Is Jerry Jones' radio silence on Jason Garrett a master class in media manipulation?

Jerry Jones is a master showman.

The Dallas Cowboys owner may not know how to put together a winning football team. But he sure can generate headlines while keeping the Dallas Cowboys relevant and profitable.

And while everyone in the free world who pays attention to the NFL realizes that head coach Jason Garrett is about to be fired, Jones is taking a new tack to self-promotion.

Going radio silent. Literally.

Jones cancels regular radio hit

Dallas radio host Jeff Cavanaugh tweeted on Monday that neither Jones nor his son and Cowboys CEO Stephen Jones will make their regularly scheduled appearances on 105.3 The Fan this week as the NFL’s Black Monday fades into grayer territory.

Jones always has something to say

Jones uses these appearances to speak openly and candidly about the Cowboys and regularly sees his comments on the show turn into national headlines.

It’s a symbiotic relationship.

Fans get insight not normally provided by owners. Media outlets get stories. Jones gets free promotion for his behemoth of a football franchise.

And when he cancels an appearance, well, that’s also newsworthy. Hence this story.

The canceled appearance comes on the heels of turning media away without a morsel following a reported meeting with Garrett on Monday and a postgame news scrum Sunday night where he provided zero insight into what he’s thinking.

What is Jones thinking?

Jones is communicating one of two things with his lack of commentary. He’s either truly torn on how to handle the firing of Garrett, a coach he’s vouched for and stubbornly supported through years of mediocrity.

Or he knows exactly what he’s going to do. And he knows that media are hanging on his every word, spoken or not. So why not prolong the news cycle, keep the Cowboys in the headlines and torture a few reporters in the process?

Garrett’s contract reportedly doesn’t expire until Jan. 14. Keeping fans and media waiting before casually letting Garrett walk away without a new deal or the fanfare of an active firing is a good way to keep folks interested for a couple of weeks. Or at least until he decides on a new coach.

Maybe that’s reading too much into things, and Jones has an actual difficult decision or loose ends to tie up before the inevitable axing of Garrett.

But that seems too simple in the world of Jerry Jones.

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