Hour 4 - Window Shopping

"At this point, it's kind of like a coupon. It's not a cure. Nobody hates a coupon. Who's against coupons?" That is how Ben Maller frames the Dallas Cowboys' signing of Von Miller in the fourth hour of his overnight show. The hour, titled "Window Shopping in Jerry's World," is a skeptical tour through the latest NFL headlines, anchored by the annual ritual of Jerry Jones promising a Super Bowl run and a blockbuster trade. Maller argues that Jones is selling the same "snake oil" he has been selling since 1996, and that the Cowboys' roster moves—like adding an aging Von Miller—are more about maintaining fan hope than actually building a contender.

The Annual Jerry Jones Soliloquy

Maller's central critique is that Jerry Jones's August pronouncements are a predictable, almost scripted performance. The Cowboys owner told the assembled media that the team can "legitimately contend for a Super Bowl" and that he remains willing to sacrifice "future assets" (draft picks) for immediate help, even after adding Von Miller. Maller processes this by calling Jones a "traveling medicine man" standing on the back of a wagon, selling "miracle tonic" with a cowboy star on it. He says the annual bullet points are always the same: "Super Bowl," "blockbuster trade," and "this year is different." Maller points out that Jones has been "sacrificing the future since dial-up internet," yet "somehow