Cowboys Retain Jeffcoat


Nick Eatman
DallasCowboys.com Staff Writer
January 7, 2003, 6:48 p.m. (CST)

IRVING, Texas - The smoke has yet to clear around the coaching
offices at Valley Ranch, new head coach Bill Parcells, on Monday,
naming his offensive and defensive coordinators.

And on Tuesday, Parcells made another coaching move, deciding to keep
defensive ends coach Jim Jeffcoat for the 2003 season. This will be
Jeffcoat's fourth year coaching the Cowboys ends, following two years
as assistant defensive line coach.

Jeffcoat has worked with defensive tackles coach Andre Patterson for
the last three years, but Patterson's status has yet to be
determined. But with Jeffcoat named the defensive ends coach, it is
more than likely the Cowboys once again will employ two defensive
line coaches - either Patterson, or line coach of Parcells choice.

By hiring Maurice Carthon as offensive coordinator/runnings backs
coach, that spelled the end of Bruce Coslet's one-year stint as
offensive coordinator. The Cowboys also let go of offensive line
coach Frank Verducci, tight ends coach Greg Seamon and running backs
coach Galen Hall.

Defensively, Mike Zimmer will return as coordinator, but the status
of secondary coach Clancy Pendergast, linebackers coach Gary Gibbs
and Patterson have not been announced. Wide receivers coach Wes
Chandler, quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson and kicking coach Steve
Hoffman all remain on staff for now.

Parcells is expected to be out of town for the remainder of the week,
and while new assistants might not be appointed until next week at
the earliest, a few of the curren assistants' fates might be known by
the end of the week.

Jeffcoat can call upon his 15 years of NFL playing experience to help
tutor the Cowboys who now follow in his footsteps as one of the
franchise's most productive and consistent defensive ends.

Jeffcoat joined the coaching ranks after finishing his playing career
with 102.5 career sacks, 745 tackles and 194 quarterback pressures.
Jeffcoat played in 227 games from 1983 to 1997, placing him among the
top 40 players all-time in number of games played.

He spent the first 12 years of his career with Dallas after being
selected in the first round of the 1983 NFL Draft, and he was a
member of the Cowboys' teams that won Super Bowls XXVII and XXVIII.

Jeffcoat has played for or coached with all six head coaches in
Cowboys history. During his 12-year stint with the Cowboys, Jeffcoat
totaled 698 tackles, 94.5 sacks and 149 quarterback pressures.

He played his final three seasons with the Buffalo Bills, where he
faced Parcells-coached teams two years in New England and then
another with the New York Jets in 1997.

Cowboys Re-Sign Blade

The Cowboys re-signed four practice squad players, three
more "street" free agents and even brought back a familiar face in
defensive tackle Willie Blade, a third-round draft pick in 2001.

Blade, who spent his entire rookie season on injured reserve in
Dallas after suffering a broken wrist, was less than impressive this
past training camp, mainly because of his lack of conditioning. The
Cowboys released Blade at the final cut down, and the Houston Texans
quickly picked up the former Mississippi State tackle.

Blade was inactive for the first 15 games of the season, and then the
Texans released him before the regular season finale with Tennessee.

Along with Blade, the Cowboys signed four practice squad players,
including wide receiver DeVeren Johnson, offensive tackle Dave Volk,
defensive end and running back Ennis Haywood. The club also expects
to re-sign cornerback Markese Fitzgerald.

The Cowboys also signed linebacker Michael Hawkes, defensive tackle
Ron Moore and cornerback Rick Sherrod. Moore spent training camp with
the Cowboys in 2001 and part of the regular season on the practice
squad before signing with the Falcons.

Hawkes has been with Carolina for two seasons before a short stint
with the Rams this past season. As a rookie, Sherrod spent parts of
last season on the Saints practice squad.



** Nick Eatman can be reached at NicksMail@...

How in the #$%$ does Julius Peppers win this award and not Roy
Williams.  The NFL continues to slap Roy in the face.  First no Pro-
Bowl and now not even the DEF Rookie of the Year.  Bull$%$#!  Julius
Peppers got caught doing drugs didn't he?  He got suspended for it
and that is the DEF Rookie of the Year.  Roy didn't do anything like
that.  Roy was excellent on and off the field.  What does that tell
football players?  As long as you do good on the field you'll still
be praised, the rest don't matter?  Bullshyt!  Roy put up excellent
numbers and did a whole lot more than Peppers that didn't show up in
the numbers.  The voters must have been Cowboys haters.  Roy had 5
INT 2 of which he brought back for TD's.  Roy had 3 forced fumbles
and 3 fumble recoveries.  That's 11 turnovers he was in on.  How many
turnovers was Peppers in on?  I think Roy had a couple of sacks too.
Plus Roy just scared the he!! out of WR's crossing the field and he
literally Knocked a few of them out cold.  "Get out the smelling
salts. We're playing Roy today."  It's totally ridiculous that Roy
Williams didn't win the DEF Rookie of the Year Award.

Enter your vote today!  A new poll has been created for the
dallascowboysofamerica group:

Who should be the Dallas Cowboys
starting quarterback in 2003?

   o Chad Hutchinson
   o Quincy Carter
   o A Veteran
   o A Rookie


To vote, please visit the following web page:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dallascowboysofamerica/surveys?id=390016

Note: Please do not reply to this message. Poll votes are
not collected via email. To vote, you must go to the Yahoo! Groups
web site listed above.

Thanks!

