A struggling Dallas Cowboys in the 2024 season has become a headline-grabbing saga, and owner Jerry Jones also finds himself in the spotlight. Following a demoralizing 34-10 loss to the Houston Texans on Monday Night Football, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith delivered a critique, comparing Jones’ leadership to President Joe Biden.
However, the Cowboys’ owner has a response of his own for Smith, who suggested that Jones’ family must involve themselves in order to run the front office.
Jerry Jones Counterpunches Stephen A. Smith’s Joe Biden Remark
“I’m getting very, very worried about Jerry Jones,” Smith declared on ESPN’s First Take. “The only thing worse than the team’s play is his press conferences… Jerry is only a month older than Joe Biden, for crying out loud.”
Jones, never one to back down from speaking his mind, fired back during an interview on 105.3 The Fan.
“I’m having huge support and huge input and help from everyone he mentioned in that call about stepping in. But I would say if he had asked me that question relative to the issue or the criticism that Joe Biden had about his ability to function, I wish he would follow me around every day. And he would see that I’m the busiest that I’ve ever been in my life,” Jones said.
Jones also revealed that he completed a 14-hour trip to New York for a league meeting to prove his active involvement.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones when asked about this on @1053thefan: "I'm having huge support and huge input and help from everyone he mentioned in that call about stepping in. But I would say if he had asked me that question relative to the issue or the criticism that Joe Biden had… https://t.co/NLCct8Qa25
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) November 21, 2024
However, this wasn’t the only time that Smith had mentioned the Biden reference with respect to Jones. On Wednesday, the ESPN analyst berated Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons for his “damn good football team” comment.
Smith said, “The bottom line is that the Dallas Cowboys are a losing team. They’re on a fast track to nowhere…”
“We got an owner, who’s the President, the GM, that we don’t understand what the hell they’re saying. I compared it to what I said about President Joe Biden. Nothing but respect, but damn it, when you see slippage, you see slippage,” Smith stated. [02:10]
The Cowboys’ woes on the field have amplified the off-field criticism.
At 3-7 and riding a five-game losing streak, Dallas has failed to deliver in crucial moments, especially in the third quarter. Their offense, led by backup quarterbacks in Dak Prescott’s absence, has scored only one touchdown in the third quarter all season. Looking at Pro Football Network’s proprietary Offense+ metric, the Cowboys currently rank 25th out of 32, behind teams like the Colts, Jaguars, and Jets.
“CeeDee Lamb is special, but the lack of offensive balance has undone this unit. The Cowboys haven’t been able to pick up yards on the ground this season, and the lack of a secondary pass catcher to the degree that they went out and acquired Jonathan Mingo at the deadline is a problem.”
The defensive unit, often the scapegoat, has shown signs of improvement. In recent weeks, they’ve limited top-tier running backs like Saquon Barkley and Bijan Robinson to under 100 yards. However, the offense’s inability to sustain drives has left the defense working overtime, which isn’t enough for winning games.
Looking at PFN’s Defense+ metric, the Cowboys have the 24th-ranked defense in the league.
“The Dallas Cowboys defense has fallen off a cliff following Quinn’s departure. Losing Micah Parsons for an extended stretch didn’t help, but his return hasn’t led Dallas back into the top 10.
Having been a top-five unit for each of the last three seasons, a fall to outside the top 20 is a massive drop-off in a single season and shows the value Quinn was bringing to this franchise.
The Cowboys have been woeful against the run this season and just league-average against the pass. They are allowing 5.9 yards per play this season, ranking 30th in the NFL. Additionally, Dallas has the worst red-zone efficiency (74.3%), which is a big reason why they are allowing over 2.5 points per drive.”
The Cowboys’ red-zone inefficiency and lack of third-quarter production continue to plague their season. As criticism mounts, Jones remains defiant, dismissing concerns about his leadership and the comparisons to Biden.
Dallas’ playoff hopes are nearly non-existant, and the fan base is growing restless. Whether Jones can turn things around or the Cowboys are destined for yet another lost season remains to be seen.