T.O. won't be the only big story at Cowboys training camp
Associated Press
IRVING, Texas -- Author Terrell Owens will be finished soon with the whirlwind publicity tour surrounding his latest book, not necessarily because he's done talking about his favorite subject (himself), but because it's time for him to report to his other job as a receiver for the Dallas Cowboys.
With players due in Oxnard, Calif., on Thursday for the start of training camp, there's little doubt that everything Owens does and says will be the most talk-about topics surrounding the team over the coming weeks.
However -- shhhh, don't tell T.O.! -- they probably won't be the most important.
Consider some of the other things the Cowboys must accomplish before heading back to Texas:
-- Revamp an offensive line that, for the first time since 1993, doesn't have Larry Allen.
-- Settle on a starting free safety, a competition complicated by Keith Davis recently getting shot.
-- Get newcomers Akin Ayodele and top draft pick Bobby Carpenter into the flow at linebacker, the key position in the 3-4 defense that was so successful in its debut last season.
-- Figure out what to do with a kicking game that finally features a reliable field goal kicker in Mike Vanderjagt, but with the rub of Vanderjagt being lousy at kickoffs. Coach Bill Parcells may be forced to carry a kickoff specialist, something he's never done and is loath to do because of how much he values each spot on his game-day roster.
-- Re-establish team chemistry without several notable good guys: Dat Nguyen (retired), La'Roi Glover (released) and Dan Campbell (not re-signed). Owens' arrival certainly will be a factor in this; so is the fact Keyshawn Johnson was ousted to make way for another guy who wants the darn ball.
How the team progresses in all those areas will go a long way toward determining two other underlying issues surrounding this team: Whether they can win a playoff game for the first time in 10 seasons, and -- even if they do -- whether Parcells will stick around beyond this season.
Despite all the questions, camp will open with a lot of optimism, and not just from owner Jerry Jones. Plenty of pundits and Las Vegas oddsmakers have high expectations for the Cowboys this season.
Even Parcells says his outlook is as good as it's been since he's been in Dallas.
"There's still a couple of things that concern me a great deal, but personnel-wise, I know we're getting closer to where we're going to be able to be competitive," Parcells said earlier this summer. "We are making a lot of improvement on defense, physically. I think we have more firepower on offense."
The Cowboys are in a tough division, with two teams that made the playoffs last season and a third that was in the Super Bowl the year before. They also have to endure a schedule overloaded with road games the first two months; the reward is a lot of home games down the stretch.
The defense appears to be upgraded, especially with everyone more comfortable with the system that was being installed this time last year. Last year's strong rookie crop is more experienced and Parcells seems to have the options (depth) he craves.
Vanderjagt's arrival should help give Parcells one less thing to worry about. The most accurate kicker in league history is quite an upgrade from last year's unreliable trio who were part of three games lost by a field goal or less.
Then there's the offense.
Before getting into Owens, consider this somewhat overlooked aspect -- stability at quarterback.
Drew Bledsoe is on pace to become the first quarterback to start consecutive openers in Parcells' Dallas tenure. The position hasn't been this settled since the end of Troy Aikman's career, which was so long ago that Aikman is being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in a few weeks. (So is Rayfield Wright, a standout offensive lineman for the Cowboys from 1967-79.)
The offensive coaching staff has changed, most notably Sean Payton becoming head coach in New Orleans, but that shouldn't affect Bledsoe. New position coach Chris Palmer also was his position coach during some of his best years in New England.
Protecting Bledsoe's blind side once again will be Flozell Adams, who missed most of last season with a knee injury. The Cowboys struggled once the now-departed Torrin Tucker took over. The time away also shook up Adams, albeit in a good way.
"Let's just say the perspective of the game is slightly different, that 'maybe I haven't accomplished what I want to accomplish in this game," Parcells said.
Free agent signee Kyle Kosier is the front-runner to replace Allen at left guard, but Kosier didn't even start every game for lowly Detroit last season. On the right side, guard Marco Rivera is vowing to make up for a disappointing debut season in Dallas, and there could be a battle at tackle between newcomer Jason Fabini and incumbent Rob Petitti.
Petitti has been repeatedly praised for his offseason work, especially in the weight room. After his trial-by-fire rookie season, he'll be pushed by Fabini, part of the growing collection of Parcells alumni.
The line's success might be as important as ever because it could ultimately determine whether Owens causes more trouble for the Cowboys or their opponents.
See, if they provide Bledsoe with enough time, he showed last season that he can still make any throw. And Owens would get plenty of them, which would make him happy.
However, 49 sacks last season showed Bledsoe is as immobile as ever, and 17 interceptions (third-most in his career) showed he can still be rushed into making some bad decisions. That would make Owens unhappy, which may end up requiring another book to explain whatever fallout that may trigger.
As tempting as it'll be for defenses to test the new line, they're also not going to want to get beaten by Owens. Any extra attention they give him means less attention to receivers Terry Glenn and Patrick Crayton, and tight ends Jason Witten and Anthony Fasano, or more running room for Julius Jones and Marion Barber III.
All told, there are some interesting dynamics that will begin to come together on the field and off, for better or worse in only a few more days.