Quincy's stats were not better, they were almost identical!  Quincy
is not more of a playmaker than Hutch.  Galloway and Bryant go 50
yards down the field and Carter can't get them the ball but they
could go another 10-20 and Hutch still can.  How many times did
CArter throw the damn ball over someones head or at their feet when
he even had time to throw?  A whole bunch!  Quincy Carter doesn't
have the arm or the accuracy that Hutch has.  All Carter has is
scrambling ability but he NEVER uses it to pick up yards like
Culpepper, McNabb, or Vick.  What does Carter do when a defender is
about to hit him?  He folds up like an accordian, "Don't hit me
mister defender man"  What does Hutch do?  He crashes right into the
defender, gets up and head buts em LOL.  I've seen him do that a
couple of times.  I love Hutch.  Hutch shows soooo much heart.  What
did Quincy do when he got benched?  Did he encourage Hutch?  Did he
help teach him?  NO!  Carter was pouting on the sidelines.  It looked
like he was ready to cry.  Even the announcers were ripping on him
saying he had no leadership ability and it was childish to pout on
the sidelines like that.  When everyone else on the Cowboys was
standing, Carter was on the bench sitting with his head down.  He is
bad for the team and needs to be traded or cut.  I really don't think
we could even get a 7th rounder for him.  And you want CArter to
start? A guy that nobody else in the league wants?  Get real.  As for
Hutchinsons completion percentage which was barely over 50 percent,
just how many ball did he throw out of bounds to avoid the sack and
not force the ball in?  About 25 percent I think.  How many times was
Hutch hurried, knocked down, and sacked?  Just about every play.
Just an average offensive line would have upped his completion
percentage to the high 50's, and maybe 60 percent which is pretty
dang good.  Hutch is way more accurate than Carter.  Carter would
have time and an open receiver and miss him.  You didn't see Hutch do
that too often.  Even though Carter and Hutchinsons numbers were
about even, this was Carters second year and only Hutches first year
after being away from football for four years and holy shyt, he put
up about the same dang numbers.  Carter had a better offensive line
going for him too.  Carter had Adams, Allen, Gurode, Garmon, Page for
most of his starts with a fill in here and there.  What did Hutch
have?  Adams, Rex Tucker (who?), Walter, Gurode, and Javiar Collins
(the guy was a DT two years ago)with a fill in here and there.  What
happened with Hutches O-line? Inexperience they were missing what
Carters line had - experience.  Carters line wasn't good either and
guys blew by them but they didn't miss as many assignments.

The thing that nike has to understand is accuracy cannot be
determined on completion percentage stats only.  Carter forced the
ball more and therefore got a few more completions where as Hutch
threw the ball away rather than risk it or take the sack.  Hutch was
hurried, sacked and knocked down a whole helluva lot more than Carter
was which is proof that the O-line Hutch had to work with was
weaker.  Hutchinson is waayyyyy more accurate than Carter is.  Go
ahead and look back at the game tape.  And you can see where Carter
puts the ball for the receivers to catch (at their feet, about their
heads etc.) and the you can see where Hutch puts the ball (at their
numbers just about every time).  Go ahead and ask the announcers
calling the games, the guys who have been around football longer than
most of us, and they'll tell ya Hutch is more accurate.

Carter is not a playmaker.  How many times did he go over 20 points
in a game in two seasons?  1 time is it I think.  Playmakers score a
lot more than that man.  He comes up with a good play now and then
but teams aren't worried about him.  They are more scared of the big
play potential of Hutches arm and Galloways speed.  I heard more than
one person at the beginning of the season say that only one other QB
in the league has a stronger arm than Hutchinson and that is Favre.
I heard a whole bunch of others say that Hutch has one of the top
arms in the league.  I've also heard people say that Hutch would have
been a first rounder the year all the QB's came out (mcnabb,
culpepper, mcnown, couch, akili smith) and I even heard a few say
Hutch would have been first overall to the Browns.  We got Carter in
the second round, and were the laughing stocks of the whole NFL for
it.  Some teams said they wouldn't have taken him until the sixth
round and most teams said they weren't even considering Carter until
the 3rd.  We traded up for him in the second.  SHEESH!

I don't think it will set us back a  year.  They will learn the new
system over the summer and have it down by the time pre-season starts
and then they will iron out any wrinkles by the time the first game
of the season comes around.  Carthon said he is not using any one
system like the west coast offense.  He is coming up with something
unique that borrows from different systems.  I kinda like that idea.
Take what works from different systems and adapt to your personell.
Carthon is going to love FB Jamar Martin.

--- In dallascowboysofamerica@yahoogroups.com, "Jason
<nikeman2k2@y...>" <nikeman2k2@y...> wrote:
> i don't know much about carthon either but i hope whatever qb
starts
> we can start to have an offense but than again each player has to
> lean another new sceme so is this going to set us back another
year??
>
>
>
> --- In dallascowboysofamerica@yahoogroups.com, "Commish
> <commish_guy@y...>" <commish_guy@y...> wrote:
> > I don't know how I feel about this.  The Lions Offensive
> Coordinator
> > is now our Offensive Coordinator.  Hmmmmm....  don't know about
> > this.  What do Y'all think?  Parcells decided to keep Zimmer
too.
> No
> > word on Avezanno or Bill Bates yet.  Zimmer will also coach the
> > DB's.  Don't know if I like that either.  Why spread a guy thin?
> > Avezanno is one of the best coordinators in the game but I doubt
> > Parcells will put up with him doing two things at once like
> coaching
> > the Desperado's and his commercials.  But why would he get rid of
> > loyal player and coach Bill Bates?  Cowboys World is getting all
> > turned around now lol.
> >
> > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dallascowboysofamerica

Hutch or quincy. like to hear what ever had to say.
Quincy's stats are better in comp % yards and he had less negitive
plays, yet most people say Hutch is more accurate when actually he
isn't. And also Carter made more plays when we needed, he's a
playmaker where Hutch isn't

I love the cowboys and have watched them ever since i can remember.
I just hope we can get back to winning soon. i'm 22 and like
expressing my thoughts and observations.

i don't know much about carthon either but i hope whatever qb starts
we can start to have an offense but than again each player has to
lean another new sceme so is this going to set us back another year??



