Day 55 of the Cowboys’ 100-game countdown lands on a night that still stings, because it wasn’t just another loss. It was the last NFL game ever played at Texas Stadium, and the building that carried so much Cowboys history went out with Baltimore celebrating and Dallas left to absorb the silence.
The setting was Saturday, December 20, 2008, at 8:15 p.m. ET in Irving, Texas, and the final score told the story plainly: Ravens 33, Cowboys 24.
Dallas had the stage, the playoff push and the emotional weight of a farewell ceremony waiting after the game. For a few minutes, it even looked like the script might cooperate.
DeMarcus Ware forced a Joe Flacco fumble on Baltimore’s first possession, and the Cowboys turned that takeaway into a two-yard Tashard Choice touchdown. Texas Stadium had its first jolt of hope right there.
But Baltimore settled in and started squeezing the game away with field goals. Matt Stover knocked through four of them, and the Ravens took a 9-7 lead into halftime without scoring an offensive touchdown.
The third quarter gave Baltimore more breathing room. Flacco connected with Derrick Mason on a 13-yard touchdown, and suddenly Dallas was chasing at 16-7. That set up a fourth quarter that became the painful heart of the night.
Nick Folk made it 16-10, then Stover answered to push the margin back to nine. Tony Romo finally gave the Cowboys a spark with a seven-yard touchdown pass to Terrell Owens, pulling Dallas within 19-17 with 3:50 to play. One stop, and Texas Stadium might have had one last miracle in it.
Instead, the Ravens delivered the kind of finish that lingers. Willis McGahee broke loose for a 77-yard touchdown run to make it 26-17.
Romo responded again, hitting Jason Witten for a 21-yard touchdown that trimmed it to 26-24 with 1:36 left. Then Baltimore slammed the door on its very next offensive snap, when Le’Ron McClain ripped off an 82-yard touchdown run to seal it.
Romo finished with 252 passing yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Choice ran for 90 yards and scored the game’s first touchdown.
But Dallas never recovered from the defensive collapse, and Baltimore’s ground game overwhelmed the night. The Ravens ran for 265 yards as a team, with McClain and McGahee both topping 100.
That’s why this game belongs in the countdown. Texas Stadium opened in 1971 and became the backdrop for championship teams, Hall of Famers, playoff classics, Thanksgiving memories and some of the most recognizable moments in franchise history. The Cowboys didn’t get the farewell they wanted, but this game still marks the end of an era.
Interesting Facts About the Game
This was the last NFL game ever played at Texas Stadium. The Cowboys held a postgame ceremony afterward, with legends including Roger Staubach, Randy White, Mel Renfro and Emmitt Smith among those tied to the farewell coverage.
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