- 13 minutes ago
Jerry Jones joined Shan, RJ, and Bobby to discuss the Cowboys' loss to Baltimore in Brazil. Jones spoke on game management, kickoff rules, offensive aggressiveness, defensive progress, and more.
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00:00The Hall of Fame owner and general manager of the Dallas Cowboys here on Sean and RJ 105.3 The
00:05Fan.
00:06Good morning, Jerry. How are you?
00:07Hey, I'm doing fine. We're all up after a long flight back.
00:14We spent a long time yesterday going over all of the things that the fans would expect us to be
00:20going over.
00:20And so we've got our head down and we're plowing ahead.
00:25What were some of those things?
00:27Where would you like to start with all these talking points that we have?
00:32We don't have time.
00:34There's no other way in the world to discuss them, but all the obvious things.
00:38We have our very best players, our very best situation that you can have on the field ready to ostensibly
00:50win the game.
00:54No one would have thought that they would have enough time on the clock to basically get a score that
01:00would get it done because we were anticipating there early when we got, speaking of now, on the goal line
01:07with just a matter of seconds.
01:09We all have gone over completely the use of timeouts during that time, the use of timeouts before we got
01:19down there when we were over on defense.
01:21So we've carefully gone over those kinds of things, where your input's coming from, where you are on your headsets,
01:31how you get your information down, how you evolve into making that decision.
01:37Those are the kinds of things that are being gone over ad nauseum so that you can look to do
01:44it better when you've got a situation similar to that in the future.
01:49Brian Schottenheimer taking a ton of criticism, Jerry, for a lot of the things you just ran down.
01:53How is Coach feeling today about the loss, maybe compared to right after the game, after having some time to
01:59reflect and review and you guys discuss?
02:02How is Coach feeling differently about it today?
02:05Well, I don't know that you would inject differently in the sentence, but he certainly has had hours, if you
02:14will, to reflect and communicate with everybody involved in the decisions that were going on at that time.
02:22And so that's what you should be doing.
02:27You candidly were in such a good position to win that game.
02:33You had earned that position because of how well you had played on the previous set of downs relative to
02:41Baltimore having the ball.
02:42And so we made the stop.
02:45We had come back.
02:48Really, we're proud of the way the guys came back, especially those defensive stands that we made.
02:54And then you get in that situation, and this is a textbook.
02:59One thing about the game is that it gives you a lot of issues or a lot of time because
03:09then you don't have the seconds ticking away on the clock.
03:12You can spend minutes or hours looking at every point doing what most fans would think we should be doing
03:21right now, analyzing every aspect of where we were with those circumstances is what we're doing.
03:31And we do that in light of the fact that coming up here Sunday, we've got a big game down
03:37in Houston and an opportunity to take the good parts of what we've been about in these first games, take
03:45those good parts, and put them to use to beat a good Houston team.
03:50Jerry Jones, joining us here, 105 through the fan.
03:53All right, so it's at the end of the game situation.
03:55It's a third down, and you had just called a timeout.
03:59This is after Dak got flushed out of the pocket.
04:01Could have let the clock run down a little bit more.
04:04Would you have liked to have seen them do that?
04:06And are you satisfied with the explanation you got on that third down play with the throwaway?
04:11Well, there is no explanation you're satisfied with.
04:15None.
04:16Let's be sure that we all understand that.
04:18They don't have one that they're satisfied with.
04:23We made mistakes during that time.
04:26There's no question about it.
04:28So there is no explanation.
04:30But there's an evaluation of how not to make the same mistakes again, which is what you should be doing.
04:39You can't get that back.
04:40No way to get it back.
04:42What you can do is use it if there's any aspect of it that you want to just not even
04:51think happened.
04:52If there's any aspect of it, use it to get better.
04:55And that's what's being done.
04:57But the aspect of sitting here trying to change what happened on that field in Brazil, as we all know,
05:05is impossible.
05:06But it is possible to learn from it.
05:08And I'm going to show you right now, they are analyzing it with the intention of learning from it.
05:16How to do it differently next time and come out of there with a win.
05:19In the moment, were you wanting to go for it on fourth down and just go for the win to
05:25end it there?