--- In dallascowboysofamerica@yahoogroups.com, "Commish
<commish_guy@y...>" <commish_guy@y...> wrote:
> I don't know how I feel about this.  The Lions Offensive
Coordinator
> is now our Offensive Coordinator.  Hmmmmm....  don't know about
> this.  What do Y'all think?  Parcells decided to keep Zimmer too.
No
> word on Avezanno or Bill Bates yet.  Zimmer will also coach the
> DB's.  Don't know if I like that either.  Why spread a guy thin?
> Avezanno is one of the best coordinators in the game but I doubt
> Parcells will put up with him doing two things at once like
coaching
> the Desperado's and his commercials.  But why would he get rid of
> loyal player and coach Bill Bates?  Cowboys World is getting all
> turned around now lol.
>
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dallascowboysofamerica

ok







>From: "Jerry Jones <dallascowboysownergmjerryjones@...>"
><dallascowboysownergmjerryjones@...>
>Reply-To: dallascowboysofamerica@yahoogroups.com
>To: dallascowboysofamerica@yahoogroups.com
>Subject: [dallascowboysofamerica] A Business Proposal
>Date: Sun, 05 Jan 2003 23:24:31 -0000
>
>As you know commish i am a mod of a dallas forum. Here is what i am
>proposing. Some way either you or i could promote my dallas forum. On
>this site, In return i will let people know about this site through
>there e-mail. If i promote this site with a message board, Then i run
>the risk of bein removed as the head mod and divisional administrator.
>Take your time think it over. You have my yahoo messeger screen name.
>Let me know what you decide
>
>
>To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
>dallascowboysofamerica-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
>
>
>
>Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/


_________________________________________________________________
MSN 8 with e-mail virus protection service: 2 months FREE*
http://join.msn.com/?page=features/virus

I don't know how I feel about this.  The Lions Offensive Coordinator
is now our Offensive Coordinator.  Hmmmmm....  don't know about
this.  What do Y'all think?  Parcells decided to keep Zimmer too.  No
word on Avezanno or Bill Bates yet.  Zimmer will also coach the
DB's.  Don't know if I like that either.  Why spread a guy thin?
Avezanno is one of the best coordinators in the game but I doubt
Parcells will put up with him doing two things at once like coaching
the Desperado's and his commercials.  But why would he get rid of
loyal player and coach Bill Bates?  Cowboys World is getting all
turned around now lol.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dallascowboysofamerica

Hi Jennifer.

--- In dallascowboysofamerica@yahoogroups.com, "Jennifer
<bakerywoman02@y...>" <bakerywoman02@y...> wrote:
> hello everyone. I was invited to join this group. Here I am. I am a
> Cowboys fan. My name is Jennifer.

As you know commish i am a mod of a dallas forum. Here is what i am
proposing. Some way either you or i could promote my dallas forum. On
this site, In return i will let people know about this site through
there e-mail. If i promote this site with a message board, Then i run
the risk of bein removed as the head mod and divisional administrator.
Take your time think it over. You have my yahoo messeger screen name.
Let me know what you decide

To prove that i am here i left this message

hello everyone. I was invited to join this group. Here I am. I am a
Cowboys fan. My name is Jennifer.

The man said in an article on nfl.com that Portis is his rookie of
the year.  He better get the good ship Cowboys!  Roy Williams should
be the rookie of the year!  Yeah Portis put up good numbers for a RB
but Roy put up great numbers for a FS.  The numbers Roy put up as a
FS were equal to 2000 yards by a RB.  Dang it Parcells.  Roy had 5
INT's 2 he brought back for TD's and he would have had another INT
brought back for a TD but there was a penalty on the play.  Roy had 3
forced fumbles and 3 fumble recoveries.  Roy also literally knocked
people out.  He knocked a few guys right out of the game.  WR's are
scared to cross the middle now on him and he's playing FS not SS.
Roy was on the ball on almost every play.  I don't wanna hear crap
about Portis.

Parcells in Dallas: What to expect
    By Pat Kirwan
Special to NFL.com



(Jan. 2, 2003) -- There are a number of theories about how and why
Bill Parcells decided to accept the head coach position with the
Dallas Cowboys.

Will he get along with Jerry Jones? That seems to be the biggest
issue at this time. They will get along for the first two years
because they want this relationship to work. Two years might be
enough time for Bill to get his standard Parcells reconstruction
program in place.

I spent seven months with Parcells during his Jets project, and I saw
firsthand how he gets things done.

He really needs as many former Parcells employees as he can get his
hands on to assist in getting the program up and running as quickly
as possible. His right-hand man, Bill Belichick, is no longer
available and I can't see anyone replacing all the things he did. If
you remember, Belichick preceded Parcells in the Jets takeover and
immediately secured the building. From the secretaries to the
maintenance people to the coaches and scouts, Parcells is not going
to run a team if he doesn't control the information coming into the
club and, most important, the information leaving the building. No
one will be allowed to talk with the media, and that includes
everyone!

If Jones wants the best Parcells has to offer, then everyone must
follow this rule. Before he got to the Jets, we had problems with the
outflow of information to the media, agents and other clubs. A day
after his arrival, that stopped for good. I was impressed, to say the
least.

Without most of his former staff available to move to Texas, this
will be hard to accomplish in Dallas. I'm sure the New York media has
already informed the Dallas media they won't be going to many
practices and they will get very little information to cover the
team. That is something people in Dallas are not used to. I will be
very interested to see how long the Cowboys go to preseason camp in a
hotel in San Antonio and have open practices like it's a show unto
itself.

The next issue is personnel to play the game. Trust me, Parcells has
been studying potential available talent around the league. I recall
the year before he went to New England he worked in television and
came to the Jets facility the day before a game he was covering. He
liked a few of the young players we had on our practice squad. Weeks
later, when he took the Pats job, he was trying to sign them.

He has a tremendous sense of the kind of players he wants to coach,
and he knows where to find them. For example, nobody saw what he saw
in Ray Lucas when he came out of Rutgers. With the Jets, he
communicated directly with many of the agents about clients. Players
want to play for the guy, and he looks for financial bargains and
usually finds them. He's not going to feel comfortable having some
contract negotiator doing that work, even if the person is the
owner's son working that end of this reconstruction plan.

Parcells groomed Mike Tannenbaum, who replaced me, to be his guy. If
you remember, Tannenbaum went down to Tampa Bay last year to
interview for Rich McKay's position right before Parcells turned down
the job. At some point, Parcells will want his own man controlling
the contracts and the cap.

He will cut the fat off the salary cap and look to make an example of
the first player who doesn't appear to want to behave as a loyal
Parcells soldier. When he was with the Jets, he demanded that if a
player was going to be on his team, he had better get totally
involved in the offseason program, which I thought was great.
Starting outside linebacker Bobby Houston missed a few sessions and
was gone.

