Is Jerry Jones softening anthem stance? Dallas Cowboys’ boss promises to use ‘grace’
To be clear, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has not changed how he feels about social justice protests during the national anthem.
But in his first words to the media since April and first comments about the prospect of renewed social justice protests during the national anthem, Jones offered the appearance of conciliation. The obvious turning points were the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer nearly three months ago, the sea of protests that occurred around the world following it and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell’s admission that the league was wrong in how it responded to players’ silent protests against police brutality and social injustice.
No final decision has been made by Jones, who has stated in the past that his players will “stand with their toes on the line” or not play.
But Jones, acknowledging the changing of the times for the first time during the Cowboys’ state of the team press conference Wednesday to kickoff the start of training camp, said he will approach the decision with “grace.”
“Everybody in this country knows where I stand and where the Cowboys stand when it comes to the flag,” Jones said via a virtual conference call. “The key word is a word called grace. Grace. That was then, two years ago [when he came up with the edict to stand]. This is now. We have had very, very sensitive times. What I do want to show and want us all to be a part of is a word called grace. Grace. Not only grace in our actions, but grace in our understanding of where they’re coming from.
“I want our players to understand the perception and where they’re coming from regarding the flag and the sensitivity there and the many memories there. And I want our fans to understand better because of what has gone on over the last few months, and I want them to understand where our players are coming from ... They do not feel like they’re dishonoring the flag.”
Jones said that the coming days and weeks he is going to have in-depth conversations with players on the issue. So far, he says he has met with former players and has had input from a former president as well as President Donald Trump, whose opposition to protesting during the anthem has been well chronicled.
“This is a very serious matter,” Jones said. “Everybody is genuine here. I’m giving everyone the benefit of the doubt relative to any decision that I make. My job is to do what’s right. I want to show the world that I can do it with grace and come up with the right solution. Our players have always been open-eared for anything that I have to offer, and I’ve been open-eared for what they have to offer.”
Jones had not yet talked to defensive tackles Dontari Poe and Gerald McCoy who are both in their first-year with the Cowboys as free agent additions. Both called him out in June for his silence on the anthem protests and the Black Lives Matter movement following Floyd’s death.
But Jones said he is listening.
“We’ve just gotten acquainted.,” Jones said of Poe and McCoy. “Frankly, we’ve never had a one-on-one visit.”
Quarterback Dak Prescott offered Jones grace when asked about his silence on the issue over the last few months. He said Jones was likely being careful and was looking to rush out a statement.
“He was trying to listen and gather everything he can before he came out and said his simple view,” Prescott said. “His background and his beliefs, all that is different than a lot of other people. Not that he can’t relate, but it may be tough for him to relate to what other people may be going through right now. I don’t think he just wanted to speak with urgency and say something wrong. It’s tough. You want leaders to come out and you want leaders to speak, but you also have to look at their perspective and understand why they are doing what they are doing.”
Grace and mercy will likely be needed from Jones.
Prescott acknowledged that Cowboys players are discussing how they will handle the anthem when the season starts. There is no doubt there will be a push from players across the NFL to continue the momentum displayed during the re-start of other sports over the last month. Players in the NBA, WNBA MLB and NHL have shown their support for social justice causes, generally, and Black Lives Matter, specifically.
“We have a chance to go out there and show support to our country [for] what we are going through,” said Prescott, who added that the team is “coming close” to deciding how, in this moment, they want to represent themselves and the team.
In recent seasons, Cowboys players have stood as a team with toes on the line in support of Jones’ edict but things appear to be changing. Poe has already said he plans on kneeling, which is why he asked to hear from Jones.
Prescott said he hopes Cowboys can do something together as a team but they would support anyone form of protest, whether of not they decided to kneel.
“Yeah, 100 percent,” Prescott said when asked about players’ individual form of protests. “That’s what this country is about, right? ... I think that’s the greatest part about this country ... We have the choice to do as we please, whether to kneel or believe in this religion or that religion ... 100 percent, I support anybody’s personal opinion.”
Time will tell if Jones ultimately shows grace and acts in kind toward his players, regardless of what they decide to do while the national anthem is played this season.
This story was originally published August 12, 2020 at 5:28 PM.
