Measuring Sticks: Jerry Jones wants to gauge Cowboys by 49ers standards

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones clearly sees this contest as a statement game for Mike McCarthy’s troops. | From @ChiefArmyW3

Two of the best teams in the NFL square off on Sunday night when the Cowboys travel to San Francisco in a battle for NFC supremacy.The 49ers have ended the Cowboy’s postseason dreams for two straight years and a win on Sunday night “would be inspiring,” according to Dallas’ owner Jerry Jones.

San Fransisco is one of two remaining unbeaten teams in the NFL with the other being the Philadelphia Eagles. Dallas not only needs to win for playoff seeding but also to keep pace with their undefeated division foe. On his weekly radio segment with 105.3 The Fan, Jones had some interesting comments regarding this weekend’s highly anticipated matchup.

“They are, probably, the most likely team to go win the Super Bowl, but in order for them to get there, they have to go by us, hopefully two times if that’s the way it falls in the playoffs and we’re in the playoffs, of course.”

If they are to win on Sunday night, Dallas will need to find some sort of offensive rhythm which has escaped them in their prior playoff meetings. In the two postseason losses to the 49ers, Dallas has only been able to put up 29 points against their vaunted defense, total. So it’s no wonder Jones is looking forward to how this version of Dallas fares against the 2023 49ers. “You need the game to show you how you stack up against the best.”

Jones didn’t reserve all of his praise for the opponents, calling his own defense “hard to handle,” especially when the team can build a lead. That group will be tested as San Francisco’s offense has looked unstoppable at several times across the start to the season..

Jones’s measuring stick comments have come with mixed results. Back in 2019, a 6-4 Cowboys team played against a 9-1 Patriots and lost 13-9. The club went on to finish 8-8 and head coach Jason Garrett was fired at the conclusion of the season.

Last season, Jones made similar comments with different results. Dallas beat the eventual NFC representative in Philadelphia 40-34 in December, albeit with a backup quarterback.

While measuring the success of a team is not encapsulated by winning one game, walking out of Levi Stadium with a victory on Sunday night will go a long way toward the Cowboys mental state against a 49ers team that has had their number lately.