The first football area Parcells will fix is special teams. In his
first team meeting with the Jets he said, "It might take some time to
be good on offense and defense, but we will be good on special teams
right away."

He will buy experienced, low-priced veterans to become the core
players and look to create a competitive advantage. As for starters,
he will tolerate players who can help him win quickly but he will
trade or cut them the minute he can get his hands on a franchise-type
player. When he came to the Jets, he let Adrian Murrell -- a 1,000-
yard back -- carry the ball until he got the opportunity to sign
Curtis Martin. Then Murrell was traded to the Cardinals. Same thing
happened to Hugh Douglas and Kyle Brady.

No player on the present Cowboys team is in a secure position. In
that sense, Parcells and Jones are similar -- they like to wheel and
deal. This time, Jones has to watch -- not participate. Parcells will
definitely put some of his old players who know how he wants things
done in that locker room ASAP. The veteran Cowboys need to be
educated as to how Parcells does business.

The Cowboys situation appears to be a lot more like the 1993 Patriots
than the '97 Jets or '83 Giants. Starting with ownership, Jerry's
style is more like New England's Bob Kraft than the quiet and almost
invisible Leon Hess (Jets) or Wellington Mara (Giants). Secondly,
Parcells had a veteran quarterback in Neil O'Donnell when he arrived
with the Jets. Parcells took a 1-15 team he inherited and went 9-7
the next season. That might not be the case in Dallas. This time, he
has a young, developing player he has to try to win with in Chad
Hutchinson, much like he did with Drew Bledsoe in 1993. This might
take more time than Parcells can afford to spend.


Like he did in New England, Bill Parcells will have to start in
Dallas without Bill Belichick.

Parcells will let the college scouts gather information, but when it
comes time for the draft he will run the show. I doubt we will see
the Dallas war room on television like we have in the past. During
his first draft with the Jets, I was impressed with the way he locked
out everyone from the process on draft day. There was no chance some
assistant coach, scout, or PR person was going to get on a phone and
tell his buddies or some media person what we were doing during the
draft. That is not how business has been in Dallas, but it is now.

Belichick did an incredible amount of the groundwork in the draft
preparation, but obviously he's not coming to Dallas. I'm not sure
how Parcells will fill that void.

So who will Bill try to get to help him rebuild the team? His
security director with the Jets, Steve Yarnell, would be a good place
to start. I could see him trying to convince his former assistant,
Tom Coughlin, to run the offense. It would be a longshot to get him
but it would be a real good fit for Parcells. I'm not sure it would
be the same fit for Coughlin, a man who has run an entire club for
the past eight years.

Parcells had Mark Bavaro come to Jets camp and work with tight ends,
and he would be a great addition. So would Maurice Carthon, who
played and coached for Parcells. Parcells feels Carthon has head-
coach qualities, but he's under contract to the Lions.

I wouldn't be surprised if he considers Bryan Cox for a coaching
position if he retires. Cox and Parcells would take a ride over to
the racetrack in the mornings to look at the horses. Both men own
thoroughbreds, and Parcells seems to like young coaches he can mold.
I could see him convincing personnel man Dick Haley to come out of
his retirement to run his college-scouting department.

If he can get a core of people who understand how he operates around
him, he can make this work. If not, this will be a very difficult
road.

Finally, I always believed Parcells would coach again -- that's what
coaches do. This is not an East Coast team where his home has always
been -- that will make this tough. He will make the Cowboys more
competitive but the losing in 2003 will take its toll on him,
especially against his three old teams -- all on the road. Unlike the
Chiefs and Dick Vermeil, who is the eternal optimist, the Cowboys
project and all the complicated issues surrounding it will make it
difficult to succeed.

All I can say is good luck to one of the great coaches I ever had the
pleasure to meet. All I can say to Jerry Jones is move back and let
the Parcells machine run the show.

Enter your vote today!  A new poll has been created for the
dallascowboysofamerica group:

What position will Dallas draft in the
first round of the 2001 draft?

   o QB
   o RB
   o DE
   o CB
   o OL
   o WR
   o TE
   o other


To vote, please visit the following web page:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dallascowboysofamerica/surveys?id=384795

Note: Please do not reply to this message. Poll votes are
not collected via email. To vote, you must go to the Yahoo! Groups
web site listed above.

Thanks!

Their point system that is.  I got every point available for a week
and was no where near the top.  That must mean someone is cheating.
I emailed their contact email a few dozen times and they never
contacted me back which means I must be right, someone is cheating.

ESPN and another site reported that we are over 11 million under the
cap right now.  Whooo hoooo.  NY Jets free agent guard Randy Thomas
has the same agent as Bill Parcels.  The rumors are that Thomas will
probably come here.  Can't say that I know much about Thomas but if
he is good, it would be a good signing only if we move Larry Allen
from Left Guard to Left Tackle which has been rumored too.



