Jerry Jones closed out his final Tuesday morning radio interview of the season with a message to Dallas Cowboys fans.

“We’ve got to have a more solid defense,” Jones said on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas. “That’s disappointing this year. We will get better on defense. I promise you that.”

Many will read that quote and think: “How can it get any worse?”

Only two teams have allowed more yards than the Cowboys’ 376.8 per game through 17 weeks. No team has allowed more points than Dallas’ 29.8 per game. No team has allowed more passing yards (253.6), passing touchdowns (33) or a higher passer rating (109.7) to opposing quarterbacks than the Cowboys.

The most likely scenario remains that the Cowboys will move on from defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus after Sunday’s season finale at the New York Giants. That doesn’t mean he will necessarily be fired right after the game. The Cowboys will likely take a few days before making a final decision.

Jones has been critical of the defense for several weeks, making it obvious that he is not pleased with the job Eberflus has done in his first season back with the team. But it was clear Tuesday that Jones was also trying to clarify that he doesn’t believe only Eberflus is to blame.

“Make no mistake about it, everybody had their finger in what we did out there defensively,” Jones said. “Everybody. It’s not just a one-man blame at all. I say that because therein lies what you have to sit down and figure out, what, if anything, you want to change. We’ll get to that pronto. Everybody involved in this thing, I’m sure, has been thinking ahead about how to adjust out of our results this year.

“The main thing in football is that it is rare when you have one coach or one player that is the cause or the solution to the problem. That’s the main thing I’d like to emphasize to anybody listening. We’re trying to solve the problem and try to get better where we are. One guy is not going to do that.”

It appeared like Dallas’ defense turned a corner with the addition of All-Pro defensive tackle Quinnen Williams at the trade deadline, but it lasted only three games. The defensive play during the last four games has reverted to the first nine, when Dallas started 3-5-1.

Jones wears plenty of the responsibility, starting with the decision to trade All-Pro pass rusher Micah Parsons a week before the season started. But Jones isn’t going to fire himself.

They will make some personnel adjustments. Jones noted that the play of the secondary was one of his biggest disappointments. But ultimately, the biggest change will likely come on the coaching staff. Moving on from Eberflus would mean a fourth defensive coordinator in four seasons for the Cowboys.

“It’s not all Eberflus. At all,” Jones said. “That’s a teamwide breakdown for us to not play better defense than we have. It’s not an Eberflus breakdown, per se. (Not) just him.”