"He's got the leadership, instinct" - Jerry Jones had a glowing review of Cowboys candidate Sean Payton

Jerry Jones is unafraid to make big proclamations, but his latest news-worthy quote lines up with what much of the NFL community thinks about Sean Payton. Speaking to 105.3 The Fan via Jon Machota, the Cowboys' general manager had plenty of praise for the head coach. Jones didn't discuss the scheme but focused on Payton's personality and intangible leadership skills.

"Sean is easy and really pleasant to be around," Jones said. "He does things that really help ball teams, and help motivate players. He's got 'it.' [His] natural, instinctive, leadership, or spontaneous type of approach to life, his approach to his team, his approach to his associates is a real asset to him.

"He makes the drudgery of the game, which is physical, boy, you need some lightness from time to time in there to handle the rigors of a football team, a season, or sometimes even a game. He knows how to punch those buttons."

The Cowboys general manager was rumored to have thought about kicking Mike McCarthy out the door to sign the former Saints head coach at one point in recent weeks. After a letdown in the first round of the playoffs yet again after winning the division in a landslide, many thought McCarthy was going to get the ax.

Instead, he remains with the football team as the Cowboys look to build on a strong regular season performance in 2022.

What will get Jerry Jones' team to the Super Bowl?

NFC Wild Card Playoffs - San Francisco 49ers v Dallas Cowboys

Since Troy Aikman retired in 2001, every other Cowboys quarterback has run into a similar problem: they can't breakthrough in the playoffs and lead their teams deep into January. However, they can't bring the team the ammo to get their replacement, either.

The team had a high floor and low ceiling for the entirety of the Tony Romo era, and now Dak Prescott seems to be heading in the same direction after only one playoff win in his career but no losing uninjured seasons. Even when he was hurt, the team still went 6-10, which was still just a bit too good to get another top quarterback.

Under Jerry Jones, the lows and highs are short-lived. The Cowboys are perennially stuck between 7-9 and 12-5 with not much falling below and above that. Basically, the team is stuck in a situation where they continue to get mid-low tier picks, which limits how much star power they can have on the team. Basically, the team is stuck in the middle, which is the worst place to be.

The core of the issue is that the team cannot get the premium draft picks necessary to get a massive upgrade at quarterback and at other positions, because to do so, they would need to kiss a full season goodbye. Basically, the team is topped out and the only way to get better is to go down.

Jerry Jones' teams aren't good enough to be Super Bowl contenders, and they aren't bad enough to land a top pick in the NFL Draft. For better and for worse, the team is stuck in a cycle. The quickest way to effect change is to go after a new quarterback. They'll never send Dak Prescott down the river, but to get a different result, they need a different face at the most important position in the sport.