While Watching DeMarcus Ware's Press Conference...

[adbutcher]

http://www.dallascowboys.com/multimedia/multimedia_center.cfm

...I cannot help but notice that many of the adjectives thrown around on this forum and others about this team do not seem to apply. Just this week I read one poster's opinion that the players and others around football view Jerry Jones as a joke. All evidence to the contrary. Listen to DeMarcus Ware and his agent, Pat Dye, in that Press Conference.

I think Dye's commentary about the professionalism of the Cowboys is encouraging. Bag on Jerry all you want for the mistakes of his tenure as Owner/GM, and that is fine, but this front office is clearly no joke. I've seen upset fans make comparisons to the Commanders and Raiders. I just don't see it. I don't see it at all.

Where are our players in the media airing dirty laundry about the franchise? Where is our DeAngelo Hall talking about the problems start at the top all the way to ownership? Think Greg Ellis is happy in Oakland? Read some of his recent responses. There's simply no comparison folks.

Now, I'm not defending Jerry here. I know many will not see it that way. That's fine. Anyone can run around with blinders on and say whatever they want about him as a GM. This is my turn to do so. You can have yours in your responses.

I do not like his coaching hires for the most part. I think this franchise deserves the absolute best Head Coach in the NFL, or it deserves a young lion on the rise. I do not see that in Wade Phillips and never have. I openly admit that when Parcells quit Jerry ran the most thorough coaching interview process of his life. Wade was the best choice at that time. I cannot say that right now, today, Wade is the best choice for Head Coach. I can't do it.

I think Jerry will eventually roll the dice on Garrett as the young lion on the rise. I know some will lose their heads in hating that idea. It's hard for me to fathom given how well the Offense is working right now. Be that as it may, I know it is impossible for all fans to see things the same way.

Jerry's coaching decisions aside, I cannot fault him for the Cowboys Front Office's vision on how to acquire and keep talent on this football team. Locking up Demarcus Ware for the long haul is exactly what I want of a GM and Front Office. I'm not saying other GMs and teams wouldn't and couldn't do the same. They absolutely could. I have always seen the GM job as more than just one man's input. It is clear to me we have that.

Stephen Jones does a great job with these contracts. You can hear that in Dye's comments. I think our Scouting Department also are proving that they can do a great job. Is anyone on this forum upset with Keith Brooking? What about with Gerald Sensabaugh? Igor Olshansky? If you are I cannot understand why. Especially Brooking. I was not very high on that signing. Oh boy was I wrong. He has been great. All I could have asked for and more. Fans were pissed that we didn't spend all kinds of money to get Ray Lewis.

That's the problem with being a fan. We know the big names and think we need all of them. Yet here is Keith Brooking and all he has brought is exactly what we felt Lewis would bring. For one fifth the price Lewis would have commanded. Maybe less. Call it whatever you want. I call that good management.

I know we all want to see this translate to wins in December and January. What I have never understood is why people are so quick to give up before we even get to that point on the calendar. Sunday I read a post that said we were losing 2 of the 3 games ahead of us including the Falcons game. I take that to mean we are therefore losing to the Seahawks and the Eagles in the next 2 weeks. Call me crazy, but I don't see it.

I think we can win both. Neither the Seahawks nor the Eagles impress me the way the Giants do. The way the Broncos have. When we were 2-2 I got a Pm from a longtime friend on these forums asking me if I was concerned yet. Without calling him out publicly I would simply ask him, "are you still concerned? Or do you finally see some of the improvement the team was talking about?"

Fans keep saying that "the players and coaches are saying all the right things." I don't get that. We want players as negative about this team as we as fans can be? In the name of all that is holy, why?

I'm truly sorry for the optimism of this post. I know that is not welcome in the eyes of many posters who are upset over the last 13 years. I understand the frustration. I share some of that too. I refuse to let those frustrations make me a myopic malcontent though.

Forgive me, but I like this team. I like how together they are. I like the character they display. I like how hard they are working. It isn't perfect by any wild stretch of the imagination. I don't like the penalties, injuries, or losses. I do however like that the team realizes where they need to improve and continue to work on these things. Will it translate to wins in December and January? I don't know. Unlike some around here I'm not clairvoyant.

