Catching up with the Dallas Cowboy coaching staff
Matt Mosley: Catching up with the coaching staff
04:55 AM CST on Friday, February 24, 2006
To butcher a phrase from a noted author/humorist, rumors of my demise were only slightly exaggerated.
Many of you (4) have sent e-mails inquiring why I've gone weeks without delivering a Cowboys column. One man sent this encouraging note: "Can't wait for you to return so I can go back to ripping you."
You guys have always been there for me.
And now that my quasi-vacation is complete, it's time to start talking Cowboys.
For at least one week, we're not going to have a CowboysPlus.com T-shirt contest. I realize this will reduce my audience to a handful, but we'll make it through.
I've received quite a few e-mails regarding all the coaching staff changes, so that's where we'll begin.
Assistant head coach and passing game coordinator Sean Payton took the head coaching position in New Orleans, which was perceived by some to be a promotion. He quickly hired Cowboys linebackers coach Gary Gibbs as his defensive coordinator and asked head coach Bill Parcells for permission to interview offensive line coach Tony Sparano for the offensive coordinator position.
As some of you know, Parcells quickly dismissed that request.
He left Sparano, who is universally praised by Cowboys players, dangling in the wind for a couple of weeks before adding the assistant head coach title to Sparano's duties. This is basically a consolation prize for not being able to follow Payton to New Orleans.
In other coaching news, quarterbacks coach David Lee turned down an opportunity to be the University of Arkansas offensive coordinator a few weeks before his job was handed to former Texans offensive coordinator Chris Palmer. Lee was a finalist for the Jets' tight ends opening, but he came up short and will remain in Dallas as an offensive assistant/quality control coach.
Fiery receivers coach Todd Haley added passing game coordinator to his list of responsibilities, which is something that one of his biggest fans, Keyshawn Johnson, predicted before the Super Bowl.
Former tight ends coach Paul Pasqualoni is now coaching outside linebackers, and former Alabama quarterback Freddie Kitchens will coach the tight ends. Former Patriots linebacker Vincent Brown, who served a brief coaching internship with the Cowboys last August, was brought up from the high school ranks to coach inside linebackers.
What does all this mean to you?
It just means that Parcells will probably go back to calling the plays, a duty he finally gave Payton last season. It also means Pro Bowler Jason Witten will have his third tight ends coach in four years. Not that it will stunt his development, but for a position that Parcells places so much importance on, he hasn't seemed interested in keeping much continuity.
Now, let's hear what you have to see in today's edition of Matt's Mail Call Plus Some Other Mildly Interesting Items:
First, let's go to Christopher Bryant in Reading, Pa., who's been one of our most faithful readers over the past three years: "Are we ever going to get anything out of Jacob Rogers or are we going to sign Jets offensive tackle Jason Fabini?"
For those of you who thought Rogers was released last August, you were right. But once he cleared waivers, he reverted to the club's waived/injured list.
So while most of us had put the Rogers era behind us and labeled him a bust, there he sat on the roster. Owner Jerry Jones, who had serious reservations about Rogers leading up to the 2004 draft, was fed up with Rogers when he decided to undergo season-ending knee surgery against the club's advice.
Parcells said he'd learned from former Packers general manager Ron Wolf that sometimes you have to "cut your losses."
But all that happened before left tackle Torrin Tucker and rookie right tackle Rob Petitti gave up a combined 26 sacks. The Cowboys have decided that giving Rogers one last chance might not be such a bad idea. They're going to take the same salary cap hit ($855,000) either way.
And that long-winded response brings us to Fabini, who could play either offensive tackle spot. But does this team need another aging offensive lineman? Fabini, 31, was banged up every week before his season ended with a torn pectoral muscle.
Parcells did draft him in 1998, but I don't think he'll end up here.
Artis Carrol from our Chicago bureau has another free-agent question: "Ty Law just got cut from the J-E-T-S, Jets. Would the Cowboys be interested? Or does he fall into the category of "too old" and "too expensive?" Grace & Peace.
Artis, thanks for stopping by the column. The Cowboys went a long way toward addressing their cornerback needs last off-season. I'm told that Anthony Henry has finally healed from his nagging injuries, and Aaron Glenn performed admirably in his place.
Throw in the progress of Jacques Reeves and I don't think there's a real need for a player who's not ready for a backup role.
