Herschel to Haley: New Hall-of-Famer 'Trader Jimmy' Explains How He Built the '90's Cowboys
FRISCO - Jimmy Johnson is taking a victory lap after the weekend revelation that the iconic former Dallas Cowboys coach is to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Part of that lap is a visit the "Dan Patrick Show'' during which Johnson explained the secret of his success in building the 1990's "Team of the Decade.''
“Back then, teams didn’t trade,'' Johnson said, when asked about the 1989 blockbuster trade-away of Herschel Walker, as noted by Jon Machota. "In five years, I made 51 trades. And those 51 trades were more than the entire league put together. ... Trading for Charles Haley (in 1992) probably put us in the Super Bowl.”
It has of course been a subject of debate as to whether Jimmy "made those trades'' or whether owner Jerry Jones "made those trades.'' It would be lovely, and accurate, for the two of them to acknowledge that they were "co-architects'' of those three-time Super Bowl-winning teams. ... That Jerry was technically the GM and that Jimmy was obviously the "football guy'' and that neither of them could've accomplished so much without the other.
(To be fair, in the above video, Jimmy does mention Jerry's involvement in the Herschel talks. But then he takes credit for inventing the "Trade Value Chart,'' when in fact it was Jones' oil-and-gas friend and team VP Mike McCoy who developed the chart and passed it to Jimmy.)
Casual observers think this is all about the "ego'' of one of them. In reality, it's about the ego of both Jones and Johnson, plus Jerry's bitterness over Jimmy's disloyal orchestration of his departure.
Sadly, Cowboys Nation finds itself picking sides. So we dig through Jimmy's comments to note that "he'' made the trades, just as we dig through Jerry's congratulatory note looking for the same sort of "me-ness.''
"We're so happy that the Hall of Fame has recognized Jimmy Johnson for what he is: a great coach,” Jones said in a statement. “ To Jimmy I say, ‘The stars were aligned and our dreams came true when we joined the Dallas Cowboys.' And on behalf of the Cowboys, and our fans all over the world, I say congratulations Jimmy. We're proud of you."
And there is it. Jimmy's Hall of Fame day became a "we'' moment to Jerry, in the same sort of warped way that Cowboys trades have for so long, to both men, been "me'' moments.
