Troy Aikman says it was "unfair" for him to back Jerry Jones "into a corner"

Published October 29, 2026 10:24 PM ESPN’s Troy Aikman has had plenty to say recently about his uncertain professional future. On Thursday, he acknowledged that he may have said too much.Via Brandon Contes of Awful Announcing, Aikman expressed some regret during a Thursday appearance on 96.7 The Ticket in Dallas regarding comments about potentially working for the Cowboys.“The last thing that I want is — I was answering a question, and I think it’s really unfair to Jerry that he then has to answer these questions,” Aikman said. “As far as, ‘Hey, would you bring Troy back, or would you have a role for him?’ I mean there’s no real good answer that he can give.”Aikman said he raised the issue with Jones in Philadelphia on Monday night, where Aikman called the game between the Eagles and the Cowboys.“We briefly touched on it just because I felt that maybe I backed him into a corner that he didn’t deserve to be backed into,” Aikman said. “He didn’t ask for it. And so, we’re clear on that. He totally understood, and yet, he was very complimentary if something like that were to ever take place with the idea that we’re not having those conversations at this time.” Aikman is in an awkward spot of his own. He senses that ESPN doesn’t want to bring him back next year. He pegs his chances of having a job in TV next year at “50-50.” Part of his own personal coping mechanism seems to be talking about the fact that he feels his 25-year broadcasting career slipping through his fingers.Aikman now realizes that, in recently talking about possibly working for the Cowboys, he has created a scenario in which Jones will be asked about Aikman possibly working for the Cowboys. Which happened on Tuesday, given that Jones does two radio spots of his own every week on 105.3 The Fan.Still, Aikman’s latest comments are all part of the dance aimed at potentially laying the foundation for Aikman, who was and by all indications still is working for the Dolphins, potentially joining forces with Jerry in an effort to finally put together a team that can possibly get back to the NFC Championship, for the first time since 1995.