How to fix the Dallas Cowboys
So everyone is probably aware of the terrible issue of Jerry the Owner should fire Jerry the GM cries from fans, former players, and casual observers. Its as old as the current playoff drought. We don't need to belabor the point other to say that the Dallas Cowboys will never return to prominence as long as the Owner continues to sink the football operations ever so slightly each year.
The question then becomes, "What will change any of this?" To most Dallas residents, fans and media that covers the team the answer is nothing. Jerry won't change, and the brain-trust supporting his decisions won't change. I have thought on this 2-3 times a year for several years when the answer struck me the other day, and I think it might actually work...hear me out.
Something has to be evident on the national telecast of games to spread the word and make a point. There have been fan revolts in Dallas before. Things like the Ticket Stick-It of the 90's with the Rangers. Weekly there are hand-written signs in the stadium and minor fan revolts that make a small but obvious point; however, that point is fleeting, and gets lost in the minds of people after the next play.
So here is my idea.....
The shining example of what the Cowboys have become are the Oakland/LA Raiders of the late 80's to current team. This took place under the misguided leadership of fellow crazy owner Al Davis, who held that team hostage for years with the odd whims and temperamental leadership that still has the Raiders a football joke, even after his death they haven't recovered. Davis is the first example that comes to mind of a guy who as so obviously wrong that he was the reason of the teams poor showings, not players, or the market. In the wake of his death in 2011, the city of Oakland breathed a sigh of relief, but not so fast. The team was so poorly managed that 3 years later the problems still aren't fixed. Thats what the Cowboys are looking at for the next few years for their fate.
So I propose this. Every Fan that attends a Cowboy game goes out and buys a Raiders jersey with either Al Davis or Jerry Jones as the name on the back of it, and a number for the number of years since 1995, the last Cowboys Superbowl win. You might ask, what good will that do. Imagine a Sunday 3pm kickoff with the Giants and half the stadium is in black Raiders jerseys. Its such an odd sight that game announcers will have to comment on it or explain it to some degree. Every time they talk about jersey sales, this anomaly will have to be mentioned. It makes a statement without having to explain the intricate details of why Jerry is wrong and you are right. You could even have a couple guys walking around in Silver jumpsuits and the crazy look Al Davis had in his later years to further make the point.
It's not a lot I know, and it will cost each person a new jersey; however, its something that you can do to voice your opinion and make Jerry a laughing stock, which is when he will take notice and do something. Threatening to never attend a game or buy merchandise is a fools errand as there is a fan waiting to take that seat you vacate every week. He has to be made into a doodling old man who should be taken out of the decision making process before anything will happen. So I suggest the global Al Davis comparison.
