Who’s on the Mount Rushmore of most hated figures in Dallas Cowboys history?
By Randy Gurzi
Jerry Jones, Cowboys Owner
For each of the previous members of the Cowboys’ Mount Rushmore of hated figures, there’s been one common denominator — Jerry Jones. An Arkansas native who became a billionaire, Jones purchased the franchise in 1989 for $140 million and he instantly angered the fan base.
Jones fired Tom Landry shortly after purchasing the team, getting rid of the only coach the franchise had ever known. Landry hadn’t had a winning season over the past three years, but the unceremonious way he was fired is what the fan base held onto.
Making matters worse, he hired a former collegiate teammate, Jimmy Johnson, making it appear as though personal feelings led to the decision. Luckily, in time, Johnson would prove to be the right coach for this franchise. He led them to back-to-back Super Bowl wins in 1992 and 1993, but then Jones stepped in and messed that one up as well.
Jones, who had named himself general manager, wanted all the credit for the success. His desperation to be considered a “football guy” and not just a businessman led to a massive dispute between the two, and Johnson was gone before the 1994 season. And since Jones is afraid of changing his approach, he again hired a former teammate from Arkansas, this time bringing in Barry Switzer.
As fate would have it, Switzer won a title in 1995, but it was with the roster Johnson built, and the Cowboys quickly went in the wrong direction afterward. In fact, their futility has been embarrassingly bad. Since that 1995 campaign, only Dallas, Washington, and the Detroit Lions have failed to make it to the NFC Championship Game, and 13 of the other 15 NFC teams have made it at least twice.
Even with that being the case, Jones still wants everyone to think he’s a GM. At 80 years of age, he appears on radio and television shows whenever possible to discuss his team’s plans. He undermines his coaches by announcing starters, talks over team doctors, and contradicts their medical opinions. Jones even paid $2.4 million in a settlement to help cover up some heinous activity by Rich Dalrymple, who was a long-time employee of his.
There’s no denying Jones loves his team. The problem is, he’s also his own worst enemy. It’s much like Tommy Boy, who loves his sale so much that he smothers it, smashes it, and ends up killing everything good about it.
It’s really a wonder the franchise has had as many winning seasons as they have with Jones at the helm. Just imagine how good they would be if the man in charge of it all wasn’t serving as a giant anchor holding their progress back.
