Sunday’s game will be new territory for the Falcons. They’ve had some success over the years, but never gone this far into the season without a loss.
So since this Atlanta franchise has never seen a 7-0 start, rest assured the Georgia Dome will be rocking as loud as ever before when the Cowboys invade the place Sunday night.
Then again, can it be any louder than the New Orleans Superdome was back in 2009? I say that because when I think of loud stadiums and places I’ve been to, I don’t know if anything can compare to that night just a few years back. Some playoff games in Minnesota might rival, but that place was literally bouncing around in anticipation for the Cowboys and Saints, who by the way just happened to be undefeated at 13-0.
And yes, we remember what happened that night as the Cowboys shocked everyone and upended the Saints, taking it to the eventual Super Bowl champs from the very beginning.
When I think about this game the Cowboys are playing Sunday night, I can’t help but recall that 2009 game in New Orleans.
So that got me thinking a little bit. Just how many times have the Cowboys faced a team in this state?
So I wanted to go back about 20 years, ended up going 21 years officially.
Since 1991, 16 teams have started off the season with at least a 7-0 record. The Cowboys have faced three teams that have been undefeated with at least seven wins like the Falcons.
It’s happened three times and the Cowboys are 3-0.
If you believe in trends like that, then it history could be kind to the Cowboys again. Then again, just because Steve Beuerlein was able to rally the Cowboys to a win over 11-0 Washington back in 1991, doesn’t mean it’ll happen in Atlanta.
Just because some kid named Romo out-dueled a guy named Peyton in 2006 to beat the 9-0 Colts, doesn’t mean he’ll beat Matt Ryan on Sunday.
However, if the Cowboys stick to that trend and upend Atlanta, it may not be too bad for the Falcons either in the big picture.
All three of those teams the Cowboys upset – the ’91 Redskins, ’06 Colts and ’09 Saints – all rebounded and won the Super Bowl that year.
So it turned out to be a win-win for both teams.
Right now, the Cowboys just need to get a win. But it’s something they’ve been able to do before, despite the uphill circumstances.
