Ex-Cowboys All-Pro has NSFW 3-word criticism of Jerry Jones after Cooper Rush misses out on $500,000 bonus

The Dallas Cowboys' dismal 2024 campaign ended in a 23-19 loss to the Washington Commanders at AT&T Stadium on Sunday. Neither team had much to play for and decided to give their backups a chance to shine.

The Commanders fielded Marcus Mariota under center, while the Cowboys handed a start to quarterback Trey Lance, his first since Week 2 of the 2022 season when he was still with the San Francisco 49ers.

While playing the third-string quarterback in a meaningless Week 18 game isn't groundbreaking, many, including former Cowboys All-Pro wide receiver Dez Bryant, were miffed about the team's decision to field Lance over Cooper Rush.

Starting quarterback Dak Prescott's persistent injury issues meant that the veteran backup played 52.5% of the team's offensive snaps coming into Week 18. Had he finished the season with 55%, he would have automatically triggered a $500,000 bonus. However, the Cowboys benching Rush for Lance meant he couldn't hit that mark and lost out on $250,000 in incentives.

Benching the 31-year-old and costing him a quarter of a million did not sit well with Bryant, who voiced his displeasure about it on X. He posted:

"That's f**ked up!"

Cooper Rush incentive: Jerry Jones reveals the truth about benching veteran

After the game, reporters asked Cowboys owner Jerry Jones whether Cooper Rush's incentive played a role in the team's decision to bench the veteran quarterback. He said:

"I didn't even know about it until I read about it... Those incentives are in there for the team. We put them in there so if someone is, in his case, a backup quarterback who has to play, they've got the financial incentives, but they're usually put in there because of the people representing them. And they should be. He did really earn some pretty serious incentives this year."

It's highly unlikely that Rush was unaware that he needed to play on Sunday against the Commanders to trigger the $500,000 bonus, making it hard to believe that the coaches and Jones, the team's general manager, weren't privy to the situation. Regardless, the 31-year-old will have to settle for $250,000 in incentives, half of what he would have earned had he played on Sunday.