Cowboys owner Jerry Jones on Dan Snyder: 'If he decided to move on, who could possibly blame him?'
FRISCO, Texas – Jerry Jones maintains that he is still an ally of embattled Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder. Then again, the relationship isn’t what it used to be.
“I would say we’ve had to be more formal in our conversations,” Jones, the Dallas Cowboys owner, told USA TODAY Sports during a December interview. “We’re not as cavalier as we might have been. Follow me? Don’t know who’s listening. Who’s what? So, we’ve had to be more formal.”
Snyder has enlisted Bank of America as a facilitator as he explores selling part or all of his franchise, while an NFL investigation headed by former U.S. attorney Mary Jo White, stemming from allegations of sexual harassment of a team employee more than a decade ago, remains open. Snyder, also probed previously by the NFL in addition to a Congressional panel and other entities, technically relinquished the day-to-day control of the franchise to his wife, Tanya, per an agreement with the NFL.
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Jones, one of the NFL’s most powerful owners, said that he has yet to see conclusive evidence that would rise to the level of other NFL owners voting to force Snyder to sell his franchise, which would be allowed by NFL bylaws. Yet with Snyder embroiled by so many issues – including an inability, at least to this point, to secure a new stadium deal – Jones clearly recognizes the momentum for a sale.
“He’s got the perfect storm,” Jones said. “If he decided to move on, who could possibly blame him? Or her? On top of that, he’s not the most beloved guy around, which I guess I might identify with a bit, too.”
Pointedly, Jones added, “Is he worth me taking a sword? He’s not Al Davis. For me, he’s not.”
For decades, Jones has spoken glowingly about Davis, the late Raiders owner, who was a huge resource for him before and after he purchased the Cowboys in 1989.
Although Jones downplayed a report by ESPN.com in October which maintained, citing an unnamed source, that Snyder told a fellow NFL owner that he “had dirt on Jerry Jones,” he indicated that his primary concern about the future of the Commanders franchise involves the bigger picture of the NFL’s long-term growth financially.
In other words, it's big business, not personal.
“My main thing about Washington is that I don’t want to do damage to the ability to attract capital,” Jones said. “With sponsors alone, you want people to stand in line to be associated with the team. There are a lot of natural things that will occur on their own if you don’t mess it up.”
It is hardly lost on Jones that the Denver Broncos sold last year for a record $4.65 billion to a group headed by Walmart heir Rob Walton. A Washington sale, some industry analysts project, could set a new record and fetch at least $5 billion.
“One of the strengths of the NFL is that when you’ve had, for whatever reason, ownership stumble or get tired or get compromised, we have great capital available to us, new owners willing to put in,” Jones said. “So, your future investment in the league doesn’t need to have people that are going to get into a (expletive) storm every time they walk out their door as potential owners. That’s going to keep them from coming in. We want to encourage people to come into the ownership of the league.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jerry Jones says relationship with Commanders' Dan Snyder has changed