--- In dallascowboysofamerica@yahoogroups.com, "Commish
<commish_guy@y...>" <commish_guy@y...> wrote:
> Cap money not tight for Cowboys
> Team will have cash to spend but face some long-term issues
>
> 09/06/2002
>
> By CHIP BROWN / The Dallas Morning News
>
>
> IRVING – Despite spending nearly $42 million in signing bonuses
this
> off-season, the Cowboys should have at least $7.5 million to spend
> under the salary cap after the 2002 season, according to documents
> obtained by The Dallas Morning News.
>
> The NFL salary cap is $71.1 million this season and is expected to
> rise to $73.9 million in 2003, when the Cowboys will have several
> interesting decisions, including what to do with the contract of
> running back Emmitt Smith.
>
> The Cowboys' ability to stay out of salary cap jail in the next
> couple of years – when the team hopes to turn into a Super Bowl
> contender – will depend on how the players who landed the biggest
> signing bonuses this year – Larry Allen ($12.35 million), La'Roi
> Glover ($6 million), Darren Woodson ($5 million), Roy Williams ($4
> million) and Chad Hutchinson ($3.1 million) – perform.
>
>
> "You make mistakes that are tough to live with if you invest in the
> wrong guys at $10-plus million dollars per signing bonus," said
> Stephen Jones, the Cowboys executive vice president.
>
> "On this team, the guys we've given that money to are Emmitt Smith,
> Joey Galloway and Larry Allen. Emmitt's played the majority of that
> contract, so that was a wise investment. Larry Allen's probably
going
> to be a hall of famer. You don't go places letting hall of famers
> leave your squad."
>
> Whether Galloway was a wise investment remains to be seen. He has
yet
> to prove that he is worth the $12.5 million signing bonus the
Cowboys
> gave him in 2000 after trading two first-round picks to Seattle to
> get the receiver.
>
> When Jones is asked about the financial viability of the Cowboys
over
> the next few years, he brings up the contracts of Smith, Galloway
and
> Raghib Ismail.
>
> "As far as long term, we've got some cap issues still," Jones
> said. "As Emmitt gets older, he's got a big bonus that has to come
> off at some point. As far as Joey and Rocket, they are older
players
> that have some big bonuses with them. But overall, we feel good
about
> it."
>
> Jones refused to comment on whether Smith, Galloway and Ismail, all
> of whom are under contract through at least 2005, will be in the
> team's plans after this season. But the Cowboys have shown in the
> past (Troy Aikman and Deion Sanders) that they are willing to
> terminate contracts of older players if production becomes a
> question.
>
> Smith, 33, who has been paid $23.473 million in signing bonuses to
> renegotiate his contract four times since 1996, will count $9.8
> million against the cap in 2003. The cost of cutting Smith after
this
> season would be $4.95 million – a savings of $4.85 million under
the
> cap.
>
> Galloway, 30, will count $6.6 million against the cap in 2003. The
> cost of cutting Galloway after this season would be $7.14 million
> under the cap.
>
> Ismail, 32, will count $4.9 million against the cap in 2003. The
cost
> of cutting Ismail after this season would be $2.8 million – a
savings
> of $2.1 million under the cap.
>
> The other financial issues facing the Cowboys involve their players
> who become free agents after this season. The unrestricted free
> agents will be Flozell Adams, Solomon Page, Peppi Zellner, Brandon
> Noble, Mike Lucky, Michael Myers, Aaron Gibson, Duane Hawthorne and
> Bryant Westbrook.
>
> The Cowboys will have $7.5 million under the cap next season, even
if
> they decide to pay linebacker Kevin Hardy a $5.025 million option
> payment to extend his contract four years.
>
> "We've got room to either pay our players or go get other players,"
> Jones said. "What I hope is they are players right here on this
> field."
>
> The Cowboys used free agency this off-season to solve needs on
> defense. But Dallas still appears to be looking for long-range
> answers at cornerback, tight end and possibly running back. Those
are
> areas the team might need to spend money next year to either renew
> contracts of current Cowboys or to land some free agents.
>
> "The whole key is going to be how we invest our money over the next
> couple years," Jones said. "It's not necessarily what we've done up
> to this point. It's the decisions we're fixing to make. I'll
> reiterate it again, you better be right when you pay someone $10-
plus
> million dollars in bonuses. That's how you get yourself in the most
> trouble."
>
>
> Archives: More information on this or other topics from The Dallas
> Morning News.
> Subscribe to The Dallas Morning News.

Geez I hope not.  I don't want Plummer anymore either after checking
his stats.  Plummer averages 18 interceptions a year and has thrown
20 or more a few times.  ICK!

We will have to wait and see what experience will bring to the table
with a real footbool guy at the helm, hopefully jones lets parcells
make the right decisions to bring back americas team to dallas!!!!

Cap money not tight for Cowboys
Team will have cash to spend but face some long-term issues

09/06/2002

By CHIP BROWN / The Dallas Morning News


IRVING – Despite spending nearly $42 million in signing bonuses this
off-season, the Cowboys should have at least $7.5 million to spend
under the salary cap after the 2002 season, according to documents
obtained by The Dallas Morning News.

The NFL salary cap is $71.1 million this season and is expected to
rise to $73.9 million in 2003, when the Cowboys will have several
interesting decisions, including what to do with the contract of
running back Emmitt Smith.

The Cowboys' ability to stay out of salary cap jail in the next
couple of years – when the team hopes to turn into a Super Bowl
contender – will depend on how the players who landed the biggest
signing bonuses this year – Larry Allen ($12.35 million), La'Roi
Glover ($6 million), Darren Woodson ($5 million), Roy Williams ($4
million) and Chad Hutchinson ($3.1 million) – perform.


"You make mistakes that are tough to live with if you invest in the
wrong guys at $10-plus million dollars per signing bonus," said
Stephen Jones, the Cowboys executive vice president.

"On this team, the guys we've given that money to are Emmitt Smith,
Joey Galloway and Larry Allen. Emmitt's played the majority of that
contract, so that was a wise investment. Larry Allen's probably going
to be a hall of famer. You don't go places letting hall of famers
leave your squad."

Whether Galloway was a wise investment remains to be seen. He has yet
to prove that he is worth the $12.5 million signing bonus the Cowboys
gave him in 2000 after trading two first-round picks to Seattle to
get the receiver.

When Jones is asked about the financial viability of the Cowboys over
the next few years, he brings up the contracts of Smith, Galloway and
Raghib Ismail.

"As far as long term, we've got some cap issues still," Jones
said. "As Emmitt gets older, he's got a big bonus that has to come
off at some point. As far as Joey and Rocket, they are older players
that have some big bonuses with them. But overall, we feel good about
it."

Jones refused to comment on whether Smith, Galloway and Ismail, all
of whom are under contract through at least 2005, will be in the
team's plans after this season. But the Cowboys have shown in the
past (Troy Aikman and Deion Sanders) that they are willing to
terminate contracts of older players if production becomes a
question.

Smith, 33, who has been paid $23.473 million in signing bonuses to
renegotiate his contract four times since 1996, will count $9.8
million against the cap in 2003. The cost of cutting Smith after this
season would be $4.95 million – a savings of $4.85 million under the
cap.

Galloway, 30, will count $6.6 million against the cap in 2003. The
cost of cutting Galloway after this season would be $7.14 million
under the cap.

