Jerry Jones Says He Isn't Afraid to Take 'Ass-Kicking' When Cowboys Struggle

Even at the age of 82, Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones won't bow to the regular criticism he receives as the organization's Super Bowl drought carries on.

"The ass-kicking that comes with this doesn't deter me at all," he said to USA Today's Jarrett Bell.

Jones acknowledged he's "the common denominator" between the Cowboys' last championship in 1995 and their ongoing failure to add a sixth title. Still, he remains steadfast in his belief he's building the team the right way.

"I just can't get as convicted that the way we're doing it, that our approach to trying to win a Super Bowl, that that needs to change," he said. "I guess that's why I'm so defensive."

While the heyday of the Cowboys' dynasty in the 1990s was the primary focus of the Netflix documentary America's Team: The Gambler and His Cowboys, the series also addressed how far the franchise has fallen.

At one point, Jones says he's often asked why he doesn't step back from the GM role and hire somebody else for the position.

"I don't like it like that. I like the pain," he said.

Cowboys fans won't share that sentiment.

As much as he argues otherwise, it's hard to conclude Jones is a positive presence as the general manager.

Despite being one of the most valuable sports franchises in the world, Dallas has built a reputation for skimping on player salaries.

Jones will wait too long to re-sign his best homegrown talent as well, and that has consequences on the salary cap.

Still, the tenured owner and executive has sent a unifying message through the years: He's not going anywhere.

"I've done it all. So I have an ordinate amount of confidence that f--k, if anybody can figure out how to get this shit done, I can figure out how to get it done," he told Clarence Hill of DLLS Sports in August 2024. "I've been there every which way from Sunday, and have I busted my ass a bunch, a bunch. And there's nobody living that's out cutting and shooting that can't give you a bunch of times they busted their ass. So hell no, there's nobody that could f--king come in here and do all the contracts … and be a GM any better than I can."

As to that last point, the Cowboys' results on the field tell a different story.