Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones Responds to Backlash to Controversial WSJ Quote
Getty
Jerry Jones addressed his recent controversial comments about the Cowboys
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
Jerry Jones on @1053thefan with a lengthy response to his quote in the WSJ earlier this week where he said “There’s $100 billion present value with (natural) gas out there. That’s why I’m talking to you on the telephone rather than trying to fix our defense with the Dallas
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.
Steelers LB Cole Holcomb, S Chuck Clark both out with illness
The Pittsburgh Steelers won't have linebacker Cole Holcomb or safety Chuck Clark for Sunday's game against the visiting Indianapolis Colts.
Both players were downgraded to out on Saturday due to illness. Holcomb did not practice Thursday or Friday, and Clark missed practice on Friday.
Holcomb, 29, has recorded 25 tackles and one forced fumble in seven games (three starts) this season after missing all of last season with a knee injury. Clark, 30, has tallied 33 tackles and one forced fumble in six games (four starts) this season.
The Steelers (4-3) were already going to be shorthanded against the Colts (7-1) and their top-ranked offense with safety DeShon Elliott (knee) landing on injured reserve this week.
Pittsburgh activated linebacker Malik Harrison, 27, from IR on Saturday and added him to the 53-man roster. He has not played since sustaining a knee injury in the Week 1 win against the New York Jets.
