Parcells has helped Cowboys lay solid foundation
By JAIME ARON
AP Sports Writer
IRVING, Texas (AP) -When Bill Parcells agreed to coach the Dallas Cowboys, the franchise was a mess.
The roster was a collection of poor draft picks, bad free agent acquisitions and everything in between. The team had won only five games each of the last three seasons. And the coaching job made glorious by Tom Landry and Jimmy Johnson was no longer on the right people's wish list after being filled by a succession of guys viewed as puppets manipulated by owner Jerry Jones.
No wonder Parcells boldly vowed to leave the team better than he'd found it. How could he not?
Two games into his fourth season, the results seem mixed.
The Cowboys (1-1), who have a bye this weekend, are 26-25 overall under Parcells. It's an upgrade from before, just not the radical one Jones wanted when he agreed to scale back his control and let someone else tell him how to run his franchise.
Yet as much as the NFL is a ``results-oriented business,'' a favorite expression of Jones and Parcells, the overhaul that began with Parcells' hiring on Jan. 2, 2003, goes beyond the won-loss record.
Look deeper and you'll see why Parcells could walk away tomorrow - so to speak - and feel good about what he's accomplished in Dallas. While he hasn't returned the Cowboys to glory, he certainly has returned them to respectability.
Check out the collection of young talent, albeit mostly on defense, and notice how many are perfect fits for the way the club wants to play. Better yet, most of those key players are locked up for years, with the latest contract extension handed out just this week.
``We know we're the future of the franchise,'' said linebacker Bradie James, who received an $8 million signing bonus Tuesday. ``Some things lie upon our shoulders. We've accepted that and are looking forward to taking off.''
More help should be on the way, too, thanks to a well-managed salary cap that makes it easier for them to chase free agents, and a revamped scouting department that's found far more winners in the draft than the previous regime.
With so many pieces falling into place - including a new stadium approved by Arlington voters in November 2003, during Parcells' honeymoon phase with locals - the job of coaching the Cowboys can again be considered among the best in the business. So whenever Parcells walks away, Jones should be able to pick from a worthy crop of candidates.
Jones acknowledges the long-term outlook of his club is as good as it's been since winning the Super Bowl in 1995. Rather than delving into the details, he prefers focusing on winning the first playoff game since '96.
Do that, and he believes things could really take off.
``I think a lot of what we've got here needs a winning experience,'' Jones said. ``I think our winning in the early '90s helped make players strive. They tasted it and got better. I think we have a chance to do that right now. We've got some guys that can play and a lot of guys that have the potential to develop into players.''
For the most part, what you see now is likely what you'll see next year, too, albeit with question marks surrounding the club's top three on-field personalities: Parcells, Terrell Owens and Drew Bledsoe.
Technically, all three are under contract for 2007. However, Parcells' status is always season to season, Owens' volatility puts him in that same category, and Bledsoe's deal was signed with the intention of tearing it up after '06.
How he does the rest of the season will determine whether he's invited back. But with backup Tony Romo recently getting an extension, odds are the starting quarterback for '07 is already on the roster, one way or another.
Romo and James both re-signed rather than test free agency because they like it in Dallas and they like the direction the team is headed. Their signings followed the lead of Pro Bowlers Jason Witten and Roy Williams, who got new deals earlier this summer.
``It's just good to have a core group that knows we're going to be here for the next few years,'' Witten said. ``And it's a good group.''
Williams is among four pre-Parcells holdovers left on the roster. The others - Greg Ellis, Flozell Adams and Andre Gurode - all have received the Big Tuna's seal of approval in the form of contract extensions.
``It's looking like we have some of the quality players we ought to have,'' Jones said. ``You've got, on average, a third of your roster turning over every year. So what you're looking at is where are your core-base players that you can really count on?''
The irony of trying to have an organization that's built to last is that staying power is an antiquated concept in pro football. That old joke about the NFL standing for ``Not For Long'' because of how short-lived careers are? It's true for successful teams, too.
Consider this: Since Parcells arrived in Dallas, Seattle is the only NFC team to have made the playoffs every year. Denver, Indianapolis and New England have done it in the AFC.
Now stretch back one more season, to 2002, and only one club has made the playoffs every time, Indianapolis.
To Parcells, the whole concept of putting together a winning team comes down to a simple formula.
``If you get good players at the right positions, then I think you have a chance to do it pretty consistently,'' he said. ``If you don't, then you don't have much of a chance.''
Not long ago, the Cowboys didn't have much of a chance. They sure seem to now.
The next 14 weeks will show whether they make the most of it this season.
