NFL GM Power Rankings: Where's Jerry?

FRISCO - There are several people in the hierarchy of an NFL franchise. From owner to general manager, coach, director of player personnel, and chief financial officer, each has a specific role to play in growing a team into a winner and maintaining it.

Some of those performances in those roles are easier to judge than others, but an NFL general manager might be the easiest. His responsibility is to acquire talent and build the team on the field. That success can be measured in a lot of ways, but wins and losses top them all.

Jerry Jones

Stephen Jones

Will McClay

NFL.com recently released its power rankings of general managers in the NFL based on draft record, free agency, cap management, self-scouting, coaching hire, and even publicity. To qualify, a current general manager had to have at least one draft completed with his current team to be considered.

Where did the Cowboys' owner and general manager Jerry Jones show up?

NFL.com placed Jones at No. 16 of 22:

The Cowboys have been one of the best drafting teams for the last decade. What happens after that -- roster management, coaching and development -- is a lot less reliable. The Ezekiel Elliott albatross of a contract is typical of an organization that has often failed to self-scout and fallen for its own hype.

If a team is consistently less as a whole than the sum of its parts, does Jones get credit for the parts or blame for the whole?

Jerry Jones

Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones

Will McClay

There's no question Jones and the Cowboys have drafted well the past few years. But that's not all to the credit of Jones. Will McClay and Stephen Jones are largely responsible for that success as well.

If we judge a general manager's success on wins and losses, Jones has to be considered one of the best. If we judge it on championships, that's a different conversation.