occasions that he needed the indoor stadium to really feel like an out of doors one. He invited the solar to be a part of the grand present.
Thanksgiving Day 2023: Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey missed an additional level whereas kicking going through the solar within the southwest home windows. pic.twitter.com/Hz8aOaOaXL
— Kalyn Kahler (@kalynkahler) November 27, 2024
The solar did not dazzle at full energy throughout final season’s Thanksgiving Day recreation, performed 5 days sooner than this season, on Nov. 23. The forecast recorded damaged clouds within the afternoon. With 8:46 to go within the second quarter, the orange glow was seen by the higher proper portion of the southwest home windows. It did not forged its common oppressive glare onto the sphere, however kicker Brandon Aubrey did miss an additional level with 26 seconds left within the half, kicking into the southwest finish zone and going through the glowing home windows. It was his third additional level miss of the season.
The final time Dallas performed at house on Nov. 28 was in 2019, and the solar wasn’t a difficulty within the second quarter in any respect as a result of the circumstances have been cloudy and foggy with drizzling rain. The primary half ended at 4:49 p.m., and the solar set at 5:23 p.m. It was principally darkish outdoors the southwest home windows by the point the third quarter started.
The Thanksgiving game-day forecast this 12 months is a little bit of a thriller as as to whether the solar will affect this recreation. NBC 5 in Dallas says: “Chilly and breezy with intervals of clouds and solar.”