Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is usually the leader of the pack, considering himself an innovator. For once, Jones should play follow the leader and heed Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper’s lead.
Jones’ Cowboys are 6-7 and plummeting, having suffered their third straight loss and fourth in five games Thursday against the Chicago Bears, 31-24 in a game that was not as close as the final score.
The loss had to be mind-numbing for Jones, who watched his team open the game with a touchdown drive that lasted 17 plays and almost nine minutes only to fall flat.
The time is ripe for Jones to do right by Jason Garrett the way Tepper did by his long-term coach, Ron Rivera, this week. Tepper let Rivera go and backed up the decision with some sound and comforting reasoning.
The most important part of Tepper’s explanation came in a simple statement: “I thought it was time,” he said. “Why specifically now is I was informed of other teams doing different types of searches out there, and I’m not going to start a search and not tell Ron Rivera I’m starting a search. Too good of a man.”
Jones has stood by Garrett through rough and tough times and praised his coach, who is in his 10th season and has a record of 83-66. Garrett’s teams have made the playoffs three times, going 2-3. He has been part of the coaching staff since 2007.
The Cowboys started 2019 3-0 and have gone 3-7 in their last 10 games with the Rams, Eagles and Redskins left. Despite the loss to Chicago, Dallas will either be alone in first in the weak NFC East or tied with Philadelphia, which faces the New York Giants on Monday Night Football.
The Eagles are struggling mightily, too, having lost three in a row and five of seven. The difference? Doug Pederson’s team has Super Bowl LII in their bank from Feb. 4, 2018. Jones’ Cowboys have not been to the NFL Championship Game since Super Bowl XXX after the 1995 season.
ESPN’s Todd Archer has seen this script before, writing during the Bears game:
This is looking like the final loss of the Wade Phillips’ era in 2010 – a 45-7 loss to the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. The Cowboys’ defense is doing absolutely nothing, giving up three touchdowns and a field goal in four straight drives after an opening possession interception. Jerry Jones doesn’t want to make a coaching change. He might not have a choice now.
Jones does what he wants when he wants. He does not seem to want to make a move on Garrett during the season. FOX commentator Troy Aikman mentioned during the loss to the Bears one overriding issue could be no one on the current coaching staff has done a job that suggests they would be qualified to fill the role of interim coach.
“There’s no exclusive, nobody’s got the exclusive skills to get the job done so that collectively you can win a Super Bowl but they’re qualified people,” Jones said this week. “Jason Garrett is one of them and in my opinion, Jason Garrett will be coaching in the NFL next year.”
It doesn’t appear as if it will be in Dallas and Jones would be wise to heed another owner’s move and treat Garrett with respect and appreciation for time served rather than searching for the next Dallas Cowboys coach behind his current coach’s back.