Stories Inside the Man Cave
Stories Inside the Man Cave
Ep 388: Campin' with the Cowboys & MC in Oxnard, Legal Controversy at Cowboys Camp: Jerry Jones Defensive, Team Outlook Discussed
What if the Dallas Cowboys' training camp could have gone differently without the shadow of a legal controversy? Join us as Lifetime Cowboys fan Jim Saxton unpacks the details of a tense press conference with owner Jerry Jones, who was notably defensive and evasive about a sensitive paternity lawsuit. Our guest, Michael Coleman from KLTV Sports, offers his expert take on how this issue impacts the team and its news cycle. Jim also shares Jerry's evident eagerness to steer the conversation back to football, shedding light on the ongoing drama that seems to follow the Cowboys everywhere they go.
Amidst the buzz of a 13% rise in the 2024 salary cap, the Cowboys face mounting expectations. Jourdan Lewis's irritation with the media's persistent questions about the team's potential is a hot topic, along with Jerry Jones' enduring influence. We scrutinize head coach Mike McCarthy's precarious job security and even entertain the tantalizing idea of Deion Sanders as a future coach. We also touch on DeMarvion Overshawn's injury recovery and his optimism for the season ahead. Finally, we toast to the legacy of Texas high school football, celebrating legendary photographer Arnold Payne, and cherish the camaraderie of our close-knit community. Join us for a rollercoaster of football insights and heartfelt tributes.
Please like and follow each of Stories Inside the Man Cave Podcast social media links on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, and Tik Tok.
Hey, this is Lifetime Cowboys fan, Jim Saxton with Jim Saxton State Farm. You want insurance knowledge and old school service? Give us a call.
Speaker 2:And there's always gonna be many dangling participles out here of unfinished business.
Speaker 1:MC dangling participles. Grammar Dangling participle can have multiple meanings in this situation.
Speaker 3:Right here, that what Jerry Jones was involved with I thought I was in an English class man and ambiguity that's a big word for those of us that do sports Ambiguity. He must have said it at least 11 times. At least 11 times. But I think he was a little defensive yesterday and of course the very first question was about the paternity lawsuit. They got that out the way right away.
Speaker 3:David Moore asked that question and on the response of Mr Jones there were a lot of uhs and stals and after he said what he said, we're not going to talk about this anymore. So then we moved on to talk football. But it was amazing, and I'm really Michael McCarthy only got two questions yesterday, Two questions In fact. When the first question was asked to him, he's like oh, wow, I got a question. People started, he started clapping so and the reference was him being in the hot seat, you know. So there's a lot of not a lot of a lot of dangling participles, as Jerry would say. Going on, he even said a Nat's ass in this press conference is like does a Nat have one? So there's just a lot of things flying around. Yesterday's presser with Jerry.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Dallas Cowboys training camp in Oxnard. Michael Coleman, the sports director at KOTV Sports in Tyler, Texas. He's been all over the country, including our home, Austin, Texas, at KXAN, for a long time and he's approaching his third decade of covering Cowboys camp. But first off, before we get going, like follow each of our social media platforms and much love to Jimmy Saxton and his family of SaxtonInsurancecom. Coleman referenced it Now. The fraternity suit ended early. You and I talked about it. Yeah, and it ended early, right before training camp.
Speaker 2:And this was Jerry with the uhs and the awkward pauses when he addressed that situation resolved and that was of course very sensitive with my family and it was very sensitive with the unique publicity that's involved with the Cowboys. But it was involved satisfactorily for all concerned.
Speaker 1:All concerned. Coleman, what's your take on this?
Speaker 3:I mean, it's very sensitive, I wonder if the Cowboy Camp hadn't begun, and this is going on back in March, if we do have an extended trial on this issue, I mean, a part of me wants to think well, jerry's like I got to get to Oxnard, I don't want to deal with all of this, let's just cut our losses so I can get my tail to Oxnard, because they can't have a presser of the union, stay of the union of the Cowboys without me. So I kind of wonder if this was held any other time, would there would time? Would it have been a continuance of a trial? But if we think about it, the resolution, from what I understand, is both sides had to kiss and make up and they could have did this without getting the courts or the lawyers involved. So there's a lot of time wasted on this issue. And I guarantee you, mr Jones, he dodged a bullet by not having to testify.
