As some Americans are left pulling their hair screaming, "what the hell is going on with my government," Dallas Cowboy fans are searching for answer to their team's woes.
Bill Parcells has taken three franchises from notorious losers to seldom seen or never before reached accomplishments. Bill first made his mark by giving the New York Giants their only two Super Bowl championships, then took a New England team that hadn't done anything in a decade to a Super Bowl and his third stop brought the Jets to an AFC championship game after a 16-year draught. So what's the problem in Dallas? Well, to paraphrase politics, it's more that just the running game, stupid, and nothing to do with Quincy Carter.
Vinny Testaverde's stats are on pace to be just as dull as Carter's were last season. Though Vinny may not be the much-needed boost at quarterback Dallas needs, he certainly is not a downgrade for the Cowboys. Drew Henson's time is coming and if Sunday wasn't the end of his bench riding, look for him to start December 6th. That gives the rookie 11 days to prepare for a Monday night game in Seattle.
The Cowboys feeble running attack ranks a paltry 25th in the NFL, but they now have a healthy Julius Jones who had been sidelined since September. The team should be able get a good read on him the remainder of the season. No matter what Parcells has been telling the media, with two likely high picks in the first-round next draft, Dallas has got to play their young skill position talent and see just what they have.
But the biggest reason Dallas is such a mess this season is because the Cowboys failed in addressing or just ignored keyholes in their defensive personnel. Even though the Cowboys ranked number one statistically in overall defense last season, they lacked a pass rush and sorely needed a dependable cornerback opposite Terrence Newman.
Dallas had no intention of resigning their free agent CB Mario Edwards and yet they did nothing to help shore up the position. Passing up on free agency, Parcells and owner Jerry Jones drafted three cornerbacks one in the fourth-round and two in the seventh. That's fine if you're drafting for depth, but Dallas had nobody in the position ready to step up for them and then had to settle for third-year, unproven Pete Hunter who is out for the season after playing in only three games. Now the Cowboys are relying on a combination of rookies and players that weren't even in the league when the season started.
The acquisition of free agent defensive end Marcellus Wiley, who has zero sacks this season, makes underachieving Bart Simpson look like Helen Keller. It simply was a bad move. Wiley had two double-digit sack seasons in 2000 and 2001, but only nine sacks since. Yet in a position where Dallas has shown nothing since having Charles Haley and Tony Tolbert as bookends in the '90s, the team decided to take a chance on a player who has done little in two years.
Truly, it is time for the Cowboys and their fans to look to next season. Drew Henson becomes the next great replacement for Troy Aikman and with loads of money to spend on free agency and two first-round draft picks, all Dallas really needs to do is fix a few holes and they should be a much better 10-6 team than in 2003. That is, of course, if the front office can own up to its mistakes instead of insisting on following the same failing policies.
November 29, 2004
James Mayer:
You make some great points regarding the Cowboys defense. But, the offense has some spots that are just as uncertain. Specifically, is Drew Henson going to be the next long-term man at the helm? We know there is some serious talent manifested (finally) in the form of Julius Jones, and arguably Keyshawn. They need to give Henson the chance to demonstrate whether or not he has what is takes to orchestrate a winning Cowboy team.