Before writing this I paused, wondering if a discussion of Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones was really within our jurisdiction here at Midwest Sports Fans. But then I remembered that most of the Midwest sports fans I know actually take great joy in seeing Jerry Jones and his beloved Dallas Cowboys suffer, so I am throwing caution to the wind.

(Hopefully I throw it into the wind a little better than Tony Romo, or another blog may intercept this post and run it back for a link on Deadspin.)

Gotta love the mixed metaphors.

Anyway, back to our discussion of Jerry Jones. We all know about the Dallas Cowboys loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, and many of you have probably heard by now that Jerry Jones basically called out Marion Barber for being a wuss and not playing with his injured pinkie toe. Yes ladies and gentleman, a grown man who has gotten a face lift and danced in public with Steve Urkel insinuated that one of the toughest running backs in the NFL is a wuss.

He of course backtracked off of those comments once they caused a stir in the media, but you tell me how this is taken out of context (from the Rick Herrin story in the Fort-Worth Star Telegram):

“He can play with that injured toe,” Jones said. “He can play with the soreness and a combination of those things. I see nothing that led us to believe he couldn’t.”

Seems pretty cut and dry to me: Jerry Jones thinks Marion Barber should have been able to play, yet Barber did not even make the trip to Pittsburgh. I’m confused though by how there was not better communication about this injury within the Cowboys organization leading up the game. Hell, I posted in the middle of the week last week that Marion Barber most likely was not going to play, and I’m just a schmuck blogger for a Midwest site who’s lived in Dallas for less than a year. Yet somehow I was more up to date on the status of Marion Barber than the Cowboys owner.

Maybe the fact that Jerry Jones seems out of touch is because he has something a little more pressing on his mind that regular season football. Something like…a $1 billion stadium for which he is currently short about $350 million.

I actually did some Photoshop work for an article that was written on this topic last week. Entitled “Dallas Cowboys Stadium Shortfall: Bailing Out Jerry Jones“, I learned that a little over five weeks ago Jerry Jones hosted a variety of banks to try and secure the final $350 million that he needs to complete his ridiculous stadium in Arlington. The article itself is a somewhat tongue-in-cheek look at what some of Jerry’s options might be to get the financing he needs, including whether a federal bailout would be a worthwhile use of tax dollars. Because honestly, if the Dallas Cowboys suffer, don’t we all?

Just to give you a little taste, here is one of the images from the article. This one was produced as an illustration of the possibility of Barack Obama funneling some money Jerry’s way, in an effort by Barack to have a better chance at winning the state of Texas in 2012. My favorite part is the expression on Jerry Jones’ face as he is forced to shake hands with a Democrat, and the sobbing Tony Romo in the background:

You can click on the image for a full-size view. To view the other images, including “Jerry Jones Field at He Loves Him Some Him Stadium” which features Jerry Jones grinding up next to a shocked Tom Landry, you’ll have to go check out the article.

It will be interesting to see what actually happens with the new stadium, and with the Cowboys team, leading into the 2009 season. There is absolutely no question that Jerry Jones fully expected to be heading into the new stadium in 2009 riding a wave of momentum from a Super Bowl win in 2008. It was all I heard on the radio this offseason and during training camp.

Now, after 13 weeks of up and down football and an 8-5 record, Jerry Jones is:

• Calling out his star running back
• Short of funding for his new stadium
• Has to be wondering if he has a QB with the stones to win once the games really matter
• Frustrated with his head coach, Wade Phillips

(By the way, after you go read the article about the new Cowboys stadium, check out the link above. It is from 1310 The Ticket here in Dallas, and is a regular bit they do every Monday called Fake Jerry and Fake Wade. It is hilarious.)

Anyway, with the Cowboys taking on the Ravens, Giants, and Eagles in their final three games, and needing to win at least two just have a prayer at a playoff berth, the rest of 2008 is not shaping up to give Jerry Jones much relief. And to be quite honest, his unnecessary comments about Marion Barber’s injury make me think that Jerry may be coming unraveled and starting to feel the pressure of the enormous stadium budget and the reality that his team is merely good, but not elite.