I believe we are pointed in the right direction and keeping players like DeMarcus Ware is evidence. I've heard our players described as stupid so many times in recent years that it is refreshing to me when I see just how wrong that description is about some of them. We've got a very good football team here. I would have thought that was impossible given the incompetence at every level.

 

[TNCowboy]

Jerry Jones made one great decision this decade: hiring Bill Parcells.

Just like he made one great decision his first decade, hiring Jimmy Johnson.

Apart from those two decisions, he's been an absolute disaster. Fans who are laughing at the Commanders should recall that's exactly where the Cowboys were pre-Bill Parcells.

Giving Ware a new contract is evidence of what? That Jones isn't a complete idiot? Which NFL fan with a pulse was unaware that was a good idea? Other than a handful of teams that have owners who are too cheap to pay for talent (like the Titans) or are suffering from acute dementia (Al Davis), it doesn't get much worse than a meddler who won't hire real, proven football men and let them run the show (Snyder and Jones).

Of course the players love Jerry Jones. He treats many of them like they're his kids. I'm sure it broke his heart to let Roy Williams leave, and killed him to have to fly to Miami to tell TO he was gone. He gives them the best of everything, and I believe he's being 100% genuine when he talks about Ware at a personal level.

But the way Jones interacts with the players is a huge part of the problem. He takes on much of the role that should be filled by a head coach. Instead of looking to Wade as the head of the organization, they look to Jones. What was it Deion said when he didn't get his way with Switzer or Gailey?

That he'd "call 212"? (or whatever Jones' extension was in those days) Contrast that with how Bill Cowher or Bill Belichick run their teams.

Jones' way doesn't win championships, yet he refuses to yield. And he has no incentive to with the legions of sycophants eager to shell out their hard earned $$$ at the new monument to his ego.

We'll likely never win big again until that changes.

 

[CATCH17]

Good post Hos.

I think Jerry will eventually roll the dice on Garrett as the young lion on the rise. I know some will lose their heads in hating that idea. It's hard for me to fathom given how well the Offense is working right now. Be that as it may, I know it is impossible for all fans to see things the same way

For me the next head coach doesn't have to be a great X's and O's guy. Just a guy that can keep his team focused and motivated.

Im not sold on Jason Garrett as being that guy. The way our Offense gets penalized scares me too.

I like Jason as an O-Coordinator. He does some things from time to time that make me pull my hair out but I like a lot of what he is doing.

But as a Head Coach I think he would be a biiiig gamble.


There is so many distractions in Dallas that you have to have a coach who keeps everyone as focused as possible on the game itself.

 

[Skin]

Thanks for the great post.

 

[cowboyfreak]

Man, this is a GREAT response to a GREAT opening post. By listening to others in this forum or in the media, I think it is hard to look at Wade rationally. We collectively view him as an overweight, balloon. A fan with a drram job. Thank you for taking the time to put these points together. I think you are correct on most parts. Fans view things in black and white...This guys suck or this guy is great. Maybe Wade deserves a little more respect for the job he has done than I have given him to this point.

Hos- these players that you mention are almost 100% Wade Phillips' guys. Brooking and Igor do not come here if not for Wade. Neither does Sensabaugh because he is a Joe D guy and Joe D is here because of Wade. Wade is here because of Jerry, and so is Jason. There has to be a program in place of some kind.

If not, you become the Raiders or Commanders. Instead of the down year or disappointing year, you have no future either and you start over way too often to ever really build something solid.

Jerry's no fool, I agree with you. I like the way the team does things in some regards and I see the problem with Jerry as a polarizing face of our team to the nation.

I see the why there is a perception that Wade is soft, Wade has never won, Wade can't motivate. We've experienced as Cowboys fans disappointment too long and too often, for sure. Wade's quiet demeanor, cabbage patch kid arms, chubby face and stretch waist pants don't exactly scream toughness I agree. The playoff flameout of 2007 was epic in its failure.

