James Houston has undoubtedly been the biggest breakout star for the Dallas Cowboys through five weeks. The under-the-radar offseason signing has been on a tear to begin the year, earning himself a larger defensive role each week. In Week 5, he put on another dominant performance against the Jets, finishing with 1.5 sacks, a tackle for loss, and two quarterback hits.
Instead of celebrating the defender's breakout season, however, owner/general manager Jerry Jones somehow found a way to make things about himself and Micah Parsons... again.
When asked about Houston's dominant showing by Cowboys insider Nick Harris, Jones responded with an unnecessary shot at the former Dallas pass rusher.
"It just shows you that (Houston has) got those kinds of skills. We know that he needs to work on the run. Guess what? We had a pass rusher around here; the way to box him in was to run at him, but he could really rush the passer," Jones said. "This guy really is rushing the passer beyond my expectations."
Jerry Jones' Obsession with Micah Parsons Is Getting Embarrassing
At this point, everyone knows how much Jones loves drama. It doesn't come as a surprise to anybody that he would try to steal headlines after a Cowboys win to prove a point about a highly publicized situation. Yet, his obsession with Parsons has officially become embarrassing.
This is not the first time Jones has brought up the idea that Parsons is bad against the run. Since the trade, Jones has been finding different arguments to justify his decision to trade the star defender, and "you can slow him down by running at him" has been a favorite talking point for Jones.
The confusing part in all of this is the fact that while run defense may not be Parsons' best attribute, he has had a higher run defense grade than Houston on Pro Football Focus every single season, including this year. And it's not like the Cowboys were particularly effective in stopping the run on Sunday. In fact, they gave up 6.5 yards per rushing attempt and allowed Breece Hall to run for a whopping 113 yards in only 14 carries.
Even if the Cowboys' run defense had miraculously improved after trading Parsons, that wouldn't be enough to overcome the elite pass rush ability you are losing.
More than anything, however, comparing him to Parsons is unfair to Houston in the first place. The 26-year-old defender has performed admirably and exceeded all expectations, but there is no need to put extra pressure on him by comparing him to a four-time Pro Bowler. Jones needs to learn to praise and motivate his players without making it about him and his decision to trade Parsons, especially since the game against the Green Bay Packers has already come and gone.
Unfortunately, Cowboys fans know better not to hold their breath.