What A Derogatory Statement Against Jerry Jones And Stephen For Failing To…
Having clearly defined objectives and an effective, implementable plan for achieving them are key principles for any organization.
They certainly should apply to the Dallas Cowboys. Not only are they a multi-billion dollar sports and entertainment empire, they are a football team. The planning and clear goal of winning should just flow from the games themselves into all aspects of the team.
However, this runs counter to a characteristic of the team that is not as universal: Nothing is easy with the Cowboys.
The latest example of this is how we have had differing takes on the role of Tyler Smith this season expressed by owner/general manager Jerry Jones and head coach Mike McCarthy.
It is also one of the easiest to grasp. In the wake of the departure of Tyron Smith, Jones hinted that the plan pending the outcome of the draft was to kick the incumbent starting left guard out to tackle.
But shortly thereafter, McCarthy basically pooh-poohed that idea in stating that the plan was to leave Tyler at guard until they knew who had been selected in the draft.
(There is always the possibility they could still address the tackle position via free agency, but everyone is well aware of just how remote that is.
Who has the real call here? It should be McCarthy. Utilizing your talent is the purview of the coaching staff.
Management, including the general manager, are responsible for providing the talent. In Dallas, EVP Stephen Jones is also deeply involved, perhaps more so than his father Jerry. However, the draft still appears to be one place where the senior Jones reserves final decisions to himself.
The point is that management should acquire players based on the requirements identified in consultation with their coaches, and then they should let the coaching staff figure out how best to use them. Most teams seem to function like that.
Dallas clearly is not most teams. Only one other team, the Cincinnati Bengals, have their owner, Mike Brown, serving as the general manager.
Unlike Jones, he is not a major media darling. That seems to lead to a more effective way of running things. But there is a good deal of evidence that Jerry Jones lets his ego do a lot of the talking, and decision-making.
He and his son are very hands on, and it is almost certainly true they use their influence to sometimes push for who gets playing time.
That forces the hand of the coaching staff. The owners seem to fall prey to the fallacy that affects many highly successful businessmen. They conflate their acumen in making money with an overall level of genius about all aspects of their organization, and to some degree most everything else.
That is something that some of us, me included, refer to as the Jones family thinking they a the smartest guys in the room. Spoiler alert: They aren’t.
Now add in that they also control the hiring and firing of the coaching staff, and the bind McCarthy is in becomes clear. This is doubly so this year with the head coach and basically his entire staff all in a contract year.
They need to do everything they can to best achieve success on the field in hopes of getting offered further employment. The belief is that Jerry compensates his coaches well.
Add the obvious spotlight they are in with the Cowboys, which appeals to the ego of many of them, and they have a lot of incentive to succeed.
But as we have seen, the ownership is also concerned with the bottom line. And due to the way Stephen, in particular, seems to view the impact of player contracts on profitability, this creates a bit of conflict between the owners and their coaches.
The Dallas franchise is just a money making juggernaut. It should lead to a willingness to invest a bit more to increase the chances for success on the field and the attending positive attention, but unfortunately the Cowboys seem to thrive just as well with negative perceptions of the team. Perhaps even more so.
Add in the laser-like focus on income and expenses, and you have the mess we see at The Star. A big piece of evidence supporting this is how Jerry said that they didn’t fight to keep Tyron Smith because they couldn’t risk bringing him back and earning the incentives that are in the contract Smith signed with the New York Jets.