AP Sports Writer
IRVING, Texas (AP) -When Bill Parcells agreed to coach the Dallas Cowboys, the franchise was a mess.
The roster was a collection of poor draft picks, bad free agent acquisitions and everything in between. The team had won only five games each of the last three seasons. And the coaching job made glorious by Tom Landry and Jimmy Johnson was no longer on the right people's wish list after being filled by a succession of guys viewed as puppets manipulated by owner Jerry Jones.
No wonder Parcells boldly vowed to leave the team better than he'd found it. How could he not?
Two games into his fourth season, the results seem mixed.
The Cowboys (1-1), who have a bye this weekend, are 26-25 overall under Parcells. It's an upgrade from before, just not the radical one Jones wanted when he agreed to scale back his control and let someone else tell him how to run his franchise.
Yet as much as the NFL is a ``results-oriented business,'' a favorite expression of Jones and Parcells, the overhaul that began with Parcells' hiring on Jan. 2, 2003, goes beyond the won-loss record.
Look deeper and you'll see why Parcells could walk away tomorrow - so to speak - and feel good about what he's accomplished in Dallas. While he hasn't returned the Cowboys to glory, he certainly has returned them to respectability.
Check out the collection of young talent, albeit mostly on defense, and notice how many are perfect fits for the way the club wants to play. Better yet, most of those key players are locked up for years, with the latest contract extension handed out just this week.
``We know we're the future of the franchise,'' said linebacker Bradie James, who received an $8 million signing bonus Tuesday. ``Some things lie upon our shoulders. We've accepted that and are looking forward to taking off.''
More help should be on the way, too, thanks to a well-managed salary cap that makes it easier for them to chase free agents, and a revamped scouting department that's found far more winners in the draft than the previous regime.
With so many pieces falling into place - including a new stadium approved by Arlington voters in November 2003, during Parcells' honeymoon phase with locals - the job of coaching the Cowboys can again be considered among the best in the business. So whenever Parcells walks away, Jones should be able to pick from a worthy crop of candidates.
Jones acknowledges the long-term outlook of his club is as good as it's been since winning the Super Bowl in 1995. Rather than delving into the details, he prefers focusing on winning the first playoff game since '96.
Do that, and he believes things could really take off.
``I think a lot of what we've got here needs a winning experience,'' Jones said. ``I think our winning in the early '90s helped make players strive. They tasted it and got better. I think we have a chance to do that right now. We've got some guys that can play and a lot of guys that have the potential to develop into players.''
For the most part, what you see now is likely what you'll see next year, too, albeit with question marks surrounding the club's top three on-field personalities: Parcells, Terrell Owens and Drew Bledsoe.
Technically, all three are under contract for 2007. However, Parcells' status is always season to season, Owens' volatility puts him in that same category, and Bledsoe's deal was signed with the intention of tearing it up after '06.
How he does the rest of the season will determine whether he's invited back. But with backup Tony Romo recently getting an extension, odds are the starting quarterback for '07 is already on the roster, one way or another.
Romo and James both re-signed rather than test free agency because they like it in Dallas and they like the direction the team is headed. Their signings followed the lead of Pro Bowlers Jason Witten and Roy Williams, who got new deals earlier this summer.
``It's just good to have a core group that knows we're going to be here for the next few years,'' Witten said. ``And it's a good group.''
Williams is among four pre-Parcells holdovers left on the roster. The others - Greg Ellis, Flozell Adams and Andre Gurode - all have received the Big Tuna's seal of approval in the form of contract extensions.
``It's looking like we have some of the quality players we ought to have,'' Jones said. ``You've got, on average, a third of your roster turning over every year. So what you're looking at is where are your core-base players that you can really count on?''
The irony of trying to have an organization that's built to last is that staying power is an antiquated concept in pro football. That old joke about the NFL standing for ``Not For Long'' because of how short-lived careers are? It's true for successful teams, too.
Consider this: Since Parcells arrived in Dallas, Seattle is the only NFC team to have made the playoffs every year. Denver, Indianapolis and New England have done it in the AFC.
Now stretch back one more season, to 2002, and only one club has made the playoffs every time, Indianapolis.
To Parcells, the whole concept of putting together a winning team comes down to a simple formula.
``If you get good players at the right positions, then I think you have a chance to do it pretty consistently,'' he said. ``If you don't, then you don't have much of a chance.''
Not long ago, the Cowboys didn't have much of a chance. They sure seem to now.
The next 14 weeks will show whether they make the most of it this season.
posted by The Gryphon at 6:27 PM
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