Are we all looking at the actual problem?

[MapleLeaf]

The past few weeks many have piped up with their concerns about the state of the Cowboys and the usual suspects have come round and round. Parcells, Zimmer, Rodgers, so on, so forth.

It seems a repeat of five years ago and I remember at that time much of the boards were focusing on one culprit. The owner.

Is it possible that much of what lies as the better future of the Cowboys may be found in the retirement or removal of Jerry Jones from the equation?

Could we be a better team with Stephen Jones at the helm? May we actually have an office in Valley Ranch for GM once again?

 

[Chuck 54]

Jerry Jones has made plenty of errors as gm during the post-Jimmy years, but I personally love him as an owner, and I think he's learned a great deal in his years as gm.

While we all have our opinions and enjoy sharing in the arguments, I'd dare to say that through the years of Jimmy, Barry, Chan, Campo, and Parcells, JJ has actually learned a great deal about running a team, running the front office, and personel in the NFL, along with the proper way to support a coach.

Yesterday, Jimmy Johnson said that he has never viewed Jerry as a meddlesome owner. "Jerry doesn't want to make the decisions, he just wants to be involved, which is his right after paying a lot for the team." He also took the blame saying, "I probably made a mistake by not involving Jerry more there at the end...he loves it and just wants to be involved."

I took involved to mean "be part of the discussion." I think Jerry has done a very good job as gm at times too. Matt Milan is supposed to be a "football man" but he's certainly the laughing stock of the NFL.

I hated his choice of coaches back in the early days...I hated his drafts after Jimmy left, but I think he learned a great deal, and I have no problem with him as owner or gm now. While many may prefer Singletary or Rivera over Norv or Wade, I doubt that he's been advised in that direction by Parcells, whose opinion and advice he respects, and I think most would agree that it's not a clear-cut decision like Cowher or Belichek versus Norv....it's safe with a good team or taking a chance on a HR for many years to come....close call at this point.

I would hate to see JJ step down or sell the team, and neither is going to happen, no matter what I want, for a long time.

 

[Chevyman08]

Jerry isn't going anywhere for a long time. I think he wants to win and is doing his best to get the best coach available. It isn't his fault that Parcells retired a year to late (We could have kept Payton) or a year to early (We could get Fisher next year). He is interviewing the best candidates that he has available this year.

 

[Bach]

Jerry is a big problem, but there's nothing that can be done about it.

 

[ABQCOWBOY]

I think the Jury is still very much out on Jerry. Lets wait and see who he actually hire's as HC and then form opinion based on those facts. At this point, Jerry is being pitched into the breach for reasons that are unfounded IMO. Even I am guilty of this to a certain extent. It is human nature but it is also a bit unfair.

I am content to wait and see. This hire is extremely important for the future of our franchise IMO. I can wait on a good decision. If it costs us with coaching staff, short term, so be it. There will be time to hire good staff later. The head man is the most important piece of any staff. Lets give Jerry a chance to get that right I say.

 

[DipChit]

Jerry isn't going anywhere for a long time. I think he wants to win and is doing his best to get the best coach available. It isn't his fault that Parcells retired a year to late (We could have kept Payton) or a year to early (We could get Fisher next year). He is interviewing the best candidates that he has available this year.

Yeah I agree. It just so happens this is a crappy year to find yourself in this position.

Well *I* think it is anyway. I think the decision making could be a lot easier if guys like Norv or Wade (or other prorven coordinators like them) happened to be available as coordinators this year.

You wouldnt have to worry that you were rolling the dice by making them HC's just to get them on board. Since nobody else would be offering them HC's gig's you could throw as much money as need be (if there was competition for their services) to sign them as coordinators.

Once you did that it would make much less difference who the HC was. You could well get away with Garrett or Singletary. Or at least feel more comfortable in trying to.

As it stands it's a dilemma. Theres no obvious path to choose. Especially when you feel you're a team on the brink to begin with as opposed to a couple years away.

You either go with inexperience across the whole front line, or less scary.. give the HC job to guys who while having experience overall, arent terribly suited to HC gigs. Not exactly ideal situations.

