It wouldn't seem outside the realm of possibility for Cowboys owner Jerry Jones to stun the football world in Week 1 with a dominant defensive performance only to add one of the greatest pass rushers in NFL history back to his roster.
Unfortunately, DeMarcus Ware is only kidding when he says something like this to the Dallas Morning News:
"If Jerry calls me, I'll answer the phone," Ware said.
The future Hall of Famer elaborated a bit:
"I was one day away from coming back and signing with the Dallas Cowboys," Ware said. "But my body just told me it's time. It's time to stop playing. I still have the drive to get out there and the want to play, but you've got to think about family, think about what's important and I just decided it's time to hang up the cleats and put a suit on."
While DeMarcus Lawrence, Charles Tapper and Benson Mayowa all logged either quarterback hits or sacks in Sunday night's prime-time win over the Giants (looking far better than expected in the process), Jones would probably still trip over himself to get to the phone if Ware ever expressed an interest in coming back.
Defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli has been elevating the collective play of this defense for the past few seasons, but if he's able to maximize a pass rush that hinges on Lawrence and whatever bonus he can get out of younger players like rookie Taco Charlton (the first-round pick played 26 snaps Sunday), he truly deserves recognition as a primary reason for this team's success.
Ware has been wonderful on television and will certainly be great in whatever he chooses to do off the field -- but he has to know that, even by joking about the call, he's planted the seed. Jones would welcome him back any time.
