If Dan Snyder is gearing up for a sale of the Washington Commanders, Jerry Jones isn’t about to divulge any secrets.
Jones spoke on his weekly radio show on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas and was asked about Snyder’s announcement this week. The Snyders announced that they are working with a bank to explore all possible financial transactions related to the team.
Many people thought the announcement was a sign Snyder might be ready to finally sell the team. But Jones cautioned people that there could be many different types of financial transactions.
“Well, I don’t think I was necessarily surprised because he recently acquired a very significant portion of the team, 40 percent from his partners. And at the same time, he’s entertaining the building of a new stadium,” the Dallas Cowboys owner said. “The acquisition of the partnership interest, as well as the building of the new stadium, is going to require huge economic resources, almost unthinkable economic resources. And so these are the times that you sit down and start your noodling, so to speak, or try to figure out how you’re going to get there and what you’re going to look like when you get there. So this doesn’t surprise me that he set up a time of real, real planning or real thinking about how to manager the economic resources it takes to be where we want the Washington team to be.”
Jones was pressed about whether he was suggesting that Snyder is looking into adding minority owners.
“It sounds like I’m saying that, but I really am saying I bet that all options are on the table, and then you see what might be possible. And that’s what I think this exercise is. Let’s look and see what our options are here. See where the big interest is, what makes the most sense, in their case, to the Snyders, and then go from there. It’s one thing to sit there at your table and draw up all your plans and figure out how you’re going to get it done financially. But you in the mirror, in this case, you need more, and that’s a third party, so he’s out testing the waters.”
There are really only two paths forward for Snyder. The first path would be to sell the team, which he has been adamant he would not do. However, he is now subject of a criminal investigation into the team’s finances, which could be changing his mind.
The second path would be to get a new stadium. The recent ESPN article on Snyder suggested that getting a new stadium could save Snyder’s rear with his fellow owners. Public officials had been willing to work with Snyder prior to all the controversies and investigations surrounding the team, so many of those government-sponsored options seemed to have disappeared. Snyder might be exploring what options he has to obtain the finances necessary to build a new stadium. Taking on minority owners could be a part of that equation.
Although he is notorious for being a fighter, Snyder may be realizing that most signs point to selling the franchise as the only realistic option left.
Comments from Jones on the situation matter — given the Cowboys owner’s influence within the league as well as his reported support of Snyder.
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