Opinion: We will never see one person be owner, president and GM in the NFL again

Jerry Jones (Keith Allison, Wikimedia Commons)

There was some sad news in the National Football League this week as Jerry Jones made it public that he has been diagnosed with cancer. According to the Associated Press, he has been suffering from advanced melanoma, and has had multiple surgeries on his lungs and lymph nodes. At 82 years of age, Jones remains the owner, president and general manager of the Dallas Cowboys, arguably the most high profile team in the entire National Football League.

You may find it odd that a person in today’s NFL is an owner, president and general manager. Well, Jones is the only one of two people in the entire league who have those job titles. The other is Mike Brown, who holds the three same positions with the Cincinnati Bengals. It should be noted that Brown is 90 years of age.

When you look back in NFL history, there have been several NFL owners who have been in charge of the team’s managerial duties. The list includes Paul Brown (Mike’s father), who held the roles with the Bengals from 1968 to 1990, James Irsay, who held the roles with the Indianapolis Colts from 1984 to 2024, prior to his death in May, Bill Bidwill, who held the roles with the Cardinals, Al Davis, who held the roles with the Raiders, George Halas, who held the roles with the Chicago Bears, Dan Reeves, who held the roles with the Rams, Bert Bell, who held the roles with the Philadelphia Eagles, and Chet Soda, who held the roles with the Raiders. It should be noted that Paul Brown, Davis, and Halas were coaches too.

To be an owner, president and GM in today’s NFL simply is extremely challenging. There are strong demands to each job today, and to hold all three positions is commendable. It is expected that Jones and Brown will be the last two in NFL history to have all three titles.