Jerry Jones — owner, president, and general manager of the Dallas Cowboys —spoke about his accomplishments on a conference call Thursday, as he prepares to be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Aug. 5.
Jones bought the Cowboys in 1989 for $140 million, a purchase he said was “not a pretty investment, not one you or anyone would admire at the time.”
However, Jones quickly turned Dallas into an NFL powerhouse, the Cowboys winning three Super Bowls by 1995.
“My most important thing is I don’t think I’ve worked a day since I became the owner of the Dallas Cowboys,” he remarked. “It’s certainly been a labor of love.”
Jones went on to cite the free agent acquisition of Deion Sanders in 1995 as one of his best personnel moves.
“When we played Deion against San Francisco … I saw the impact he had and when he became a free agent, that signing really impacted our ability to win,” he said.
Another milestone in Jones’s career is the creation of The Star in Frisco, Texas, the site of the Cowboys’ world headquarters which hosts local high school football games.
“It tangibly links [high school and NFL football] together,” Jones said of the facility north of Dallas. “It’s a great example of how professional football can be a great facilitator of amateur sports.”
Jones, now 74, is one of seven members of the 2017 Pro Football Hall of Fame class, and the only member of the group who is not a retired NFL player.
Other inductees include former Redskins defensive end Jason Taylor, running backs Terrell Davis and LaDanian Tomlinson, quarterback Kurt Warner, safety Kenny Easley and kicker Morten Andersen.
• Josh Luckenbaugh can be reached at jluckenbaugh@washingtontimes.com.
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