Stephen Jones on the Cowboys' win over the Bucs, getting eliminated from playoff contention

KRLD-FM / 105.3 The Fan

Dallas Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones joined the K&C Masterpiece to discuss how he felt during last night's Cowboys win over the Buccaneers knowing his team had no shot at the playoffs.

Transcript

00:00Right now, we talk to Stephen Jones, executive vice president for your Dallas Cowboys brought

00:20to you by North Texas for dealers for it is the best in Texas.

00:23Stephen, how are we feeling today?

00:25Oh, we're doing good.

00:27I'm really thrilled with our big win yesterday and, you know, just obviously hats off to

00:36the team and our coaches who got them prepared and be real easy to mail it in.

00:42But our guys are fighting their ass off against a team who, you know, is a playoff caliber

00:47team that needed that win.

00:49And I thought we went out and deserved to win the game and held on there at the end.

00:54Stephen, can you kind of describe your emotions and the emotions kind of around you whenever

00:59you saw that Washington got the win and the Cowboys were officially eliminated?

01:03Yeah, when we watched ever play all the way to the end and I say as long a shot as it

01:10was for our team to get in, you know, it was like a gut punch when, you know, they ended

01:18up Washington ended up winning that game.

01:21Obviously take the world of Dan Quinn and what he's about and always hard to root for

01:26the Eagles anytime.

01:28But certainly we were wanting to keep our our hopes alive there.

01:33But like I said, we're we're in it to win these games.

01:35I think it means a lot to this team, not only for this year, but for our future, you know,

01:41to really show people what kind of team we are.

01:44We you know, we've battled through a lot of challenges this year and obviously got off

01:49to a, you know, middle of the season there after we started off three and two, a bumpy

01:55three and two, but then obviously lost the five games there.

01:58But I think to show people what kind of what our players are all about, obviously, Mike

02:04and his staff are just doing a hell of a job keeping everybody dialed in.

02:08And it means a lot to the organization.

02:11I'll tell you what, it means a lot to a lot of people who look at teams elsewhere and

02:15see some dysfunction and the Cowboys, they don't have that going on.

02:19In fact, I think what you guys have shown this season is you've got some talented players

02:24who care through all of this adversity and having the opportunity to show that they're

02:29not making business decisions out there.

02:30They're trying to win.

02:32Yeah, it was one hell of a game.

02:34I think Chris Collinsworth, at one point, we keep him on in the background and they

02:41said, you know, he said it's like we were playing to go to the Super Bowl.

02:44There were a lot of licks being passed out there, a lot of wood getting chopped and a

02:50lot of competing going on both sides of the ball.

02:52Hats off to the Bucs.

02:54They played their ass off to obviously we also and have been around him here in Texas

02:59and Oklahoma.

03:00What a competitor he is.

03:02But, you know, that was just a hell of a football game.

03:05If you're not you can't enjoy that, you're not a fan of football.

03:09And, you know, we're just like you said.

03:12I mean, our guys are in it to show, you know, that they have a lot of pride.

03:17And, you know, this is a team that's, you know, been NFC champs and had won 12 games,

03:23three years running.

03:24And obviously I want to show everybody what what these guys are all about.

03:29And, you know, that's with about over 40 percent of our salary cap on our right now.

03:34So and those are some of the guys we thank the most of that are some of our biggest

03:39competitors as well.

03:40But to see C.D. Lamb out there competing like he's competing already, you know, everybody

03:46says, well, they get paid and they, you know, they don't play the same way.

03:50And certainly he's showing everybody.

03:53But, you know, it's not all about the money.

03:56It's about competing and winning and being the best you can be.

03:59So hats off to him as well.

04:01Stephen, I thought without Eric Hendricks yesterday, you got a really good chance to

04:06take a look at some of your linebacker depth in Nick Vigil and Maris Talia foul.

04:10And I thought they played fantastic.

04:12What did you see from those young guys?

04:14Well, Maris, yeah, a young guy who's obviously just getting going and he just continues to

04:20make plays, punching balls out, you know, all around the ball, making big hits.

04:27You know, there was a lot of big hits yesterday and between him and Wilson and, you know,

04:35number, you know, our corner, I think we know telling how many combinations of corners we've

04:40had out there.

04:41But certainly, you know, guys just out there competing.

04:44But Maris played a hell of a game.

04:46And then Vigil, you know, just a pro.

04:49I mean, he's been in this league a while.

04:51Veteran guy who knows Mike Zimmer's system, knows how to call, you know, get our defenses

04:58lined up and run right.

05:00So I thought he really stepped up, you know, and Kendrick's is absent.

05:05And as you said, played one hell of a game.

05:07That offensive line, it looked like Cooper Rush had time to look around.

05:11He looked very calm in the pocket last night.

05:13That offensive line feel like it's coming together the way you'd expected it to, or

05:17is it kind of still a turnstile at a lot of spots there?

05:21Well, we're obviously having to play several guys and I have had a lot of combinations

05:26this year.

05:27But, you know, they're just a good group of men who like to work together.

05:32They got a lot of pride in what they do.

05:35Obviously, running the ball was tough sledding.

05:37We knew that coming in.

05:39When you got a guy like Vitavia in there who's holding down the middle, we knew it'd be tough

05:45running the ball.

05:46But, you know, we did what we had to do to make the plays when we needed to make the

05:50plays.

05:51And I thought Cooper did a hell of a job.

05:53Rico ran and got what little was there, but also did a good job catching the ball out

06:01of the backfield for us and making some plays there.

06:04So, you know, it was just a great team effort.

06:06And I fully expect our guys to have a great week of practice and come back and try to

06:12give Philly a problem with their playoff seed.

06:15So we're wanting to win these football games means a lot, not only for this year, but for

06:22our future.

06:22Trying to be the Grinch against Philly.

06:24Gotta like that a lot.

06:25Spoilers.

06:26There's going to continue to be this conversation for the next couple of weeks here and then

06:32until anything else is decided.

06:33But Mike McCarthy and where he stands with this organization, is that an off-season discussion,

06:41off-season decision?

06:42Would you like to kind of clarify how you feel about what he's doing in this job?

06:47Well, he's doing a great job, you know, right now.

06:50And like I said, there's a lot of teams who would have dysfunction with their season being

06:56over and, you know, disenchanted.

06:59Mike's kept the group together.

07:01Not surprising.

07:02I mean, Mike's a Super Bowl champion coach who's been to several, you know, NFC Championship

07:09games.

07:10Mike Zimmer not only, you know, been a very successful coordinator in this league, but

07:15a successful head coach.

07:17So this doesn't surprise me.

07:18These guys are professionals and we'll start worrying about the future when we're through

07:24playing the Commanders on our last football game of the year.

07:27All right.

07:28Thank you very much, Stephen.

07:29Appreciate your time.

07:30We'll catch up with you next week.

07:31Good, sir.

07:32Great being on, guys.

07:33Merry Christmas, Stephen.

07:34Merry Christmas.

07:36Take care.

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