Dallas Cowboys chief operating officer Stephen Jones at training camp at River Ridge Playing Fields.
Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
The Los Angeles Lakers hogged the headlines recently after Mark Walter sold his majority equity in the team to Bob Iger and Joshua Kushner for a record-setting amount of $12.5 billion. Could the same thing happen to other storied sports franchises, including the Dallas Cowboys?
Jerry Jones has owned the Cowboys since 1989 after purchasing it for $140 million, fulfilling a lifelong ambition. It has since become a family affair, with his children, Stephen Jones, Charlotte Jones, and Jerry Jones Jr., all having high-ranking positions in the front office.
But with the ever-changing landscape in sports, particularly when it comes to ownership transfers, as proven by the Lakers, it is not totally outlandish to imagine the Cowboys being run by a family other than the Joneses.
In a report from The Athletic's Zak Keefer, Stephen stressed that they are not entertaining the possibility.
“We certainly don't want to think about that. We don’t want it to be that way,” said Stephen.
He serves as the chief operating officer, co-executive vice president, and director of player personnel.
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Charlotte is co-executive vice president and chief brand officer, while Jerry Jr. is co-executive vice president and chief sales and marketing officer.
“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,” wrote Keefer.
He also quoted Jones as stating: “They’ve been making decisions for the past 20, 30 years, and no doubt Stephen has been the leader of that group. For better or worse, we’ve been here as a team.”
The Cowboys have five championships, but they have not won the Super Bowl since 1996. They have not even returned to the ultimate round since then.
Experts, however, believe that this could really be the year for Dallas. Capturing the Vince Lombardi Trophy after 30 years will only strengthen the Joneses' assurance that they are in it for the long run with the Cowboys.