Ismail, 32, will count $4.9 million against the cap in 2003. The cost
of cutting Ismail after this season would be $2.8 million – a savings
of $2.1 million under the cap.

The other financial issues facing the Cowboys involve their players
who become free agents after this season. The unrestricted free
agents will be Flozell Adams, Solomon Page, Peppi Zellner, Brandon
Noble, Mike Lucky, Michael Myers, Aaron Gibson, Duane Hawthorne and
Bryant Westbrook.

The Cowboys will have $7.5 million under the cap next season, even if
they decide to pay linebacker Kevin Hardy a $5.025 million option
payment to extend his contract four years.

"We've got room to either pay our players or go get other players,"
Jones said. "What I hope is they are players right here on this
field."

The Cowboys used free agency this off-season to solve needs on
defense. But Dallas still appears to be looking for long-range
answers at cornerback, tight end and possibly running back. Those are
areas the team might need to spend money next year to either renew
contracts of current Cowboys or to land some free agents.

"The whole key is going to be how we invest our money over the next
couple years," Jones said. "It's not necessarily what we've done up
to this point. It's the decisions we're fixing to make. I'll
reiterate it again, you better be right when you pay someone $10-plus
million dollars in bonuses. That's how you get yourself in the most
trouble."


Archives: More information on this or other topics from The Dallas
Morning News.
Subscribe to The Dallas Morning News.

As I checked this morning's KC Star sports pages, an image formed in
my mind relating back to the 1998 offseason.

A poll in the local paper asked:  "Who should the Chiefs keep, Gannon
or Grbac".....Local fans voted 80% for Gannon"

At this point in time, Gannon is the MVP of the NFL and Grbac is
retired and spends his days surfing off the coast of California.

So much for Carl Peterson expertise.

Go Parcells -- He is the guy to bring respectability back to Cowboy
football.

#############################################################

How much cap room do we have for free agents?

Both are good coaches.  It would be a shame to lose either of them.
Is Coslett gone yet?  I can't wait lol.

If we sign a QB like Jake Plummer then we should trade Hutch and
Quincy for some draft picks and get a young QB in the second round.
If Magahee is not entering the draft or he is not there when we pick,
then we should trade down for extra picks.  If Magahee is there when
we pick we should take him.  If we can get T Orlando Pace in free
agency then we should get a good DE in the draft.  If we can get a
guy like Patrick Kerney in free agency then we should concentrate on
O line in the draft.  If we could get both Kerney and Pace then we
should get the best available players but we still need two Off.
Tackles unless we move Larry Allen over to tackle.  If we do that
then we need a guard.

Confusing? LOL

Hmmmmm.... DT's Brandon Noble and Michael Myers are free agents.
La'Roi Glover would be the guy in the middle. Nix would be a big
backup for him. Ellis would be on one side and we have to go get
someone else for the other side. If he does change it, man do we
need some LB's. Coakley, Dat, Hardy (FA), and Steele are all good
but we would need some backups. At least a couple that are decent
too. Maybe another inside LB to start too. I'd rather keep Mike
Zimmer and stay with the 4-3 though. It would be a total injustice
to fire Zimmer. He's done a spectacular job, even without a
passrush. Kevin Hardy would be huge in a 3-4 though. I can't wait
to hear the news conference tomorrow afternoon. I've heard it will
be at around 4pm eastern/3pm central on espn news. Did they announce
the firing of Coslett yet? It's making me nervous they didn't
announce that yet. Firing Coslett is better news than hiring
Parcells, I think. I blame all of our problems on Coslett, well,
most of them lol. As the Offensive Coord., it is his job to
recognize that 3/5ths of our starting line isn't up to the task.
Starting RG Garmon got cut at the beg. of the year. Starting RT and
LT Page and Adams were horrible. He should have recognized that and
told Jerry to go get someone else, or trade them before others
realized they all of a sudden sucked. Cosletts play calling also
sucked and I think Campo got blamed for that quite a bit. Also,
Campo let Coslett make some of the decisions like not going for it
and kicking a fg. Coslett should have been fired before Campo.

2003 NFL Draft first-round order

1.  Cincinnati Bengals  2  14  0  .125  .537  136-117-3
2.  Detroit Lions  3  13  0  .188  .494  126-129-1
3.  Houston Texans  4  12  0  .250  .518  132-123-1
4.  Chicago Bears  4  12  0  .250  .521  132-122-1
5.  Arizona Cardinals #  5  11  0  .313  .500  128-128-0
6.  Dallas Cowboys #  5  11  0  .313  .500  128-128-0
7.  Minnesota Vikings  6  10  0  .375  .498  127-128-1
8.  Jacksonville Jaguars  6  10  0  .375  .506  129-126-1
9.  Carolina Panthers  7  9  0  .438  .486  123-130-3
10.  Baltimore Ravens #  7  9  0  .438  .506  128-125-3
11.  Seattle Seahawks #  7  9  0  .438  .506  129-126-1
12.  St. Louis Rams  7  9  0  .438  .508  130-126-0
13.  Washington Redskins  7  9  0  .438  .527  135-121-0
14.  NE Patriots (from the Bills)
15.  San Diego Chargers  8  8  0  .500  .492  126-130-0
16.  Kansas City Chiefs  8  8  0  .500  .527  135-121-0
17.  New Orleans Saints  9  7  0  .563  .498  126-127-3
18.  Miami Dolphins  9  7  0  .563  .508  130-126-0
19.  New England Patriots  9  7  0  .563  .525  134-121-1
20.  Denver Broncos  9  7  0  .563  .527  135-121-0
21.  Cleveland Browns*  9  7  0  .563  .486  123-130-3
22.  New York Jets*  9  7  0  .563  .500  128-128-0
23.  Atlanta Falcons*  9  6  1  .594  .494  126-129-1
24.  Indianapolis Colts*  10  6  0  .625  .479  122-133-1
25.  New York Giants*  10  6  0  .625  .482  123-132-1
26.  San Francisco 49ers*  10  6  0  .625  .504  129-127-0
27.  Pittsburgh Steelers*  10  5  1  .656  .486  124-131-1
28.  Tennessee Titans*  11  5  0  .688  .479  122-133-1
29.  Oakland Raiders*  11  5  0  .688  .529  135-120-1
30.  Green Bay Packers*  12  4  0  .750  .451  115-140-1
31.  Philadelphia Eagles*  12  4  0  .750  .469  120-136-0
32.  Oakland Raiders  (from TB)