05:27No.
05:28No.
05:29Did not.
05:32I read in my mind, what if we just tie the game and go there?
05:38Because we'd had a tough time stopping them.
05:42We stopped them on short yardage, but not necessarily at all.
05:45And so that, at the end of the day, is hindsight.
05:51Go for it or come back for another day.
05:54And I think the process of how to give yourself a shot at winning it, but leaving yourself the safety
06:02net of still being in the game,
06:04if you aren't successful, therein lies what the situation created all of the ambiguity that we're talking about.
06:14Trying to do both.
06:16We all thought, every person there thought, we'd been better off being behind four points and just trying to get
06:22a score.
06:24Then you would have had a different mindset as you tried to get that ball in the end zone.
06:28So, no, you assume going in that what you want to do is try to get the score to win
06:37it,
06:37but not at the cost of getting out of there without a tie so that you can play for a
06:43possible win later in the game.
06:45Jerry Jones with us here on Sean and RJ on 105 through the fan.
06:48Jerry, after the game, the Ravens head coach, Jesse Minter, said on the kickoff before the field goal,
06:55he said, hey, we thought if they were going to kick it and we were forced to return it a
06:58little bit,
06:58that would have run some time off.
07:00We probably would have just kneeled it down and gone to overtime at that point.
07:03What were your thoughts on the decision to go ahead and kick the touchback
07:07rather than kicking it to Baltimore and making them run some clock off?
07:10Well, of course, everything you just said is the issue.
07:15Do you give them a little better field position with the idea of being able to thwart them getting in
07:26field position within that time?
07:29You can do a better job of what we were doing at that time.
07:34And that period of time right in there, that decision of how to do that kickoff,
07:40trust me, that thing and the nuances on the sideline, the nuances in the input of everybody's decision there,
07:49that's being gone over with a fine-toothed cone.
07:52And all of the what-ifs are right there for you.
07:56We obviously didn't plan on that layer of receivers, that layer,
08:02the layer that got them in that good a position.
08:05We didn't plan on that layer of receivers catching the ball.
08:11We designed it so that a layer farther away from their goal post catch the ball.
08:19Not that layer.
08:20But that layer caught the ball, which put them in a doable distance of the goal.
08:27So, Jerry, why is...
08:29The defense is designed to protect...
08:30The defense is designed to, if there's going to be a completion,
08:35to do it at a farther away from the goal post layer.
08:39It was designed that way.
08:41And that's the defense that you'd see out there right now.
08:44But it's supposed to keep them from having that completion at that depth they had it.
08:50Jerry, why has Brandon Aubrey struggled so much with kickoffs, especially keeping them inbounds?
08:58It's common around the league because you're trying to get the dirty ball on them.
09:04They call it a dirty ball.
09:06And you're trying to get it touched within a certain distance.
09:10There's no...
09:11By the way, I'm just going to generalize here.
09:14Not excuse-ize, but generalize.
09:19The kickoffs have become a very...
09:22In that situation, where you're trying to pin them deep
09:26and just let the remaining time come off the clock.
09:29What we've done in the NFL is design our kickoffs to make that a very doable scoring situation
09:38if there's any time left on the clock.
09:40Things have changed.
09:42And not only do these kickers kick them from farther away all over the league,
09:46not just us, but others.
09:48But the design of the kickoff carries a huge penalty if you dirty ball it, if it goes out.
09:55And we had a couple go out in the game, and then you get it at the 40,
10:00which would be easy to see.
10:02I could look back and say, you shouldn't have tried the dirty ball.
10:05You should have just taken the ball as much as you could control
10:09and take that distance and live with it.
10:13Jerry, we've had discussions, and you've made decisions over the years
10:17about taking some play calling away off the head coach's platter.
10:21Did that thought cross your mind with some of the game management issues
10:24with Shoddy calling the offense?
10:26It doesn't have to.
10:28Your coaches, your head coaches, are the first ones in my time over the years.
10:34I've never, regarding their activities, their responsibility,
10:42where they spend, where the head coach spends his time.
10:45I've always had the coach self-correct or not self-correct, self-adjust his play time.
10:54It's not uncommon at all for a coach during the year to take more time in one place,
11:00allocate more time in others.