 

[zrinkill]

Another Fire Jerry post???? Jerry will be around another 20 years guys .... get used to it.

 

[superpunk]

Jerry may very well be a part of the problem, but there's nothing you can do about it.

Like wayne said, Jerry like to be involved. He is a hands-on owner, and that doesn't necessarily mean HANDS ON, he just wants to know what's going on, and feel like part of the process. It is, after all, his enterprise. If any of us owned the team would we be any different? Jerry probably isn't looking for so much a puppet as a head coach as a peer - which is why he got along so well with Parcells. They're similar dudes. If you've got the knowledge, and you involve Jerry, let him be part of the process and learn, I'm sure he respects that.

If you're Dave Campo, not so much.

 

[Big Dakota]

The past few weeks many have piped up with their concerns about the state of the Cowboys and the usual suspects have come round and round. Parcells, Zimmer, Rodgers, so on, so forth.

It seems a repeat of five years ago and I remember at that time much of the boards were focusing on one culprit. The owner.

Is it possible that much of what lies as the better future of the Cowboys may be found in the retirement or removal of Jerry Jones from the equation?

Could we be a better team with Stephen Jones at the helm? May we actually have an office in Valley Ranch for GM once again?

You do realize how fruitless this thread is don't you?

Jerry is a healthy 65 year old man that very well could be running the Cowboys for another 10-15 years.What in the world has Jerry ever done to make ANYONE think he'll ever step down? Better get a new angle.

 

[StanleySpadowski]

One thing that I think Jones never gets enough credit for is being a "football" guy.

As an owner, he has more playing experience than other owners and as a GM he has more than a great many of the so called "great" GMs out there.

Because he's not the greatest orator on the planet, some people equate that with stupidity. That's far from the truth, yet we hear the same tired few with their "Jethro" remarks.

He's made his mistakes, that's for sure, but every owner and every GM has. Another thing that most also overlook is that Owner/GM Jones has more rings than any other active owner except Kraft in NE who also has three.

 

[DipChit]

One thing that I think Jones never gets enough credit for is being a "football" guy.

As an owner, he has more playing experience than other owners and as a GM he has more than a great many of the so called "great" GMs out there.

Because he's not the greatest orator on the planet, some people equate that with stupidity. That's far from the truth, yet we hear the same tired few with their "Jethro" remarks.

He's made his mistakes, that's for sure, but every owner and every GM has. Another thing that most also overlook is that Owner/GM Jones has more rings than any other active owner except Kraft in NE who also has three.

Just been a case where we've had to take the good with the bad.. or vice versa as the case may be.

On one hand the rings go a long way. On the other hand currently only trailing the Lions in regards to longest time since a playoff victory... not so far since he's been the constant over that period of time.

 

[chinch]

Jerry Jones has made plenty of errors as gm during the post-Jimmy years, but I personally love him as an owner, and I think he's learned a great deal in his years as gm.

It's misguided to hire someone as GM when they're still "learning on the job", nevermind grossly incompetant.

i'm sure alot of 6th graders "learn a great deal" that doesn't mean they should be promoted to GM of the cowboys. pathetic.

One thing that I think Jones never gets enough credit for is being a "football" guy.

gee... why is that...

sorta like the bad co-worker who never gets promoted.

ps - it's because he's generally known as a football idiot.

 

[StanleySpadowski]

Just been a case where we've had to take the good with the bad.. or vice versa as the case may be.

On one hand the rings go a long way. On the other hand currently only trailing the Lions in regards to longest time since a playoff victory... not so far since he's been the constant over that period of time.

I really think that Jones is building this franchise for the long term now. I think most agree that Dallas' problems were trying to hold on the vestiges of greatness for a few years too long (Galloway trade et.al.) combined with poor drafts (2001) and cap problems.

If Jones really cared about a playoff win, he probably could have had one but that wouldn't have helped this franchise win another Super Bowl and probably could have ******** the development.

Dallas seems to have the pieces in place for a nice long run at multiple Super Bowls. They now have a seemingly competent personnel man in Ireland, a QB in Romo who can rise above mediocrity, some playmakers on the defensive side...

