Jerry Jones doubles down on ‘couldn’t afford Derrick Henry’ comments with added context

When running back was identified as a major offseason need for the Dallas Cowboys, Derrick Henry was a popular name linked with the team. However, Jerry Jones and the front office decided against signing him despite Henry training and living in Dallas. Henry later admitted he wanted to sign for the Cowboys before landing in Baltimore.

It came back to bite Jones on Sunday as Henry went for 151 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. Following the game, the Cowboys general manager/owner said they could not afford the running back, something people have fact-checked after the quote and found to be not true.

Jones was pressed on the issue again on local Dallas radio but before the full question was delivered, cut off the host.

“That’s correct,” Jones said Tuesday on 105.3 The Fan’s Shan and RJ. “That is very correct. Stop right there. That’s very correct. Part of what you would’ve paid him is going to players we paid in the past, and part of what you would have paid him is going forward in the future. But had I thought that that position this year was gonna make that kind of difference, and that’s what you save your bucks for.

“But it’s too complicated to point to a player. There’s too much at stake when you look at the entire offense and you look at what we’re doing and what we’re trying to do with the run game as opposed to the passing game. That’s too complicated to dwell on the fact that we don’t have a given player on the team.”

Henry’s 151 yards against the Cowboys are just 70 less than what they have through three games. Two touchdowns at AT&T Stadium in a Ravens uniform matches the total Dallas has this season thus far. Rico Dowdle is the team’s leading rusher with 88 yards on 23 carries. His longest run of the season is 10 yards, the lone running back to reach as such — wide receiver CeeDee Lamb had a 12-yard run in the season opener vs. Cleveland.

Ezekiel Elliott signed a one-year contract worth $3 million on top of the dead cap Dallas ate when releasing him ahead of the 2022 season. Henry signed a two-year deal with Baltimore, making a total of $16 million.

A quick turnaround will take place for the Cowboys following Sunday’s loss, facing the New York Giants on Thursday Night Football. At some point, the run game will need to get going in order to have offensive success, no matter how well Dak Prescott plays.