Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is set to turn 80 later this year and has been in his role with the organization since all the way back in 1989.
Jones has seen pretty much everything around the modern NFL. That includes multiple scandals surrounding his Cowboys, rocky relationships with head coaches and widespread race-based issues around the league.
The owner was on hand during Senior Bowl practice in Mobile, Alabama, on Wednesday. His presence isn’t necessarily too rare. However, Jones’ topic of conversation when speaking with the media was new.
Jori Epstein of USA TODAY caught up with Jones to talk about the recent lawsuit former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores filed against the NFL, claiming racism within the hiring process around the league.
Said lawsuit is class-action in nature and names all 32 teams as defendants with the New York Giants, Miami Dolphins and Denver Broncos specifically mentioned. Jones’ response might surprise those who have not followed his career.
“I can see it’s an area, one of many, that we can do better,” Jerry Jones said. “The area has some good attention. This is obvious if you look through that that the league and coaches are trying to improve there.”
Related: Brian Flores situation points to issues within NFL head-coach hiring process
Jerry Jones latest to speak on Brian Flores lawsuit
In his lawsuit against the NFL and its teams, Flores claims that he was given a sham of an interview for the Giants’ head-coach vacancy. The suit points to alleged text messages from New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick claiming that Brian Daboll had gotten the job days before Flores’ interview.
Now that Daboll is officially the Giants’ new head coach, there’s some who believe the NFL’s Rooney Rule guidelines are only met by organizations providing minorities interviews without a real possibility of being hired. Jones also touched on that.
“I think the fact that it’s an issue shows not only the league’s willingness to address and do better,” Jones said. “I think the fact that it’s being discussed as to how the Rooney Rule or what drives the Rooney Rule could be better. In the case of coach Flores’ complaint, he’s saying it could be better and the processes create positive result for the league.”
Related: Jerry Jones, Dallas Cowboys commit to Mike McCarthy
It’s rare for an owner of a team that’s considered a defendent in a lawsuit to seemingly show support for the plaintiff. In analyzing what Jones said, it seems clear he believes that the Rooney Rule must change.
Current NFL rules dictate that teams must interview minority candidates from outside their organization for both head-coach and general manager openings. Did the Giants interview Flores simply to meet these guidelines? That’s not yet known.
What we do know is that Flores’ suit claims he was also given a sham of an interview by the Denver Broncos back in 2019 before they ultimately hired Vic Fangio, a white man, to be their next head coach.
As more comes out relating to this situation, Flores’ lawsuit will be on the front burner. That includes other former NFL head coaches potentially taking part in the class-action suit.
In the mean time, individuals like Jones who are seen as major power players around the NFL will be forced to speak up. That will undoubtedly include commissioner Roger Goodell during his annual State of the League press conference Super Bowl week.