When Jerry Jones purchased the Dallas Cowboys in 1989, he didn’t come with a resume filled with qualifications to be the team’s General Manager. But being the owner was all that mattered, and he wholeheartedly placed himself in the driver’s seat.
35 Years of Hard-Knock Lessons
Fast forward thirty-five years, and Jones is still holding onto that wheel with tenacity. He’s been around the block enough times to fill a stadium with his experiences. Recently, in a fiery and unfiltered chat with AllDLLS.com’s Clarence E. Hill, Jr., Jones didn’t mince words in defending his qualifications today.
"I’ve done it all," Jones declared with palpable conviction. "So I have an ordinate amount of confidence that ¡carajo!, if anybody can figure out how to get this shit done, I can figure it out. La he pasado de todas las maneras posibles y me he sacado la mugre muchas veces. Y no hay nadie vivo que no pueda contarle historias de cómo se ha roto el lomo. Así que ni hablar, no hay nadie que pueda hacer los contratos y ser un G.M. mejor que yo."
Jones bullishly pointed out, "Plus, I’m where the buck stops. When it f**ks up, I gotta cover it. Así que, no hay forma de ceder esto. Nadie puede."
The Weight of Media Scrutiny
Jones might be invincible in his role, but he isn’t immune to media scrutiny. Different from other owners who meddle from the shadows, Jones stands firm in the spotlight, owning every decision he makes. And he’s been doing it for three and a half decades.
“I’ve had hundreds of bad days,” Jones admitted, his voice carrying both the weight of experience and the fire of determination. “I’m emotional about it sometimes. Well, running this thing, that’s who I want to make the last call. When I can’t even think, when I’m too old… but I’m far from that.”
The Reluctance to Relinquish Control
So why doesn’t Jones hire a different G.M.? His reasoning is straightforward. "The reason I don’t let somebody else be the G.M. is because I don’t have anybody that I trust to do it right,” Jones emphasized. “They’re gonna have to come to me porque yo sé las decisiones que vamos a tomar y cuánto va a costar."
It’s not just about trust—Jones genuinely enjoys the challenge. With a candid smile, he noted, "If I didn’t care, if this wasn’t fun for me, or interesting, lo que sea… but the facts are, I’d rather be messing around like this. The point is I love this. And you know I do."
A Tale of Two Eras
Despite the passion Jones pours into his Cowboys, the results paint a dire picture. For the first 30 Super Bowls, the Cowboys were frequent contenders, playing for the glory 16 times. But over the last 28 Super Bowls, they’ve been absent.
No other G.M. would have survived such a drought. Many of those whom Jones discounts as not good enough have lifted the Lombardi Trophy. Yet, Jones remains steadfast in his role because he can. Fans continue to pour their money, time, and heart into the Cowboys, keeping his reign unchallenged.
If the tides ever turned—if fans united and demanded change—Jones might face a decision tougher than any he’s made before. But with the Cowboys still dubbed "America’s Team," despite nearly three decades of falling short, Jones feels more than justified in running the show his way. And honestly, isn’t that why we watch?
