# The Cowboys' new stadium **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [August 22, 2009, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311 "2009-08-22T15:04:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Blaster\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cab0a1/32.png) [@Blaster\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blaster_Master)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2009, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/41 "2009-08-27T17:32:54Z")
> [@PatriotGrrrl](#): > > According to the announcers, the official rule is that if a ball hits the thing, the clock is reset and the play is done over from the same spot. So it should have no effect (other than psychologically). The part you missed from the example was more than psychological, it was game changing. Yes, the rule is there, but it’s such a rare occurence that it’s not a big deal. If you have this sort of situation where it may happen with some regularity then redoing is silly. The point was, a bad or blocked punt will never hit the score board, but a good one very well may; and a do over could mean the difference between winning and losing. Imagine a situation where the Cowboys are up by 2 with 90s left on the clock and they’re looking at 4th and 8 on their opponent’s 40. The field goal isn’t worth it, since it’s a high probability they’ll miss and give the other team excellent field position pretty much right at midfield; going for it would obviously be equally stupid. So, the coach elects to punt where, a good punt pins them inside the 10, and even a bad punt flies into the endzone and at least forces them to get 2 more first downs before getting in position for a last second game-winning field goal. Of course, in order for this punt to work, the punter’s goal is to get a high, relatively short kick to try to get it inside the 20 and have the coverage in place to prevent a return. The play starts, and the punter gets off what looks like a beauty–BONG!–it hits the jumbotron; play dead, do-over. So, fine, they kick again, except this time someone gets through, blocks the punt and the opposing team recovers it at the 46 on the other side. With momentum on their side and the Cowboys’ spirit snapped, their opponents follow it up with a quick 4 play drive down to the 28 and kick the winning fieldgoal with 14s left on the clock and the Cowboys lose. I guarantee you, if a situation like that ever happens, that jumbotron will be 5-10’ higher by the next home game. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2009, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/42 "2009-08-27T18:03:50Z")
If not, then consider that the home team is responsible for the playability of the facility. If every punt, by either team, that hit the scoreboard meant a five-yard delay penalty for the 'Pokes, Jerry would find a way to raise the thing. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2009, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/43 "2009-08-27T18:35:00Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > If not, then consider that the home team is responsible for the playability of the facility. If every punt, by either team, that hit the scoreboard meant a five-yard delay penalty for the 'Pokes, Jerry would find a way to raise the thing. Once again. THE SCOREBOARD COMPLIES WITH LEAGUE RULES. Actually, it exceeds League rules by 5 feet. If anyone fucked up here, it’s the NFL. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2009, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/44 "2009-08-27T18:45:37Z")
There’s some serious room for discussion about that point. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2009, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/45 "2009-08-27T18:57:47Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > There’s some serious room for discussion about that point. Not really. League rules say 85 feet. Jerry’s TV is 90 feet above the playing surface. If the NFL wants it raised, they’re going to have to pay for it. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2009, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/46 "2009-08-27T20:02:04Z")
But the league rules don’t say that a scoreboard has to be at 85 feet. There’s nothing preventing Jones from putting it at 100 feet, or higher. AFAIK, the Pinto complied with federal safety regulations, but that doesn’t mean that Ford wasn’t responsible for producing an unsafe car. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2009, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/47 "2009-08-27T20:30:52Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Not really. League rules say 85 feet. So all the news stories say. The Competition Committee is going to get into the fine print. ---
**Author:** ![freedumb2003](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@freedumb2003](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freedumb2003)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2009, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/48 "2009-08-27T21:40:40Z")
> [@zamboniracer](#): > > That the punters can routinely hit the TV screen is ridiculous. Every time they hit it Jerry Jones should be penalized $1,000. > > I’d be interested to know what the other differences between the new stadium and the old one are. Short of gold-plating the toilets, I’m skeptical about how Texas Stadium could be improved upon. I saw a game there and thought it was an armpit. If you were to see Heinz or the redone Lambeau you would see what I mean. ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2009, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/49 "2009-08-27T22:25:12Z")
> [@freedumb2003](#): > > I saw a game there (@ Texas Stadium) and thought it was an armpit. If you were to see Heinz or the redone Lambeau you would see what I mean. Thanks, but my travel budget and sports ticket budget won’t allow me to visit either of those venues in the near future. What, specifically, didn’t you like about Texas Stadium? One poster above mentioned how hot the place got, another mentioned that the field’s crown was too steep, and I read somewhere else that the cheerleaders lockerroom was too small, was dirty and had a cockroach infestation. With all due respect to the cheerleaders, a cleanup crew and an exterminator would’ve solved two of the cheerleaders’ problems problem and I’m guessing a bigger lockerroom could’ve been built for less that the mega bucks spent on Cowboys stadium. I don’t know that the crown of the field was a big deal. Of course, the new place has 20,000 more seats than the old one and a retractable roof, so those are real and obvious things Texas Stadium didn’t have. The lack of same doesn’t make Texas Stadium an armpit however. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2009, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/50 "2009-08-28T01:53:02Z")