But look closer. Did Wade coach a bad game? Was it Wade that was wide open with 70 yards of green pasture to gallop through if he had caught the ball or was it Wade that drew wierd penalties in the 4th Qtr? No.

And it was Wade that was saddled with the likes of Jacques Reeves and Nate Jones in the secondary. It was Wade that had a young quick DE playing NT for the first time knowing that there would be some hiccups. It was Wade that had a flimsy Burnett and a the enigma that is Barbie at LB and tried to work with it.

A case can be made that Parcells left so much horse**** in the Cowboys lockerroom it should have been a stable.

Last year was a second transition if you look closer. Wade had nothing to do with the ticking Diva napalm bomb in the locker room. He just coached the team. The team had to go through what it did to get to where it is now, and the stench is starting to wear off a bit as new pups and some of the talent that the Tuna DID bring in is bearing fruit.

Just about every guy that Wade has a hand on has shown SOMETHING. I can't say that for just about any other coach in the league.

I just wish our fanbase could see inside the fishbowl as well as the people in the fishbowl see out of it. They would know the kind of job a man like Wade has done here and not be so quick to pull the plug on what may end up being the best decision possible.

Or not. But let's try and not despise a man that is a) committed b) classy and c) coaching vs. intimidating a team, front office, and fanbase into thinking he was better than he was.

If you look closely, Mike Karney is scoring again, Furrey is punishing the wall, and Pete Hunter is making plays. It's the players that learned to lose under Parcells that are turning the corner under Wade.

 

[Big Country]

Well said paddna!! Level headed-ness... no knee jerks here.

I'm patiently waiting until December... that's when I want to see it all put together for the playoff run.

 

[Hostile]

Hos- these players that you mention are almost 100% Wade Phillips' guys. Brooking and Igor do not come here if not for Wade. Neither does Sensabaugh because he is a Joe D guy and Joe D is here because of Wade. Wade is here because of Jerry, and so is Jason. There has to be a program in place of some kind.

If not, you become the Raiders or Commanders. Instead of the down year or disappointing year, you have no future either and you start over way too often to ever really build something solid.

Jerry's no fool, I agree with you. I like the way the team does things in some regards and I see the problem with Jerry as a polarizing face of our team to the nation.

I see the why there is a perception that Wade is soft, Wade has never won, Wade can't motivate. We've experienced as Cowboys fans disappointment too long and too often, for sure. Wade's quiet demeanor, cabbage patch kid arms, chubby face and stretch waist pants don't exactly scream toughness I agree. The playoff flameout of 2007 was epic in its failure.

But look closer. Did Wade coach a bad game? Was it Wade that was wide open with 70 yards of green pasture to gallop through if he had caught the ball or was it Wade that drew wierd penalties in the 4th Qtr? No.

And it was Wade that was saddled with the likes of Jacques Reeves and Nate Jones in the secondary. It was Wade that had a young quick DE playing NT for the first time knowing that there would be some hiccups. It was Wade that had a flimsy Burnett and a the enigma that is Barbie at LB and tried to work with it.

A case can be made that Parcells left so much horse**** in the Cowboys lockerroom it should have been a stable.

Last year was a second transition if you look closer. Wade had nothing to do with the ticking Diva napalm bomb in the locker room. He just coached the team. The team had to go through what it did to get to where it is now, and the stench is starting to wear off a bit as new pups and some of the talent that the Tuna DID bring in is bearing fruit.

Just about every guy that Wade has a hand on has shown SOMETHING. I can't say that for just about any other coach in the league.

I just wish our fanbase could see inside the fishbowl as well as the people in the fishbowl see out of it. They would know the kind of job a man like Wade has done here and not be so quick to pull the plug on what may end up being the best decision possible.

Or not. But let's try and not despise a man that is a) committed b) classy and c) coaching vs. intimidating a team, front office, and fanbase into thinking he was better than he was.

If you look closely, Mike Karney is scoring again, Furrey is punishing the wall, and Pete Hunter is making plays. It's the players that learned to lose under Parcells that are turning the corner under Wade.

Before any other response I just want to say this is a truly outstanding post. Better than I ever could have asked for.

