Browns excited to face ‘America’s Team’
By MIKE McLAIN Tribune Chronicle
BEREA - The Dallas Cowboys are everything some fans love in a professional football team, and to others they are everything they dislike.
The mere fact that they proudly claim to be "America's Team" is enough to raise the ire of fans throughout the country. The sight of blue stars on the side of the silver helmets can easily jump-start opposing players.
Needless to say, the Browns won't need much in the way of motivational speeches to get emotionally ready to host the Cowboys Sunday at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
"Well, what we've been waiting for has finally gotten here," Browns coach Romeo Crennel said. "The team is excited about the regular season. They've been waiting for it since the schedule came out. I know our fans are excited about it as well. I hope they bring that excitement and energy to the stadium on Sunday, because we're definitely going to need it."
The game will be televised nationally by FOX Sports. The Cowboys' organization has been accustomed to the national spotlight, dating back to the 1960s when the late Tom Landry began to put his significant imprint on the team.
With expectations high in Dallas, it wasn't surprising that HBO came to terms with the Cowboys to film "Hard Knocks," an inside look at the team throughout training camp. HBO was given rare access to the inner workings of the organization, which some coaches might find intrusive.
"The part I saw was good," Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said. "It looked like training camp and guys working hard, having fun on their own time and I thought it portrayed what we were doing. I don't know how it was perceived by the fans and so forth, but it seemed like they liked it."
Phillips was brought in by owner Jerry Jones last season with one purpose in mind deliver a Super Bowl championship. The Cowboys appeared to be on the way to reaching that goal in going 13-3 in the regular season, but the ride ended with a playoff loss to the eventual Super Bowl champion New York Giants.
The memory of that loss wasn't easily forgotten.
"It (ate at us) at the time, certainly," Phillips said. "We had a tremendous regular season and then we lost in the postseason in the division playoffs. It was a disappointment, but anybody that loses in the playoffs is going to be disappointed. I think we established ourselves as a good football team, and we'd like to be able to do that again this year."
The Hard Knocks show highlighted the lofty goals set for this season. The Cowboys are talented across the board, and depth doesn't seem to be a problem.
One area of concern entering the offseason was at cornerback, where there hadn't been much depth behind Terence Newman and Anthony Henry. Those concerns were addressed by drafting Mike Jenkins in the first round and signing the controversial Adam Jones.
Jones, who was suspended last season by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell for a series of off-the-field incidents, was recently reinstated. Phillips expects Jones to contribute on defense and as a punt returner.
"Pacman has really fit in well here," Phillips said. "They let him come in during the offseason program and he's hit full stride as far as being a good teammate. We had checked out all these things before, and we knew that the players and coaches that he was around at Tennessee all liked him, and he worked hard in practice. On the field certainly was not his problem. We're pleased with him."
The addition of Jones is looked at as the final piece of the puzzle. Now it's simply a matter of proving that the press clippings are accurate.
"I told my guys early on, 'if you don't want to be in the spotlight, you don't need to be with the Dallas Cowboys,' " Phillips said. "I think it always has been that way here, and I think it probably will be for a long time. You've got to be able to handle media and expectations and predictions and all those things and go on and do your job the Cowboy way."
BEREA - The Dallas Cowboys are everything some fans love in a professional football team, and to others they are everything they dislike.
The mere fact that they proudly claim to be "America's Team" is enough to raise the ire of fans throughout the country. The sight of blue stars on the side of the silver helmets can easily jump-start opposing players.
Needless to say, the Browns won't need much in the way of motivational speeches to get emotionally ready to host the Cowboys Sunday at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
"Well, what we've been waiting for has finally gotten here," Browns coach Romeo Crennel said. "The team is excited about the regular season. They've been waiting for it since the schedule came out. I know our fans are excited about it as well. I hope they bring that excitement and energy to the stadium on Sunday, because we're definitely going to need it."
The game will be televised nationally by FOX Sports. The Cowboys' organization has been accustomed to the national spotlight, dating back to the 1960s when the late Tom Landry began to put his significant imprint on the team.
With expectations high in Dallas, it wasn't surprising that HBO came to terms with the Cowboys to film "Hard Knocks," an inside look at the team throughout training camp. HBO was given rare access to the inner workings of the organization, which some coaches might find intrusive.
"The part I saw was good," Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said. "It looked like training camp and guys working hard, having fun on their own time and I thought it portrayed what we were doing. I don't know how it was perceived by the fans and so forth, but it seemed like they liked it."
Phillips was brought in by owner Jerry Jones last season with one purpose in mind deliver a Super Bowl championship. The Cowboys appeared to be on the way to reaching that goal in going 13-3 in the regular season, but the ride ended with a playoff loss to the eventual Super Bowl champion New York Giants.
The memory of that loss wasn't easily forgotten.
"It (ate at us) at the time, certainly," Phillips said. "We had a tremendous regular season and then we lost in the postseason in the division playoffs. It was a disappointment, but anybody that loses in the playoffs is going to be disappointed. I think we established ourselves as a good football team, and we'd like to be able to do that again this year."
The Hard Knocks show highlighted the lofty goals set for this season. The Cowboys are talented across the board, and depth doesn't seem to be a problem.
One area of concern entering the offseason was at cornerback, where there hadn't been much depth behind Terence Newman and Anthony Henry. Those concerns were addressed by drafting Mike Jenkins in the first round and signing the controversial Adam Jones.
Jones, who was suspended last season by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell for a series of off-the-field incidents, was recently reinstated. Phillips expects Jones to contribute on defense and as a punt returner.
"Pacman has really fit in well here," Phillips said. "They let him come in during the offseason program and he's hit full stride as far as being a good teammate. We had checked out all these things before, and we knew that the players and coaches that he was around at Tennessee all liked him, and he worked hard in practice. On the field certainly was not his problem. We're pleased with him."
The addition of Jones is looked at as the final piece of the puzzle. Now it's simply a matter of proving that the press clippings are accurate.
"I told my guys early on, 'if you don't want to be in the spotlight, you don't need to be with the Dallas Cowboys,' " Phillips said. "I think it always has been that way here, and I think it probably will be for a long time. You've got to be able to handle media and expectations and predictions and all those things and go on and do your job the Cowboy way."
posted by The Gryphon at 10:57 AM
<< Home