Our I-told-you-so moment of the week comes from longtime Cowboys fan Don Phillips, who indeed pointed to the fact that Rogers might be a possibility a couple of months ago: "Check your e-mail files. ... I wrote back a couple of months ago. I thought Parcells was sandbagging and playing mind games with Jacob Rogers, especially when I found out they still had his rights.
"I guarantee you Parcells has had someone monitoring his progress while he has been rehabbing. ... This little process has merely been the Julius Jones 'helmet tapping' episode to the 33rd power! Also, what do you think about Marc Colombo's chances next year? Do you really think, with the exception of Jeff Backus (whom the Lions are not likely to let go) that any of the free agents available are better than what we have?"
Don, I'm not overwhelmed by any of the free agents, but I do like some of the players who will go in the first two rounds of the draft. I keep hearing good things about Winston Justice, who like Rogers is another USC player.
You can't go with status quo at right tackle. And you're talking to a Rob Petitti apologist. He's a terrific kid, but he got thrown into a situation he wasn't ready for. You can't go into this season pinning your hopes on his continued improvement.
Colombo is a long shot at best. He's a former first-round pick who has endured some awful injuries. Anything you get from this guy would be completely unexpected, although he may use his 6-7 frame to block a few extra points.
Allen's stunning achievement: Cowboys left guard Larry Allen's best years are behind him, but he still has to be the strongest player in the NFL.
Did you guys happen to see the ESPN clip of Allen bench pressing 225 pounds 43 times in the days leading up to the completely bogus Pro Bowl? I'm not sure I could lift the bar (45 pounds) 43 times. To put this in perspective, another Cowboys weight-room warrior, center Al Johnson, guessed he could only lift 225 pounds about 26 times. And that's when he's in peak condition. Allen finished up a 16-game season, probably took some time off and then treats 225 pounds like it's nothing.
Can you imagine how intimidating it must be for the folks who lift weights next to Allen at the Coppell (Texas) YMCA?
Who in the world spots this guy?
But in other Allen news, I'm hearing talk that the Cowboys want him to restructure his contract to lessen his impact on the salary cap. Good luck on this deal, Jerry. Allen's represented by Marvin Demoff, who returns my calls once every three years or so.
Demoff's not a man known for compromising, so I would be shocked if something gets done. If the Cowboys give Allen an ultimatum of restructuring or being cut loose, my guess is that he chooses the latter.
04:55 AM CST on Friday, February 24, 2006
To butcher a phrase from a noted author/humorist, rumors of my demise were only slightly exaggerated.
Many of you (4) have sent e-mails inquiring why I've gone weeks without delivering a Cowboys column. One man sent this encouraging note: "Can't wait for you to return so I can go back to ripping you."
You guys have always been there for me.
And now that my quasi-vacation is complete, it's time to start talking Cowboys.
For at least one week, we're not going to have a CowboysPlus.com T-shirt contest. I realize this will reduce my audience to a handful, but we'll make it through.
I've received quite a few e-mails regarding all the coaching staff changes, so that's where we'll begin.
Assistant head coach and passing game coordinator Sean Payton took the head coaching position in New Orleans, which was perceived by some to be a promotion. He quickly hired Cowboys linebackers coach Gary Gibbs as his defensive coordinator and asked head coach Bill Parcells for permission to interview offensive line coach Tony Sparano for the offensive coordinator position.
As some of you know, Parcells quickly dismissed that request.
He left Sparano, who is universally praised by Cowboys players, dangling in the wind for a couple of weeks before adding the assistant head coach title to Sparano's duties. This is basically a consolation prize for not being able to follow Payton to New Orleans.
In other coaching news, quarterbacks coach David Lee turned down an opportunity to be the University of Arkansas offensive coordinator a few weeks before his job was handed to former Texans offensive coordinator Chris Palmer. Lee was a finalist for the Jets' tight ends opening, but he came up short and will remain in Dallas as an offensive assistant/quality control coach.
Fiery receivers coach Todd Haley added passing game coordinator to his list of responsibilities, which is something that one of his biggest fans, Keyshawn Johnson, predicted before the Super Bowl.
Former tight ends coach Paul Pasqualoni is now coaching outside linebackers, and former Alabama quarterback Freddie Kitchens will coach the tight ends. Former Patriots linebacker Vincent Brown, who served a brief coaching internship with the Cowboys last August, was brought up from the high school ranks to coach inside linebackers.
What does all this mean to you?
