Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas, Gary West column: The Cowboys were a dumb team
by Gary West, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas , Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Jan. 4--In his 13 seasons, Joe DiMaggio was never thrown out advancing from first to third base. And that, nearly as much as the lifetime batting average of .325 and the famous hitting streak, hints at the source of DiMaggio's greatness: intelligent judgment, which he made vivid with athleticism.
Frequently, it's intelligence that distinguishes the great from the good athlete. Frequently, it's intelligence that distinguishes the championship teams from the ruck.
And, more than anything, it was intelligence the Cowboys lacked this year. They weren't gutless; they were dumb. The Cowboys' playoff hopes crashed ignominiously on the shoals and their embarrassment in Philadelphia, indeed their entire season, should have reminded them that intelligence and judgment remain just as necessary to winning as athletic talent.
Years ago, George Will cited as evidence of DiMaggio's "genius" the Yankee Clipper's perfect record of success in moving from first to third. Consistently good judgment made DiMaggio, in Will's words, the "consummate professional" and one of baseball's greatest players. But it's true in every sport.
Why is Peyton Manning, named the NFL's Most Valuable Player again, the best quarterback in the game? (Don't say because of Tom Brady's injury.) And why was Manning able to lead the Colts into the playoffs with nine consecutive victories?
Manning doesn't have the best arm in the league. He's never the best athlete on the field. But in terms of Football judgment, he's the smartest. And it's his intelligence that enables him to control games.
What makes Dustin Pedroia of the Red Sox an outstanding player and an MVP? It's not just his .326 batting average; it's his judgment. He struck out only 52 times last year in 653 official at-bats, and his stolen-base percentage was 95.2.
And is it coincidence that the quarterbacks who succeed in the NFL are generally the guys who stayed in school four or even five years -- e.g., Brady, Matt Ryan, Joe Flacco, Eli and Peyton Manning? Probably not.
Intelligent judgment has always trumped mere athleticism. Tom Glavine simply knew how to pitch, Tony Gwynn how to hit, and Bart Starr how to pass, which is to say they played with intelligent judgment made vivid by athleticism.
Bill Russell wasn't the most talented basketball player ever to lace up his sneakers. But he was the most successful, playing on 11 championship teams with the Celtics.
At 6-10, he might not have been the most physically imposing player on the floor, but he blocked shots and gathered rebounds by the bushel partly because of his anticipation. He had infallible instincts. And, as Tony La Russa once pointed out, instincts are derived from an accumulation of knowledge.
"Athleticism and intelligence are both important for success," said Gil Brandt, the longtime vice president of the Cowboys who's now with NFL.com. "We always tried to draft smart players, and I think that's one of the reasons our teams were so good."
Charlie Waters, Brandt said, was the epitome of a smart player. A Cowboys safety throughout the 1970s, Waters played in five Super Bowls, making up for any deficiencies in athleticism with his intelligence.
That's what a smart player does, Brandt said. The smart player adjusts to circumstances; when he loses one tool, he finds another that will enable him to do the job. And in that, the Cowboys of the time were a reflection of an intelligent coach, Tom Landry.
But the Cowboys of 2008 reflected something quite different. DiMaggio was the consummate professional and Waters the epitome of a smart player, but the Cowboys of 2008 were something else entirely.
Adam Jones reminded everyone that lapses in judgment off the field are frequently mirrored by lapses on the field. Flozell Adams sometimes played as though lost in a childish daydream. Tony Romo often played as if he considered the Football a Christmas ornament, something to be brandished and dangled. Or maybe a Christmas present.
And so the Cowboys were the most frequently penalized team in the NFL -- 119 times for 952 yards. And they were among the most generous, giving the ball away 33 times, surpassed only by the 49ers' 35 turnovers.
A challenge such as the Cowboys faced in Philadelphia can elicit evidence of a team's true character -- its determination, its solidarity, its toughness, its voluntas, its intelligence or, in the case of the Cowboys, something else entirely.
