As a fan of the Dallas Cowboys, it’s often difficult to remember what it’s like for my team to be in flux in the offseason. The Jones family has owned and operated the franchise since 1989, three years before my oldest memory of watching the Cowboys play. I was not old enough to pay attention to the media circus when Jerry Jones fired the immortal Tom Landry, and I’m not sure I’d even remember anyhow.
Landry had been the only coach in Cowboys’ history from the inaugural 1960 season up until that fateful 1988 season that spelled his downfall. Jimmy Johnson quickly won two Super Bowls before being thrown to the wayside by Jerry Jones, and the team has had seven head coaches since then. The eighth is on his way in the next few weeks.
The Cowboys are in a state of flux now after a 7-10 finish to the regular season got HC Mike McCarthy fired. “Fired” might be a strong word to use here. McCarthy’s contract officially expired on January 4th, but the Cowboys maintained exclusive negotiating rights until the 14th. The two parties finally met on the 13th, but would not get far into negotiations before deciding to mutually part ways.
Be prepared to hear Jerry Jones speak highly of McCarthy for a while until he’s cornered by questions that he doesn’t have a satisfactory answer to. Then, the real reasons Jerry didn’t want McCarthy to continue as the head coach will surface in a not-so nice manner. McCarthy will shoulder most of the blame, but let’s not forget that Jerry Jones didn’t exactly load the wagon for McCarthy’s journey.
Let’s take a look at some of the holes on the roster that went ignored by the Cowboys’ front office, and how their negligence is a direct correlation to the poor product on the field in 2024.
The Sacrificial Lamb
It’s crazy to think about it, but the Amari Cooper trade to Cleveland was still a topic of discussion among Cowboys fans before the 2024 season. That trade went down after the 2021 season, but there’s a reason we are still talking about it.
CeeDee Lamb is still the only wide receiver on the roster since the trade that defenses have any respect for. Lamb is constantly double-teamed, and it has a ripple effect on the rest of the offense. After three seasons of ranking in the top ten of nearly every offensive category, the Cowboys dipped to 21st in points per game (20.6) and 16th in total yards per game (328.4).
One of the main reasons for this is the putrid performance of the run game. It got better as the season went along, but the front office’s interference with McCarthy’s plan is one of the reasons it took so long to get going. It’s no secret that the Cowboys needed to draft a running back after Tony Pollard left for Tennessee in free agency.
Not only did they not use a draft pick on a running back, but they re-signed an aging Ezekiel Elliott to help mentor a young running back room. Instead of mentoring, Elliott was a progress-stopper for Dowdle, and as soon as Elliott was out of the picture, he was able to string some good games together.
Offensive Draft Minds
The Cowboys offense needs another weapon besides CeeDee Lamb, and history has shown us that Jones isn’t too keen on adding explosive weapons through free agency. When we say “explosive”, Jones just thinks “expensive” and won’t change his mind.
That means the draft is our best option for the team to improve, and offense needs to be addressed with the first three picks. There are many explosive draft prospects expected to go in the top three rounds. Here are my favorites:
- RB Ashton Jeanty, Boise State
- RB Omarion Hampton, North Carolina
- RB Cam Skattebo, Arizona State
- RB Dylan Sampson, Tennessee
- WR Tetairoa McMillan, Arizona
- WR Luther Burden III, Missouri
- WR Emeka Egbuka, Ohio State
- WR Savion Williams, TCU
- WR Isaiah Bond, Texas
There are more names that will surface throughout the draft process, but adding a couple of them will help the Cowboys offense in 2025. It will especially help relieve some of the pressure on QB Dak Prescott and WR CeeDee Lamb to be the only players to make plays on the field.
I’ve been a loyal Cowboys fan since I was about 8 or 9 years old. I’ve stuck by them through thick and thin, even that horrid 1-15 season, Jimmy Johnson’s first year as HC.
He did the majority of the wheeling and dealing; Jerry Jones trusted him and signed the checks.
The result was the beginning of a new ‘Dynasty’. 3 SB wins in 4 seasons was quite the accomplishment.
Then the wheels fell off when Jerry Jones’ ego got the best of him, and Johnson moved on to a better future.
I’ve been saying it for years, and many fans echo my sentiment: Jerry Jones just can’t resist dipping his fingers into the pie and messing things up. The 7-10 2024 season falls squarely on him.
Any half-way decent GM would’ve found a way to navigate the dreaded salary cap. He’d re-sign proven players to a good extension; he’d go out and find key players through the draft and free agency. In short he’d do whatever it takes to, not just get to the SB, but win it as well.
And the best GM’s, the ones who win the Big Burrito, are the ones who take a step back and let the HC run the show, including picking his own staff, and have a heavy influence on replenishing the roster through both the draft AND free agency.
Unless Jerry, as GM, and I use the title loosely, steps back, shuts his mouth, and gives his HC full autonomy over the team, that SB drought will continue. It’s getting pretty close to 3-decades and counting, without a silver lining in sight.
Jerry has to go, along with the nepotistic team brass running the show.