
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones finally broke his silence this week.
He has been largely silent since the end of what was arguably the most disappointing and underachieving season in Cowboys history.
They opened the year talking of making a Super Bowl run but finished 9-7 and out of the playoffs.
The fans are disillusioned as they have been at any point during his 20-year run as Cowboys owner.
Yet Jones remains optimistic and encouraged about his team for next season. He said he is confident in coach Wade Phillips' ability to continue to run the team.
And while he wanted to add Dan Reeves as a consultant, he said the Cowboys will be just fine going forward with the status quo.
Jones insists he is not going to overhaul the roster heading to next year and that the Cowboys have the personnel in place to make a Super Bowl run.
He bases his optimism on the improbable run by the Arizona Cardinals to the Super Bowl despite a 9-7 regular season.
"They had a tough time of it their last five games yet they were almost world champions," Jones said. "And so I would say to our fans that I'm as disappointed and as resolved as you could ever imagine to do the best job of putting our team on the field. ... The only thing that's going to take the disappointment away is to win ballgames. That's what we're going to try to do."
Jones said there are no issues in his locker room that winning won't cure. He said that reports of receiver Terrell Owens not being able to get along with offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, quarterback Tony Romo and tight end Jason Witten are overblown.
"Not at all. Not at all. Not at all. Period. I'm just not," he said when asked if he was concerned with the personality clashes in the locker room. "They are a figment of the result. You didn't hear about those things when we were winning. You hear about those kinds of things when we're losing. So I'm just not. And if y'all knew more about some of the things that you write about, you wouldn't be as concerned."
And regarding Owens, Jones said any talk about him being released this offseason is simply pure speculation.
He said the Cowboys are going to evaluate their roster as they do every year. But he said if you are waiting on him to cut Owens then you might as well quit holding your breath.
"You and I both know that the one that you're asking about all the time, if I gave you the answer that you want to hear, then you would've already had it. So the fact you don't have it ought to tell you something. It really should," Jones said.