When the schedule comes out each April, a lot of people are quick to search for advantages and disadvantages. It's futile to count wins and losses before the season starts, but not so pointless to search for quirks in the scheduling which could have an effect on the team.
One such oddity is upon the Cowboys now, a bizarre 37-day stretch between Sunday's preseason game and the homer opener, Sept. 26 against Washington, Week 3. In the regular season, the NFL would never put a team on the road four games in a row - it'd be cruel and unusual punishment.
But since these last two of the preseason don't actually count - at Minnesota on Saturday and at Miami on Sept. 1 - the league had no issue ordering the extended road trip.
"That's a long time, to be honest with you, to start off a year," Bradie James said. "I don't know how many teams have done that. But we've got to play the cards. That's the hand that we're dealt, and we've got to go out and play well."
The Cowboys open the season with a visit to the New York Jets, and play at San Francisco in Week 2.
In years past the NFL frequently sent the club on the road to start the season because of the heat in Texas, but Cowboys Stadium is climate controlled. The Cowboys have opened the season with a road game each of the last three years.
To get away from that heat, the team will at least practice at the stadium this week and when necessary moving into the season.
