It's been a tough run for the Dallas Cowboys since the turn of the century. Not only have the Dallas Cowboys not been to a Super Bowl since their last championship run in early 1996, but they haven't even been to an NFC Championship Game since then either. That's right, it's been nearly 30 years since Dallas has made it to the NFC title game and people certainly don't keep quiet about that.
Hey, in the haters' defense, Jerry Jones makes it easy to dunk on the Cowboys. The jokes practically write themselves at times. Jones' eagerness to be the center of attention keeps the team in the spotlight and that means that, as long as they're not winning the games that matter, people are going to keep taking shots at the Cowboys.
Former NFL offensive lineman Mark Schlereth didn't hold back when discussing his issues with the Cowboys on The Dan Patrick Show. Dan asked Schlereth about the Micah Parsons situation and when that would get Schlereth's attention. He went into detail about the Cowboys' mishandling of the Parsons drama and called it "standard" for Jones and the team. Not only that but he had an interesting comparison, comparing Dallas to the Jaguars of all teams.
"This is so standard for Jerry Jones... Bottom line is this is the way they operate as a business but this is also the reason that things have gone awry, why you haven't won a divisional playoff round game since 1995 because if you do it to these guys it creates a locker room full of, in my opinion, independent contractors," Schlereth said. "It's just the Dallas Cowboy way. I said it on my podcast... They are the Jacksonville Jaguars with better marketing."
Mark Schlereth says Cowboys are basically the Jaguars in disguise
Well, that quote is out there now and, truthfully, it's not a fair comparison but not even for the reasons you're probably thinking. Calling the Cowboys the Jaguars with better marketing doesn't seem fair to the Jags, who have been to a conference title game in the last decade.
Jacksonville reached the AFC Championship Game in the 2017 season, losing to the Patriots but coming so close to reaching a Super Bowl, something the Cowboys haven't sniffed in a long time. To make this comparison is almost more of an insult to Jacksonville, which probably wasn't Schlereth's intent.
I do understand what Schlereth, who spent six years with Washington before finishing his career in Denver, was going for with this analogy but it's not hitting the target here. The Cowboys would love to be in the situation the Jaguars have found themselves in over the last decade.
No they haven't been a powerhouse but when they make the playoffs, they at least make things interesting, reaching the AFC title game in early 2018 and coming from behind in shocking fashion to knock off the Chargers in the 2022 Wild Card round. That sounds far more fun than what the Cowboys have put their fanbase through in recent years.