For 27 Years, Jerry Jones Has Been The Plague To My Football Loving Heart
The word plague may seem strong to some. To Evan Moore, it’s the word that best describes his experience as a fan for the past 27 years. Just like a plague, it’s slowly killing him and there doesn’t seem to be any cure for it. He believes that most of the blame for this belongs to Jerry Jones. Do you agree?
A plague exists in my heart. It’s been 27 years since the Dallas Cowboys won a super bowl, and in that time playoff wins have been sparse, to say the least. Jerry Jones‘ work as general manager is probably responsible for the most damage, from my heart’s plague. He’s slowly and deliberately killing me as a fan, and I’m sure some of you feel the same way. I don’t blame him entirely. I do realize he’s not the only one making personnel decisions, but he is still the one most responsible at the end of the day. He’s been more committed to mediocrity than winning for almost three decades, and a lot of us fans are fed up.
The Plague Began With A Self Imposed Curse
It’s been well documented, by Jerry himself, that during Super Bowl XXX he asked God, “If you let me win this Super Bowl, I’ll never ask for another one again.” The Cowboys haven’t been back since. Now, I’m not saying this is God’s will. That would be pretty hard to prove, but it is definitely a self-fulfilling prophecy that Jerry put on himself. It’s something that is always in the back of his mind. It has a subconscious effect on the team, in my opinion.
Jerry is a man of faith. This I do not doubt for one second. He may have some conflicting actions that make him seem like maybe he’s not. However, if Jerry wasn’t he wouldn’t have prayed to God for a Super Bowl win. He really believes that God gave him that Super Bowl, and probably feels creeping guilt whenever his deal with God might be in jeopardy.
With this hanging over his head, it has to have an effect on what goes on in the Cowboys’ facilities. It’s not the main or even the biggest reason that the Cowboys have had such little success in the past 27 years, but it’s definitely a factor. Jerry cursed this team with this plague, himself.
Jerry Is Bad At Quarterback Evaluations
This is another small issue, but it has had a big effect on the team’s success over the past 27 years. One could argue that quarterback evaluation is a real weakness of the Cowboys. If it wasn’t for some good luck, they could be just like the Cleveland Browns.
I’ve lost count of how many times the Cowboys have had to trot out backup quarterbacks that look like they need to go back to school. He’s been extremely lucky that their two best QBs in this millennium, Tony Romo and Dak Prescott, have worked out. Romo wasn’t even drafted while Dak was a fourth-round pick who Dallas intended to use as Romo’s backup. They haven’t had a classic franchise QB since Troy Aikman.
Jerry Almost Never Invests In Kickers
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I’ve lost count of how many times bad kicking has cost the Dallas Cowboys a game. This is a game of inches. The difference between winning and losing in the NFL is razor-thin. A team needs a good kicker if you want to win in this league.
In the past 27 years, Dan Bailey has been the only exception to Jerry investing in a good kicker for the team. Even Bailey got run out of town though because he started missing kicks. The plague is real. Are you starting to believe me yet?
The Plague Continues: Jerry Didn’t Listen To Bill Parcells
Between the time period of Jimmy Johnson leaving the Cowboys and before Bill Parcells was Dallas’ coach (1993-2003), the Cowboys’ drafts were mediocre at best and downright terrible at worst. Parcells changed that. He also gave Jerry a formula for building a very good team from the draft. You have seven picks every year, and four should be dedicated to linemen. Two defensive and two offensive. This formula worked. We were really close to our Super Bowls dreams when Parcells was coaching.
That all fell apart though when Jerry Jones drafted Terrell Owens. Parcells didn’t want him on the team. That year ultimately became the last season that Parcells was the coach. Wade Phillips almost succeeded with what Parcells had built just like Barry Switzer benefitted from what Jimmy Johnson had built. But it wasn’t enough without the original architect around anymore.
Jerry’s Draft Malpractice
The NFL drafts have been better since Parcells left, but Jerry Jones doesn’t follow Parcell’s formula anymore. Of course, Dallas suffers for it. We have been watching left tackle Tyron Smith‘s body break down for over four years now while the Cowboys didn’t even try to draft his successor until THIS off-season. In my opinion, this is management malpractice. How can the front office not see something that I can clearly see from my couch? It’s baffling to me.
Now, they’re facing a possible lost year in Dak Prescott’s career because of this malpractice. This is Dak’s seventh year in the league, and he isn’t even two years removed from breaking his leg. What happens if he has another catastrophic injury because the team didn’t prioritize protecting his blind left side? I don’t even want to speculate about this because all the options are bad.
Is Stephen Really That Much Better?
We are grateful to COO/Vice President/Director of Player Personnel Stephen Jones for saving us from Johnny Manziel. As the story goes, Stephen apparently wouldn’t let Jerry draft Manziel. Instead, Stephen wisely drafted Zack Martin. The thing about Stephen stopping Jerry is it is an isolated incident. It feels more like Stephen got lucky because our drafts are still hit-and-miss A LOT. Therefore, I don’t have much faith that Stephen will be any better than Jerry in the long run.
In my humble opinion, there is only one way to appease the football gods and break this curse. Jerry needs to stop being petty and put Jimmy Johnson in the Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor. If he does that, the football gods and even God himself may finally give Jerry a break on his deal. Until then, the curse of Jerry Jones will continue to hang over this team for many years to come. Unfortunately, the plague is not over for my heart or yours yet.