Jerry Jones is a great salesman. A great salesman to a fault. And it’s partially his fault that his team isn’t as great as it could be.
Kalyn Kahler of ESPN.com takes a close look at Jones’s habit of allowing fans to get up close and personal with Cowboys players. Their workplace doubles as a revenue stream for Jones — along with a way to deepen the relationship between the customers and America’s Team.
“It’s gold when those players go through our complex out there and see fans,” Jerry Jones told Kahler.
The players don’t seem to think it’s gold. The players seem to think it’s an impediment to touching silver.
“We have 24/7 access to the facility, and it should be a place of solitude,” an unnamed former player told Kahler. “I come in for extra work at night, to use the hot and cold tub, and there’s fans walking through, poking out at you. . . . We want to have our own space where we can talk, but it’s either media or fans all day. You never get a break. It’d be one thing if they did the tours like one day a week, but it’s every day.”
Added former Cowboys safety Jayron Kearse: “You’re walking by the tour guide, and they’re pulling [the fans] to the side, and you hear them say, ‘Oh that’s CeeDee Lamb, that’s CeeDee!’ Like Dalton [Schultz] said, it’s kind of like you’re in a zoo and kids are going to see a lion. That’s not a reason why we didn’t get over that hump. But I just don’t think that really equates to winning. That has nothing to do with us winning the game.”
While plenty of former players have complained, Jones claims they’ve never complained to him. In so doing, he answered his own question as to why it hasn’t happened.
“Not one time,” Jones said regarding player complaints, “but the most important thing is it wouldn’t make any difference. Period. Because overall, they’re swimming against the stream.”
That stream is a little deeper and the current is a little stronger, thanks to Jones’s willingness to let fans in the building on a regular basis.
Remember that when considering whether Jones and Bill Belichick would truly be a match. At a minimum, Jones would have to be willing to ditch the tours.
