NFL
Jerry Jones’ Name Was Used to Inspire Philadelphians to Vote Against Donald Trump
Joe Kozlowski began his career as a sports journalist in 2013 and joined Sportscasting in 2019. He covers the NBA and soccer for Sportscasting, with specialties in legacy NBA players such as Michael Jordan and Premier League club Arsenal. Off the clock, he's a Kansas City Chiefs fan and a hockey goalie. Growing up loving Shaquille O'Neal and reading everything he could about the great big men throughout NBA history — likely because he was still tall enough, at least relative to his peers, to play center — he's continued to love learning about and exploring the historical and story-based sides of the basketball archives. As for Arsenal, Joe spent a year living in London and latched onto the local support of the club. He's barely missed a match since, loving Arsene Wenger, enduring the Banter Era, and following along through rebuilds. The Premier League interest developed into a passionate following of the Champions League, Europe's big five league, and international soccer as a whole when played at the highest level. Regardless of the sport, Joe is captivated by the stories of athletes beyond the box scores and how they push the envelope — both in terms of what we think a human is capable of accomplishing and how they find new competitive tactics to win.
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In sports, few forces are as powerful as rivalry; from college to the pros, nothing inspires a team and a fan base by facing off against their biggest enemy. While the city of Philadelphia collectively dislikes plenty of people and teams, few inspire a visceral reaction like Jerry Jones and his Dallas Cowboys.
Although the Eagles beat the Cowboys on Sunday night, Jerry Jones’ name returned to the scene on Tuesday. With Election Day looming, one group invoked the rich Texan, hoping it would inspire Philadelphians to vote against Donald Trump.
Jerry Jones is unpopular, both in Texas and across the country
RELATED: Is Jerry Jones the Only NFL Owner Fans Hate More Than Robert Kraft?
Most of the men and women who own professional sports franchises are pretty anonymous; they usually sit in their luxury box, give a token quote here and there, and go about their day. Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, however, does things his own way.
Rather than simply lording over the franchise from on high, Jones is also Dallas’ general manager. While that could work in theory—there’s no potential for miscommunication when one man is making the decisions—it’s only led to a lack of accountability. Since Jones won’t fire himself or take a step back, the Cowboys have been stuck spinning their wheels.
That lack of results and ineffective management hasn’t made Jones the most popular man. Ahead of the 2020 election, a UMass-Lowell poll found that 23% of Texans had a favorable opinion of the owner; that might not seem too bad, but 33% of responders had an unfavorable opinion.
While there’s no data for residents of other states, it’s safe to assume that Jerry isn’t a beloved figure anywhere outside of Texas, either. Between his willingness to step into the spotlight and seeming embodiment of the ‘rich old man’ stereotype, it’s unlikely that anyone without a specific affiliation with the Cowboys wants to see Jerry Jones any more than they have to.
Inspiring Philadelphia to vote against Donald Trump
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In the city of Philadelphia, few teams are more hated than the Dallas Cowboys. One group hoped that that dislike could drive Pennsylvanians to the polls on Election Day.
On Tuesday, Rural America 2020, “a 501(c)(4) non-profit that advocates for policies that benefit agriculture and rural America,” hired two planes to pull banner over the City of Brotherly Love. According to their tweets, one simply reminded citizens to “VOTE LIKE YOUR LIFE DEPENDS ON IT.”
The other, however, tried to speak to Philadelphia’s sports fandom. That banner told the city “DONALD TRUMP [LOVES] JERRY JONES & THE COWBOYS.”
How does Jerry Jones feel about Donald Trump?
RELATED: Why Donald Trump Turned Down the Dallas Cowboys and How It Cost Him $5.5 Billion
It’s safe to assume that most Philadelphians would dislike Jerry Jones, regardless of his political affiliation. With that being said, though, we do know a little bit about his feelings toward Donald Trump.
While Jones has never directly said that he supports Trump, the two men did take up similar positions about players kneeling in protest during the national anthem. The Cowboys owner also called Trump “the hardest worker you’ve ever seen,” and publicly sent his well wishes after the president.
As of Wednesday morning, it’s yet to be seen if Rural America 2020’s efforts paid off. If nothing else, though, it looks like the Philadelphia Eagles won’t have a problem beating Jerry Jones and his Cowboys in the standings this season.
