Dallas Cowboys coaches and veterans are frustrated after 20 players missed the team's Friday night curfew in London, according to a report from NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Team owner Jerry Jones, on the other hand, told ESPN's Bill Polian and Ian Fitzsimmons that the report was untrue because the Cowboys didn't even have a curfew.
The overseas trip to play the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium is the first time the Cowboys have ever participated in the NFL's International Series and there are a list of reasons why the team wouldn't take the game as seriously. The most obvious of those reasons is the level of competition in the game.
Dallas enters Sunday as a 7-point favorite over the Jaguars, a team that has just one win so far in 2014. No team has scored fewer points than the Jaguars and only two teams have allowed more points, as the team has slid to a 1-8 record through the first nine weeks.
Still, the Jags have shown life over the last few weeks, including a 24-6 win over the Cleveland Browns in Week 7 and a rejuvenated rushing attack led by second-year back Denard Robinson. The Cowboys, who began the season at 6-1, are coming off two consecutive losses while quarterback Tony Romo is dealing with a back injury. If some of the Cowboys players view the trip to London as a vacation, there could be reason for concern about the seriousness with which they are approaching Week 10.