Commanders fans roast Jerry Jones for desperate Cowboys WR trade
By Dean Jones
The Washington Commanders are flying high atop the NFC East after a sensational start to the campaign. For the first time in years, the Dallas Cowboys are heading in a completely different direction.
As the Commanders take the NFL by storm and slowly emerge into a shock postseason challenger, the Cowboys are floundering. They are 3-6 and recently placed quarterback Dak Prescott on injured reserve. Desperate times call for desperate measures, which saw general manager/owner Jerry Jones finalize a trade deadline move that quickly became the source of ridicule.
Multiple reports surfaced about the Cowboys being in the market for a wide receiver before Tuesday's cut-off point. Jones said it was someone they were high on during pre-draft evaluations. That turned out to be Carolina Panthers wideout Jonathan Mingo.
Mingo was a second-round pick who quickly became one of the league's worst receivers from a statistical standpoint. One could point to a difficult environment in Carolina as the reason behind his struggles, but the fact Xavier Legette and undrafted free agent Jalen Coker surged above him in the pecking order spoke volumes.
The Panthers were keen to remove Mingo from the equation. Not many anticipated a massive haul in return. But as is always the case these days, Jones was fleeced.
Commanders fans can't help but laugh at latest Jerry Jones blunder
Carolina is sending Mingo and a seventh-round pick in exchange for Dallas' fourth-rounder. This was a source of bemusement among the media and ridicule for Cowboys fans, who wasted no time in roasting Jones for his complete botching of yet another transaction.
Just why Jones felt the need to make this move is anyone's guess. The Cowboys are going nowhere fast without their starting signal-caller over the next four games. Unless they see some long-term upside in Mingo, which is pretty hard to find, this makes no sense whatsoever.
It's not the only time Jones has dropped the ball in recent months. He claimed there was no money to pay running back Derrick Henry despite his desire to play closer to home. He ended up overpaying for Prescott and CeeDee Lamb's extensions after waiting too long. Keeping Mike McCarthy as head coach after another playoff failure is another decision coming in for scathing criticism right now.
That's not bothering the Commanders much. They are riding a surge of positivity under the man Jones overlooked for the head coaching gig in favor of McCarthy. It's funny how things work out sometimes.
The pendulum is shifting within the division. Long may it continue.