Jerry Speaks out...sort of.

I cannot believe I am actually going to do this, but I am linking to a Randy Galloway article.  It appears that he was able to get a few words with Jerry Jones after touching down in Arizona for the Super Bowl.  

All week, while the media has fueled speculation that Jerry is back to his old ways and is pulling the strings behind Wade's back, I just didn't buy it all. After all, it is just speculation, however warranted it may be based on past events.  But I just don't see Wade rolling over and playing dead.  He is a smart enough guy to realize that his window of opportunity for winning the Super Bowl, hell even a playoff game, is closing on him rapidly.  What better way of assuring himself a great chance than surrounding himself with the best coaching staff available?  We have no clue way out here in the Kingdom of Fanaticism what is really going on behind closed doors in Valley Ranch.  

Some of you fire back with the fact that it is documented that Wade wanted to bring in an Offensive Line coach he had previously worked with, and not Houck.  Well, let me ask this: If given the chance to hire one of the most experienced, established and qualified Offensive Line coach there has ever been, along with him being part of the Dallas Cowboys winning years, why pass that up?  The same goes with Dave Campo.  Granted he was not the best Head Coach we have had here in Dallas, but he is certainly a more than decent Secondary Coach, one who was able to get the best out of, among others, Dat Nguyen, Randal Godfrey, Dexter Coakley, Kevin Smith, Larry Brown, James Washington, Brock Marion, Thomas Everett and most importantly ROY WILLIAMS.  Wade Phillips sees the task at hand.  Win in the playoffs or be gone.  He would be a fool not to make the most of his opportunity.

"It is absolutely ridiculous, some of the speculation I've heard and read," said Jones. "I want to say right now, without qualification, that any staff decision that has been made, it all came with Wade [Phillips] having the final call.

"And when we kept Jason here as offensive coordinator, no one was happier about it than Wade."

Granted, this is something we would all expect Jerry to say to defend himself and his coach.  But now it is out there, in the open and if issues start to arise in the future with all of this, Jerry will be forced to show his hand and show his true colors.

That, of course, is opposed to the wink-wink speculation, not only in North Texas but around the league, that cuts Wade out of the process: Either Jerry is making the staff hires, or it's a combination of Jerry and Garrett. The running punchline in the NFL is Garrett is now building his staff for a head coaching takeover in 2009.

Jones, however, is not laughing. "This stuff is so far from the truth that it's outrageous," he said.

One sidenote this week is the Jones family had traveling companions on the trip out here for the Super Bowl. Jerry's guests for Super Bowl week, including Sunday's game, are Phillips and his wife.

I can only imagine Jerry waking up in the morning in his giant mansion, drinking his coffee and opening up his copies of the Wall Street Journal and the Dallas Morning News.  There in front of him is the JJT article where he is called upon to end the charades and just fire Wade, seeing as how he is back to his old meddling ways.  Now Jerry is older, wiser, and more experienced at running things than he was 10 years ago.  A man does not become a self made millionaire by not learning from his mistakes.  I am sure, like Wade, that he realizes this team's best chances of making it to the the Big Game is NOW, and he needs to provide the best environment for that to happen.  Giving up on 2008 and playing for Garrett in 2009 in not the way to go, and it is not what he is doing.

Has he had any contact with Big Bill in Miami in discussing a trade up to obtain the Dolphins' first overall draft pick in April?  Speculation swirled this week on that topic, even including the name Marion Barber going to Miami.

In response, Jones said, "No," then added, "let me be very clear. No."

He said that rumor "came totally out of left field. I read it and laughed. Marion at running back, we feel, is one of our strengths, and we want to keep it that way."

'Nuff Said.