Cowboys: Finances Are Sound

Owner Jerry Jones and club treasurer Jack Dixon of the Dallas Cowboys denied a published report Monday that the NFL team is in financial trouble.

In recent months, the Cowboys have fallen behind in paying routine bills and mortgage payments, the Dallas Times Herald reported.

The newspaper also reported that the Cowboys held rookie quarterback Troy Aikman’s $1.5 million paycheck until after banking hours and are negotiating with a group of doctors to sell the team’s Valley Ranch headquarters.

The Cowboys did not sign Aikman’s lump-sum paycheck until after banking hours Nov. 1 because there would not have been enough money in team accounts to cover the check, sources said. A TV payment was received and deposited the next day.

“We don’t have a debt,” Dixon said. “The only liabilities we have, beside our accounts payable, is money Jones loaned to the club.”

The denials followed the newspaper report, which quoted Jones. Jones, who paid $130 million for the team last February, told the Times Herald that some of the club’s bills have gone unpaid for as many as 60 days.

“Obviously, the Dallas Cowboys lost money last year,” Jones said. “The Dallas Cowboys were not a money-maker. That didn’t discourage me, and I feel very strongly that it’s a sound business.”