IRVING, Texas -- Author Terrell Owens will be finished soon with the whirlwind publicity tour surrounding his latest book, not necessarily because he's done talking about his favorite subject (himself), but because it's time for him to report to his other job as a receiver for the Dallas Cowboys.
With players due in Oxnard, Calif., on Thursday for the start of training camp, there's little doubt that everything Owens does and says will be the most talk-about topics surrounding the team over the coming weeks.
However -- shhhh, don't tell T.O.! -- they probably won't be the most important.
Consider some of the other things the Cowboys must accomplish before heading back to Texas:
-- Revamp an offensive line that, for the first time since 1993, doesn't have Larry Allen.
-- Settle on a starting free safety, a competition complicated by Keith Davis recently getting shot.
-- Get newcomers Akin Ayodele and top draft pick Bobby Carpenter into the flow at linebacker, the key position in the 3-4 defense that was so successful in its debut last season.
-- Figure out what to do with a kicking game that finally features a reliable field goal kicker in Mike Vanderjagt, but with the rub of Vanderjagt being lousy at kickoffs. Coach Bill Parcells may be forced to carry a kickoff specialist, something he's never done and is loath to do because of how much he values each spot on his game-day roster.
-- Re-establish team chemistry without several notable good guys: Dat Nguyen (retired), La'Roi Glover (released) and Dan Campbell (not re-signed). Owens' arrival certainly will be a factor in this; so is the fact Keyshawn Johnson was ousted to make way for another guy who wants the darn ball.
How the team progresses in all those areas will go a long way toward determining two other underlying issues surrounding this team: Whether they can win a playoff game for the first time in 10 seasons, and -- even if they do -- whether Parcells will stick around beyond this season.
Despite all the questions, camp will open with a lot of optimism, and not just from owner Jerry Jones. Plenty of pundits and Las Vegas oddsmakers have high expectations for the Cowboys this season.
Even Parcells says his outlook is as good as it's been since he's been in Dallas.
"There's still a couple of things that concern me a great deal, but personnel-wise, I know we're getting closer to where we're going to be able to be competitive," Parcells said earlier this summer. "We are making a lot of improvement on defense, physically. I think we have more firepower on offense."
The Cowboys are in a tough division, with two teams that made the playoffs last season and a third that was in the Super Bowl the year before. They also have to endure a schedule overloaded with road games the first two months; the reward is a lot of home games down the stretch.
The defense appears to be upgraded, especially with everyone more comfortable with the system that was being installed this time last year. Last year's strong rookie crop is more experienced and Parcells seems to have the options (depth) he craves.
Vanderjagt's arrival should help give Parcells one less thing to worry about. The most accurate kicker in league history is quite an upgrade from last year's unreliable trio who were part of three games lost by a field goal or less.
Then there's the offense.
Before getting into Owens, consider this somewhat overlooked aspect -- stability at quarterback.
Drew Bledsoe is on pace to become the first quarterback to start consecutive openers in Parcells' Dallas tenure. The position hasn't been this settled since the end of Troy Aikman's career, which was so long ago that Aikman is being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in a few weeks. (So is Rayfield Wright, a standout offensive lineman for the Cowboys from 1967-79.)
The offensive coaching staff has changed, most notably Sean Payton becoming head coach in New Orleans, but that shouldn't affect Bledsoe. New position coach Chris Palmer also was his position coach during some of his best years in New England.
Protecting Bledsoe's blind side once again will be Flozell Adams, who missed most of last season with a knee injury. The Cowboys struggled once the now-departed Torrin Tucker took over. The time away also shook up Adams, albeit in a good way.
"Let's just say the perspective of the game is slightly different, that 'maybe I haven't accomplished what I want to accomplish in this game," Parcells said.
Free agent signee Kyle Kosier is the front-runner to replace Allen at left guard, but Kosier didn't even start every game for lowly Detroit last season. On the right side, guard Marco Rivera is vowing to make up for a disappointing debut season in Dallas, and there could be a battle at tackle between newcomer Jason Fabini and incumbent Rob Petitti.
Petitti has been repeatedly praised for his offseason work, especially in the weight room. After his trial-by-fire rookie season, he'll be pushed by Fabini, part of the growing collection of Parcells alumni.
The line's success might be as important as ever because it could ultimately determine whether Owens causes more trouble for the Cowboys or their opponents.
See, if they provide Bledsoe with enough time, he showed last season that he can still make any throw. And Owens would get plenty of them, which would make him happy.
However, 49 sacks last season showed Bledsoe is as immobile as ever, and 17 interceptions (third-most in his career) showed he can still be rushed into making some bad decisions. That would make Owens unhappy, which may end up requiring another book to explain whatever fallout that may trigger.
As tempting as it'll be for defenses to test the new line, they're also not going to want to get beaten by Owens. Any extra attention they give him means less attention to receivers Terry Glenn and Patrick Crayton, and tight ends Jason Witten and Anthony Fasano, or more running room for Julius Jones and Marion Barber III.
All told, there are some interesting dynamics that will begin to come together on the field and off, for better or worse in only a few more days.
posted by The Gryphon at 10:29 PM
<< Home