By now, almost every devoted Dallas Cowboys fan has come to accept that team owner Jerry Jones will never remove himself from the general manager role as long as he’s in charge.
After taking over as the Cowboys’ owner in 1989, Jerry Jones assigned himself the president and GM roles. It was hard for Cowboys fans to complain about the power structure in the early years of his ownership, as Dallas won three Super Bowls over a four-year span (1992, 1993, and 1995) to achieve dynasty status.
But the Cowboys haven’t played in the NFC Championship Game since 1995. Jones continues to manage the Cowboys his way, refusing to follow the standard practice of bringing in a more qualified and football-educated person to run the front office.
Speaking to longtime Cowboys reporter Clarence Hill of alldlls.com, Jones explained why he’ll never relinquish his GM duties and hire someone else in his place:
“I (f**king) have had hundreds of (bad days). I’m emotional about it sometimes. Well, running this thing, that’s who I want to make the last call. Now, when I can’t (f**king) think, when I’m old and I can’t even do it…but I’m a long way from not being able to do it too.
The reason I don’t let somebody else be the GM is because I don’t have anybody that I will let do it to actually do it right. And they’re gonna have to come to me and because I know where it is that you’re going to pay for. “
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And there you have it, Dallas fans. Jerry Jones is convinced that nobody is more qualified than him to hold the GM role.
In January, Jones promised that the Cowboys would have an “all-in” approach to the offseason. Fast-forward to the end of preseason, however, and Jones hasn’t made a single blockbuster trade or free agent signing.
The Cowboys will begin their 2024 season with a road game against Myles Garrett’s Cleveland Browns on Sept. 9.
Jerry Jones Will Never Change His Ways
This is the issue with Jones and many other professional sports team owners. They are convinced that just because they made billions in one business, they are more educated on football than the people who’ve devoted their lives to the game.
Jones is the guy who kept Jason Garrett as head coach for 10 years despite winning only two playoff games in his tenure. The same coach who fired Jimmy Johnson after two straight Super Bowls, but also keeps Mike McCarthy around when he has one playoff win in five years.
He can talk all he wants about winning another Super Bowl in his lifetime. But Jones won’t see that unless he changes his ways, and there’s no reason to think he will.