Cowboys fans gathered Christmas Day knowing the season was over, but family, tradition and belief kept hope alive — because “next year” is always “the year.”
ARLINGTON, Texas — Fans packed into Texas Live! in Arlington on Christmas Day, waiting to see what the Dallas Cowboys would deliver, much like kids waking up to presents under the tree.
“I do believe they’re going to win, man. How about you?” said Estevan Romero of Fort Worth.
He was surrounded by family, a theme echoed throughout the crowd.
“All of them,” said Tilisee Sullivan, also of Fort Worth. “That’s the best Christmas present.”
Some fans traveled in from out of town to be there, even as the reality of the season had already set in. The Cowboys’ playoff hopes were gone before kickoff.
“On Christmas, if we don’t do anything else, we better win this one and the last one,” Sullivan said.
Still, there were reasons fans said they hadn’t fully given up.
“They got the team to play,” Romero said. “But they’re not consistent.”
Sullivan pointed to flashes of promise earlier in the season.
“In what, four days? We beat both teams that were in the Super Bowl last year,” she said. “That I loved. But what we did afterwards…”
Then came the moment fans were waiting for: the Cowboys pulled out a Christmas Day win, setting off cheers that felt less like celebration and more like affirmation.
“That’s the way it is,” Romero said. “They got a good shot at it next year.”