For the next half-decade, look for a return to past, Dallas and San Francisco battling in the conference championship game to see who gets to kick the AFC champ around. Both teams went through similar circumstances and both seem poised to take it to the next level again.

 

[GimmeTheBall!]

The past few weeks many have piped up with their concerns about the state of the Cowboys and the usual suspects have come round and round. Parcells, Zimmer, Rodgers, so on, so forth.

It seems a repeat of five years ago and I remember at that time much of the boards were focusing on one culprit. The owner.

Is it possible that much of what lies as the better future of the Cowboys may be found in the retirement or removal of Jerry Jones from the equation?

Could we be a better team with Stephen Jones at the helm? May we actually have an office in Valley Ranch for GM once again?

All in all, Jerra is the best owner in the NFL in terms of optimism, energy, putting his money where his mouf is and being proactive. He lives and dies Cowboy football.

He knows more about football than all the owners combined. And he's probably the only owner who could actually coach an NFL team. Well, not coach well, but he could do it in a pinch.

 

[wileedog]

Like wayne said, Jerry like to be involved. He is a hands-on owner, and that doesn't necessarily mean HANDS ON, he just wants to know what's going on, and feel like part of the process.

I think he was a little more than just "hands on" during the Dark Years(tm).

I think he was directly responsible for the "draft backups" strategy in the years immediately post-Jimmy, and the cap-hell situation not far after. And no one can sell me that moves like 2 #1 picks for Galloway or drafting Quincy in the 2nd didn't start and end with Jerry Jones.

If you want to weigh the good against the bad, I would 1 million times over take an owner like Jerry over a cheapskate like Bidwell in AZ or an over the top clown like Snyder in DC. And the fact that Norv hasn't been formally named coach yet gives me some cautious optimism that Jerry may have learned some restraint from Bill.

My favorite Jerry moment in the last 10 years is the day he hired Parcells, because I thought we would get the best of Jerry while having some restraint put in place for "Bad Jerry." It didn't work out as we had hoped, but it doesn't mean the strategy of putting a strong HC in place and working with him instead of dictating to him is not the best way to go.

Again, all in all there really aren't that many owners I would take over Jerry. I respect any owner whose drive to win supercedes his desire to cash in, and no one can say otherwise about Jerry. But that doesn't gloss over a litany of huge mistakes he's made (or big successes, to be fair, when he can put aside his ego).

 

[BlueStar II]

I would be very happy to see us get a real GM, but as long as Jerry Jones is here, his ego won't let him hire a GM, he's not willing to give up that title and the exposure/publicity that goes along with it.

 

[Doomsday101]

I would be very happy to see us get a real GM, but as long as Jerry Jones is here, his ego won't let him hire a GM, he's not willing to give up that title and the exposure/publicity that goes along with it.

Jerry was straight forward with that from day 1 when he bought the team. He will be involved with this team and he has some real good and some not

 

[MapleLeaf]

Jerry is a big problem, but there's nothing that can be done about it.

...I felt five years ago. The past four with Bill has shown me that there are other possibilities. Has Jerry learned enough to explore those other options or does he have to be dragged through the despair and humiliation of another Washington game tyo go do another "Bill".

(I use the term "Bill" in the sense of trying something new, not getting a respected coach.)

 

[MapleLeaf]

Another Fire Jerry post???? Jerry will be around another 20 years guys .... get used to it.

...but we may see him in the background. Hopefully sooner than later.

 

[MapleLeaf]

Jerry may very well be a part of the problem, but there's nothing you can do about it.

Like wayne said, Jerry like to be involved. He is a hands-on owner, and that doesn't necessarily mean HANDS ON, he just wants to know what's going on, and feel like part of the process. It is, after all, his enterprise. If any of us owned the team would we be any different? Jerry probably isn't looking for so much a puppet as a head coach as a peer - which is why he got along so well with Parcells. They're similar dudes. If you've got the knowledge, and you involve Jerry, let him be part of the process and learn, I'm sure he respects that.

If you're Dave Campo, not so much.

...pretty "hands on" with hiring Garrett so early in the process.