"The calvary is coming" - Cowboys owner Jerry Jones remains optimistic about team despite poor run of form

Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys, has never been one to hold back on his honest assessments of his team, including players and coaches. Thursday's Thanksgiving game against the Las Vegas Raiders is no exception to this rule.

The Cowboys lost to the Raiders in overtime by a score of 36-33. The game was marred by excessive penalties for both teams. Most glaringly were four defensive pass interference penalties against Cowboys cornerback Anthony Brown.

Despite the loss and the egregious number of penalties, Jerry Jones remains confident in his team.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones optimistic about his team going forward

Early Friday morning, Jones was a guest on 105.3 The Fan. He spoke at length about his feelings about the Cowboys and why he is optimistic about their chances going forward.

"You have to look forward. Yesterday is as dead as Napoleon. It’s gone. And so we have to look at how to improve. The sky is not falling. When you look at the six games ahead that we have, the cavalry is coming. We’ve gotta take a deep breath and remember that this time of year is where you’re dealing with attrition. You’re normally dealing with a depleted situation in your personnel. Here we come with fresh legs."

Jones' reference of "the calvary is coming" has to do with the number of starters who are slated to return to the starting lineup sometime soon. In the loss to the Raiders, the Cowboys were missing key starters, including receivers Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb and starting edge rushers DeMarcus Lawrence and Randall Gregory.

The optimism from Jones comes after the Cowboys lost a game to the Raiders in overtime by three points and were without arguably four of their best players who play critical positions.

Despite the excellent play of rookie linebacker Micah Parsons, there is an argument to be made that having both Lawrence and Gregory playing would have added even more pressure to Raiders quarterback Derek Carr.

As a parallel, there is another argument to be made that having receivers Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb may have warranted having more than 33 points.

Are Jerry Jones' Cowboys contenders or pretenders?

Despite taking two losses within a span of four days, the Cowboys should still be looked at as contenders for the Super Bowl. The injuries they've suffered have been noted and are, at a minimum, one of the reasons for why they haven't played up to their highest potential.

When the Cowboys had their full compliment of players available, they were one of the best, if not the best, teams in the NFL. None of the players mentioned are designated to miss the season, so they will return sooner rather than later and right in time for the stretch run of the 2021 NFL season.