He has funded the team in such a way that it has the persona that it does. It is because of him that no matter how bad the team is folks still think that the 'Boys could be a contender (if...). The Cowboys are celebrities almost before they are football players, and that is because of the money he throws into the team, the work that he does to promote it, and the time that he has put into making sure America's Team is America's Team no matter what.
So why in the world is one of his players getting into his face, yelling at him, acting in an aggressive manor, and making derogatory comments about his age?
What?
Yeah, in case you haven't heard, nose tackle Jay Ratliff did all of the above after Jones entered the locker room following the win over Philadelphia a couple weeks ago and told Ratliff that the team needs him.
According to reports that is all that he said to set Ratliff off-- we need you. The 300+ pounder got in Jones's face who did not back down, and the two eventually had to be separated.
I'll give Jerry a little credit for standing his ground, but that should have never been necessary. Yes, Ratliff should have a little more respect for the man that pays his salary. At no job in the world could you get away with acting that way towards your boss; fired would be the least of the repercussions
Yes, I'm sure his Mom and Dad are a little disappointed to find out that he had such little disrespect for his elder too.
Ultimately I think that Ratliff was in the wrong and I'll be a little surprised to see him put on a Cowboys uniform again. However, the incident as a whole could very well be a sign of a larger problem.
No one respects him.
As much as he has done for the league, the team, and every player on that roster for close to two decades doesn't appear to be amounting to a whole lot of respect anymore.
Take the incident earlier this season when he appeared to be locked out of the locker room following a loss (I believe it was an away game). Folks tried to pass it off as an accident, but I don't think anyone actually believes that.
The problem is two-fold: Jones is not a football guy and he is stubborn as hell.
Jones has admitted recently that the owner in him and the GM were two different people the GM would be out of a job. With that comment he verified what fans and analyst have known for years--he does not have the knowledge that it takes to be a GM.
He has made it no secret that major personnel decisions are all his, but since he helped Jimmy Johnson out the door back in the mid-90s the talent pool has continued to thin. Since he is the owner he can do whatever he wants, and he has made it clear that he is going to be the GM for life.
That's where the stubbornness comes into play. If he were to step back and look at the team over the last 15 years he would see the need for a person that has experience running a professional football franchise. BUT since he owns he can do what he wants--and he does.
A third issue--and probably the one that bugs players the most--is he does not know hen to shut his mouth. The best example came during the preseason when one analyst writer after another wrote a piece on the window closing for the Cowboys; something that several players backed up.
Jones responded by saying that there is no window closing on the Cowboys and the team is going to be fine; what was bad though was the manner he said it; as if it was the final word and there was no reason to question it or talk about it since he had spoken.
That is just one example of many; all with the same theme--if he says it, it must be so. There may be some fans that buy it, but the guys in the locker room know the truth.
Maybe that's why the door was "accidentally locked" a few weeks ago; the team knew he would walk in talking nonsense and they wanted some time to themselves first. Maybe that's why Ratliff was so easy to set off.
It is still not an excuse for him acting the way he did. Ratliff was wrong and deserves whatever punishment he gets. That being said, Jones might want to take a serious look at himself to see what he's doing or not doing that has caused player(s) in the locker room not to respect him.
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