Parcells a master of press coverage
by Matt Moley
07:59 PM CDT on Thursday, May 11, 2006
IRVING - Picked up pieces since the draft from Valley Ranch ...
Coachspeak: Bill Parcells speaks. Finally.
I was surprised at the fans who believed Parcells did not have to speak to the media about anything. If he doesn't speak, then how do you know what's going on with the team?
Parcells makes himself available plenty during the season, but he does it by design. He would rather the media talk to him than his players. He doesn't want his players saying something stupid, so he tries to deflect the attention. He does it well with entertaining and informative news conferences. Do not believe he thinks the media sessions are a beating. He likes the give and take because he knows he can do more giving and we have to do more taking. But that's OK. Some of us can even take it.
The boss listens: Every coach in the NFL should want to work for Jerry Jones.
He has been called meddlesome, and perhaps for good reason. But having talked to a few who have spanned coaching generations at Valley Ranch, Jones has deferred to the coach more often than not. Chan Gailey wanted nothing to do with Randy Moss, so the Cowboys didn't draft Moss. Dave Campo ... well, who really knows what he did or didn't want.
Parcells wanted to get bigger players, move to the 3-4, sign Drew Bledsoe, acquire Keyshawn Johnson, trade for Terry Glenn, sign Jason Ferguson, Richie Anderson and any other former Jets. Jones did so. About the only time Parcells has not gotten his wish is when he wanted Anderson moved to the coaching staff. If Parcells didn't want Terrell Owens, or had put up a stink, he wouldn't be a Cowboy.
Mini-mize the hype: In covering the NFL for the last 10 years, I've learned a few things, believe it or not. One is don't get excited about what you see at a minicamp.
It's not football. It's the underwear Olympics, according to a scout I know.
So if you're hearing how good Jason Hatcher looked in practice, don't start believing he will supplant Chris Canty, Greg Ellis or Marcus Spears in playing time.
The rookie third-round pick looked the part, but he was playing against seventh-round picks and undrafted rookie free agents for three days of practice. And they were not wearing pads, which makes judging line play useless.
Let's wait until Hatcher goes against Flozell Adams, Jason Fabini or Rob Petitti in training camp before we get excited about what he can do on the field.
The thin man: Fifth-round pick Patrick Watkins is skinny. He's skinny skinny. He could use some of the weight Skyler Green and Montavious Stanley have to lose.
Watkins was a special-teams ace at Florida State, and he could be counted on to do a lot of the same for the Cowboys. At 6-5, he could be a good red-zone threat too, but I don't think you take Terrell Owens, Terry Glenn or Jason Witten off the field in those situations.
Wrist watch: Bobby Carpenter wears three rubber bracelets on his right wrist. One is a Livestrong bracelet. One is in honor of Pat Tillman, which is why Carpenter's hair is so long. Another is a camouflage bracelet.
07:59 PM CDT on Thursday, May 11, 2006
IRVING - Picked up pieces since the draft from Valley Ranch ...
Coachspeak: Bill Parcells speaks. Finally.
I was surprised at the fans who believed Parcells did not have to speak to the media about anything. If he doesn't speak, then how do you know what's going on with the team?
Parcells makes himself available plenty during the season, but he does it by design. He would rather the media talk to him than his players. He doesn't want his players saying something stupid, so he tries to deflect the attention. He does it well with entertaining and informative news conferences. Do not believe he thinks the media sessions are a beating. He likes the give and take because he knows he can do more giving and we have to do more taking. But that's OK. Some of us can even take it.
The boss listens: Every coach in the NFL should want to work for Jerry Jones.
He has been called meddlesome, and perhaps for good reason. But having talked to a few who have spanned coaching generations at Valley Ranch, Jones has deferred to the coach more often than not. Chan Gailey wanted nothing to do with Randy Moss, so the Cowboys didn't draft Moss. Dave Campo ... well, who really knows what he did or didn't want.
Parcells wanted to get bigger players, move to the 3-4, sign Drew Bledsoe, acquire Keyshawn Johnson, trade for Terry Glenn, sign Jason Ferguson, Richie Anderson and any other former Jets. Jones did so. About the only time Parcells has not gotten his wish is when he wanted Anderson moved to the coaching staff. If Parcells didn't want Terrell Owens, or had put up a stink, he wouldn't be a Cowboy.
Mini-mize the hype: In covering the NFL for the last 10 years, I've learned a few things, believe it or not. One is don't get excited about what you see at a minicamp.
It's not football. It's the underwear Olympics, according to a scout I know.
So if you're hearing how good Jason Hatcher looked in practice, don't start believing he will supplant Chris Canty, Greg Ellis or Marcus Spears in playing time.
The rookie third-round pick looked the part, but he was playing against seventh-round picks and undrafted rookie free agents for three days of practice. And they were not wearing pads, which makes judging line play useless.
Let's wait until Hatcher goes against Flozell Adams, Jason Fabini or Rob Petitti in training camp before we get excited about what he can do on the field.
The thin man: Fifth-round pick Patrick Watkins is skinny. He's skinny skinny. He could use some of the weight Skyler Green and Montavious Stanley have to lose.
Watkins was a special-teams ace at Florida State, and he could be counted on to do a lot of the same for the Cowboys. At 6-5, he could be a good red-zone threat too, but I don't think you take Terrell Owens, Terry Glenn or Jason Witten off the field in those situations.
Wrist watch: Bobby Carpenter wears three rubber bracelets on his right wrist. One is a Livestrong bracelet. One is in honor of Pat Tillman, which is why Carpenter's hair is so long. Another is a camouflage bracelet.
posted by The Gryphon at 9:21 PM
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