Current:Home > FinanceCowboys' Jerry Jones wants more NFL owners of color. He has a lot of gall saying that now.-InfoLens
Cowboys' Jerry Jones wants more NFL owners of color. He has a lot of gall saying that now.
View Date:2025-01-09 08:06:52
Jerry Jones has a lot of gall. This isn't new. He's had a lot of gall since he bought the Dallas Cowboys decades ago. That gall has served Jones well and helped him build a football empire that, in the end, might end up being the richest in American sports history. But this particular moment of Jones gall is, well, the most galling of all.
In what is an incredibly staggering moment in the life of Jones, he said that he wants to push for more NFL owners of color. The story was so unbelievable it didn't seem real. I checked the date. Nope. Not April 1. It was real.
"Nobody got in on a wing and prayer any more than I did, and I really couldn't afford it," Jones said. "But I got into it and as we look and see − and we do see − the qualified potential buyers out here that can get involved and that's one way. It's not the only way.
"(There are) multiple ways to address inequity. Multiple ways to go do it. And certainly I would think about one way is to try to work to get ownership improved in the minority area. And I'm all for it and I do it. I work at it. I work at it."
That was several days ago. Jones made similar remarks in a radio interview Tuesday on the Shan & RJ show on Audacy's 105.3 The Fan: "I don’t have a lot to add in general … I’m very active, and I’m very positive about having minority potential ownership in the National Football League … The main reason I’m qualified to say that (is because) I came from the back of the pack to get to be a part of ownership. I certainly was not listed anywhere in the thousands and thousands and thousands of people on this Earth as someone that was financially qualified to own an NFL team … My position is the opposite from what I am being critiqued for … I understand because I know the times we’re in. But I want to be a good soldier here.”
NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.
The galling part to all of this?
Journalist Jim Trotter, a former NFL Media employee, recently filed a racial discrimination lawsuit against the NFL. Part of the suit alleges that Jones said, in front of Trotter and others: "If Blacks feel some kind of way, they should buy their own team and hire who they want to hire."
So Jones saying now, literally just days after Trotter's accusations became public, that the league needs more diversity among its ownership, is really something.
Jim Trotter alleges NFL racial discrimination. His claims are huge problem for the league.
Really, really something.
You see, Jones is a majority owner, and people like him make the decisions about their teams and the league. He has been the centrifuge of NFL power for some time. I'm unaware of any extensive effort by Jones to bring in owners of color. It may have happened but I've just never heard about it.
The Cowboys are also one of the NFL teams that have never had a Black head coach. Why should anyone believe he'd push to get owners of color but hasn't even hired a Black head coach? He's owned the team since 1989.
It's possible this topic has been a passion of Jones' for decades and he's spoken about it repeatedly and privately with other owners or Commissioner Roger Goodell. Maybe also in the past Jones has spoken publicly in this way before about this desire to diversify the ownership ranks and I'm missing those comments.
However, and this is important, even if all of that did happen, it wouldn't nullify the fact that Jones is talking publicly about it now. The timing is the problem. It reeks of public relations and a reaction to Trotter's lawsuit.
To me, Jones saying these things gives even more weight to Trotter's claims that were already highly credible.
Jones has denied Trotter's allegations and did so again to ESPN.
"Jim's a friend and I think a lot of him," Jones said. "I hate that we've got some litigation and hopefully we will address all of that, but the overall concern I would say is just not accurate."
Jones added this: "You know the financial hurdles for everything has gone up, but percentage-wise there are qualified people out here. If they aren't here this minute, they're on their way because that's what's happening in this country is people do gain on it and many of the people that recently have gotten involved in the NFL might not have been able to do it 20 years ago.
Vikings' Alexander Mattison reveals racial abuse from fans after fumble in loss to Eagles
"So, continuing to share thoughts and ideas with other people about being involved and from ownership is something that I can speak to. I've wanted it when I couldn't afford it and I am a big disciple, so to speak, that you can do it."
No one is saying Jones is racist. I am, however, saying that on this subject, Jones is full of it.
It seems more that Trotter's lawsuit caught Jones by surprise and stunned both him and the league. This was Jones' way of trying to minimize the damage. It didn't work.
Despite the massive amount of gall.
veryGood! (53629)
Related
- It's about to be Red Cup Day at Starbucks. When is it and how to get the free coffee swag?
- Woman, who jumped into outhouse toilet to retrieve lost Apple Watch, is rescued by police
- 50 years ago today, one sporting event changed my life. In fact, it changed everything.
- What Biden's unwavering support for autoworkers in UAW strike says about the 2024 election
- Who is Rep. Matt Gaetz, the Florida congressman Donald Trump picked to serve as attorney general?
- Judge dismisses two suits filed by man whose work as informant inspired the movie ‘White Boy Rick’
- Artworks stolen by Nazis returned to heirs of outspoken cabaret performer killed in the Holocaust
- Swedish court upholds prison sentence for Turkish man linked to outlawed militant party
- Judge weighs the merits of a lawsuit alleging ‘Real Housewives’ creators abused a cast member
- Man shot and killed after South Carolina trooper tried to pull him over
Ranking
- Agents search home of ex-lieutenant facing scrutiny as police probe leak of school shooting evidence
- 10 protesters arrested for blocking bus carrying asylum-seekers
- Iran’s parliament passes a stricter headscarf law days after protest anniversary
- Cowboys' Jerry Jones wants more NFL owners of color. He has a lot of gall saying that now.
- Martin Scorsese on the saints, faith in filmmaking and what his next movie might be
- Gossip Girl Alum Leighton Meester Channels Blair Waldorf in Stylish Red Carpet Look
- Kraft is recalling some American cheese slices over potential choking hazard
- You've likely seen this ranch on-screen — burned by wildfire, it awaits its next act
Recommendation
-
US Open finalist Taylor Fritz talks League of Legends, why he hated tennis and how he copied Sampras
-
Jason Kelce Says Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce Romance Rumors Are 100 Percent True
-
LA councilman who rebuffed Biden’s call to resign after racism scandal is running for reelection
-
David Beckham Netflix docuseries gets release date and trailer amid Inter Miami CF hype
-
Early Black Friday Deals: 70% Off Apple, Dyson, Tarte, Barefoot Dreams, Le Creuset & More + Free Shipping
-
First private US passenger rail line in 100 years is about to link Miami and Orlando at high speed
-
A helicopter, a fairy godmother, kindness: Inside Broadway actor's wild race from JFK to Aladdin stage
-
Bears defensive coordinator Alan Williams resigns abruptly