Two years ago, Jerry Jones’ directive was plain, and his words were, too. “Our policy is you stand at the anthem,” the Dallas Cowboys owner said in 2018, “toe on the line.” But the national mood has changed since then, and so has Jones’ language. When he finally spoke publicly this summer after a prolonged silence, he answered questions about social justice by repeatedly uttering the word “grace,” which seemed like a code for something, although no one knew for sure what it was. Then, during his weekly Dallas radio show on “The Fan” on Tuesday, he sent more than a few listeners to the dictionary. “It’s not good to be obstreperous or anything if you’re asking people to see it through your eyes,” Jones said. If Noah Webster is to be trusted as a translator here, Jones wants his players to make their statement without being unruly or resistant to control. And that, frankly, doesn’t make much sense. In times of protest, being obstreperous is sort of the point. John Lewis, the late congressman and civil rights icon, put it more simply, in terms the more plainspoken version of Jones would have appreciated. Lewis didn’t use the word “obstreperous,” but he did like to sing the praises of “good trouble.” Good trouble isn’t cleared with the owner first. Good trouble isn’t about making a statement palatable to those who needed to hear it. Good trouble might offend a few customers. Jones, of course, doesn’t want trouble of any variety. He wants to keep everybody happy without bothering any fans, but that is much harder to do now than it was a few years ago. In 2017, when he knelt with his players before the anthem and then had...