You make a good point about those players coming here. I want to add that I feel better about them than I did some of the "Friends of Bill" players we got in his tenure. It's not that I think they were awful players, just that it seemed like he ignored other options to give his guys jobs. That annoyed me. Dedric Ward is one of the ones that annoyed me the most. Terry Glenn was by far the biggest blessing we could have received when that trade was made. You take the good with the bad. Wade has operated differently. These players are "Friends of Wade" but there is not the same FOW feelings as there were FOB feelings. If that makes sense. While I am no fan of Wade, he has not gone overboard getting his guys, and the ones he has gotten do fit this team.

I have never wanted to sign all the big name players in Free Agency. One every now and then doesn't bother me, but I think the big name players arrive and there is immediate tension on a team. They think that all is well because they have arrived. They are the missing piece that management has acquired to save the day. You don't get the same feel when management simply re-signs their own player, such as Ware. Commanders fans were sure Haynesworth was the final piece of a dominant Defensive puzzle. We were convinced TO and then Roy were the final pieces of a dominant Offensive puzzle. It doesn't work that way.

I like when Free Agency is about finding steady, team oriented guys who will come in and do the work. Zach Thomas did not work out, but I felt he was that kind of guy. Kosier has been that kind of guy. He got the big FA contract, but I think BIGG has been that kind of guy.

I like it even better when guys we draft work out and get the new contracts. It shows me several things. One, that our scouting department has done their job. I have really liked the efforts in recent years of that department.

Even head scratching stuff like a 2nd Kicker when your FG guy is so accurate have worked out as planned. Buehler does what we need. he pins the other team deep and takes pressure off the Defense. For a Kicker hater like me, a puzzling move. The results however show me a team with direction. That is number two, direction. I don't see direction from the Commanders or Raiders. I do from this team.

The final thing it shows me when our guys get resigned to new contracts is that there is unity and chemistry in the locker room. These guys want to be here and they would not want to be here if our team was the screwed up mess that so many people assume it is.

In my original post I mentioned that we have not won in the post season in 13 years. You almost feel obligated to if you say anything positive about this team, because if you don't someone will feel the need to remind you of it. Even though I said it someone did. That was the entire response. "13 years." It's like some of these people read something positive and stop in mid paragraph so they can get in their negative slant even though I already added the negative slant, then they don't bother to read the rest. Then they will whine and cry about how negative slants are attacked on this forum. Yet their antics aren't attacking the positive slants. So hypocritical.

I get what you are saying about Wade, but I am still not firmly in his corner. I see what the negative folks see with regards to him. No, he is not on the field when these plays happen, but he is in charge of teaching them how not to happen. Giving guys days off, practicing with no tackling, and other things like this have given this team an aura that it is soft. It is not a pleasant aura. I want a team full of nasty players. Not team seen as soft. Wade exudes a soft image. He may be a great football coach and his team love shim, but I do see him as soft. A lot plays into that.

It is the non-committal way he addresses questions in his Press Conferences. Like he isn't convinced of his answers himself. Parcells did not answer many questions either, but he never seemed to be flummoxed by the questions. If anything he seemed amused. Now I know both coaches know a lot more than they let on that they do. For example, I will never believe that Parcells was unaware of any details of TO's overdose. That was pure spin job. I know for a fact that the first people all support people such as trainers and PR guys report to when things happen are the HC and the GM. When Wade acts like he doesn't have all the information I actually buy it because he seems to over his head in how to answer.

Is there a problem with Jerry being the face of the franchise? In the eyes of the fans and the media, I suppose there is. I don't see the same issue among the players. They see Jerry as a guy out there for them. If Wade is a players coach, then Jerry is a players GM. Some will see that as good, others as bad. I simply accept it as fact and realize it is not going to change. That's what annoys me so much about the drum beating for a new GM. It is so pointless because it is not going to happen. All it does is stir up more bitterness.

I try and live with reality as the grounding factor. I'm stuck with Jerry. I will defend him when he is right. I will harpoon him when he is wrong. I don't care who that offends. Anyone who watches that PC and thinks the players don't love and respect our GM or think he is a clown who agrees with them are simply not paying attention to the real world.