Jan. 4--In his 13 seasons, Joe DiMaggio was never thrown out advancing from first to third base. And that, nearly as much as the lifetime batting average of .325 and the famous hitting streak, hints at the source of DiMaggio's greatness: intelligent judgment, which he made vivid with athleticism.
Frequently, it's intelligence that distinguishes the great from the good athlete. Frequently, it's intelligence that distinguishes the championship teams from the ruck.
And, more than anything, it was intelligence the Cowboys lacked this year. They weren't gutless; they were dumb. The Cowboys' playoff hopes crashed ignominiously on the shoals and their embarrassment in Philadelphia, indeed their entire season, should have reminded them that intelligence and judgment remain just as necessary to winning as athletic talent.
Years ago, George Will cited as evidence of DiMaggio's "genius" the Yankee Clipper's perfect record of success in moving from first to third. Consistently good judgment made DiMaggio, in Will's words, the "consummate professional" and one of baseball's greatest players. But it's true in every sport.
Why is Peyton Manning, named the NFL's Most Valuable Player again, the best quarterback in the game? (Don't say because of Tom Brady's injury.) And why was Manning able to lead the Colts into the playoffs with nine consecutive victories?
Manning doesn't have the best arm in the league. He's never the best athlete on the field. But in terms of Football judgment, he's the smartest. And it's his intelligence that enables him to control games.
What makes Dustin Pedroia of the Red Sox an outstanding player and an MVP? It's not just his .326 batting average; it's his judgment. He struck out only 52 times last year in 653 official at-bats, and his stolen-base percentage was 95.2.
And is it coincidence that the quarterbacks who succeed in the NFL are generally the guys who stayed in school four or even five years -- e.g., Brady, Matt Ryan, Joe Flacco, Eli and Peyton Manning? Probably not.
Intelligent judgment has always trumped mere athleticism. Tom Glavine simply knew how to pitch, Tony Gwynn how to hit, and Bart Starr how to pass, which is to say they played with intelligent judgment made vivid by athleticism.
Bill Russell wasn't the most talented basketball player ever to lace up his sneakers. But he was the most successful, playing on 11 championship teams with the Celtics.
At 6-10, he might not have been the most physically imposing player on the floor, but he blocked shots and gathered rebounds by the bushel partly because of his anticipation. He had infallible instincts. And, as Tony La Russa once pointed out, instincts are derived from an accumulation of knowledge.
"Athleticism and intelligence are both important for success," said Gil Brandt, the longtime vice president of the Cowboys who's now with NFL.com. "We always tried to draft smart players, and I think that's one of the reasons our teams were so good."
Charlie Waters, Brandt said, was the epitome of a smart player. A Cowboys safety throughout the 1970s, Waters played in five Super Bowls, making up for any deficiencies in athleticism with his intelligence.
That's what a smart player does, Brandt said. The smart player adjusts to circumstances; when he loses one tool, he finds another that will enable him to do the job. And in that, the Cowboys of the time were a reflection of an intelligent coach, Tom Landry.
But the Cowboys of 2008 reflected something quite different. DiMaggio was the consummate professional and Waters the epitome of a smart player, but the Cowboys of 2008 were something else entirely.
Adam Jones reminded everyone that lapses in judgment off the field are frequently mirrored by lapses on the field. Flozell Adams sometimes played as though lost in a childish daydream. Tony Romo often played as if he considered the Football a Christmas ornament, something to be brandished and dangled. Or maybe a Christmas present.
And so the Cowboys were the most frequently penalized team in the NFL -- 119 times for 952 yards. And they were among the most generous, giving the ball away 33 times, surpassed only by the 49ers' 35 turnovers.
A challenge such as the Cowboys faced in Philadelphia can elicit evidence of a team's true character -- its determination, its solidarity, its toughness, its voluntas, its intelligence or, in the case of the Cowboys, something else entirely.
posted by The Gryphon at 7:09 PM
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