Jerry Jones stirring drama again by welcoming Cowboys QB controversy
At this rate, it seems like Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones may bring home an Oscar before he brings home his next Lombardi Trophy. The man lives for drama and is always putting on a show — and not particularly in a good way.
The latest marketing ploy from Jones comes in the form of him openly welcoming a quarterback controversy between franchise quarterback Dak Prescott and his backup (who has only started two NFL games) in Cooper Rush.
Keep in mind that another marketing move by Jones that happened less than two weeks ago pretty much directly contradicts this. After medical professionals suggested that Prescott would be out 6-8 weeks after he needed surgery for a fractured thumb suffered in Week 1, Jones addressed the media and denied that timeline and refused to put his $40 million a year quarterback on the IR, because he thought he’d be back in less than four weeks.
In fact, No. 4 was at practice on Thursday throwing a weighted softball with stitches still in his hand, making his return for Week 4 or Week 5 feel slightly more probable.
Jones wants Dak back, but apparently, he also wouldn’t mind if Rush made decisions difficult whenever Prescott is ready to return. In a conversation with reporters on Thursday, he literally gleamed at the idea of a QB dilemma:
"“Wouldn’t it be something if you had a dilemma as to which way you go? You do that if he gets 10 wins. Same thing that happened with Prescott. I think like that.”"
The full interaction is below and you can genuinely see how much Jones enjoys stirring up drama.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones entertained idea Cooper Rush could play well enough, team could win enough to force decision at QB when Dak Prescott able to return. “Wouldn’t it be something if you had a dilemma as to which way to go?” You’d want that controversy? “Of course I would.” pic.twitter.com/oSXzHAMabk
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) September 22, 2022
Cowboys GM Jerry Jones said he’d welcome a quarterback controversy between Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush
After he was tickled pink by the idea, a reporter asked if he’d actually want that controversy. Without hesitation, Jones said, “of course, I would.”
The Cowboys owner also made a parallel to the situation Prescott was in with Tony Romo in 2016. After Romo went down in a preseason game, the Mississippi State product got the starting job and led Dallas to a 10-1 record, essentially knocking Romo off his long-held throne.
However, if “Dr. Jones” is really right about Prescott’s injury timeline, then his backup wouldn’t even really have enough time to do what Dak was able to do in his rookie year. Plus, Rush did have a great performance on Sunday, but it seems a little premature to expect that he can replicate what Prescott did after Romo went down.
To be fair to Jones, this situation would only happen if Rush continued to succeed and bring this team more wins, which is something any team would want. But it’s hard to believe any other GM or owner would make such a spectacle of this situation. That’s just who Jones is.
I mean except for when he went so far as to say he wanted it to be a hard decision between Dak and Rush - which it will never be. Not a great way to endorse your $40M QB who has won as many division titles as Rush has regular-season games. https://t.co/ODXcszVa4F
— Ed Werder (@WerderEdESPN) September 22, 2022
We all want Rush to do well. But welcoming controversy is a bit much. FOX Sports writer David Helman explained it perfectly:
"The sentiment is perfectly logical. Every team in the NFL would be thrilled to see its backup QB play as well as the starter. There have never been enough quality quarterbacks for every team in this league, so to discover a second one on your own roster would be an obvious coup.Still, the key difference is that the other 31 teams in the NFL would keep that sentiment behind closed doors, in a personnel meeting or a private conversation. Jones wants to make sure the Cowboys are still being discussed despite a rocky start to their season, and so the sentiment emerges within the public light. -David Helman"
This is what Cowboys fans are used to — more spectacle and show than actual winning football. The team’s players even know it, too. When asked about Jones’s comments, running back Ezekiel Elliott wasn’t all that surprised:
"“He wants y’all to be licking and listening to him too,” Elliott laughed. “It’s all marketing, man. It’s all marketing.”"
The GM will truly do whatever it takes to keep sales up and interest high, even if it’s at the cost of causing doubt around his highly-paid quarterback.