Speaker 1:I'm blown away by all of it. Of course it's the cowboy way. You're always going to be leading the news cycle in some form or fashion, regardless of what people think the Cowboys sell, and Jerry Jones keeps the Cowboys in the news, whether it's good or bad. In this situation that case in Texarkana I read an article about there was a warm embrace with the daughter, so to speak, and the mother.
Speaker 1:So I mean I want to be sensitive to those two ladies daughter, so to speak, and the mother. I want to be sensitive to those two ladies. I'm just shocked that Jerry's involved in it.
Speaker 3:For some people they're not shocked, but I don't even know how to even wrap that up, and you know the young lady very brave for her to try to stand up to Mr Jones and the contract that she and her mother, because she had nothing to do with that contract. She had no say on what the deal was between Mr Jones and her mother and she's like no, I want to fight this. So I think overall, the way this thing is going to turn out down the road as a nothing situation, I mean it was something and if nothing else, she did get acknowledgement. That's what she wanted and she got it and so in kind of, in essence, she kind of won and Jerry didn't.
Speaker 3:If there's a win loss factor in this, she got what she wanted, because what Jerry did not want people to know from what it sounds like we all know we didn't need a jury to find somebody guilty or not guilty. We all know that's what Jerry didn't want, but that's what happened and as long as his family was in on it and knew about it, they had to have known about it. Yeah, you know, I mean Jerry probably for a long time was trying to find ways for it not to get out. He just ran out of time. So but I really believe also, like I said, if this were held in March or any other time other than July for training camp time, would this trial be over. So he's back here in camp, he's in his element and he said I'm not going to talk about this anymore, so he's ready to move on. We're ready to move on.
Speaker 1:We're ready to move on and it's a moral of the story. Keep your dangling part of simple cup.
Speaker 3:Yeah, he was dangling, all right.
Speaker 1:Hey, everybody's talking about it and I feel like for Cowboy fans anyone who doesn't have a contract going into training camp if they're still going into negotiations everybody acts like it's something new, it's happening right over the league every year right, right. Um, stephen jones talked about cd and dac and micah and you were there and I won't. I can't wait to hear your reaction to how stephen talked about this. But basically summed up that, hey, this is nothing new guys.
Speaker 4:It just takes time and we're having great conversations with the representatives in terms of CD and back and obviously Micah's a year removed from where CD is today. You know CD, you know in his career and where he is contractually. So I think he wants to go out and show that he is the best non-quarterback in the league and I hope he does it so they've got the players.
Speaker 1:Now let's want to see how they rework to fall under the cap. This is going to be interesting. I mean the timetable.
Speaker 3:They're staggered somewhat yeah, well, and I saw an article this morning, uh, because I think I think steven had also commented on no other team has 20 million dollar players. Well, like the article said, the minnesota vikings must have been listening on. No other team has $20 million players. Well, like the article said, the Minnesota Vikings must have been listening to the press conference because, other than Jefferson getting signed, they signed two other players who were making that kind of money and they were kind of like there was kind of a slam to Stephen Jones is how I saw the article that he doesn't know what he's. They pretty much said he doesn't know what he's talking about, so they're doing it with smoke and mirrors. You know, as Jerry would go on to say later, he's not trying to save a buck or anything. He's like I came into this game being a riverboat gambler and you know he kind of had a confession, he admitted his mistakes. And you know he kind of had a confession, he's, he admitted his mistakes. You know, um, it's just, it's just a matter of who gets what. I think cds will get paid first. I really do.
Speaker 3:Um, I did a piece. My piece last night was on. Does that is dac here next year. Uh, I don't know if you saw the video of dac dancing and saw that. I brought that up to him.
Speaker 3:I said, man, you know, I saw that video of you and I said to me you were loose, you were comfortable, is that indicative of how you were treating the season? And he pretty much answered to the affirmative yeah, I got nothing to lose, I'm free, and so if he can play that way, it's going to be a boon to the Cowboys' offense. I mean, hey, already he led the league in passing I think they were the top-scoring team in the league and so we know he can do it. That Green Bay loss, it stings, but the defense gave up all those points and all those yards and a lot of times and we talked about it just a couple days ago one has to pick up the slack of the other and in this case the offense did not pick up the slack.
