It's time to fire the man in the mirror

[silver]

http://espn.go.com/dallas/nfl/story/...eneral-manager
It's time to fire the man in the mirror
Dallas Cowboys' delusion starts with Jerry Jones, who isn't doing job as GM, owner
Updated: November 6, 2012, 11:11 AM ET
By Tim MacMahon | ESPNDallas.com

ATLANTA -- Jerry Jones would fire himself if he were somebody else.

That makes perfect sense if you view it through the prism of nonsensical Jerry logic.


Ron Jenkins/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/MCT/Getty Images
Want proof that Jerry Jones isn't about to relinquish his role as GM? "I think that I know how our organization runs and I know the best way to make decisions for us," Jerry said. "And that's the best way."
Jerry isn't so delusional that he believes he's done a good job as the general manager over the last decade and a half. He knows that his Dallas Cowboys are two games below .500 this season, and since the start of the 1997 season. He's well-aware that there isn't another GM in sports who could survive a span so long that featured one playoff win and six head coaches.

But Jerry doesn't just want to win. He wants to get the lion's share of the glory.

That's why he'll never, ever consider putting his ego aside for the best interests of the franchise by giving up the GM duties.

By Jerry standards, he made that perfectly clear in his pregame interview on NBC, when he essentially acknowledged that he would have fired any other GM by now.

Just don't think for a split second that means that Jerry would seriously consider canning himself.

So what if any other GM would have been looking for work several years ago?

"Yeah, but he doesn't own the team," Jones said following the Cowboys' 19-13 loss Sunday night to the Atlanta Falcons. "So I'm just saying what I really meant was one of the things you do if you've got a GM that in this particular case that owns the team, you go in and work on the mirror."

A reasonable, honest man would stare in the mirror and see someone not fit to make the personnel decisions for an NFL franchise.

Indisputable evidence over the past 15 years makes that case. But Jerry uses those three Lombardi Trophies as mirrors, rationalizing that his way has been proven as the right way. (Never mind that Jimmy Johnson insists that his right to make all the personnel decisions was written into his contract.)

"When I bought the team, the night I bought it, I said I would be doing what I'm doing," Jerry said, justifying in his mind why he'll be the GM until his final breath. "And that's GM the team and make the final decision on all personnel. That's the way it's always been done.

"We won three Super Bowls doing that, and so I want to do it again."

OK, Jerry, but you've won a grand total of one playoff game in the last 15 years.

At what point do you wonder whether it's really in the franchise's best interests to continue being the lone owner/GM in the NFL?

The short answer: never.

"I think that I know how our organization runs and I know the best way to make decisions for us," Jerry said. "And that's the best way. I know that's what motivates me as an owner and causes me to me to basically do the best job that I can."

The best job Jerry can do as GM -- a role he finds time for when he isn't scheduling events in his stadium, negotiating network TV contracts, marketing the Cowboys and selling lingerie -- just isn't good enough.

But you'll never get Jerry to admit that. Heck, he's still trying to convince folks he's constructed a roster capable of contending for a Super Bowl title this season.


Never mind that his mistakes had their fingerprints all over this loss, the Cowboys' ninth in their last 13 games.

[Kangaroo]

The media and fans just need to give it up they wrote the same crap about Al Davis for what the last 15 years and he gave it up when he was what 6' feet under.

Jerry is not giving up anything and when he does it will be to Stephen. Just get over except the fact that Jerry Jones is Al Davis and embrace it like the Raider Fans.

[WPBCowboysFan]

Just pitiful!

[sbark]

fire Jerry?.........only way to do that is quit handing money to him for tickets, jerseys etc etc

[jday]

Originally Posted by Kangaroo

The media and fans just need to give it up they wrote the same crap about Al Davis for what the last 15 years and he gave it up when he was what 6' feet under.

Jerry is not giving up anything and when he does it will be to Stephen. Just get over except the fact that Jerry Jones is Al Davis and embrace it like the Raider Fans.

A couple of years ago there was a guy trying to get people to donate to the cause of buying ad space on billboards putting up a request for Jerry to fire himself.

[Kangaroo]

Originally Posted by jday

A couple of years ago there was a guy trying to get people to donate to the cause of buying ad space on billboards putting up a request for Jerry to fire himself.

A waste of money but hey if they want to waste their money and provide someone a job more power to them.

[CosmicCowboy]

which there were a list of facts in that mirror....

