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By Jon Machota Aug 12, 2020
Jerry Jones hadn’t spoken publicly in over three months, and so it only followed that he was expected to field the majority of questions during Wednesday’s annual news conference to kick off the start of Cowboys’ training camp, which executive vice president Stephen Jones and head coach Mike McCarthy were also on.
The Cowboys’ owner did not disappoint, with two topics standing above the rest during the hour-long question-and-answer session: COVID-19 and social justice issues.
Before even getting to questions, however, the Cowboys owner and general manager hinted at the idea of having fans in the stands at AT&T Stadium for home games this season. A few minutes later he made it clear: While the NBA and NHL are playing in bubbles and MLB is playing in empty stadiums, Jerry Jones says the Cowboys will be playing in front of fans this fall.
“We’ll adhere to all protocols,” Jones said. “And we will adapt them to the uniqueness of our stadium. That’s within the protocol. We have a real unique situation. And I think that we’re going to be able to really have a great experience. I think that our safety precautions that we’re doing won’t be unfamiliar to a lot of people when we look at the general protocol of the country or we look at how you get together numbers of people.
“We will have our challenges. The people that will be there will be there at their own volition, just as the players that are on this field out here for the Cowboys are here because they have chosen to be here. Our fans will be in the stadium because they have chosen to be there. I’m completely confident that if I’ve ever seen a general population have had information of where the issues are, where the vulnerabilities are, how to conduct yourself, the ‘do right’ rule relative to the person with you and beside you, that you do know or don’t know. I’m confident that we’ve got a very educated situation, and that our fans can come and have a safe experience at our stadium along with, of course, our players having the safety they’re required on the football field.”
The number of fans in attendance has yet to be determined. Jones noted that they’re “dealing with a little bit of a moving target.” The state of Texas is currently limiting venues to a maximum of 50 percent capacity. That would put AT&T Stadium at around 40,000 fans for a Cowboys home game. The Cowboys have already canceled all season tickets for the upcoming season but have given season-ticket holders the first opportunity to purchase a limited number of individual games this season. Dallas’ first home game is scheduled for Sept. 20 against the Atlanta Falcons.
Some of the reasons Jones thinks it’s possible to host fans are the stadium’s three-million square feet, its unique suite capacities and the venue’s configuration (for example, it separates fans on the southwest side from getting near fans on the northwest side).
It’s not a surprise that Jones is so hopeful that this can be accomplished. He talked at length before and after the NFL Draft in April about how the event was a respite from the coronavirus pandemic. He views playing football in front of fans this fall the same way.
“Consequently, (football) is important,” Jones said. “It is important individually, but I think it’s important in the country. I know the debate going on; I can easily see how X percent of the people would be for it’s just not worth the kinds of effort, risk, whatever that’s going to go on. I believe it is. The NFL can be an inspirational part of how we address COVID, not only the remainder of this year but as we go into 2021. So it’s a big enough deal for me to look at cost in every way, and obviously cost usually is associated with financial, but it’s easy for me to justify for the long-term of interest in football and the long-term thing that competitive sports bring to the table and what it can bring to the country, it’s worth it to make the effort for us to have a complete season, and I want to do it in front of our fans.”
Forbes estimated in May that the Cowboys’ total revenue in 2018 was $950 million – $350 million more than any other NFL team. $621 million of that came from stadium revenue. So if any team is going to try to host fans, it’ll be the Cowboys.
The actual first question of Wednesday’s news conference regarded Jones’ stance on wanting his players to stand for the national anthem. In the news conference to kick off the start of training camp two years ago, Jones said, “Our policy is that you stand for the anthem, toe on the line.”
While Jones didn’t say he’s now fine with players silently protesting during the anthem, he did sound more open to the idea.
“The key word is a word called grace,” Jones said. “Grace. That was then, two years ago. This is now. We’ve had very, very sensitive times. I don’t need to share that we’re also involved in another very sensitive time with the challenge and the war, literally, we’re on with the virus. These are very sensitive times. I have nothing to prove as far as where I’m standing with the flag and where the Cowboys stance. I have nothing to prove regarding my players and my support of our players. 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 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 and better do, because of what has gone on over the last few months, I want them to understand where our players are coming from there. And they do not feel like that the ones who basically want to do that, kneel – they do not feel like they are dishonoring the flag. I’m going to have grace. I’ve had grace. Many of you have written and criticized me for having too much grace and understanding regarding our players, and I probably have. I’m going to have grace regarding the people who are sensitive about our flag. Somewhere in between there in the weeks as we get together with our team, as we discuss with the team, somewhere in between there is how we’re going to handle it.”
Jones said he has not spoken to any of the team’s players about social justice issues or the possibility of them protesting during the national anthem, but he has been listening. New Cowboys defensive tackles Gerald McCoy and Dontari Poe have each spoken publicly about wanting to hear from Jones on those issues.
“Am I interested in what any player, what any of our media, am I interested in what everybody has to say about any issue? You bet,” Jones said. “And I have rabbit ears. I really do. Having said that, I am listening. The point is, we will do it in a way we think is sensitive and has as much grace for the genuine feelings of everybody in mind.”
