The Dallas Cowboys have been under Jerry Jones’s ownership for 37 years. Jones has taken pride in the Cowboys franchise, which has won three Super Bowls under his reign. Although ‘America’s Team’ hasn’t won in 30-plus years, Jones has been at the forefront of managing the team’s publicity, turning it into the most valuable franchise in the NFL.
Recently, who Jones’s successor will be has been a floating question throughout the organization. And in an interview with The Athletic’s Zak Keefer, both Stephen and Jerry touch on the matter.
All fingers point to his eldest son, Cowboys Vice President Stephen Jones, who has been right beside his father in business, personal, and team operations. But as the important question of “who’s next” arises, Stephen deflects.
“Publicly, he keeps sidestepping questions about the future, about how he’ll run the team when his father is gone. The mere thought can bring Stephen to tears. But Jerry is 83. He already beat back cancer once. More and more it’s Stephen speaking for the franchise, Stephen directing the draft room, Stephen inching into the camera’s view,” Keefer wrote.
“I don’t have a succession plan, I don’t,” Jerry insists, admitting that he’s already started to pass the baton. “One day I just won’t be here to toss my two cents in.”
Jones and Keefer continued to talk about his potential successor.
“Could there be a day the Dallas Cowboys aren’t owned by the Joneses?” Keefer asked.
“We certainly don’t wanna think about that,” Stephen says flatly. “We don’t want it to be that way.”
“The plan is in place and has been for years. One of the great regrets of Jerry’s life is not going to work with his father after college; as soon as he bought the Cowboys, he made certain his kids were close. All three own equal ownership shares and will collectively run the organization after Jerry is gone. But Stephen’s two cents will carry the most weight. It’ll be his team,” Keefer wrote.
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