I have to say that all NFL stadiums are playing for second place, until someone else puts a pirate ship in the stands. Go Bucs! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2009, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/51 "2009-08-28T12:36:16Z")
I assume that the Madden game doesn’t have this quirk programmed into it, but it would be really impressive if it did. ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2009, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/52 "2009-08-28T14:32:18Z")
We have our official word on the matter: [League adopts “do over” rule for Cowboys video board](http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2009/08/28/league-adopts-do-over-rule-for-cowboys-video-board/) > [@](#): > > In a memo sent to all teams, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has announced a decision regarding potential collisions between the game ball and the video board at Cowboys stadium. > > A league source tells us that the video board won’t be moved, and the “do over” rule will apply. > > Specifically, if a ball strikes the video board, the play will be dead at that point and the down will be replayed from the previous spot. No penalties will count, other than personal fouls. > > Also, the clock will reset to the time reflected before the “do over.” (And that makes sense; otherwise, a team with the lead could have told its punter to slam the ball into the video board over and over again.) ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2009, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/53 "2009-08-28T15:00:40Z")
I know this is the _smart_ thing to do (okay, moving the fucking video screen is the smart thing to do, but still) but a small part of me _really, really_ wants them to rule that the ball is still live. The mad scramble for a punt that comes down almost vertically right around the line of scrimmage would be awesome to watch. ---
**Author:** ![davidw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c4cdca/32.png) [@davidw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidw)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2009, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/54 "2009-08-28T15:02:27Z")
What the hell?! How is that a better solution than simply moving the video board? ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2009, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/55 "2009-08-28T15:16:16Z")
Devil’s Advocate. So, If the Long snapper snaps it over the Punters head, and he has to turn around and run down the ball, He can kick it backward, and as long as he can hit the board he get’s a do-over? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2009, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/56 "2009-08-28T15:16:37Z")
> [@](#): > > What the hell?! How is that a better solution than simply moving the video board? 1. What Jerry Jones wants, Jerry Jones gets. He has compromising pictures of 23 of the other 31 team owners. 2. It’s cheaper. _Haven’t you heard about the economy_? 3. The networks will get to run two sets of commercials in a row! That means you can hear the _Viva Viagra_ song fourteen times in one 3-hour game broadcast, and you’ll be reminded extra-regularly that Ford trucks are Built Ford Tough. 4. Proposals for the new video board location all restrict God’s view of His team. 5. Terrell Owens got cut; no danger of injury risk from massive ego bumping into board. 6. Allows Mat McBriar to remain competitive among NFL punters despite two missing knee ligaments. At least during home games. 7. Stadium construction crew all Mexican itinerant laborers; all went home due to slumping construction industry. Crazy border-watch militias mostly composed of Texans fans, unfortunately. > [@](#): > > So, If the Long snapper snaps it over the Punters head, and he has to turn around and run down the ball, He can kick it backward, and as long as he can hit the board he get’s a do-over? If he can knock the ball 90 feet in the air while it’s rolling around on the ground, well, fuck, he _deserves_ a do-over. ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2009, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/57 "2009-08-28T18:29:05Z")
Just imagine Jerry’s blackmail picture file covering the ~100,000 Packers stockholders… 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2009, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/58 "2009-08-28T18:30:51Z")
I think they’re among the 8 he hasn’t got anything on. After all, what photographic evidence could possibly be more embarrassing than wearing a wedge of fake cheese as a hat and being from Wisconsin? ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2009, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/59 "2009-08-28T18:43:51Z")
davidw: > [@](#): > > What the hell?! How is that a better solution than simply moving the video board? Well, if it’s true that the NFL told him it merely had to be 85 feet above the field, then if they demand he move it, he could probably turn around and make the league pay for changing their minds after the construction. The league is probably smart to let the season go ahead with the thing in place, and if it proves to be too much of a nuisance, then they have better grounds to make him change it at his own expense. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2009, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311/60 "2009-08-28T21:52:21Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > The mad scramble for a punt that comes down almost vertically right around the line of scrimmage would be awesome to watch. If you’d like that, go watch the Arena League. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-cowboys-new-stadium/507311.md?page=4)