This is his latest story which he whines some more and says we have a
long way to go.  We don't have a long way to go.  This guy writes for
us? OR is a Phil. Eagles fan in disguise?  We have some holes but
they can be filled in the offseason.  He fails to mention that we've
been in every game this year except the Eagles game.  He also gives
the 49ers a hand for taking that game from us.  What? Why?  If Derek
Ross does not get injured and we don't have Goodrich on Owens, they
do not score twice in the last 6 minutes and we beat S.F.  Heck,
Derek would probably have had an INT.  And why is Spagnola (that just
sounds like a philly name) so negative?  We get a healthy Larry Allen
back next year which will do wonders for the O-Line right?  We get FB
Jamar Martin back who was destroying would-be tacklers in the pre-
season.  We get high draft choices on top of that.  Also our rookies
will have another years experience.  And oh yeah, don't forget we get
Darren Woodson back.  This is his latest story, "Heres to the 49ers"

Here's To The 49ers


By MICKEY SPAGNOLA
DallasCowboys.com Columnist
December 10, 2002, 6:55 p.m. (CST)

IRVING, Texas - Instead of Soprano-ing a wall following San Francisco
31, Cowboys 27 Sunday afternoon, the Cowboys should have stood in the
tunnel at Texas Stadium, and as the 49ers walked out to their bus for
the merry ride back to the Bay, stuck out their hands and said:

"Grazie."

Very, very much.

Oh, no one likes to lose, not even a team that now stands 5-8 and has
no shot at making the playoffs for a third consecutive season and no
shot at finishing with a winning record for the fourth consecutive
season. Losing in the NFL is hard.

As head coach Dave Campo said the morning after, "Let me say this,
(owner Jerry Jones) wasn't the only one to let out some F-bombs
yesterday. We both wanted to win that game badly, and we had a chance
to do it and we didn't get it done. We all say things when we're
frustrated, that's part of the game. That's why this is an emotional
football game, that's why I'm in it.

"Obviously we were both very disappointed we didn't finish the game
out and get a W."

But the 49ers did the Cowboys a favor on a drizzly Sunday at Texas
Stadium upon further review. They served as a barometer for the
franchise's future forecast, and that barometric pressure reminded
everyone in the organization, or at least should have, from the owner
all the way down to the last scout out there on the college range,
this team has a ways to go before contending for a NFC East title;
before they are considered serious playoff contenders.

See, the Cowboys might have won five games this year, but the
majority of those victories were over teams of their own ilk. In
fact, the Cowboys have beaten only one team this year currently
without a 5-8 record. That would be Tennessee, which has rebounded to
post an 8-5 record with three games to play.

Beating Jacksonville and Washington back-to-back is great. But all
you've done is beat a team of your own caliber.

But with San Francisco, now a team already having clinched the NFC
West, a team tied for the fourth best record in the NFL, now you get
a better read of where you really are in this laborious rebuilding
process. Now you find out where all your weaknesses are, just as the
Cowboys received an early read when beaten 44-13 at Philadelphia the
third week of the season.

While you might be able to disguise your weaknesses against mediocre
teams, just as in a playoff game, the good teams always find your
soft spot, eventually whacking you in your underbelly. That's what
San Francisco did in the final 6:56 of a game the Cowboys
inexplicably were leading, 27-17.

They not only broke the Cowboys knuckles for poor play on the field,
but also for poor personnel decisions and poor drafts, the Cowboys
finding themselves having to rely on a few players who were not
reliable or ready to help this team make the big step toward a .500
season.

The thinking behind releasing Duane Hawthorne on Saturday was to
finally find out once and for all about Dwayne Goodrich, their second-
round pick in 2000. They knew Hawthorne, an unrestricted free agent,
wouldn't be around next year. So it was time to see if Goodrich could
play.

They got a succinct answer - for the umpteenth time. No, no, no.

They've been waiting to see if rookie kicker Billy Cundiff would turn
the corner, prove why they decided to stick with him instead of a
veteran. He's not. Not yet, anyway, no different than most rookie
kickers. He has invited spring-time competition, no doubt.

They've been waiting to see where rookie Pete Hunter is, having to
play him in the slot with Hawthorne gone and Darren Woodson on IR.
They found out: In a fog all day against the Niners, understandably
for a Division II player probably overwhelmed by the magnitude of the
competition.

They've been trying to get a better indication of just where 2001
second-round draft choice Tony Dixon might be. They did: MIA. One
tackle while on the field the entire game, and poor coverage in his
part of the zone on the winning touchdown.

They've been trying to decide if they have starting caliber defensive
ends. They are sure about Greg Ellis, an all-day sucker out there.
But on the other side, they are coming up empty with Ebenezer Ekuban
and Peppi Zellner. Nice players, but on the official tackle charts in
the game, Eb had one more tackle than Zellner…one.

Now the offensive line. We've known this to be a problem all year. It
became an even bigger problem on Sunday. And this time, we're not
talking assignment errors so much as we're talking just not good
enough - yet - to handle the Niners front. The inside guys - Tyson
Walter, Ross Tucker, Andre Gurode and Matt Lehr - struggled to handle
Bryant Young and Dana Stubblefield. We only got more confirmation the
tackles, Solomon Page and Flozell Adams, will not become high-priced
free-agent priorities.

"I don't think they played very well Sunday," was the head coach's
assessment of their play. "They struggled. They need to get back, to
get focused and go forward."

And because of the problems the Cowboys had up front all day, it
becomes difficult then to decide just where rookie quarterback Chad
Hutchinson is, other than being a tough SOB, along with veteran
running back Emmitt Smith, young running back Troy Hambrick and the
wide receiver corps. (Although you hate to hear the offensive
coordinator saying afterward he saw some routes being run in the game
he wasn't familiar with. Hmmmm.)