Speaker 3:I watched some of that. I was looking at some highlights of that game. I just couldn't believe how it was just a rolling machine on the Cowboys when on paper it looked nothing like that. So you know, like I said, if I'm Green Bay, I'm showing that game film, if I'm the Cowboys, I'm showing that game film. You know, let's remind ourselves how much we stunk and go out with some purpose, because those first five games come out the gate, except if they're three and two. They're going to be on the right track, except they're three and two.
Speaker 1:They're going to be on the right track. That game, to sum up, green Bay and coaches say this all the time that was not complimentary football, offense helping the defense, defense helping the offense it wasn't. And to your point about the salary cap or the negotiations, the salary cap this year, for 2024, is up 13% from last year and I think it was 255.4 million. Yeah, yeah, so there's some revenue bucks being shared. One thing that does not change, other than the America's Team moniker, is the pressure to win. And your guy, jordan Lewis, he was point blank asked about that. Hey, are you guys ever going to turn the table? And to you know, to Michael Urban, when he had that rant on his balcony, this is Jordan Lewis, clearly irritated by the question. Yes, he was.
Speaker 3:This is a cowboy, bro. I mean, it's always going to be that. But at the same time, we have a job to do and that's to win. So we always expect to win, and that's what we want. To go out there and prove that we can do is go out there and win.
Speaker 1:So how long is it going to take? Or do you think they have the personnel to actually uphold that standard that they've been trying to achieve for almost three decades now?
Speaker 3:Well, you know, they announced they had 14 pro bowlers last year and okay, what'd you do with them? I mean, what do? How'd you handle it? And and it's also to say, cause something, you know it's a deal where you've got them personnel and you probably got the coach. You've probably got the coach. Mike McCarthy's a good coach. He's got a Super Bowl with Green Bay. He just needed a change of scenery and he came to Dallas.
Speaker 3:I just kind of think Jerry gets in the way a whole lot, not on purpose. He's so hands-on. If you remember when he bought the team, I think you were interning with us at 36 at the time. I want to be in charge of the Sox and the Jocks and that got him some Super Bowls with Jimmy. But ever since Jimmy's left, the common denominator of the franchise has been Jerry Jones, who made it clear he ain't going nowhere. He was adamant about that. He's like, hey, listen, I'm the same person I was when I bought this team 35 years ago. So it's amazing. You think about this team. They've only had two general managers in the history of the franchise Dexter M and Jerry Jones. That's bizarre man. That is bizarre.
Speaker 1:So we talk about the pressure to win, but if they don't win, what? What happens?
Speaker 3:Back to the drawing board. They got a bunch of drawing boards in their closet. They got to make room for another one. If that's going to be the case, I think McCarthy would be gone and I've entertained this idea before. I think I said last time we talked, but I even told Joe Terrell I think Deion Sanders could be the next coach for the Dallas Cowboys. I wouldn't have said that two years ago, but he's got a son coming out and they got quarterback issues in terms of who's going to be their quarterback. If it ain't going to be back, I can see Deion coaching the Cowboys. He matches the flair and the noise that the Cowboys are a part of and what they do, although Deion has said he would never want to coach pro players.
Speaker 3:Well, now you are, because they're getting paid now in college. So ostensibly that's what you are paying for, because I think eventually the term student-athlete is going to be dropped. Amateurism is done. Yeah, and the amateurism in my opinion. When we went to the Dream Team because we couldn't put together a good Olympics team, we said, okay, we've got to bring out the big guns. That's when the student-athlete, the amateurism, began to kind of get in the way when we brought the Dream Team out. So you ask what's going to happen if they don't do things right? They could go 10-6, make the playoffs and lose by three to five points. I think that keeps his job for McCarthy. If they don't make the playoffs, he's gone period, because it hasn't been a problem making the playoffs. The problem has been not being one and done, and so I like McCarthy.
Speaker 1:He's a good guy, he's's a good guy and he's good.
