Home Sweet Home?

Back in April, right before the NFL announced the schedule for the upcoming season, there was a rumor that the Cowboys would be traveling to Philly on Christmas Day to play the Eagles.  The Daily News even carried an item (no longer online) to that effect.

But then the schedule came out, and while the Eagles were indeed playing the Cowboys on December 25th, the game was in Dallas as part of a three-game NFC East road trip that many at the time assumed would be a killer stretch in the Eagles' schedule.  The NFL rumor site, profootballtalk.com, speculated at the time that then-commissioner Paul Tagliabue had pulled a last-second switcheroo after contemplating the likely outcome of Terrell Owens playing in front of a hostile Philadelphia crowd ... in a rivalry game ... on Christmas Day ... with snow maybe on the ground.

If this indeed how things went down, it wasn't a very fair outcome for the Eagles, since three-game road trips are rare in the NFL and aren't an easy thing to handle.  But maybe it was actually a blessing in disguise.

Consider all the distractions of the holiday season.  Family is in town, kids are running around, last-minute presents need to be purchased, etc., etc., etc.  Teams on the road this weekend might actually have an advantage, since "Daddy's not home" and doesn't have to balance the responsibility of work and home life.

So far this weekend, home teams have gone just 3-10.  And these weren't cupcake games -- home teams were favored in 10 of the 13 games.  Eight road underdogs have already won.  Could the Eagles be next?

And if that's the case, Merry Christmas, Mr. Tagliabue, and thanks for caring more about the league's image than competitive fairness.