Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones recently joined 105.3 The Fan (KRLD-FM) to discuss Dallas’ tense Week 3 matchup with the Ravens. He also offered further explanation on why the team didn’t go after Derrick Henry in free agency.
Here are some highlights, edited for length and clarity:
On the sideline, Micah Parsons was going back and forth a little with DeMarcus Lawrence. CeeDee Lamb was going back and forth a little with Dak Prescott. What’s your assessment of that and how do you feel about those kinds of interactions on the sideline?
Jones: “I think that’s part of it. I mean, these are competitive guys. These are guys who are used to winning. We’ve had three years in a row where we’ve won 12 football games and gotten off to good starts. Obviously getting off to a bumpy start here, there’s going to be frustration. There’s going to be emotion and you want to see that. You don’t want to see them with their head in the towel and not caring. So that’s just part of it. When you’re off to a tough start like we have the last two weeks and you get down, there’s going to be frustration and there’s going to be emotion. That’s part of it. That’s what competitors do, they compete. When things aren’t going perfect, you’re going to have — it’s part of being a competitor, some of it comes out.”
Jerry Jones talked about how the team couldn’t afford Derrick Henry on Sunday. Do you think that’s an accurate way to put it? Or would you say maybe the team doesn’t value running back paying out at $9 million guaranteed?
Jones: “No. I think at the end of the day, you saw what we ended up having to pay Dak and CeeDee and obviously we’re wanting to get Micah under contract long term. Could you afford him for the year and then had a major cap hit that you wouldn’t be able to sign somebody like Micah? You’ve got to pick and choose where you’re going to emphasize, where you’re going to put your cap resources. Certainly we’ve done that with Dak and CeeDee and Zack Martin. Obviously on the other side of the ball, [Trevon] Diggs. You can only pay so many of those guys and it’s real. I know everybody wants to say, ‘Well, you could push something out.’ But at some point as you push out, you’re going to have to then make a hard decision on somebody like a Micah. I guess to some degree, you’re accurate, yes. We’re going to emphasize probably pass rushers and the guys up front. The guys who make plays outside with CeeDee, the guys who get the ball like the corners, like Diggs. We do have to pick and choose where our priorities are.”
The NFL trade deadline is usually not as busy as other major sports. Do you believe you guys have the potential assets or salary cap space that you could do something if you wanted?
Jones: “Every situation is different and it’s just, could we take advantage of an opportunity if we felt like the situation was there? Absolutely, we can. Obviously, the cap’s a lot more than just about this year but where our pressure starts to hit is going forward as we try to have three players the caliber of Dak, CeeDee and Micah. That’s where the pressure goes. Each situation is different. It could be, you make a trade for a guy who’s on a one-year deal and you don’t have the issues that come with the cap hits going forward. All these things are things that we’ll measure, we’ll look at and if we feel like there’s a situation out there that improves us and makes us better, we’d certainly do something like that.”
Listen to the rest of Stephen Jones’ radio appearance here.
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