Mat Ishbia Compared to Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones by 5x NBA Champ After Suns’ Early Playoffs Exit

Jerry Jones has long irked the wrath of Dallas Cowboys‘ fans. His over-involvement in the team and questionable coaching decisions that many feel have culminated in the team not making a Super Bowl appearance since 1996. The franchise has been stagnating on a 12-5 record for the past few seasons, and Jones’ repeated wordy promises of improvement haven’t rung true.

Despite having an impressive offense and a Dan Quinn-led defense last season, the Green Bay Packers’ playoff run was cut short. The 2024 offseason saw the owner promising an “all-in” approach only to be followed by a period of inactivity, with many contract negotiations of Cowboys’ star players still up in the air. So when another owner is being compared to Jones in this aspect, it won’t be for something positive.

An NBA owner has recently incurred the displeasure of many with his latest statements about his franchise, the Phoenix Suns. Mat Ishbia had many questions to answer after the team’s disappointing run this season, and his response wasn’t deemed satisfactory by the fans.

The Suns’ owner was faced with several tough questions in a recent press conference after the team’s dismal end to the season. With fans vying for coach Frank Vogel’s removal, Ishbia had a neutral stance on his position as well as the franchise’s future. “The way I look at it is, everyone is accountable,’’ he said, as per The Athletic. “The house is not on fire. We’re in great position. It’s not hard to fix.” 

A former NBA star recently expressed his thoughts about Ishbia’s statements on The Carton Show, likening it to the NFL owner. Tim Hardway Sr. said, “He’s just like Jerry Jones to me. He’s trying to calm down his fans, make it seem like they don’t understand what’s going on.” He reiterated, “But he sounds like Jerry Jones to me.”  

The comparison might be blunt, but it stands its ground when it comes to giving false promises to calm down the fans’ dissatisfaction. After fans strongly demanded HC Mike McCarthy be replaced after last year’s early playoff exit, Jones’ decision to retain the coach for another season was another frustrating move for the fans. Ishbia’s appearance was reminiscent of the Dallas owner once again, inciting the displeasure of Cowboy fans over his inactivity this offseason despite the “all-in” promise.

Jones’ “All-in” promise remains unfulfilled

Back in January, the businessman announced that the franchise would leave no stone unturned to make up for their straight third playoff exit last season. “I would anticipate — with looking ahead at our key contracts that we’d like to address — we will be all in,” Jones said as per Nick Harris. “I would anticipate we will be all in at the end of this year.” However, this offseason has been quite dormant for Dallas.

With major contracts like Dak Prescott, Mica Parsons, and Cee Dee Lamb still pending and losing Tyron Smith and Tony Pollard, fans have been getting aggravated by the team’s inactivity. So when Jones decided to reiterate the “all-in” motto and satisfaction with the free agency moves before the Draft, fans were less than impressed.

“We feel great about what we’ve been in free agency,” Jones said, as per NFL. “All-in. All-in. All-in. We’re all-in with these young guys. We’re all-in with this draft.” The reviews stand mixed on Dallas’ Draft performance. OT Tyler Guyton was their 29th overall pick and edged Marshawn Kneeland from the 2nd round. Overall, two additions were made on the defense and three to the offensive line, along with an LB and DB. An overwhelming majority of analysts graded the team quite harshly, ranking 26th according to a recent analysis of all major grades done. However, one must keep in mind that the grades are quite transient, and the real worth of their picks will be highlighted only in the future.

Now that the Draft is over, all that’s left is structuring the roster and training for the upcoming season. Whether Jerry Jones would be able to fill in all the gaping holes and retain their key players, only time will tell.