11:04Basically, I saw Bill Purcells have two different, maybe three different play callers.
11:12And frankly, if you tried to analyze it, if you happened to be listening in on the phones,
11:18you still couldn't tell who was calling the play.
11:21And so the bottom line is that it varies, but your coach is the first one.
11:27The head coach is the first one to basically think adjusting if he's overloaded.
11:35Jerry Jones brought to you by North Texas Ford Dealers.
11:38Every Tuesday here on Sean and RJ.
11:40Yesterday, Stephen told K&C, you guys may have the conversation with players and coaches
11:45about being more aggressive.
11:48In which areas would that apply to, Jerry?
11:52Well, I would say in this case, because it's the hot topic, decision, because in decisions,
12:00certainly less likely, I didn't listen to it, but less likely to be talking about physically
12:08being more aggressive.
12:09But it would be more about aggressive in the decisions.
12:14And so, you know, that's always what is aggressive.
12:22Well, that is basically throwing it up or not having an option of living with a more conservative
12:34cause.
12:35So aggressive, I'd say when you look at the makeup of what we've got on offense, then
12:45you can use that term a little bit in general, say, let's be more aggressive because of the
12:52talent we've got over on the offensive side of the ball.
12:56Jerry, how did you feel about the progress made by your defense this week?
13:01And do you feel like they're starting to take a step forward?
13:07Probably, apart from just having that win, the thing that I regret the most is that we
13:16can't be doing what Baltimore is doing with that win.
13:20That is a big injection of confidence.
13:28That was a hard-fought game.
13:30Should we have gotten the win, you really could have given the accolades that, frankly, they
13:40deserved most of the game to the defense.
13:45They had yards, but that's a big back.
13:49He gets yards.
13:51But we did great jobs of stopping him in short-yarded situations.
13:55The one that counts, as a matter of fact, the stops we made right at the end of the game
14:00that
14:00put us in position to go down and be where we are, that we're so sick about.
14:06That was a great goal line.
14:08Those were great defensive stands.
14:11And if we had had the outcome come out differently, then that would have been one that you could
14:17absolutely point to and build around as you go forward in the season.
14:22Or in our particular case, where we're rebuilding, if you will, a structure on our defense, that
14:30would have been a huge win beneath our wings.
14:33As it turns out, Baltimore gets to do that.
14:36We don't get to do it.
14:39That is almost on par with the win-loss column that we are suffering right now.
14:47Jerry, you mentioned the stands that you made defensively there.
14:51Two big plays from Caleb Downs and Jay Sean Barham, two of your rookies that you drafted.
14:56How impressed are you with them right now, the games they played, and how they're coming
15:00along?
15:03Very extraordinary input.
15:06Caleb Downs played every down, I think.
15:08And so, very impressed.
15:14And we're having some good things really done by some of the other second-year guys out there
15:21as well.
15:22So, if you can move on, or not move on, but just at the same time not dwell on what
15:31happened
15:32and the results of the game, and certainly right at the end of the game, we're seeing
15:38some real progress from young players that should serve us well here in the games ahead.
15:44We mean right there at Houston.
15:46The other thing that I was excited about is our interior of our defense.
15:53Quentin Williams was absolutely outstanding.
16:00And there's a guy that you'd love to see a W for, because I don't know when I've seen
16:06any more of a total performance of not only effort, but of also skill as well.
16:15And boy, that's 300 and some odd pounds that were going out there and chasing him to the
16:21outside and staying with him when he was running after him.
16:25So, he was impressive, but our other interior guys were impressive.
16:31We need to get better on the edges, and the good news is that we can.
16:37We have the talent to get better on the edges with the structure of this defense.
16:43So, I was real pleased with certain aspects of the game.
16:48It's so easy to have it overshadowed, and it's the way it should be by the disappointing loss.
16:53But we had some real improvement in specific areas of our defense.
16:59Jerry, a couple injuries coming out of the game that Stephen told us yesterday.
17:03Y'all were waiting to get more information on.
17:05Curious about an update today.
17:07Where do things stand with Savone Revel and Jonathan Bullard and their injuries?
