Jones’ Coaching Approach Leaves Cowboys’ Playoff Drought Unaddressed

The Dallas Cowboys have not reached the NFC Championship Game since the 1995 season, despite ranking 11th in regular-season record over the ensuing decades. Their postseason record over that span ranks fourth-worst, leaving the franchise’s long playoff drought in sharp contrast with its prominence and value in the NFL.

Jones, who controls the team’s general manager role and remains closely involved in its public and media presence, defended his view of coaching costs in a November 3 appearance on 105.3 The Fan. He said there was “zero correlation” between coaches’ pay or the number of coaches a team employs and winning.

The case against Jones’ approach is that strong coaches tend to win more and typically command higher salaries, even though coaching pay is generally not public. Jones has also been criticized for favoring candidates perceived as unlikely to challenge his control of the organization.

Dallas did not seek interviews with Ben Johnson, Mike Vrabel, Liam Coen or Brian Flores during a recent coaching search, despite their reputations as prominent candidates. The team instead interviewed a group that drew limited interest elsewhere: only two of six publicly identified candidates also interviewed with other teams that offseason.

The history of Jones’ relationship with Jimmy Johnson, who coached Dallas to its early-1990s success, remains a point of comparison. Jones and Johnson’s feud ended with Johnson leaving, after Jones had complained that the coach received too much credit. The criticism is that Jones’ reluctance to pay top candidates and share authority has helped keep the Cowboys from returning to championship contention.