Troy Aikman expresses confusion at how Cowboys ended up here

FOX Sports broadcaster and former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman knows a thing or two about football. He is a three-time Super Bowl champion and a Super Bowl MVP. Sadly, his former team hasn’t made it to a Super Bowl since 1996. As a broadcaster who gets to see all of the best teams compete firsthand, Aikman knows what an elite team looks like.

The former Cowboy went on the Rich Eisen Show to talk about the state of the Cowboys. Aikman had an incredibly honest and understandable answer when Eisen asked what is missing for the team:

"“That’s the million-dollar question I get asked, and I honestly don’t know. There was a time where maybe I thought I did know. But I think when you take a year like this for instance where they had a great year and they are as talented as any team in football…I’d put their roster up against anyone. And then you go into the postseason and you just don’t play your best football.”"

Aikman said this isn’t the first time the Cowboys have been at the top of the seeding and not made it happen. He said it’s just hard to imagine how Dallas continues to not get it done. The former quarterback said it’s frustrating to watch teams like the Bengals do what they did and then see the Cowboys not even be able to get themselves to an NFC Championship. He’s spot on.

Troy Aikman tells Rich Eisen it’s hard to believe how the Cowboys keep failing to make it further in the postseason and comments on owner Jerry Jones’ recent quotes and decisions

Rather than berate his former squad, Aikman continued with empathy. He said that it’s heartbreaking for Jerry Jones and the organization to have the team they had and not to get out of the first round. Surprisingly, Aikman said that he thinks blaming the coaching for this year’s postseason failure is “an easy way out.”

Aikman actually said he thinks the Cowboys are a very well-coached team. Speaking of the coaching staff, Eisen brought up an article that shocked him when he spoke to head coach Mike McCarthy last week. The article in question was on the team’s website and had quotes from Jones about McCarthy knowing that someone else someday will coach the Cowboys. Eisen thought that having these words on the team’s website was bizarre and baffling.

Aikman laughed at the quote, and said that while Jones is a “very smart guy” he will also sometimes “shoot from the hip.” The former Cowboy felt that Jones had plenty of time to come up with those comments and therefore believes there had to be “good reason” behind it. Aikman admitted he doesn’t know whether that was to warm up McCarthy’s seat or cause pressure, but he also admitted the tactic from Jones was “unconventional.”

It seems like every former Cowboy player or coach tries to stay away from the Jones talk, either laughing it off or saying that Jerry is an “interesting guy.” But, if Cowboys legend Troy Aikman can’t even figure out what’s wrong with the Cowboys and what on Earth the GM is trying to do, then who can?!