Dallas Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones joined the K&C Masterpiece to discuss how he felt during last night's Cowboys win over the Buccaneers knowing his team had no shot at the playoffs.
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00:00Right now, we talk to Stephen Jones, executive vice president for your Dallas Cowboys brought
00:20to you by North Texas for dealers for it is the best in Texas.
00:23Stephen, how are we feeling today?
00:25Oh, we're doing good.
00:27I'm really thrilled with our big win yesterday and, you know, just obviously hats off to
00:36the team and our coaches who got them prepared and be real easy to mail it in.
00:42But our guys are fighting their ass off against a team who, you know, is a playoff caliber
00:47team that needed that win.
00:49And I thought we went out and deserved to win the game and held on there at the end.
00:54Stephen, can you kind of describe your emotions and the emotions kind of around you whenever
00:59you saw that Washington got the win and the Cowboys were officially eliminated?
01:03Yeah, when we watched ever play all the way to the end and I say as long a shot as it
01:10was for our team to get in, you know, it was like a gut punch when, you know, they ended
01:18up Washington ended up winning that game.
01:21Obviously take the world of Dan Quinn and what he's about and always hard to root for
01:26the Eagles anytime.
01:28But certainly we were wanting to keep our our hopes alive there.
01:33But like I said, we're we're in it to win these games.
01:35I think it means a lot to this team, not only for this year, but for our future, you know,
01:41to really show people what kind of team we are.
01:44We you know, we've battled through a lot of challenges this year and obviously got off
01:49to a, you know, middle of the season there after we started off three and two, a bumpy
01:55three and two, but then obviously lost the five games there.
01:58But I think to show people what kind of what our players are all about, obviously, Mike
02:04and his staff are just doing a hell of a job keeping everybody dialed in.
02:08And it means a lot to the organization.
02:11I'll tell you what, it means a lot to a lot of people who look at teams elsewhere and
02:15see some dysfunction and the Cowboys, they don't have that going on.
02:19In fact, I think what you guys have shown this season is you've got some talented players
02:24who care through all of this adversity and having the opportunity to show that they're
02:29not making business decisions out there.
02:30They're trying to win.
02:32Yeah, it was one hell of a game.
02:34I think Chris Collinsworth, at one point, we keep him on in the background and they
02:41said, you know, he said it's like we were playing to go to the Super Bowl.
02:44There were a lot of licks being passed out there, a lot of wood getting chopped and a
02:50lot of competing going on both sides of the ball.
02:52Hats off to the Bucs.
02:54They played their ass off to obviously we also and have been around him here in Texas
02:59and Oklahoma.
03:00What a competitor he is.
03:02But, you know, that was just a hell of a football game.
03:05If you're not you can't enjoy that, you're not a fan of football.
03:09And, you know, we're just like you said.
03:12I mean, our guys are in it to show, you know, that they have a lot of pride.
03:17And, you know, this is a team that's, you know, been NFC champs and had won 12 games,
03:23three years running.
03:24And obviously I want to show everybody what what these guys are all about.
03:29And, you know, that's with about over 40 percent of our salary cap on our right now.
03:34So and those are some of the guys we thank the most of that are some of our biggest
03:39competitors as well.
03:40But to see C.D. Lamb out there competing like he's competing already, you know, everybody
03:46says, well, they get paid and they, you know, they don't play the same way.
03:50And certainly he's showing everybody.
03:53But, you know, it's not all about the money.
03:56It's about competing and winning and being the best you can be.
03:59So hats off to him as well.
04:01Stephen, I thought without Eric Hendricks yesterday, you got a really good chance to
04:06take a look at some of your linebacker depth in Nick Vigil and Maris Talia foul.
04:10And I thought they played fantastic.
04:12What did you see from those young guys?
04:14Well, Maris, yeah, a young guy who's obviously just getting going and he just continues to
04:20make plays, punching balls out, you know, all around the ball, making big hits.
04:27You know, there was a lot of big hits yesterday and between him and Wilson and, you know,
04:35number, you know, our corner, I think we know telling how many combinations of corners we've
04:40had out there.
04:41But certainly, you know, guys just out there competing.
04:44But Maris played a hell of a game.
04:46And then Vigil, you know, just a pro.
04:49I mean, he's been in this league a while.
04:51Veteran guy who knows Mike Zimmer's system, knows how to call, you know, get our defenses
04:58lined up and run right.
05:00So I thought he really stepped up, you know, and Kendrick's is absent.
05:05And as you said, played one hell of a game.
05:07That offensive line, it looked like Cooper Rush had time to look around.
05:11He looked very calm in the pocket last night.
05:13That offensive line feel like it's coming together the way you'd expected it to, or
05:17is it kind of still a turnstile at a lot of spots there?
05:21Well, we're obviously having to play several guys and I have had a lot of combinations
05:26this year.
05:27But, you know, they're just a good group of men who like to work together.
05:32They got a lot of pride in what they do.
05:35Obviously, running the ball was tough sledding.
05:37We knew that coming in.
05:39When you got a guy like Vitavia in there who's holding down the middle, we knew it'd be tough
05:45running the ball.
05:46But, you know, we did what we had to do to make the plays when we needed to make the
05:50plays.
05:51And I thought Cooper did a hell of a job.
05:53Rico ran and got what little was there, but also did a good job catching the ball out
06:01of the backfield for us and making some plays there.
06:04So, you know, it was just a great team effort.
06:06And I fully expect our guys to have a great week of practice and come back and try to
06:12give Philly a problem with their playoff seed.
06:15So we're wanting to win these football games means a lot, not only for this year, but for
06:22our future.
06:22Trying to be the Grinch against Philly.
06:24Gotta like that a lot.
06:25Spoilers.
06:26There's going to continue to be this conversation for the next couple of weeks here and then
06:32until anything else is decided.
06:33But Mike McCarthy and where he stands with this organization, is that an off-season discussion,
06:41off-season decision?
06:42Would you like to kind of clarify how you feel about what he's doing in this job?
06:47Well, he's doing a great job, you know, right now.
06:50And like I said, there's a lot of teams who would have dysfunction with their season being
06:56over and, you know, disenchanted.
06:59Mike's kept the group together.
07:01Not surprising.
07:02I mean, Mike's a Super Bowl champion coach who's been to several, you know, NFC Championship
07:09games.
07:10Mike Zimmer not only, you know, been a very successful coordinator in this league, but
07:15a successful head coach.
07:17So this doesn't surprise me.
07:18These guys are professionals and we'll start worrying about the future when we're through
07:24playing the Commanders on our last football game of the year.
07:27All right.
07:28Thank you very much, Stephen.
07:29Appreciate your time.
07:30We'll catch up with you next week.
07:31Good, sir.
07:32Great being on, guys.
07:33Merry Christmas, Stephen.
07:34Merry Christmas.
07:36Take care.