For fans, the Dallas Cowboys have had one of the most frustrating offseasons in the NFL, with the futures of Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and Micah Parsons in limbo. After speaking to the media during the team’s training camp, team owner Jerry Jones made it even more confusing.
“I’ve made a lot of mistakes over the years, but it was a miracle I was able to pull it off,” Jones said, referring to buying the team. “The same imagination, the same risk-taking, sometimes looking like a gambler on a Mississippi riverboat and sometimes looking like we were protecting the national vault — those inconsistencies are how we got here.
“I don’t know if it will work, but I’m giving it my all. Our fans are counting on me full-time. I’m fully committed.”
But Dallas enters this camp in a state of chaos, counting on rookie Tyler Guyton to step in immediately on the offensive line, counting on Ezekiel Elliott to make a major career rewind and hoping Prescott will produce at a near-MVP level again even without having to work with Lamb, its most important target, during training camp.
So, given the current state of affairs, fans might be uncomfortable hearing that Jones remains committed to turning the Cowboys into Super Bowl winners. Jones can’t complete a deal with Lamb, can’t negotiate an extension for Prescott, and isn’t even ready to discuss extending Micah Parsons’ contract.
How will the Cowboys perform this season?
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The problem for Dallas is that even if Jones finds a way to retain Lamb, Prescott and Parsons long-term, are they good enough to compete with the Philadelphia Eagles for the division? That’s the pressure of this situation, and no one enters this season under more pressure than head coach Mike McCarthy, which might seem like overkill considering the Cowboys are coming off a third straight 12-win season with him at the helm.
But that’s also the pressure that comes with working for Jones, which is why McCarthy, like Lamb, Prescott and Parsons, has not received an extension offer from Jones. With a tough opener against the Cleveland Browns on the road and then having to host the Baltimore Ravens two weeks later, that pressure could increase even more.
Add to that the fact that Dallas also has to play the Detroit Lions, Cincinnati Bengals, San Francisco 49ers and Houston Texans later in the year, and if the Cowboys aren’t on a roll, this season might not get off the ground. Perhaps that’s why Jones is hesitant to commit to paying big sums to everyone at once. But it will also remain a distraction until there’s a resolution.
