A blanket of early season snow didn't stop dedicated Eagles fans from turning the stadium lots into a holiday-themed tailgate Sunday, even as the weather thinned out the usual pregame crowd.

Festive outfits, Eagles chants and a Christmas tree decorated with miniature liquor bottles helped get tailgaters in the holiday spirit.

"The game before Christmas is always our Christmas party," said Charles Harris of Lansdale. "We bring a tree, we hang airplane bottles - as many as we can - today we have over 140 airplane bottles on the tree."

Fans said the snowfall made for a slow start. The lots weren't nearly as crowded as usual around 10 a.m.

"Yes definitely the quietest," said Hetal Patel of King of Prussia. "I was surprised we didn't see that many cars here."

Others pointed to the team's recent performance as another factor.

"I'm surprised," said Frank Zuber of Hammonton. "But the Eagles haven't played too good the last three weeks so I think that's part of it and of course the weather."

Zuber still arrived early - very early. He was first in line at a lot across from the ballpark after pulling in at 4:30 a.m. "Roads weren't too bad but we took our time and we got here and were first in line. It was awesome," he said.

Harris said he delayed his usual departure because of reports of hazardous conditions. "Yeah I normally leave around 5. I didn't leave until 6:45 this morning from Lansdale because they said it was a little treacherous but I didn't have any problems getting down," he said.

Parking lots opened about an hour later than normal as crews worked to clear snow. For some fans, the winter weather was a shock to the system - including Mac Fabrico, a South Jersey native now living in Florida who flew in for the game. "So we drove on the highway to get here, very slowly, but the plows were out and stuff so we were fine," Fabrico said.

Despite the quieter turnout, fans who braved the conditions kept their holiday tailgate tradition going strong.