Jerry Jones' recent coaching idea is extremely ironic considering how the Dallas Cowboys operate
There are now six head coaching vacancies around the NFL and teams are requesting interviews left and right as the market heats up… And then there's the Dallas Cowboys, who have yet to announce their decision on head coach Mike McCarthy. Not only that, but it's taken them over 24 hours to even respond to the […]
There are now six head coaching vacancies around the NFL and teams are requesting interviews left and right as the market heats up… And then there's the Dallas Cowboys, who have yet to announce their decision on head coach Mike McCarthy.
Not only that, but it's taken them over 24 hours to even respond to the Chicago Bears' request to interview McCarthy even though Jerry Jones suggested he'd allow his coaches to talk to other teams if they wanted to while noting he didn't want anyone who didn't want to be in Dallas to remain with the team.
You know, your usual America's Team drama. While we wait for any news around the team, I thought I'd share with you some additional thoughts on what Jones brought up last weekend as an idea for the team: An incentive-based deal for coaches.
Jerry Jones' take on potential head coaching contract is extremely ironic
I can't stop thinking about Jerry's comments about a potential head coaching deal based on incentives, which he suggested postgame on Sunday. I wrote about it on Monday and pointed out how that kind of thinking makes them unserious landing spots for the top coaching candidates in the market.
"The more you can have the incentive plan, to me, the better," Jones told reporters.
"For instance, I might say, look, I’m going to pay you this much, but then I’ll pay you not any more," Jones said. "And I know you want twice that, but if you get to the playoffs or you win a Super Bowl, I’ll give you five times that."
Two things on that right off the bat:
1) That doesn't make you competitive against other suitors considering that's not how the market operates and it would end up being a very costly idea if Dallas gets into a bidding war for any coach.
You just can't do things differently than the market does unless you have something special to offer in return and the truth is the Cowboys wouldn't be the top landing spot for coaching candidates for many reasons, starting with the roster build.
But secondly, and I've been thinking about this all day, is that the mere idea of tying the coach's pay to incentives as ironic as it gets in Dallas. After all, Jones insists on owning the general manager title and the second person in the organization with as much say as his is his son, Stephen Jones.
Naturally, the top two decision-makers on the team are held to no accountability at all. Ask yourself, who do they report to?
In other words, you have a general manager who is the owner and as such, can't be fired. And his son is the top responsible for free agency spending and other football-related decisions. And we all know Jerry won't fire Stephen. But the head coach is supposed to have to accept 50% less than what he's asking for with the potential of winning more with playoff success, which is hard to come by if the front office doesn't also do its job?
I gotta say, that's quite ironic. And make no mistake about it, if that's what the Cowboys pitch to McCarthy or other candidates should they decide to move on, it's unlikely to go well.
One final thought before we move on from this topic: The Jones-led front office usually argues their spending is tied to the constraint of the salary cap even though it's highly manipulable and they could spend cash over cap to get better free agents. Jerry has even said he'd write checks with a lot of zeroes to win another Super Bowl but the cap keeps him from doing so.
And yet, in the one big position that isn't restricted by the salary cap, he's talking about offering half a salary with incentive upside. That sounds more like an internship than it does an NFL head coaching job. Bottom line, the Cowboys have to get serious about getting the right man for the job and worrying less about what they're paying.
