In the ultimate case of universal irony, on the same day the Dallas Cowboys season ended, we finally saw what Jerry Jones has really been doing.
He’s been acting.
Oh, we all know he’s been “acting” as an NFL general manager for 29 years now. But on Sunday he made his debut as a TV show actor.
The ninth episode of Landman, which streams on Paramount+ and is the latest show by Taylor Sheridan, featured a cameo by Jerry Jones.
It is mostly set in the Permian Basin of West Texas, as well as the Dallas-Ft. Worth Metroplex. The theme of the show is centered around the oil industry.
Full disclosure here. In my younger days, I actually worked in “the patch” in the family drilling business.
I don’t watch the show, but from the clips I’ve seen it seems they’re getting a lot of things right. Enough to give unwanted flashbacks at least.
As for Jones’ appearance, you can catch a glimpse of it here:
A lot of what Jones says in this clip would be repeated on Sunday following the season-ending loss to Washington.
He bought the team to run with his kids. It’s an occupation for him; ya-da, ya-da, etc., etc.
One could argue that it isn’t so much an occupation as it is an expensive hobby for him.
And his appearance, as himself, on a television show would seem to prove that point.
The Problem With The Side Gig
Here’s why his even making this appearance is problematic.
The show was filmed during the spring. One of the episodes shows a high school football game in progress, showing it is the fall – in the show’s timeline.
But that episode was actually filmed while Odessa Permian High School was playing its annual spring game.
The spring. In May.
The time of year when General Managers in the NFL are evaluating their rosters. Making moves to improve their teams.
That’s literally a 24/7/365 job.
How many other general managers have you spotted showing up on television series aside, playing themselves, other than Jones?
That answer would be zero. (Note: Hard Knocks doesn’t count because that’s not a scripted show like Landman.)
You might argue that “it was only for one day”, “he didn’t have to travel outside of Dallas”, or whatever other excuse you can come up with.
But the fact remains that it was a distraction, no matter the duration. It also shows Jones wasn’t as “all-in” as he led on during that same spring, was he?
He wasn’t giving his full attention to the team, a job requirement for the other 31 general managers across the league.
It showed in a dismal 7-10 season.
The Lingering Effects
Because Jones is treating running the Cowboys more as a hobby than a profession, the lingering effects of his dalliance with the theater arts will last beyond the 2024 season.
This past year, the Cowboys lost a lot of talent before the season began. They did precious little to replace it.
For the second straight year they had a sub-par draft.
In 2023, only one of their draft picks panned out, DeMarvion Overshown, and he keeps blowing out his knees.
The rest of the 2023 class is pretty much a bust.
The 2024 class is heading in that direction, as this post on X seems to bear out:
Cooper Beebe is, for now, the cream of the crop.
Tyler Guyton is a liability with his numerous penalties. Marshawn Kneeland kept trying to tackle the phantom Marcus Mariota that he was apparently seeing double of.
Marist Liufau has had a roller-coaster season.
Caelen Carson can’t stay healthy and the rest rarely saw the field in 2024.
What Needs To Happen This Spring
The Cowboys have to have a near-perfect draft in April. They also need to do a better job in free agency than they have in a long time.
For that, they need their general manager to be laser-focused on football, every day, for the rest of 2025.
Not off in the make-up room getting ready for his close-up.