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Cowboys considered to have one of the top pregame experiences in NFL

Thanks in part to a family-friendly environment, the Dallas Cowboys earned high marks as a destination for pregame festivities on game days.

DALLAS — Aside from each once calling the Cotton Bowl home, the Dallas Cowboys and Kansas City Chiefs share something else in common.

According to Bookies.com, which compiled a list of pregame fan experiences for all 32 NFL teams, the Cowboys and the Chiefs are tied for fifth place with 97 points on the comprehensive list.

Factors taken into consideration for the ranking included miles from the city center, tailgating, entertainment around the stadium, and fan/family fun sentiment.

Dallas scored the most points, 32, in fan/family fun sentiment, meaning that AT&T Stadium and its surrounding lots are a safe and entertaining area for kids and those with kids.

The Cowboys scored low in terms of location. When a team bills itself as being in Dallas but is actually 19 miles away in another county, it tends to drag down such a score. The Cowboys tallied a below average score of 15 in this area.

For Kansas City, location was also an issue as they scored a 10. Understandably, tailgating was the biggest factor that helped the Chiefs as they earned a top ranked 32 for their parking lot parties. Dallas had a lower score in this area at 20.

Possibly with the help of Globe Life Field and the expansion of Texas Live and other venues around AT&T Stadium, the entertainment around the stadium netted the Cowboys a 30. In other words, fans attending a Cowboys game don't have that far to go from a vibrant bar or restaurant scene to their seats inside Jerry World. The Chiefs scored 28 for their environment around GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. 

Cowboys owner, president, and general manager Jerry Jones applauded the work that the neighboring Texas Rangers had done in making their blocks of Randol Mill more entertaining.

"I'm so excited," Jones told reporters at The Senior Bowl in Mobile, Ala., on Jan. 22, 2019. "The aggregation of that type of adjunct activity around the games themselves is something that I believe in. I believe that you can enhance the experience with additional affinity type activity. We know that those kinds of things they're doing over there at the ballpark we know that enhances the experience for the fans, and since we are literally joined at the hip out there, it will enhance our fans' experience. I think that's a collectively, that and us and Six Flags out there, create quite a destination for people."

Interestingly, there wasn't a strong correlation between teams that regularly host Super Bowls and teams in the top 10 on the list. The Minnesota Vikings, who hosted Super Bowl LII at the end of the 2017 season, placed No. 4. The Atlanta Falcons, hosts of Super Bowl LIII, were tied with the Philadelphia Eagles at No. 7. The Indianapolis Colts, who hosted Super Bowl XLVI, were tied with the Denver Broncos at No. 9.

The Miami Dolphins, who have hosted six Super Bowls since its 1987 opening with the most recent being Super Bowl LIV, were second to last on the pregame experience list. The Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers, both of whom share SoFi Stadium and hosted Super Bowl LVI, were tied for the third to last spot.

Do you enjoy the pregame experience around AT&T Stadium when taking in a Cowboys game? Share your thoughts with Mark on Twitter @therealmarklane.

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