On top of all this, the trickle down effect from injuries crippled
the special teams. Suddenly special teams guys have become starters,
which means they are either pulled from teams or are having to play
an inordinate amount of plays. Eighty-six defensive plays is
inordinate. And when they become starters, then backups either not
playing or not even on the teams suddenly are manning special teams.
There were problems in coverage all day.

Hey, did you realize that of the 53 guys on the roster, 10 were
either out of jobs heading into the first week of the season or ended
up on waivers or had been on a practice squad. Ten! That is nearly 20
percent of your roster.

Furthermore, the 49ers confirmed some faulty personnel decisions from
the start of the season on: Keeping Goodrich at the sake of Pat
Dennis and Jason Bell, and now, even Hawthorne. Deciding to cut Micah
Knorr, the team now suffering on kick offs, with the punting no
better. Not re-signing George Teague, and finding yourself 13 games
into the season trying to protect your three-point lead in the final
two minutes back there with the likes of Dixon, Lynn Scott, Hunter,
Goodrich, Mario Edwards and Roy Williams - not a one old enough to
shave in the NFL.

Then there was looking to the future, going with the rookie kicker
instead of Tim Seder, although that one might have been six of one,
half-dozen of the other, and could still pay dividends since young
kickers normally need a season or three to mature. And while Darnay
Scott might have lent some experience to the receiving corps after
the loss of Rocket Ismail, have his 19 receptions really been that
valuable? Enough so to take snaps away from Antonio Bryant, Ken-Yon
Rambo and Reggie Swinton?

But at the same time, while the Cowboys already probably thought so
on this one, they now know beyond any doubt they have darn good
players in Glover, Ellis, Kevin Hardy, Dat Nguyen, Dexter Coakley,
Roy Williams, Derek Ross, Brandon Noble, John Nix, Michael Myers,
Joey Galloway, Woody Dantzler, Antonio Bryant, Gurode, Tony McGee -
guys who can play with the San Francisco's of the world. Now add
Larry Allen and Darren Woodson back next year, plus another possible
top 10 draft choice, another high second rounder and a free agent or
two, and this team might just be on it's way.

"We're not that far from San Francisco," said Cowboys owner Jerry
Jones, who by the way, did take responsibility for some of the moves
mentioned above that have appeared to backfire. "But we could be a
long way away if Chad isn't coming on and (Jeff) Garcia continues to
play the way he's playing.

"We competed with them and competed with them last year."

So this is a start, which, if you remember, that's what this season
was supposed to be about. Starting over, nearly from scratch.

And one more thing: While everyone wants to clobber Campo for not
going for it on fourth-and-one, there were many other reasons why the
Cowboys lost this game. Hey, while he should have gone for it, how
much you willing to wager they would have made the yard-and-a-half to
win the game?

While everyone else wants to clobber Goodrich for not being good
enough, someone had to decide he was good enough in the first place
to select in the second round and then someone had to decide to
continue to keep him around when it seemed his lives had expired.

And while everyone moans about Cundiff's miss, someone had to decide
to roll with the rookie kicker; to release Knorr and leave him
handling kickoffs, too.

So when Jones was caught walking off Sunday afternoon uttering his by-
now infamous expletive-laced shot, "The players played well enough to
win. We (ahemed) it up," he has since reassured us that "we" was all-
encompassing upon further review, multiple nooses (neese?) hanging
from the stadium rafters.

But no matter what, don't forget: Thank the Niners. Don't lay a
knuckle sandwich on the wall. They helped in this season-long
evaluation process, giving the Cowboys a more accurate gauge of just
where they are, no matter how badly it hurt to find out.

Here's to the 49ers.

Salute!

MICK SHOTS

  What a fine how-do-you-do the Cowboys have gotten themselves into at
cornerback. The front office forced the release of Hawthorne so the
coaching staff would have no choice but to finally play Goodrich to
find out if he's a player once and for all. Well they found out. But
if Derek Ross (hip) can't play, do they really want to start Goodrich
against the Giants? Do they really want to start Pete Hunter against
the Giants? They might have no choice, especially since a call back
to Hawthorne found him being courted by San Francisco. And if he can
convince the 49ers to sign him to more than a three-game deal, he'll
gladly turn his back on the Cowboys.
  Three plays you probably forgot, but shouldn't have in the San
Francisco game:
  Trailing 10-6 in the second quarter, Troy Hambrick went 50 yards to
the Niners 10, only to have the play called back for holding on
Darnay Scott. Instead of at least three points, the Cowboys had to
punt on fourth-and-one.
Even though the Niners declined the penalty, the holding call on
Solomon Page with 3:10 left in the game at the San Francisco 37
stopped the clock, affording Frisco another 30 seconds at least.
With just more than a minute remaining, Jeff Garcia shrugged off
Hardy at the Cowboys 41 to complete an out pass to Paul Smith. Hunter
missed the tackle at about the 40, allowing Smith to not only gain 11
yards and another first down, but to also get out of bounds with 57
seconds remaining to save at least another 10 or 15 seconds.

  Complaints seemingly abound about Emmitt Smith growing old for a
running back. Well answer me this: Why are there only 12 backs in the
league with at least 200 carries averaging more than Smith's 4.1-yard
average in 217 carries?
  Only two teams are passing for fewer yards than the Cowboys173.7 a
game: Baltimore and Houston.

We need a RT and back-ups for the O-Line.  We also need back-up
CB's.  Back-up RB and QB maybe too.  I think we also need a starting
DE.  But most teams have more needs than that.  I don't think our O-
line is as bad as they are playing or as bad as people think.  We get
Larry Allen back and then add a good starting right tackle and we
could have one of the best O-Lines in the league.  Heck that is a
2/5ths change in the line.  We haven't really had Larry Allen all
year.  Tyson Walter is playing great at center and Andre Gurode will
be good at guard.  Another year of experience and they'll be even
better.  Chad Hutchinson has been awesome when he has had
protection.

The thing that makes me think that we need some coaching changes is
not necessarily the bad play calling, but the fact that the coaching
staff could not recognize the bad play of our own line and deal with
it before the season started, IE Kelvin Garmon, Aaron Gibson, Bryant
Westbrook, Duane Hawthorne etc.