Speaker 3:He's good at his craft. I remember when he brought the when he was with Green Bay and they played the Cowboys and Aaron Jones I think it was Aaron Jones, a running back just ran rough shot all over the Cowboys. It was his last year, in Dallas, I think, or Green Bay, I believe. But you know, this is the make or the break time of the year for them. We'll see what happens with that, because they didn't make any big splashes during the offseason. Again, I hate to harp on it, but you brought back two players, or you brought back a coach and you brought back a player from yesterday to try to get you where you want to be. I don't know if you can do that.
Speaker 1:Coleman, I'm going to stick to what we said two days ago NFC.
Speaker 1:Championship is the bare minimum. Yeah, it's the bare minimum. Now the question your guy, or our guy from Art Texas, demarvian Overshawn, had so much potential coming out of Texas, but it's part of the game injury that torn ACL and you know, on the Dallas Cowboys YouTube page man, they caught up with DeMar Vianna and just listen to this is the way he was when he was here in Austin and when you guys covered him when he was at ARP High School. I feel great. I really think the rehab couldn't have went any better than it has to this point. Actually, getting ready to get released on my own, get cleared, so you know, by training camp I'm going to be up and running around and I'm definitely excited about that. So have you had a chance to see him?
Speaker 3:No, we do have a request to get him, so I'm pretty sure we'll be able to. He's wearing a different jersey number this year. He's number 13 and not 35. So I have to ask him what the change on that was. I mean, you know, for a guy who just had a torn ACL, I don't know if 13 is a number you want to wear, If you're superstitious, I mean, come on man. So no, we would talk to him and he's taking some reps. He got in some reps yesterday with the first teamers, with the ones. But you know, like I said, I think the upside to him on that injury was he was young and strong and the rest of it is mentality and he's going to be just fine. So we're looking forward to getting with him.
Speaker 1:Yeah, he's one of those guys I think for the Texas Longhorn fan base, longhorn Nation, so to speak. Love the guy Played with heart every play. He's easy to like. Yep Cowboys camp. Looking ahead for going into the weekend. What do you have your eyes set on? What are you focusing on? Obviously, demarvion. What is it?
Speaker 3:Something that maybe others don't. I want to see the run game. They have a mock game on Saturday. I want to see the running back room. I ain't got to see Dak. I want to see Brandon Cooks. I ain't got to see Malik Hooker. I know what those guys can do. I want to see the supplementary guys around them and what they're able to do. How can they be counted upon? Offensive line you know they've got a rookie center, probably Tyler Smith. You know the offensive guard. I want to see how the offensive line. Are they cohesive? Are they? Do they have what it's going to take to carry Dak through the season?
Speaker 3:If I look for anything with Dak, it's just okay. Does he ad-lib when the script? You know? Do you get away from it? If the script is not there, what do you do? How are you going to do it? And that's what I'm looking for. And I don't think Trayvon Trayvon's out here working out. I don't think he'll be in that scrimmage tomorrow. But Deron Bland, I mean, let's see if what he did last year can be a continuance. Although he didn't really open any, I won't say I'm not going to say he didn't open any eyes at training camp, it's just that what we saw him do during the regular season. Nobody knew that was going to happen, so we'll probably watch him a little closer, you know. And I asked him you know, what are your expectations coming into this camp? He said oh, I'm going to just keep it what I've been doing, you know. And that's good because you don't want to try to overthink or outthink yourself because of the success he had last year with Trayvon Diggs out.
Speaker 4:Hey, man, tell me something good out.
Speaker 1:Hey, man, tell me something good. Last time out, michael Coleman brought up a good point, his young, 16 year old track phenom for the summer Olympics in France.
Speaker 3:What do?
Speaker 1:you got for us today.
Speaker 3:That's something maybe inspiring or positive. Okay, I'll just go this way. The T H S a had the convention last week and my heart goes out to the young lady, the coach that got shot.
Speaker 3:That's terrible. That's not good but it's terrible. But I liked hearing one of the officials ask colleges, especially in Texas, don't schedule the game on Friday night. Tcu and I think Houston will play on October 4th, which is a Friday night, I believe. I think that's good, that he's defending high school football. I remember years ago reading that games at the collegiate level could be played on Friday nights. I'm like, well, why you got all the other days besides Saturday? Why interrupt the chain of events for the high school kids? I mean, high school football on Friday nights is for America. It's what brings communities together. And you know, because you're getting the almighty dollar and maybe national televised and all that. Okay, you're going to get that anyway. Don't disrupt the Friday night because you know you're going to split the fan base. But I think the fan base is smart enough to know I'm rooting for my kid.