[BringBackThatOleTimeBoys]

I can't believe the comments: "JJ is not going to change - get over it."

So on anything else your would buy a bad product for years?

Any other business can make money after being mediocre this long - any one else can avoid getting fired doing this?

The closest analogy I can come up with is the 50 years it took for General Motors to go from 54% of the US market in the 50's to under 15% when they declared bankruptcy and took TARP money.

• Corvair
• Vega
• Diesel Olds
• Front-wheel drives of the early 80's constantly in the repair shop
• Cimmeron Cady
• Aztek
• etc, etc

They did not want to stall production a few weeks so they let the union raise costs to the point cars were unprofitable unless they were loaded. So they tried to get everybody to trade in their Impala for a Suburban as they could make money only on trucks/SUVs.

Management - lots of layers to say No to innovation.

So GM was in this world of denial and in 2008 the days of cheap credit and gas under $2 a gallon went away and they ate humble pie. Knock on wood they have learned their lesson.

No matter how much people like your product, if it's bad enough long enough, it will eventually fail. It took GM 50 years to fail, but hubris did catch up with them.

Again, why are people justifying the product JJ has been putting out the past 17 years?

[rocboy22]

Originally Posted by BringBackThatOleTimeBoys

I can't believe the comments: "JJ is not going to change - get over it."

So on anything else your would buy a bad product for years?

Any other business can make money after being mediocre this long - any one else can avoid getting fired doing this?

The closest analogy I can come up with is the 50 years it took for General Motors to go from 54% of the US market in the 50's to under 15% when they declared bankruptcy and took TARP money.

• Corvair
• Vega
• Diesel Olds
• Front-wheel drives of the early 80's constantly in the repair shop
• Cimmeron Cady
• Aztek
• etc, etc

They did not want to stall production a few weeks so they let the union raise costs to the point cars were unprofitable unless they were loaded. So they tried to get everybody to trade in their Impala for a Suburban as they could make money only on trucks/SUVs.

[View Full Quote]Management - lots of layers to say No to innovation.

So GM was in this world of denial and in 2008 the days of cheap credit and gas under $2 a gallon went away and they ate humble pie. Knock on wood they have learned their lesson.

No matter how much people like your product, if it's bad enough long enough, it will eventually fail. It took GM 50 years to fail, but hubris did catch up with them.

Again, why are people justifying the product JJ has been putting out the past 17 years?

who is justifying it?

All I see is people saying give it a rest, why bring this up constantly?

[BringBackThatOleTimeBoys]

Originally Posted by rocboy22

All I see is people saying give it a rest, why bring this up constantly?

I'm a n00b, so it's others along with me that grieve constantly.

Sadly, the Cowboys performance the past 17 years has also been constant.

Standing by the historical GM management = current Cowboys management.

[Kangaroo]

Originally Posted by BringBackThatOleTimeBoys

I can't believe the comments: "JJ is not going to change - get over it."

So on anything else your would buy a bad product for years?

Any other business can make money after being mediocre this long - any one else can avoid getting fired doing this?

The closest analogy I can come up with is the 50 years it took for General Motors to go from 54% of the US market in the 50's to under 15% when they declared bankruptcy and took TARP money.

• Corvair
• Vega
• Diesel Olds
• Front-wheel drives of the early 80's constantly in the repair shop
• Cimmeron Cady
• Aztek
• etc, etc

They did not want to stall production a few weeks so they let the union raise costs to the point cars were unprofitable unless they were loaded. So they tried to get everybody to trade in their Impala for a Suburban as they could make money only on trucks/SUVs.

[View Full Quote]Management - lots of layers to say No to innovation.

So GM was in this world of denial and in 2008 the days of cheap credit and gas under $2 a gallon went away and they ate humble pie. Knock on wood they have learned their lesson.

No matter how much people like your product, if it's bad enough long enough, it will eventually fail. It took GM 50 years to fail, but hubris did catch up with them.

Again, why are people justifying the product JJ has been putting out the past 17 years?

The NFL has become a place for people with money to be seen it is an event. With the NFL TV deal in place and people are going to the stadium. The owners do not care.

The way the NFL is now days the fans always have the hope that this year is the year because it happens a lot in the NFL even if you where 2-14 last year your team may make a run and bam Super Bowl. Even if your team sucked for 32 years there is always a chance.

It is about the overall NFL product you are only looking at one segment because you have an emotional investment in that sections but as a whole the NFL is thriving.