It just means that Parcells will probably go back to calling the plays, a duty he finally gave Payton last season. It also means Pro Bowler Jason Witten will have his third tight ends coach in four years. Not that it will stunt his development, but for a position that Parcells places so much importance on, he hasn't seemed interested in keeping much continuity.
Now, let's hear what you have to see in today's edition of Matt's Mail Call Plus Some Other Mildly Interesting Items:
First, let's go to Christopher Bryant in Reading, Pa., who's been one of our most faithful readers over the past three years: "Are we ever going to get anything out of Jacob Rogers or are we going to sign Jets offensive tackle Jason Fabini?"
For those of you who thought Rogers was released last August, you were right. But once he cleared waivers, he reverted to the club's waived/injured list.
So while most of us had put the Rogers era behind us and labeled him a bust, there he sat on the roster. Owner Jerry Jones, who had serious reservations about Rogers leading up to the 2004 draft, was fed up with Rogers when he decided to undergo season-ending knee surgery against the club's advice.
Parcells said he'd learned from former Packers general manager Ron Wolf that sometimes you have to "cut your losses."
But all that happened before left tackle Torrin Tucker and rookie right tackle Rob Petitti gave up a combined 26 sacks. The Cowboys have decided that giving Rogers one last chance might not be such a bad idea. They're going to take the same salary cap hit ($855,000) either way.
And that long-winded response brings us to Fabini, who could play either offensive tackle spot. But does this team need another aging offensive lineman? Fabini, 31, was banged up every week before his season ended with a torn pectoral muscle.
Parcells did draft him in 1998, but I don't think he'll end up here.
Artis Carrol from our Chicago bureau has another free-agent question: "Ty Law just got cut from the J-E-T-S, Jets. Would the Cowboys be interested? Or does he fall into the category of "too old" and "too expensive?" Grace & Peace.
Artis, thanks for stopping by the column. The Cowboys went a long way toward addressing their cornerback needs last off-season. I'm told that Anthony Henry has finally healed from his nagging injuries, and Aaron Glenn performed admirably in his place.
Throw in the progress of Jacques Reeves and I don't think there's a real need for a player who's not ready for a backup role.
Our I-told-you-so moment of the week comes from longtime Cowboys fan Don Phillips, who indeed pointed to the fact that Rogers might be a possibility a couple of months ago: "Check your e-mail files. ... I wrote back a couple of months ago. I thought Parcells was sandbagging and playing mind games with Jacob Rogers, especially when I found out they still had his rights.
"I guarantee you Parcells has had someone monitoring his progress while he has been rehabbing. ... This little process has merely been the Julius Jones 'helmet tapping' episode to the 33rd power! Also, what do you think about Marc Colombo's chances next year? Do you really think, with the exception of Jeff Backus (whom the Lions are not likely to let go) that any of the free agents available are better than what we have?"
Don, I'm not overwhelmed by any of the free agents, but I do like some of the players who will go in the first two rounds of the draft. I keep hearing good things about Winston Justice, who like Rogers is another USC player.
You can't go with status quo at right tackle. And you're talking to a Rob Petitti apologist. He's a terrific kid, but he got thrown into a situation he wasn't ready for. You can't go into this season pinning your hopes on his continued improvement.
Colombo is a long shot at best. He's a former first-round pick who has endured some awful injuries. Anything you get from this guy would be completely unexpected, although he may use his 6-7 frame to block a few extra points.
Allen's stunning achievement: Cowboys left guard Larry Allen's best years are behind him, but he still has to be the strongest player in the NFL.
Did you guys happen to see the ESPN clip of Allen bench pressing 225 pounds 43 times in the days leading up to the completely bogus Pro Bowl? I'm not sure I could lift the bar (45 pounds) 43 times. To put this in perspective, another Cowboys weight-room warrior, center Al Johnson, guessed he could only lift 225 pounds about 26 times. And that's when he's in peak condition. Allen finished up a 16-game season, probably took some time off and then treats 225 pounds like it's nothing.
Can you imagine how intimidating it must be for the folks who lift weights next to Allen at the Coppell (Texas) YMCA?
Who in the world spots this guy?
But in other Allen news, I'm hearing talk that the Cowboys want him to restructure his contract to lessen his impact on the salary cap. Good luck on this deal, Jerry. Allen's represented by Marvin Demoff, who returns my calls once every three years or so.
Demoff's not a man known for compromising, so I would be shocked if something gets done. If the Cowboys give Allen an ultimatum of restructuring or being cut loose, my guess is that he chooses the latter.
posted by The Gryphon at 7:01 PM
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