Cowboys owner Jerry Jones refutes tanking possibility
12/13/2024 12:53 PM
The Dallas Cowboys are all but eliminated from playoff contention this season, but team owner Jerry Jones refuses to say the team will be tanking to get a better draft pick in the spring.
“We want everybody making the plays and having the opportunity to have success. Success is very important. … We’ll go out there and win every down,” Jones said on 105.3 The FAN [h/t Jon Machota].
While no owner should declare their intention to tank, Jones and the Cowboys are coincidentally in the perfect position to do so. After a 27-20 ‘Monday Night Football’ loss to the Cincinnati Bengals earlier in the week, Dallas is 5-8, which is tied for the 10th-worst record in the NFL. As a result of tiebreakers, the Cowboys currently hold the 12th overall pick in the upcoming draft.
Cowboys play tough schedule to finish 2024 NFL season
Down the stretch, Dallas plays four teams with reasons and the ability to play the Cowboys hard. First up is the Carolina Panthers, who are much better than their 3-10 record would indicate and, behind some strong play by second-year quarterback Bryce Young, have narrowly lost three games in a row to probable playoff teams. Then, the Cowboys host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who have a one-game lead in the Atlanta Falcons. A win vs. Dallas would inch Tampa Bay closer to clinching the division and a first-round home playoff game.
In the final two games of the season, Dallas plays NFC East rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders. The Cowboys lost the first meeting with Philadelphia in lopsided fashion; the Eagles dominated the Cowboys 34-6 in Arlington in Cooper Rush’s first start of the year back on Nov. 10. Wins near the end of the season for the Eagles could go a long way in clinching a first-round bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs if the Detroit Lions slip up.
Two weeks after the Eagles’ trashing of Dallas, the Commanders and Cowboys met for the first time, and it was a doozy of a game. While Dallas won, snapping a five-game losing streak, the teams scored 38 combined points in the final nine minutes of the game, including an 86-yard touchdown pass by Jayden Daniels to Terry McLaurin with 21 seconds remaining. Commanders kicker Austin Seibert missed the extra point, however, keeping Washington behind by one. On the ensuing onside kick attempt, Juanyeh Thomas caught the ball and returned it 46 yards for what would be a game-sealing touchdown.
Despite that loss, the Commanders are still very much in playoff contention. At 8-5, Washington currently sits in the seventh and final NFC playoff spot, giving the team some much-needed motivation to close the season.
If Dallas, which will likely not be favored in any of its remaining four games, loses out, the Cowboys could secure a top-10 pick in the upcoming draft this offseason. The team may use that pick to select a player who can help up front on either side of the ball — Dallas ranks 27th in yards per carry and yards per carry allowed — or an explosive offensive skill position player that could help boost a unit that ranks 26th in yards per play and net yards per passing attempt.
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