Dallas’s Jerry Jones has odd reaction to Greg Hardy’s media session

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones reacts to questionable comments made by linebacker Greg Hardy regarding his return to the field.

Author:
Melissa Jacobs
Publish date:
Oct 7, 2015

NEW YORK — Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones offered some odd commentary Wednesday in reaction to linebacker Greg Hardy’s “guns blazin’” comment earlier in the day. For good measure, he added more oddness with a comment about Tom Brady and his wife.

At the Waldorf Astoria hotel Wednesday, owners and representatives from all 32 NFL teams gathered for a lengthy session to discuss a litany of pending business, most notably the prospect of the Raiders, Chargers or Rams relocating to Los Angeles. Among questions fielded by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell during a post-meeting presser was his reaction to stunning comments made by Hardy. Goodell said he was unaware of the comments.

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As a refresher, Hardy, who will be making his Cowboys debut after being placed on the Commissioner’s exempt list in 2014 and serving a four-game suspension to start this season due to a prior conviction for brutally assaulting and threatening the life of his ex-girlfriend that was thrown out after she failed to appear at his appellate hearing, spoke to Cowboys media Tuesday.

In the bizarre session at his locker, Hardy deflected questions about his off-the-field travails by answering “God bless you” and declared that he was ready to come out Sunday “guns blazin,’” an interesting choice of words for someone accused of tossing his ex-girlfriend on a bed of rifles.

In attendance at the owners meeting, Jones spoke exclusively to SI.com for the first-time since Hardy made his comments.

Like the commissioner, Jones claimed he was unaware of the comments. When told about Hardy’s “blazin” statement, Jones’s immediate response was “Oh my goodness.” He then briefly paused before offering an explanation.

“Well, you’re not allowed to have guns on the football field. We all know that’s just a way of expressing yourself. I hope his guns are ablazin’,” Jones said.

Jones was then informed about Hardy’s reaction when asked about facing Brady this week.

• Tom Brady responds to Greg Hardy’s comments about him and his wife

“I love seeing Tom Brady. You seen his wife? I hope she comes to the game. I hope her sister comes to the game,” Hardy had said.

Jones’s response?

“When I saw him marry her [Gisele], Tom went up in my eyes 100%. She’s very very attractive and it shows what an outstanding individual Tom is.”