Cowboys' Jerry Jones slams criticisms of comments about paying coaches, more likely to buy than sell ahead of trade deadline

Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones received criticism from numerous members of the NFL community when he said earlier this week that there is "zero correlation between how much you pay a coach or how many coaches you have (on staff), as to winning," according to "a random sample of years and all 32 teams involved." 

Per Joseph Hoyt of the Dallas Morning News, Jones said during a Friday morning appearance on local sports radio station 105.3 The Fan that he has "never had a hire tell him that they’d come to the Cowboys, but they won’t because he won’t pay them enough." 

Jerry Jones: It's "ridiculous" to think he won't spend to help the Cowboys win

"I’m by nature an incentive person," Jones said. "I like to create an atmosphere so the better you do, the more you get. If I could do that, I’d be shocked at what I might offer somebody if they won a Super Bowl. I do the same thing with players. Let’s all put a little on the table. Let’s go out here and play. If we win, we become wealthy. I’m an incentive guy. What this subject has been about lately is the hiring of that person. Not one time in my life that I have ever — if I wanted to do it — let money stand in the way of doing it. Not one time in my life, to the point of being ridiculous." 

Under Jones, the Cowboys haven't played in an NFC Championship Game since they won the Super Bowl in January 1996. Jones promoted Brian Schottenheimer from the role of offensive coordinator, which Schottenheimer held during the 2023 and 2024 seasons, to head coach after Jones and former head coach Mike McCarthy reportedly couldn't come to an agreement on a new deal in January 2025. 

Salaries for head coaches aren't made public, but it's believed Schottenheimer is among the lowest-paid coaches in the NFL this season. The Cowboys have thus far gone 10-14-1 under Schottenheimer, but he could improve that record when 3-5 Dallas plays at the 2-6 Indianapolis Colts this coming Sunday. 

It's unclear whether Jones will fire Schottenheimer if the Cowboys miss the playoffs for a third straight season.

"I have been out there," Jones continued, as shared by Hoyt. "I have been trying to lure very successful coaches away from the teams [in the past] they were on and knew full well I was going to pay them for all their success. No one knows that. But I do."