 

[cowboyjoe]

http://www.dallascowboys.com/multimedia/multimedia_center.cfm

...I cannot help but notice that many of the adjectives thrown around on this forum and others about this team do not seem to apply. Just this week I read one poster's opinion that the players and others around football view Jerry Jones as a joke. All evidence to the contrary. Listen to DeMarcus Ware and his agent, Pat Dye, in that Press Conference.

I think Dye's commentary about the professionalism of the Cowboys is encouraging. Bag on Jerry all you want for the mistakes of his tenure as Owner/GM, and that is fine, but this front office is clearly no joke. I've seen upset fans make comparisons to the Commanders and Raiders. I just don't see it. I don't see it at all.

Where are our players in the media airing dirty laundry about the franchise? Where is our DeAngelo Hall talking about the problems start at the top all the way to ownership? Think Greg Ellis is happy in Oakland? Read some of his recent responses. There's simply no comparison folks.

Now, I'm not defending Jerry here. I know many will not see it that way. That's fine. Anyone can run around with blinders on and say whatever they want about him as a GM. This is my turn to do so. You can have yours in your responses. .

I will do the opposite, I even wrote an article on Jerry Jones, and who he really is. Jerry Jones is a very good general manager on the money aspect. Jerry with Stephen Jones advice and Head Scout let T O, Greg Ellis, Tank, Pacman and Tony Curtis (who lost interest in playing football, with less interest in desire). That takes alot to admit you were wrong about these players that Jerry singed in the first place. Thats always a good point in a GM favor when he does that. Jerry has always tried to sign players to get the team over the top, even when he signed Deion Sanders. Now on the hiring of coaches, I agee with you on Jerry Jones part, he shouldnt do that, that should be the Head Coach who hires his own coaches. Look at the mess with the Commanders and Raiders.

I do not like his coaching hires f...ut again, what team will show up in December.

 

[TellerMorrow34]

After watching the conference I have to say I agree with Hos on the stuff you get coming out of that deal. The best part of the whole thing, to me, was right at the end and it shows the character and understanding of a guy like Ware.

When he made the point to say that he wasn't upset about not getting paid like a franchise QB because he understands that you can't ask for too much money and you've got to keep in mind that they've got to have room to work with other players and to remember to be a team guy. That was the best part of the whole thing. It's one of those moments when you realise that Ware is absolutely one of those special players that just doesn't come along very often.

He's as great off the field as he is on it. He's a team mate, a playmaker, and he sets an example. He felt like he got exactly what he deserved and it's exactly what the team needed in order to continue to be able to build the team around him cause you can't build a team with just one player.

This guy is gold. He's my favorite player in the whole league at this point, not just on our own team.

 

[AMERICAS_FAN]

I think Jerry will eventually roll the dice on Garrett as the young lion on the rise. I know some will lose their heads in hating that idea. It's hard for me to fathom given how well the Offense is working right now. Be that as it may, I know it is impossible for all fans to see things the same way.

I Love Me some Garrett (aka, The Young Lion)! :laugh2:

Sorry Hos, that was too easy!

 

[Hostile]

I Love Me some Garrett (aka, The Young Lion)! :laugh2:

Sorry Hos, that was too easy!

Sorry for what? A bad joke that is in no way relevant to what I said? Okay. No worries.

 

[STSINAZ]

jerry doesnt know what he is doing...i dont understand how you cannot see that? look first at the coach we have...look at him trading away 3 firsts and a 3rd for two receivers who did nothing while here...and are doing nothing....he screwed up the parcells era by forcing TO on him....jerry gets caught on an idea and runs with it...wont stop until he gets it...another michael irvin, got an idea for you jerry, find one the same way you got the first one...IN THE DRAFT...thats just one position, i dont have time to go on...if we win it will be despite what jerry has done that is good, he lucks into that...look at our last draft? they are all or were injured? ridiculous...

