{"id":31044,"date":"2025-03-06T08:27:57","date_gmt":"2025-03-06T08:27:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=31044"},"modified":"2025-03-06T08:27:57","modified_gmt":"2025-03-06T08:27:57","slug":"heartfelt-tribute-jerry-jones-brought-to-tears-speaking-on-cowboys-legend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=31044","title":{"rendered":"HEARTFELT TRIBUTE: Jerry Jones Brought to Tears Speaking on Cowboys Legend!"},"content":{"rendered":"
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An emotional day at Cowboys headquarters as future Hall of Famer Zack Martin announced his retirement, delivering a heartfelt speech to teammates and fans.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\"Dallas<\/picture><\/figure>\n
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones speaks to the media at a press conference at the Star. \/ Tim Heitman-Imagn Images<\/div>\n
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It was 11 years ago that\u00a0Dallas Cowboys\u00a0owner Jerry Jones walked out of the war room at the Valley Ranch headquarters because he felt his team and son executive VP Stephen Jones made the wrong decision during the 2014 NFL Draft.<\/p>\n

Rather than selecting the exciting and crowd-drawing Johnny Manziel, the Cowboys selected a guard named Zack Martin with the 16th overall pick out of Notre Dame.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“The reason you’re sitting in the middle, I think, is because they wanted to separate me and Stephen [Jones] because I still have knots on my chin from him kicking me under the table when we were sitting there discussing that draft day,” Jones said jokingly with Martin sitting between the two at his retirement presser.<\/p>\n

Now fast forward 11 years, nine All-Pros, and Pro Bowl selection’s later, an emotional Jones could only sit and listen as he enjoyed every bit of the moment of reflection while the future hall of fame Martin was delivering his retirement speech.<\/p>\n

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