When I look back on this phase of the Cowboys, I think of what would have happened if one of the other bidders had bought the Cowboys?
What if Booger hadn't hired Johnson and turned the football side over to someone he trusted?
What if Johnson doesn't pull off one of the most lopsided trades in history and jump starts the turnaround?
What if Johnson doesn't hire Norv Turner, his 3rd choice, as OC?
Johnson was already in Dallas with the clock ticking, if he doesn't get it turned, does he bail and head back to college like Petrino, Spurrier and Saban?
What if he gets James Francis with that Emmitt pick?
What if he decides to trade Aikman and keep Walsh because Aikman really struggled before Turner?
The questions above intrigue me but none more than that second one. Want to blame someone for Booger? Blame Jimmy for turning the team into the black so quickly because if he doesn't, chances are Booger sells the team to one of those bidders that lost out. He was not well heeled enough to stand the red ink, which is why Bright had to sell.
So, if Booger doesn't buy the team and doesn't hire Jimmy who in turn doesn't hire Turner, trades Aikman and doesn't have Emmitt, how many years are we discussing of ineptitude?
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times and we have to take the bitter with the sweet. If I were to tell you the Cowboys will win 3 of the 4 next SB's but will have a drought for the following 24 years, you OK with that? You would most likely say Oh hell yeah! Until you started enduring those 24 years.
What are you talking about? Six degrees of separation with the Cowboys? We have proof of what Jimmy was able to pull off in his 1989-1993 run which includes back to backup SB + the 1995 win.
There is luck involved in every championship run of every team.
What if the Niners didnt draft Joe Montana or Jerry Rice?
What if the Patriots never drafted Brady, or Bledsoe never got hurt or Kraft never bought the Pats and they moved to Hartford?
What if Elway never got Davis as his RB.
We can go on and on with What ifs. The fact of the matter is that Jerry killed the golden/ diamond/ platinum goose. He took the most well run and feared organization and flushed it down the toilet. As I have said many many times before, not only on this forum but no matter where you are in your career or business. Culture really matters.
Great coaches and organizations have a culture they build with their teams, this culture enables the organization to have sustained success., It starts from the top and go all the way to the janitor.
Why have the Patriots been so successful?. Why have the Steelers been able to sustain for such a long time period. Look at the Eagles with Reid? Look at the Chiefs with Reid.
Holmgren with the Pack and the Seahawks.
The Cowboys lack of success over the past 23 years is our inability to have a culture of accountability. Whether it is allowing Campo, Chan Gailey, Wade Phillips, Jason Garrett to hand around too long. Jerry Jones accepts mediocrity. How man playoff wins have we had over the 23 years?
How many times did we make the 2nd round?
How many championship games did we make it to?
How many SB's did we make it to? You see I didn't say how many we won? As a fan you want your team to win every year, and the Patriot run has been unmatched so i don't want to compare any team to that standard.
You want your team to be competitive and make championship games so you have a chance to play for the SB.
Name me one other organization that would have allowed a GM to bungle Drafting & FA as long as Jerry and company did? We are being held over a cliff because Dak wants $40 million dollars. If I was Jerry I would say screw off and pay him 2 million dollars. I would tell my scouts to find me another player. Why is the team so afraid? What do we pay our front office guys for? BTW I'm sure Dak will sign an extension very soon.
Over the past few years the Cowboys have turned around drafting and FA, so there is more success, and as a fan I am appreciative of this organization.
Sometimes people only care about results. There is a saying Process over Results. The Amari Cooper trade was a perfect example of how the Cowboys process was horrible. We were 3-5, looking at a top 5 pick and we trade for a WR who was disappointing in his play. Even the front office never expected us to make the second round of the playoffs last year. (from where we started).
Last offseason we should have looked at adding talent at WR & TE so we would not have needed to try a hailmary trade that actually worked. Process is what allows the Reid's eagles to make it to 4 straight championship games. Allows the Pats to constantly be ahead of the curve, allows McVay to do what he does.
Jerry needs to modernize the FO. Hire a room full of analytics guys from MIT. Stop running the Cowboys like a mom and pop shop where Jerry and Stephen are the geniuses.