FRISCO, Texas – The first day of the offseason wasn't exactly business as usual at The Star. But there certainly wasn't the activity that many people might've expected following the end of a disappointing season.
The players met with the coaching staff and then the media. Jason Garrett also met with both Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones about his future and current status.
But the Cowboys made no formal announcements regarding the coaching staff and/or player personnel.
Garrett did not have a press conference Monday to wrap up Sunday's game or the end of the season. As of now, nothing has been scheduled for either Tuesday or Wednesday as well.
Reportedly, Garrett met with his coaching staff and told the coaches that had expiring contracts that they could seek other opportunities. Those coaches include Rod Marinelli, Gary Brown and Kris Richard, who is reportedly set to interview for the Giants' head coaching vacancy. Of course, Garrett is not under contact next season as well.
The players were available in the locker room on Monday, but only a handful met with reporters. One of which was Sean Lee, the veteran linebacker who joined the team in 2010, the season Garrett took over as head coach.
"For me, it's a guy who's an unbelievable coach, unbelievable person," Lee said of Garrett. "Put his heart and soul into coaching, believed in his players with his entire heart and forced us to be better than we could be in a lot of situations. He made me believe that I could come back from a lot of injuries … a guy who inspired me and really made me a better football player than I thought I could be."
The only form of media Garrett did Monday was his regular radio segment on 105.3 "The Fan" in Dallas. That's where he said he would meet with the Jones family regarding his future. But he was also asked about this past season, and had to answer why the Cowboys finished 8-8 and missed the playoffs.
"I think the overarching explanation is we weren't consistent enough," Garrett said. "We weren't consistent enough throughout the year from game to game. We weren't consistent enough within games. We didn't do the things that winning football teams do. We have a basic formula for winning that we talk a lot about. You have to win the ball, you have to win the big plays, you have to win the fourth quarter. And often times when you pull back after a ball game to evaluate those three statistics, those will be the deciding factors in games."
