By Jon Machota, Saad Yousuf and Alex Andrejev
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones appeared on 105.3 The Fan on Tuesday for the first time since he expressed frustration last week with the team’s flagship radio station over questions regarding Dallas’ lack of offseason moves. He said he was “surprised” the discussion received so much public attention and addressed other topics impacting the team and league, including the Cowboys not signing star running back Derrick Henry in the offseason.
“In my mind, we’re not playing very good football right now at all, and it’s beyond whether or not we have Derrick Henry. … I don’t know if he’d be having a career year in our situation,” he said.
Jones said Henry — who has rushed for 873 yards and eight touchdowns so far this season with the Baltimore Ravens — has been a strong complement in the Ravens’ offense, and added that the Cowboys “don’t run that type of offense at all.”
“Derrick Henry didn’t fit because, principally, of managing the (salary) cap … in anticipation of the players that we were going to sign weeks later on, (and) in anticipation of the players we’re going to be signing in the future.”
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones on @1053thefan for the first time since he got angry about their questions regarding Dallas’ lack of offseason moves: “I’m surprised that last week got the attention it got.”
Before being asked, Jones brought up the Cowboys not having interest in…
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) October 22, 2024
The Cowboys reached a four-year, $136 million extension with wide receiver CeeDee Lamb in August and then extended quarterback Dak Prescott on a four-year, $240 million deal last month. All-Pro linebacker Micah Parsons also could be in line for a blockbuster contract next offseason.
During his radio appearance Tuesday, Jones also weighed in on Troy Aikman’s recent criticism of the Cowboys’ wide receivers, saying Aikman “knows football” and is “credible.” Aikman suggested last week that the team’s wide receivers are making life more difficult for Prescott.
“He’s very professional,” Jones said of Aikman. “I think he’s very fair. … I’m pretty confident that we’ve got the ability to coach and we got some receivers that take the coaching and can improve. And that’s the big thing — improve.”
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones on @1053thefan on Troy Aikman’s criticism of Dallas’ WRs: “Troy knows football. He lives it. … Troy’s credible. And should be. … He’s very professional. I think he’s very fair. … I’m pretty confident that we’ve got the ability to coach and we got some… https://t.co/2p055VDCIA
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) October 22, 2024
The Cowboys are 3-3 and coming off a bye following a Week 6 loss to the Detroit Lions. They face the San Francisco 49ers (3-4) on Sunday.
Why lack of Henry pursuit feels like a miss for Dallas
It’s difficult to watch Henry run for 125 yards per game and think he wouldn’t have significantly improved a Cowboys run game that’s averaging a league-low 77 yards per game.
Standing outside the Cowboys’ locker room about 30 minutes after Henry rushed for 151 yards and two touchdowns in a dominant Ravens win over Dallas last month, Jones was quick to point out that the Cowboys couldn’t afford Henry. He signed a two-year, $16 million contract with Baltimore in March.
Jones has said that it would’ve impacted their ability to re-sign Prescott and Lamb this past offseason and Parsons in the future. Even if you totally believe that, the Cowboys still should have at least reached out to Henry to see if they could’ve potentially worked out something.
Henry, who has a home in the Dallas area, has said he was hoping to hear from the Cowboys. And now that he’s the front-runner for NFL Offensive Player of the Year and Dallas has the league’s worst rushing offense, it makes the Cowboys’ offseason decisions look even worse. — Jon Machota, Cowboys beat writer
Jones deflects blame
It was interesting that Jones chose to invoke Henry’s name without being asked about it. It’s likely the topic would have come up, given the game Henry had on “Monday Night Football” and the Cowboys’ run-game struggles being one of the overarching storylines this season.
In six games, the Cowboys have averaged 4.1, 3.2, 3.2, 3.5, 3.5 and 3.1 yards per attempt, respectively. In contrast, Henry has averaged 3.5, 4.7, 6.0, 8.3, 6.1, 5.5 and then 11.3 yards per carry in games this season.
For Jones to bring up Henry unprompted, there’s clearly a level of realization of what Henry is capable of. However, Jones wouldn’t take ownership of the Cowboys’ decision to pass on Henry, who has a residence in Dallas.
Instead, he deflected blame to the salary cap situation, which was mismanaged by Jones and the front office based on when they decided to get the Prescott and Lamb deals done. Jones then deflected some more by saying that Henry wouldn’t have the same success in Dallas because the Cowboys’ scheme wouldn’t allow it, heaping the responsibility onto the coaching staff. — Saad Yousuf, Cowboys beat writer
Required reading
(Photo: Patrick Smith / Getty Images)
