Cowboys News: Jason Garrett will definitely be coaching somewhere next year, says Jerry Jones

Jerry Jones says Jason Garrett ‘will be coaching in the NFL next year’, but where? - Liz Roscher, Yahoo Sports

The calls for Jason Garrett to lose his job have only gotten louder as the Cowboys continue to lose games in frustrating fashion, but Jerry Jones hasn’t echoed those calls. He has, however, offered some fairly cryptic comments about Garrett’s future.

Jones did an interview on 105.3 The Fan on Tuesday and said that while he’d seen a list of rumored candidates to coach the Cowboys next season should Garrett be fired, “they can’t guarantee me or my fans a Super Bowl.” He went on to give Garrett some great compliments, while simultaneously confirming that his job is likely in jeopardy if the season ends badly.

”Nobody has the exclusive skills to get the job done so that collectively you can win a Super Bowl,” Jones said, via NFL.com. ”But there are qualified people. Jason Garrett is one of them. In my opinion, Jason Garrett will be coaching in the NFL next year.”

Jones’ phrasing is significant, and it seems to be intentional. Saying that Garrett will be coaching in the NFL is not the same thing as saying he’ll still be coaching the Cowboys, where he’s been since 2011.

What Does Jerry Jones Need To See In December? - David Helman, DallasCowboys.com

One of the reasons Jerry Jones cited for not firing Jason Garrett after the loss to the Bills on Thanksgiving was the potential for the Cowboys to go on a magical run to the Super Bowl. However, this has raised questions about what bar Garrett needs to reach to save his job.

Ultimately, it likely comes down to winning football games. Following the loss to the Bills, Jones said he’d like to see the Cowboys rebound in storybook fashion. On Tuesday, he reiterated this his team has the personnel and the good health required to put together a run.

He even went as far as to say he would have signed up for this scenario at the outset of the regular season.

“If I were leaving training camp today, I’d like to have this run that I’ve got right now -- four games to get to the playoffs,” he said. “As healthy as we are, get our act together relative to what we’re doing on both sides of the ball and let’s go. I feel pretty good about it.”

The Panthers fired Ron Rivera and everyone instantly named him next coach of the Cowboys - Andy Nesbitt, USA Today

While Cowboys fans are busy arguing over whether Jason Garrett should be fired now or at the end of the year and who should replace him, one such candidate emerged on Tuesday as Panthers head coach Ron Rivera was fired.

Rivera was named the NFL’s Coach of the Year two times during his run with the Panthers, including in 2015 when he led the team to a 15-1 record and a trip to the Super Bowl where they lost to the Broncos.

It didn’t take long for many fans and analysts to predict that Rivera will be the next coach of the Dallas Cowboys, who are currently in first place of the woeful NFC East. As any football fan knows, Jason Garrett’s job status is anything but stable right now, even though the Cowboys would be in the playoffs if they started today.

Twitter is ready to see Rivera in Big D

Cowboys’ Dak Prescott: Time for talk is over, ‘I’m going to do more’ - Todd Archer, ESPN

The Cowboys still haven’t won a game against a team with a winning record, and the frustration is evident everywhere. But for Dak Prescott, a team leader, he’s had enough of the talk and promises to get better.

“When it’s times like this, it’s more lead by example. Talk is cheap, right?” Prescott said. “We’ve talked a lot. We’ve talked a bunch and got ourselves right to where we are. In a moment like this, I say hell with the talking and I’m going to do more. I’m going to work harder. And if you’re a young guy looking for somebody to figure it out, how to do it, yeah, look at me and some of these other guys because that’s exactly what we’re doing -- putting our head down focusing and doubling down on ourselves.”

As the Cowboys prepare for Thursday’s game at the Chicago Bears (8:20 p.m. ET, Fox), Prescott wants his teammates to follow his lead.

“I’ve faced adversity a lot in my life, on and off the field, and at this moment I’m just doubling down on myself and my teammates,” Prescott said. “I’ve got confidence in what I can do and what these guys around me can do and hope they’re looking my way.”

Cowboys LB Leighton Vander Esch ruled out vs. Bears - Nick Shook, NFL.com

When the Cowboys kick off against the Bears in Soldier Field on Thursday night, it will once again be without Leighton Vander Esch, who is missing his third game this year with a potentially dangerous neck injury.

“I want to be able to play for 10 or 12 years,” Vander Esch said during an appearance on 1310 The Ticket. “Not four.”

Vander Esch, who has a history of neck issues, has not played since Dallas’ Week 11 win over the Detroit Lions. The Cowboys have lost two straight since then, falling to 6-6 and allowing the Philadelphia Eagles to hang just a game behind them in the NFC East standings.

Vander Esch is being wise, of course, in regards to his own health, longevity and career earning power. Risking further neck issues by hurrying back too soon could take years off his career. Past greats, such as linebacker Chris Spielman, have seen neck injuries end their careers prematurely, and just last offseason, Bills center Eric Wood retired because of repeated neck issues.

Chuck Pagano on Cowboys RB Ezekiel Elliott: ‘He’s as good as they get’ - Bryan Perez, Yahoo Sports

The Cowboys are getting ready to face one of the NFL’s top defenses in Chicago, and the Bears defensive coordinator, Chuck Pagano, recently spoke about the troubles that Ezekiel Elliott poses to his unit.

But if Chicago wants to avoid flatlining Thursday night against the Dallas Cowboys, they’ll have to stop All-Pro running back Ezekiel Elliott, who defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano hinted will be as challenging of a test the team has faced all year.

”He’s a great, great back,” Pagano said Monday from Halas Hall. ”He’s big. He’s strong. He’s got great vision. He can run. He can take it inside, bounce outside, run through you; run around you; jump over you. He’s a threat out of the backfield as a receiver. He’s good in pass [protection]. He’s as good as they get.”

Through 12 games this season, Elliott has 227 carries for 990 yards and seven touchdowns. His rushing yards rank sixth in the NFL and trails the league’s leading rusher, Nick Chubb (Browns), by less than 200 yards.

FanDuel’s NFL Power Rankings List Cowboys Ahead of 10 Winning Teams - Chris Licata, Heavy

The Cowboys are objectively not great this year, as evidenced by their 6-6 record and 0-5 record against teams with a winning record, but for some reason FanDuel decided to give them an incredibly high spot in their power rankings.

The 6-6 Cowboys trail only the Ravens, 49ers, and Patriots, all of whom have registered a 10-2 record through the first 13 weeks of the season. However, that puts them ahead of 10 other teams with a winning record including the Chiefs, Seahawks, Packers, and Saints.

The reasoning and methodology behind the rankings is unclear, but Dallas’ positioning is in doubt given questionable losses to the Jets and Bills, as well as their inability to bring home wins versus other top playoff contenders in New Orleans, Green Bay, Minnesota, and New England.

BTB Podcast

How does Jason Garrett’s career stack up against the recently-fired Ron Rivera? We discussed on the latest episode of The Ocho.

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