Freddy Jones (and his trumpet) perform National Anthem for Dallas Cowboys – Washington Thanksgiving game

Earlier today, the Detroit Lions – Minnesota Vikings game certainly drew some headlines courtesy of a National Anthem performance from Aretha Franklin. While we know that there were plenty of people out there who thought that this went a little bit long, but we personally think that this is all sorts of ironic. Let’s just put it this was: There was some relentless complaining about watching Aretha perform for so long, while at the same time we are somehow willing to sit around for good eight or nine hours to watch three NFL games.

So who was set to perform the National Anthem for the game between the Dallas Cowboys and Washington? Let’s just say that this performance was certainly different. The team had Freddy Jones play the Anthem on his trumpet. While the rendition was fairly simple and almost entirely melody-focused, at the same time it was lovely. Sometimes you don’t need to go big and elaborate in order to create a memorable TV moment.

This is something that they’ve done on many occasions in the past, but there is a little bit of an element of surprise that comes with this. This is Thanksgiving, after all, and we’re talking about the Cowboys — a team that tends to be stuffed to the brim with excess more often than not. We’re almost surprised they didn’t make into an enormous spectacle, but we’re glad that they didn’t given that they still found a way to do something lovely.

With that being said, there’s no way that this gets anywhere near the publicity as Franklin’s rendition — but since when was that the priority in the first place? The Anthem’s probably already gotten more attention thanks to sporting events this year than any other in recent memory.

Want to get some more news when it comes to National Anthems, head over here to see more of Franklin’s performance prior to the Lions game! (Photo: Fox.)