Speaker 3:I'm rooting for my alma mater and my high school. I'm not going to go watch a collegiate game on Friday night, so I think it's good that they were defending and standing up for high school football on Friday nights.
Speaker 1:You have to advocate, because I really it's my, my take on this that is good to advocate for the great game of high school football, especially in the state of texas or nationwide. But yeah, I think the almighty network dollar, I mean, if you think about it, nowadays we've got college football every night of the week except sunday.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we do it's's good and bad. It's like if you won't compete against the NFL, why would you compete against the high schools? Yeah, why it's crazy, man, it's crazy. That's something good defending the high school football game on Friday nights.
Speaker 1:I'm always on board with that. I love high school tackle football. You are in the epicenter of greatness?
Speaker 3:Oh, I really am. There's no. I mean, I you know when I worked in New York and the guys I inherited a great, great, good staff of guys would they want to talk about Texas high school football? Is it really? Is it really all that? It's all that more because what they have is lacrosse Great sport.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:But the football isn't as strong as lacrosse is and football isn't half as strong as it is here in Texas. And they told me that just by their inquisitiveness. And I told them about Adrian Peterson. I said and this was when Adrian was a freshman at OU I said, listen, when the OU-Texas game comes up, look for a kid named Adrian Peterson. And he had a great game as a freshman, took third in the Heisman, maybe second, but because I told them about Adrian, I was the all-time knowledgeable person of high school football. Because they were like man, you told us about this guy. So they were like, oh my God, we got somebody that knows high school and college football. We're stuck with Syracuse and they're nowhere near Long Island.
Speaker 1:I'm trying to remember. Did Adrian Peterson, did he ever go to? Did he ever beat Texas? I don't think he did, because he went to OU to win championships, right, right. I think maybe he did in 04, then 05 and 06.
Speaker 3:I do know he had a reason why he didn't go to Texas and it didn't reflect very well for Matt Brown, right? I can't remember what the reason was.
Speaker 1:He said he would have to earn his playing time.
Speaker 3:Oh yeah.
Speaker 1:And Vincent was the guy right.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's right.
Speaker 3:But you know, it's kind of like Ricky Williams and Priest Holmes, you remember. I mean, ricky Williams had to earn because Priest Holmes was the man. He was the man and he had a great career until he got halted, but he's still a great running back. I mean, I think that's when you're an 18-year-old kid and you're being told that you're not mature enough yet to say, okay, I'm willing to do it, because Adrian Peterson could compete with anybody on anybody's roster as a freshman at anybody's university. You know, but we'll, we see how. He had a good career and I think he I don't know if he signed his retirement papers yet, but he's a first ballot Hall of Famer, no doubt about it, no doubt about it.
Speaker 1:Easily, and I will say this you and I got to witness greatness, if not the greatest. One of the top five greatest running backs in Texas high school football history was at Palestine and he just looked just another gear smooth. He and DeMarco Murray, very similar, but Adrian's just a little bit better.
Speaker 3:I go Earl Eric and Adrian Tough, and one and two is a toss-up. Yeah, One and two is a toss-up.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:One and two is a toss-up.
Speaker 1:We could make an entire episode on the greats of Texas high school football history. Mc. Great job, my brother. Thanks for making time.
Speaker 3:No problem man.
Speaker 1:And you've got your night activities, I'm sure, lined up.
Speaker 3:Not really. We know, today is AP's birthday. You know the tradition. Oh, arnold Payne, today's his birthday. So I'm pretty sure we'll all get together somewhere and celebrate his birthday with dinner and beverage and laughs, and then get back at it again tomorrow.
Speaker 1:Arnold Payne from WFAA Legend Legend, great talented photographer, does everything. Yeah, I don't know what his age is, but he, literally he looks good ages. Well, he looks really good. My brother enjoy it. We'll check back in over the weekend sometime.
Speaker 3:All right, buddy, all right.
Speaker 1:Man, much love. And for MC in the city of Oxnard and Tyler, texas, and the OG man Cave boys, that being Harbaugh Harts, big Mike and Coach Mo, we are out. We are out.