Cowboys Seek 'Super Bowl Trade,' Says NFL Source as Jerry Jones Does 'Self-Evaluation'
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FRISCO - The Dallas Cowboys enter the bye week with a feel-good sense of where they are. ... and with the front office feeling so good about the team's position that owner Jerry Jones is in search of a "Super Bowl trade,'' one NFL source tells CowboysSI.com - meaning an "over-the-top'' acquisition that would greatly increase Dallas' chance at a title.
The "feel-good'' in the coaching wing and the locker room? Having just hung 49 points on Chicago on Sunday at AT&T Stadium and having a 6-2 record, Dallas has a right to puff the chest out.
The "feel-good'' led by Jones? Also earned.
But that's where "self-evaluation'' comes in, on both levels.
Jones' history of "risk-taking'' - which he tells CowboysSI.com he is preparing to do as today's NFL trade deadline approaches - was central to Dallas' trio of Super Bowl titles in the 1990's. But that is being paired with the front-office contributions of Stephen Jones, Will McClay, coach Mike McCarthy and staff. Does Dallas wish to add a big-time receiver like, say, Carolina's DJ Moore or Denver's Jerry Jeudy or Houston's Brandin Cooks or free agent Odell Beckham Jr.? In a vacuum, of course.
What about a cornerback? More offensive line help? Any other assistance in run-stopping?
But in terms of "self-evaluation,'' future cap concerns cannot be ignored. Back-burner'ed? Maybe. Jerry can have "The Itch.'' But no factor can be completely ignored - not for a team in true and full "self-evaluation'' mode.
The concept of "self-evaluation'' flows down to a locker room that now enters the bye. How the team handles its situation and current success means nothing if they don't capitalize on it. The playoff loss to San Francisco last year is proof of that. Dallas was in good shape with a 12-5 record but came unstuck against the 49ers.
One and done.
McCarthy says the biggest challenge for players and coaches in the NFL is handling success.
"It was the first message, and it's a continuous message," McCarthy said here at The Star on Monday. "Handling success is the biggest challenge in this business, it's the biggest challenge in life, it's up on the wall in the team meeting room for a reason. You got to find ways to win every week, and our job as coaches is to make sure we continue to grow the football team and that is where self-evaluation is critical."
Quarterback Dak Prescott referenced this after following up his decent outing in his first game back after thumb surgery in a win against Detroit, followed up by the 49-29 decision over the Bears.
“In meetings, when you’re going back and you’re looking at the past game and our numbers were terrible last week," Prescott said. "That’s not who we are, and everyone took accountability for it. Moving forward, we focused more on it in practice a little bit and locked in. We knew how important it was translating it to here.”
Critical self-evaluation. That is what McCarthy is talking about for his players. And that is what the NFL is telling us Jerry Jones is thinking about for his maybe-Super Bowl-worthy roster.
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