Cowboys' Jerry Jones offers odd explanation for profane gesture at Jets game

Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones had reason to celebrate as his club improved to 2-2-1 on the season via a dominant 37-22 win at the New York Jets on Sunday. 

However, Jones went viral when a video surfaced on X (formerly known as Twitter) showing him giving the middle finger toward an individual in the MetLife Stadium crowd. During a Tuesday appearance on Dallas sports radio station 105.3 The Fan, Jones offered an odd explanation for what occurred. 

Jerry Jones admits to "unfortunate" gesture at Cowboys-Jets game

"That was unfortunate," Jones acknowledged, per Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk. "That was kind of an exchange with our fans out in front of us. There was a swarm of Cowboys fans out front. Not Jet fans, Cowboys fans. The entire stadium was brimming with the enthusiasm of Cowboys, certainly late in the game. That was inadvertent on my part. It was right after we made our last touchdown. We were all excited about it, there wasn’t antagonistic issue or anything like that. I put up the wrong show of hand. I’m not kidding."

Jones isn't wrong about MetLife Stadium being filled with passionate and loud Cowboys fans in Week 5. Many of those fans directed "MVP" chants toward Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott after he completed 18-of-29 passes for 237 yards and four touchdowns against the Jets. At one point, Dallas held a 30-3 lead in the game's third quarter. 

As The Athletic's Jayna Bardahl mentioned, the NFL has a history of fining team owners for making "obscene gestures" toward fans and for throwing drinks in their direction while inside stadiums. Jones was indeed punished for his actions. 

Was Jerry Jones gesture "accidental?"

"If you want to call it accidental, you can call it accidental," Jones added about his one-finger salute. "It got straightened around pretty quick, but the intention was thumbs up and pointing at our fans because everyone was jumping up and down excited."

Jones' Cowboys next play at the Carolina Panthers (2-3) on Sunday. ESPN BET had Dallas as a 3.5-point road favorite for that matchup as of Tuesday.