 

[STSINAZ]

and garrett is ajoke! dont be a homer

 

[SDogo]

It was I who said they would lose 2 out of the next 3 games and I stand by that. Recent history has shown this team will play down to the level of compition. They have failed to capture that killer instinct. I just do not trust them and would actually be more confident of a win in Philadelphia then one at home against the Seahawks. This is just the type of game I have come to expect Dallas to struggle in. Coming off a big, against a much less talented team the week before big division game.

I hope they prove me wrong yet rarely do.

 

[skinsscalper]

jerry doesnt know what he is doing...i dont understand how you cannot see that? look first at the coach we have...look at him trading away 3 firsts and a 3rd for two receivers who did nothing while here...and are doing nothing....he screwed up the parcells era by forcing TO on him....jerry gets caught on an idea and runs with it...wont stop until he gets it...another michael irvin, got an idea for you jerry, find one the same way you got the first one...IN THE DRAFT...thats just one position, i dont have time to go on...if we win it will be despite what jerry has done that is good, he lucks into that...look at our last draft? they are all or were injured? ridiculous...

For the record, Tom Landry drafted Michael Irvin.

Also, EXCELLENT posts by Hos and mmohican 29. Great reads by both of you.

 

[MONT17]

The problem is exactly what you talked about in your post - the way the players view Jerry. The respect/fear/whatever it is. They should not have that for Jerry Jones. That should only be reserved for the Bill Belichick's and the Bill Parcells' of the world.

The problem in Dallas is everyone knows the buck stops with Jerry. As an owner/GM/whatever else, every player on this team knows the buck stops with him. That automatically makes the coach a lame duck. He has no authority because they all know Jerry calls the shots. Building a consistent winner starts at the top and that's why we haven't been able to build one.

I'm sure Jerry is a nice guy and he clearly wants to win. The problem is his ego. It gets in the way of any kind of success that the Cowboys are trying to achieve. As a GM, he has been through four different head coaches (make it five after he fires Wade in the offseason) since his last playoff win 13 yeras ago. There is not one General Manager in the NFL who would keep their job after that sort of mediocrity.

Until he removes himself from the spot of making decisions on football matters, he is the problem. Not a problem, THE problem.

Chain of command! it is vital when dealing with large groups of ppl trying to achieve a goal... from Restuarant chains to the military.

 

[Arch Stanton]

and garrett is ajoke! dont be a homer

:laugh2: Yeah, when are we ever gonna score a TD?

 

[Hostile]

jerry doesnt know what he is doing...i dont understand how you cannot see that? look first at the coach we have...look at him trading away 3 firsts and a 3rd for two receivers who did nothing while here...and are doing nothing....he screwed up the parcells era by forcing TO on him....jerry gets caught on an idea and runs with it...wont stop until he gets it...another michael irvin, got an idea for you jerry, find one the same way you got the first one...IN THE DRAFT...thats just one position, i dont have time to go on...if we win it will be despite what jerry has done that is good, he lucks into that...look at our last draft? they are all or were injured? ridiculous...

and garrett is ajoke! dont be a homer

The day I take anything you post seriously will be a day I am being prescribed psychotropic mind altering drugs.

This is a bunch of drivel that is so misinformed it is laughable. Want a very easy bit of evidence? Jerry Jones did not draft Michael Irvin. Michael was drafted in 1988 and played under Tom Landry and Tex Schramm. Jerry bought the team in 1989.

That is what I mean exactly. Your thoughts have no basis in fact whatsoever and are driven by emotions. Bad driver.

When is the Super Bowl being stripped away again?

 

[WoodysGirl]

Holy Batman, cowboyjoe has truly mastered the art of the Quote function.

Congrats!

~back to your regularly scheduled programming~

 

[Hostile]

It was I who said they would lose 2 out of the next 3 games and I stand by that. Recent history has shown this team will play down to the level of compition. They have failed to capture that killer instinct. I just do not trust them and would actually be more confident of a win in Philadelphia then one at home against the Seahawks. This is just the type of game I have come to expect Dallas to struggle in. Coming off a big, against a much less talented team the week before big division game.

I hope they prove me wrong yet rarely do.

I was not about to throw you or anyone else under the bus. I give you credit for posting an admission. Way to man up. Most people when called upon something and recognizing it is them will remain silent and never fess up.