Cowboys owner Jerry Jones issued an apology on Tuesday after using a derogatory slur about little people.
“Earlier today I made a reference which I understand may have been viewed as offensive. I apologize,” Jones said on Tuesday evening.
Referencing former Cowboys director of scouting Larry Lacewell, who was short, Jones used what Little People of America refers to as the m-word, a term that has often been used as insulting about short people.
Jones likely didn’t realize that the word is offensive, but when alerted to the offensiveness of the word, he apologized.
This is not the first time the offensiveness of the word has come up in an NFL context: Cleveland radio host Tony Grossi was suspended for using the word two years ago, and then-Bengals coach Marvin Lewis apologized for using the word in 2014.