Here are the other big takeaways from Wednesday’s news conference:
-This was also the first time Jerry Jones has talked about not getting a long-term deal finalized with Dak Prescott by the July 15 franchise tag deadline. He noted that the economic impact of COVID-19 was a factor.
“Dak is outstanding,” Jones said. “He’s probably one of the top people I’ve been around for his age and cumulative experience, he’s one top people that I’ve around as far as being aware, understanding. I’ve never heard or said anything I didn’t think Dak had necessarily weighed or heard before. We think he’s outstanding. We think he’s our quarterback of the future. We just couldn’t get together at this particular point. It’s easily worth noting a lot of people this year in franchise mode didn’t get together.
One of the biggest reason is the backdrop of the COVID; one of the biggest reasons is the economic issue. I just spent weeks and weeks talking with the NFL and the Players Association. Weeks and weeks working through the economic consequences. And, candidly, nobody knows what’s going to be there next year, the next year or the next year – and frankly what we all know, what we were talking about in Dak’s case was the next year, the next year and the next year and the next year. So all of that came to bear, and this was just a less than stable time to be talking about serious, serious – generational, if you will use Dak’s term – dollars, in an unknown period of time looking forward. That certainly was one of the issues.”
-Most of the Cowboys roster has embraced a bubble-like atmosphere for training camp at the team’s practice facility. Roughly 90 percent of the roster is staying at the Omni hotel that is next door to the Ford Center.
“Being connected to the Omni, it’s frankly just natural that we do the best that we can to create an environment to keep our players safe,” Mike McCarthy said. “Plus, with the education and keeping up with the current protocols and as we continue to go through this challenge if battling COVID, that there are updates and upgrades. It’s only going to make us safer as a football team, and frankly it’s only going to make us safer in a personal realm of educating our families and bringing the same focus and education into our own homes. Just very fortunate the setup that we do have here. So we’re looking at trying to create an Oxnard-type environment here at The Star. I think we’ve knocked it out of the park. And our players have totally bought into it and they’re excited about it. We’re off to an excellent start as far as handling this challenge.”
-Today was the first day the entire team was on the field for Phase 2 of their workouts. Friday will be their first full practice.
“The strength and conditioning phase has gone very well,” McCarthy said. “We’re making progress. In a lot of ways, this would be kind of the end of an offseason program and that’s probably a little further along than we would be as far as my experience and awareness of how an offseason program would end. Feel really good about where we are and today and tomorrow we’ll finish up an installation phase No. 7 and 8 and then we’ll kick it into high gear on Friday.”
-McCarthy said that left guard Connor Williams is still working his way back from knee surgery, so he’s not a full participant to start camp. Connor McGovern is getting the first-team work at left guard. Joe Looney is taking first-team snaps at center.
-How does Stephen Jones feel about the Cowboys roster compared to a season ago?
“Jerry and I have had some great visits with Mike (McCarthy) and Will (McClay), and I know they feel really good about this roster, as good as they’ve felt about most,” he said. “I feel like we got, not only good guys in terms of the quality of our starters, I think there’s going to be some great battles out there in terms of the depth on this roster. … I just think we’ve got a really strong group of 80 players that Coach McCarthy and his staff can work with. We always say player acquisition is 365 days a year, so, we’re always looking to get better in terms of the personnel that may be out there. If we see an opportunity to improve or add depth to this football team, we’ll certainly do it. But I feel as good about this team as, personally, my opinion, I feel as good about this team as any that we’ve had over the last five or 10 years.”
-Stephen Jones on the ability to expand the roster if someone tests positive for COVID-19:
“We certainly have a COVID exemption list that gives us a lot of flexibility. They’ve given us flexibility bringing players back from these lists as well as the injured list back to your team. They’ve expanded the practice squad to 16 players. So they’ve given teams flexibility to certainly work through the challenges that might come up. I don’t think anyone is naive enough to think you’re not going to have some challenges as you work through the season. I do think they put a lot of mechanisms in place that I think can help us get through this season in a very positive way and pull it off.
“If you look at the first couple of weeks that we have had here with our players, I think it’s been great. They’ve certainly taken care of their business. It’s been business as usual as far as them coming in every day and we hadn’t had any episodes. At the same time, we know that could be a very real possibility. As I said, the league has put a lot of lists in place and some flexibility in place to move players on and off that list to help us work through the season. Of course, they’re going to put some committees in place to look at situations that may be very unique. My hat’s off to our league, to our staff – they’ve come up with a lot of forward-thinking into what might happen.
At the same time, I’m sure you can’t think of everything. We know we’re going to have some flexibility and you just got to deal with whatever the issues are at the time and move forward.”
-Stephen Jones said the team’s scouting staff is preparing to look at film from last season if needed in regards to the college football season potentially being canceled.
“If we have some conferences playing and others are not, then we’ll have to have a strategy that addresses the players on the teams that don’t play football this year versus the teams that do,” he said. “I can guarantee you one thing is we’re getting prepared and certainly get in there and roll up our sleeves and get the work done and do what it takes to evaluate these players. Everybody will be having to work through the same things that we’re having to work through, and I’m betting our group will embrace it and get it done.”
