Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones Responds to Backlash to Controversial WSJ Quote

The Dallas Cowboys have been all over the place so far in the 2025 campaign. Some weeks, they look like they could be a legitimate playoff contender, whereas others, they look like one of the worst teams in the league. The Cowboys looked like the latter in Week 8, when they suffered an ugly 44-24 defeat at the hands of the Denver Broncos.

Given his handling of the season, team owner and de facto general manager Jerry Jones has received a lot of criticism this year, and rightfully so. Fans only grew angrier with him after he made some controversial comments about his quest to improve Dallas’ roster, which led him to address the situation on Friday.

Jerry Jones Addresses Controversial Cowboys’ Comments

The main reason Jones has received so much backlash from fans this year is because of his decision to trade superstar linebacker Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers right before the start of the season. Unsurprisingly, when you trade away your best defensive player without finding a proper replacement (and no one can individually replace Parsons), your defense is going to struggle.

While Dallas’ offense has been one of the best units in the league, it hasn’t mattered because of how bad the defense has been. Jones has since been searching for ways to improve this unit, but it’s fair to wonder why he didn’t just hand Parsons the sort of massive contract extension he ended up getting once he got traded to the Packers.

Earlier in the week, Jones made some eye-opening comments about the Cowboys in which he seemed to imply the team wasn’t as important as his desire to get involved in the natural gas industry. Considering the state of the team and the role Jones has had in putting them in the situation they are currently in, fans were outraged, and he ended up having to further explain his comments on Friday.

“We probably will get criticized if we aren’t doing that,” Jones said on 105.3 The Fan. “Goodness, I understand that perspective, we all get it. Let’s just say what’s going on here is we’re not winning, we’re not playing the way we want to be, the way I want to be, the way any of us want to be. And when you do that, you check your whole card with everything you’re doing.

Every day, every time I can, I’m looking for ways to give advantages to the Dallas Cowboys. Anybody that says I don’t focus on the Cowboys is just living in the moment of frustration, and I get that, and I’m frustrated too.”

Cowboys Looking to Bounce Back in Week 9

GettyDallas Cowboys owner, Jerry Jones, watching on during the loss to the Denver Broncos on October 16, 2025.

Fans have been calling for Jones’ head for years now, and he hasn’t exactly done himself any favors this season. While he has remained steadfast in his belief that he is doing what’s best for the team, the results don’t lie, and it’s telling that the team’s biggest area of need, which is pass rush help, was largely created by Jones’ decision to trade away Parsons.

Dallas has struggled to stay afloat, but it still is in the playoff hunt with a 3-4-1 record heading into Week 9. Making things even better for the team is the fact that it has a matchup against a beatable Arizona Cardinals team on its schedule. With this game set for Monday Night Football, kickoff is scheduled for 8:15 p.m. ET.

The Lightning could decide to promote some of them on the NHL roster

The Tampa Bay Lightning (5-4-2) are getting back in their groove, winning four straight games after their 2-1 overtime victory over the Dallas Stars. While the Lightning look to rise to the top of the Atlantic Division their American Hockey League (AHL, Syracuse Crunch) and ECHL teams (Orlando Solar Bears) are heading in opposite directions. The Crunch are cruising, with a 6-1-0-0 record, which leads the North Division, while the Solar Bears own a dreadful 1-4-0-0 record, allowing twice as many goals (20) as they’ve scored.

Even still, there are standouts littered in the minors for Tampa Bay, and in some instances, the Lightning could decide to promote some of them on the NHL roster.

AHL: Jakob Pelletier, F

The Lightning signed Pelletier to a three-year contract last offseason in the hopes he’d reach his massive upside. At 24 years old, the 2019 first-round pick scored four goals and seven assists with a plus-10 rating in 24 games for the Calgary Flames last season. That’s an average of about 14-24-38 over a full season, and he was usually playing bottom-six minutes.

Unfortunately, the Flames traded the winger to Philadelphia for Joel Farabee and Morgan Frost in late January. Pelletier couldn’t get back his offensive spark in Philadelphia. With the Flyers, he scored just three goals, five assists, and eight points in 25 games, sometimes being healthy scratched. When he was due $840,000 on a qualifying offer on a two-way deal, the Flyers non-tendered him, making him an unrestricted free agent.

Pelletier hasn’t made his debut with the Lightning, but with the Crunch, he’s thriving. Through seven games, Pelletier has notched four goals and five assists, with a plus-1 rating. He currently leads the Crunch in points and goals. In a 5-2 win against the Hershey Bears, Pelletier had two goals and an assist.

If Pelletier keeps this pace up, the Lightning could recall him, and he could be an injection of youth Tampa Bay desperately needs right now.

AHL: Dylan Duke, F

Dylan Duke is another young talent the Lightning hope can evolve into an NHL-caliber forward. He was drafted 121st overall by Tampa Bay after a stellar career with the Michigan Wolverines. In 2023-24, Duke was on a team with NHL draftees Gavin Brindley, Rutger McGroarty, and Seamus Casey. However, Duke led the team in goals (26) and finished third in points (49). Overall, he finished with 54 goals and 46 assists in 123 games.

Duke has just one goal in the NHL level so far, but he is turning a new leaf with the Crunch this season. He’s scored one goal and added six assists for seven points through seven games. He is currently in the top 20 in assists in the AHL level.

It appears Duke could be taking a big jump from his rookie season, when he scored 20 goals, 20 assists, and 40 points through 62 games. Like Pelletier, Duke is another young forward the Lightning are looking to develop into an NHL-caliber player. Unlike Pelletier, Duke is just 22, and he has time to grow and become another late-round NHL contributor for the Lightning.

ECHL: Spencer Kersten, F

It’s hard to find a standout for the Solar Bears this season, but there’s one player who’s been tried and true for them. Spencer Kersten continues to shine for Orlando.

Kersten spent four years with Princeton University and one year at Bowling-Green University before signing with the Solar Bears in 2024. In his rookie season, Kersten shined, recording 25 goals and 30 assists for 55 points through 60 games. That earned him a spot on the 2024-25 ECHL All-Rookie team.

This year, Kersten has increased his scoring output, with three goals and three assists for six points through five games. He is on pace to record 86 points this season.

That could earn Kersten a recall to the AHL. His strong play with Orlando earned him brief stints with the Crunch and the Belleville Senators on loan. He scored one goal in nine games with the Crunch, but he could be in line for more opportunities in the AHL if he keeps up this pace.

 

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