'They showed up': Cowboys faithful fill Ford Field, wipe out home-field advantage

Detroit — The Lions played a home game in Week 11, but if one were to close their eyes as Jeff Driskel and the offense lined up for any crucial third-down play on Sunday, that fact would be tough to believe.

Cowboys fans swarmed Ford Field in droves, effectively starting chants of “DE-FENSE!” that filled the building whenever the Lions needed a big play, and stripping Detroit of its home-field advantage in a 35-27 loss.

“When you’re in an away stadium, and you’re on the field during a defense play, and you hear ‘De-fense,’ that’s heartwarming,” Cowboys defensive end Robert Quinn said.

"Thank goodness they showed up today because we definitely appreciate them, and needed them from time to time."

Ford Field was also frequently narrated by chants of “Cooooop!” whenever Dallas receiver Amari Cooper caught a pass, and “Let’s go Cowboys!” This, of course, drew ire from the Lions fan base in attendance, who could only hope to counter the opposing chants with a flurry of boos.

“Our fans definitely got a lot louder than their fans,” Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott said. “It was kind of a home crowd.”

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott wasn’t willing to go that far — “Home field is AT&T (Stadium) and there’s nothing like that,” he said after the win — but he did say his team benefited greatly from the crowd’s Dallas-leaning bias.

“When you you’ve got a fan base like we do that’s all across America, you’re not surprised when you go into a visiting stadium and you get a chant like you were getting,” Prescott said. “It’s fun, it allows you to feed off that energy for sure.”  

Nolan Bianchi is a freelance writer.