Jerry Jones responds to controversy about Cowboys offering fan tours at team facility

Jerry Jones doesn’t take long to respond to anything Cowboys-related, and with the recent scrutiny regarding fan tours of Dallas’ facility, he decided to push back.

A report from ESPN’s Kalyn Kahler earlier this week detailed both the player and fan perspective of the tours, with some players reported as saying they’re unbothered by the attention, while others feel as though they’re behind glass in a “zoo.”

There was a bit of negativity in the fallout, as it made it seem like the Cowboys are more focused on everything but winning on the football field. Well, Jones masterfully spun the article into a positive light, explaining that it’s actually a good thing for the franchise, as it’ll increase the market for the tours, while denying them as a viable distraction for the players.

Jon Machota of The Athletic via 105.3 The FAN reported Jones is “happy” as the publicity from the ESPN story “will increase our tours significantly,” going as far to almost call the article rubbish, “It’s ridiculous to think that it impacts the play of the players.”

Evidently, Dak Prescott has Jones’ back in the matter. He spoke on the issue after the article made its rounds, believing some of the rhetoric from Cowboys players past and present regarding the tours being a distraction would be best described as an excuse.

“I’m present where I am. I think, honestly, it’s an excuse,” Prescott said, via Machota on Thursday. “What’s the difference in (reporters) coming in the locker room and talking? Guys bitch about that too. And I don’t get that. It’s being professional, some things you deal with. Obviously, I guess, the nature of this organization, the tours are probably 10 times more than other places, if other places are doing them. 

“… You got to embrace it. Honestly. You can walk by and have a negative mindset about it and allow it to ruin your day, or you can be thankful that you’re in an organization that people want to see. For me, it’s just easy to say ‘What’s up,’ wave and keep walking. I think I’ve heard you feel like a zoo animal, well, it’s like, sometimes I bark back and I say, ‘Hey,’ and you just keep rolling. A lot going on, I’m not going to allow a couple of people (walking) through the workplace.”

While Kahler’s report for ESPN posed the question that these fan tours may be a hurdle for the Cowboys, Prescott can see the positives of having fans in the building on these tours, and building the team’s brand.

“It’s the NFL,” Prescott continued. “It’s a business that those exact reasons that this game is entertaining, that people want to watch it, that you have the fans that you have and you can create the relationships. If you’re distracted by that then you’re distracted by the fans in any arena you get into.”

The Cowboys have been operating these tours inside the facility since it opened in 2016 and had them in place well before that, which means there’s likely no indication that they’ll stop anytime soon. For Jerry Jones, Dak Prescott and a lot of Dallas’ most important pieces, it’ll be business as usual moving forward.

On3’s Barkley Truax contributed to this article.