Despite turbulent offseason, Stephen Jones keeps positive outlook for Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are in the midst of what some have called the worst offseason in franchise history when you consider the litany of off-field distractions and entanglements to go along with losses of talent in free agency and trades.
Fan apathy and frustration is at an all-time high.
And the disconnect between the fans and the front office seems cavernous.
Vice president Stephen Jones didn’t help matters Tuesday with a radio interview on 105.3 The Fan, the team’s flagship station.
A loaded question about the Cowboys’ offseason being more exhausting than normal — due to the $2.4 million settlement with four members of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders who accused former team vice president Rich Dalrymple of voyeurism, the paternity suit involving owner Jerry Jones, coach Mike McCarthy’s unease over the Sean Payton rumors and cornerback Kelvin Joseph being in a car during a drive-by murder in Dallas — was met with strictly football answers.
Jones confirmed that Joseph is attending the team’s offseason program while the investigation continues with the police and the NFL.
Dallas police made two arrests on Saturday, charging Aries Jones, 28, and Tivione English, 21, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in connection with the homicide of Cameron Ray.
The arrests came a day after Joseph met with Dallas police for several hours on Friday. Joseph admits to being a passenger in the vehicle but said he was unarmed and he was not the shooter.
Under Texas law, an individual can face charges for being a passenger in the vehicle involved in a drive-by shooting.
“We are waiting to get all the information,” Jones said. “We are not going to comment any further on the details at this point.”
Roster challenges this offseason
As far as the offseason moves, Jones said the Cowboys were challenged because of how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the salary cap the past two years, forcing them to be conservative with their signings.
That combined with a new coaching staff under McCarthy and trying to make sure players fit the schemes added to the challenge and created what he called the largest 2021 free agent class in team history.
It forced them to make some tough decisions, leading to the departures of receiver Amari Cooper (Cleveland Browns), guard La’el Collins (Cincinnati Bengals), receiver Cedrick Wilson (Miami Dolphins), guard Connor Williams (Miami Dolphins) and defensive end Randy Gregory (Denver Broncos) among others.
Jones said the Cowboys are not done in free agency and are looking forward to improving the team in the 2022 NFL Draft, set for April 28-30. The Cowboys have nine picks, including the 24th overall selection.
“We think we did a good job with it, in terms of signing the players we wanted and felt like we could keep,” Jones said. “Last year we came up short, though we had good players from a perception standpoint. I like the situation we are in. I think we made some good decisions. I like where we are headed.”
Jones said the draft is loaded with receivers and defensive linemen and should present an opportunity to add depth or take a unique player at the top of the board if they decide to trade up.
He also pushed back on the notion that the Cowboys haven’t done enough to improve the team from last season’s 12-5 finish and loss in the wild card round to make a run at the Super Bowl for the first time since 1995.
“I don’t think you ever win the Super Bowl in the offseason,” Jones said. “It’s a full body of work, what you put together over time. The biggest thing is it’s been a long time since we have won a championship. You got to get over the hump. We didn’t last year with the same group of players.”
Losses present opportunities for others
Then Jones started comparing players the Cowboys lost such as Cooper and Gregory to players they kept who played lesser roles in 2021.
“If you allow a player to move on, it allows players to step into a bigger role,” Jones said. “I know Amari was a great player for us. But it might allow CeeDee [Lamb] and Michael Gallup to step up and play an even bigger role. Who knows what their upside might be.”
Lamb led the Cowboys in receptions last season but Gallup missed eight games with injuries and is expected to be sidelined for the first two or three games in 2022 while recovering from a torn ACL.
The kicker came when Jones referenced Gregory and Armstrong.
“We hated to lose Randy,” Jones said. “We went down to the wire with him. At the same time, you look at production. You look at what Dorance Armstrong has done. He’s right there from a production standpoint with Randy.”
It is true that Armstrong had 5 sacks last season compared to Gregory’s 6.5. But Armstrong has just 7.5 career sacks since his rookie season in 2018 and only eight starts.
Gregory has 15.5 sacks in his last 36 games dating to 2018.
They are not the same player.
Gregory signed a five-year, $70 million contract with the Denver Broncos that the Cowboys were willing to match. Armstrong signed a two-year, $13 deal with the Cowboys, who also signed free agent end Dante Fowler to a one-year, $3 million deal to help make up for the loss of Gregory.
No matter what you or anyone else thinks about the Cowboys’ offseason, Jones painted the picture of optimism when it came to their decision-making and their hopes for 2022.
“I feel good about where our football team is,” Jones said. “We will be a better team. We can take the next step.”
