Jerry Jones Dismisses 'Overblown' Idea That Mike McCarthy Has Lost the Team

The Cowboys owner isn't buying this notion.

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones answers questions with new head coach Mike McCarthy during a press conference at Ford Center at the Star. Images / Matthew Emmons-Imagn Images

This season's arc of the reality show that is the Dallas Cowboys has veered into some depressing places for fans of America's Team but has provided tremendous content for those who take great pleasure in seeing them fail. Every home game has become an occasion for everyone to gather and watch them put up even less of a fight than 58-year-old Mike Tyson did in the building while losing by handful of touchdowns. Monday night against the Houston Texans was more of the same as the Cooper Rush-led squad got boatraced, 34-10, to fall to 3-7 on the year.

Owner Jerry Jones, who is responsible for this—and more importantly wants everyone to know that he's responsible for all of this—faced the music while speaking to a comically-large throng of reporters postgame. At one point he was asked the question again: has head coach Mike McCarthy lost the locker room?

"That losing the team stuff, that's so overblown," Jones replied. "These guys are so, first of all, they're natural competitors. Secondly, they're so proud of the fact that they are professional and disappointed in maybe the way they executed the play, but that's not anything that's brother or first cousin to give up."

"Everybody's certainly disappointed, but that's a big difference in not knowing that you got to put the foot in front of the other to go."

Even someone who speaks as freely as Jones cannot say "yes" in that situation and there's really no reason to make a coaching change right now just so someone else can come in and stumble to the finish line. That person would also likely just be a stopgap until the offseason when the franchise could target the shiniest coach imaginable to make a dramatic situation even more dramatic.

McCarthy has to appreciate his owner standing up for him, but at the end of the day a sensible person can hear this answer and wonder if it even matters. Like, what solace is it to anyone that the coach hasn't lost the players—whatever that unscientific term means—if the on-field product stinks out loud? How does that make things any better?

Dallas is contractually obligated to play six more games this season. Barring a miracle of miracles, the best course of action is to improve draft stock for next spring.

Still, it could be worse.

"We won one game my first year," Jones said. "One. And so have we had rough seasons? Yes. Yeah, I've been around. Certainly we have. And we've had other tough years. And this one, we didn't anticipate the record. And the way we're playing right now, we wouldn't have anticipated that."

"But, not, this isn't -- y'all have heard me tell these old stories until you're sick -- but not, you stay in this league long enough, you'll have times like this."

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