“A lot of promise.” That’s what Jerry Jones told fans six months ago when the free agency window opened. A combination of draft picks, trades, and free agent arrivals were supposed to change Dallas’ fortunes.
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But three weeks into the season, it looks like we’re back where we started. Not only has the defense leaked points, but the offense, the only thing making Dallas competitive last season, is showing signs of slowing down. And one former cornerback believes Jerry Jones is going at it in the wrong way.
“Jerry Jerry Jerry… you can’t buy a good team as weird as it may sound lol,” former cornerback Asante Samuel wrote in an X post.
Now it’s not the first time Samuel has called out Jones. “No matter how much money these owners have, you can’t buy a good team. The Cowboys are the same sorry, undisciplined team they have been for years. Soft in the middle and barely able to hold the edge on the outside.”
He capped it off with, “Jerry Jones spent a lot of money to get the same results. Time to retire bud.”
But this time, his comments came after Jones decided to trade for cornerback Joey Porter Jr. from the Pittsburgh Steelers. On paper, it looks like a great addition to the team right? Why would Asante call Jones out?
Dallas’ defensive struggles were hard to ignore in Week 3. The unit gave up 378 yards, failed to record a sack, and allowed 192 rushing yards in the loss. With those issues exposed, Jones moved to strengthen the defense by bringing in a new addition.
But if you remember, this isn’t the first time Jones is making a big signing in the hopes of turning things around for the franchise. After all, when the Cowboys had a questionable defense in the 2025 season, Jones had acted in the off-season. To ensure a better lineup in the 2026 season, Jones and Co. acquired names like Caleb Downs, Malachi Lawrence, and Devin Moore. Earlier in January, the Cowboys acquired Christian Parker as their new defensive coordinator.
Jones even went as far as to say, “This thing is going to be in process is the best way to say it. It’s play by play. We’re going to have some times when we’d like for it to bend better. But in general, I can assure you, we’re going to have a better defense than we had last year.”
And that worked in the preseason. Dallas looked less like the lopsided team we had become used to seeing. But right after Week 1, the same defense crumbled against the Giants, and then was exposed by Jayden Daniels before he went out with an injury.
The problem for Dallas hasn’t been the lack of talent. It’s the calls they’ve been making and the way the team has worked with each other. Jones acknowledged the lack of communication for the defense in the first game.
Even though they walked away with a win in Week 2, the problems showed up once again in Week 3, against the Ravens, except this time it was the offense that caused them, and coincidentally, Samuels had predicted Prescott would falter.
“Dak Prescott won’t play like the clutch quarterback he needs to be over and over again to win championships for the Dallas Cowboys. That’s who they are.”
But does that mean the Porter’s trade could mean disaster for the Cowboys? Let’s look at the numbers. Dallas got Porter in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2028 NFL Draft and a sixth-round pick in 2027. It’s not a bad deal for Dallas.
He can fill in for Cobie Durant, who is expected to remain on IR for Week 4 due to a hamstring strain. But according to Samuel, there’s a problem with Porter’s behavior, especially around the circumstances of his Pittsburgh exit.
“I don’t think [Porter is] handling the situation the best way, not going to practice,” Samuel said. “You’ve gotta know when to read the room and who you’re dealing with. These people seem like they really get offended over there in Pittsburgh. They really are in tune to what’s going on and their players and who their players are and paying their players. They do things a certain way, they don’t just like to break bread.”
Nevertheless, Samuel made it clear that Jones cannot buy the NFL’s respect simply by acquiring big names. The Cowboys must finally prove they have the discipline to win when it matters most.