17:12Well, Bullard's going to be out as many as three or four weeks.
17:16And Revel is a little less specific, but both of those guys, Bullard is really doing what he looks like
17:29and what he's projected to do.
17:31So, we need to get him back in there, and he was effective while he was in there.
17:37Revel is just getting better.
17:40He flashes that skill level that he's got several times,
17:45and then he shows that he's early in his career a young player several times.
17:51But I can't tell you, don't know that we know if it'll be a multi-week deal with Revel or
17:57not.
17:58Jerry, over the weekend on Sunday morning, Adam Schefter over at ESPN had reported
18:04that you guys had engaged in some level of trade discussion with the Steelers on Joey Porter Jr.
18:10I know you can't speak about specific players, but I'm curious where you guys stand right now
18:16in terms of evaluating the trade market and looking to add to your defense.
18:22I'd just say we're right on top of it.
18:26We're very aware of the moving parts out here we should be,
18:31and communication is a big part of that.
18:33It's a big part of that, and communication at all levels.
18:37At my level, at Stephen's level, at the scout's level, we all have contacts,
18:47and this is a time when you really can have discussions, and they can be productive.
18:57The answer to the question is, yes, there's conversations going on.
19:02Jerry Jones is here.
19:04Hello, not specifically to the player you just mentioned or referring to situations.
19:10Trying to avoid tampering here, folks.
19:13We get it, we get it.
19:15Did you think the playing surface was up to NFL standards?
19:18Would you be comfortable going back and playing another game there?
19:22I'd be comfortable going back and playing another game.
19:26And certainly, I've seen better, but we have played on worse.
19:34And so, but it was, all in all, it was, that stadium was in great shape.
19:40I couldn't see a seat empty, frankly, in that entire stadium.
19:46And somebody else may have seen some, but I didn't see any, and was looking for them.
19:52So, we had a great crowd.
19:55And overall, it was really none the worse for having made that trip.
20:01I would have loved to have had that game right here at home against such a good team as Baltimore.
20:07But the bottom line is that you probably lost a little of your home field advantage,
20:12no matter if we were officially the home team.
20:15But it wasn't the same in any way as playing here at AT&T.
20:19What's the most enjoyable thing you did outside of football in Brazil?
20:26Really, it was, as it turns out, just the nature of it,
20:32it was different relative to just the people.
20:39They're beautiful beyond comparison.
20:44They really are.
20:46And we were in an area that was more oriented to the beach and the ocean.
20:54It's a huge area, so it covers a lot more than that.
20:58But thousands, thousands were out on those beaches.
21:02And that's the most people I've ever seen.
21:05And it just looked like the world lived out on that beach.
21:08And the beach extends for miles and miles and miles.
21:11And, of course, obviously those landmark, I guess they're volcanic, but I don't even know that.
21:22But those big landmarks they have down there with those mountainous rocks are such a distinguishing thing.
21:32But it all is a very pretty place.
21:34Jerry, before we let you go, last night made us feel a little bit better over the Sunday sting.
21:39We got some developments in the NFC East.
21:41Your thoughts on the Eagles' loss and the Giants' trading a fifth for J.J. McCarthy?
21:48Yeah, we are very much in the hunt.
21:55And I say that principally based upon the way I feel about our team as much or more than what's
22:02happening with the other teams.
22:05But we all are, Philadelphia has certainly things that they want to work on just as the Giants do, just
22:17as we do.
22:18Or certainly if you look at where we are with, well, really the Giants are working through it.
22:28It makes you see how health is a factor, availability is a factor, and we're just getting started.
22:39So it shows, frankly, the parity that is in the NFL.
22:44And I like we will be better from this experience that we had with Baltimore and what happened to us
22:53at the end of the game.
22:54We will be better because of it.
22:56And we actually, as I said earlier, a win would have given you another way of catching it as far
23:03as having the growth and enthusiasm for having won a game like that.
23:08Because we did come back, and we came back in an impressive way.
23:15So all of that makes us realize we really are just at the beginning of what I hope is an
23:24exciting year for us.
23:26Jerry, thank you so much for the time.
23:27We appreciate it.
23:28We'll hear you on Friday before Houston.
23:31Let's have a good week.