As one of the more famous owners of the NFL and a member of the league's media committee, Jerry Jones, the head of the Dallas Cowboys franchise, testified in federal court earlier this week during the ongoing trial between NFL "Sunday Ticket" subscribers and the league itself.
The gist of the trial is that subscribers of the product believe the NFL has violated antitrust laws by inflating the price of the service, specifically the package that allows users to watch out of market games on CBS and Fox.
In defending the league's broadcasting model, Jones took a chance to fortify his point by taking a random shot at the Bengals.
“I am convinced I would make a lot more money than the Bengals,” Jones said. “I’m completely against each team doing TV deals. It is flawed.”
Well damn. We see how it is, Mr. Jones. But what does he actually mean?
Essentially, Jones is saying that if clubs could sell the rights of their out-of-market games without sharing all of that revenue with all 32 teams, the Cowboys would stand to gain a lot compared to most of the league's franchises.
Only he made the Bengals the example, for whatever reason.
Jones and the NFL are arguing they have the right to sell “Sunday Ticket” under its antitrust exemption for broadcasting. Subscribers argue that the league "restricted competition by offering 'Sunday Ticket' only on a satellite provider."
It's a whole thing that's been going on for a few weeks now, and Jones decided to name-drop the Bengals in a negative way.
While it's true the Bengals don't have the prestige of being "America's Team" like Jones' Cowboys, at least the Bengals happen to perform well when the country gets to watch them. It's why they've actually been to multiple AFC Championships and a Super Bowl in the past 29 years, and the Cowboys have not. Just look at this year's schedule with the Bengals garnering five primetime slots and eight national window tilts.
Fans want to watch the Bengals, whether Jones agrees or not. But he at least knows that fans also love to watch the Cowboys choke when it counts as well.
