Parcells: State of Cowboys "worrisome"

[sturm und drang]

Huge article from today's USA TODAY. I assume that he's facetiously referring to Larry Allen as "Secretariat"...

Parcells rides to Cowboys' rescue
By Jarrett Bell, USA TODAY

SAN ANTONIO — Bill Parcells had a Kodak moment on his mind when he decided to chastise two of his young cornerbacks during practice last week. The subject: uniform code. For the Dallas Cowboys' new, larger-than-life coach, Derek Ross and Mario Edwards were a bit too cool in their blue and silver, accenting their pants with long, slender towels hanging from their waists.

Such style might get an approving nod from former Cowboys all-pro cornerback Deion Sanders, but the creative twists don't go over with Parcells — not to mention the NFL uniform cops who enforce game-day apparel issues.

"I told them I was going to take 'before' and 'after' pictures," Parcells says. " 'You guys are going to be the poster boys for the NFL proper dress code by the time I finish.' "

The players instantly realized Parcells was only half-kidding: He loves to jab a message through a needle.

Yet there is a much bigger picture to develop. After three years of slinging quips on television, Parcells is back in his element — trying to resurrect another troubled franchise.

He guided the once-doormat New York Giants to two Super Bowl victories, led the previously hobbled New England Patriots to a Super Bowl and nearly took the all-but-crippled New York Jets to their first Super Bowl since the Broadway Joe era.

Now comes Dallas, with a "before" snapshot that includes three consecutive 5-11 seasons. Says Parcells, 61, a realist with a thick New Jersey accent, "This is gonna be a struggle."

When he expressed interest to unretire to Cowboys owner Jerry Jones last December, Parcells used the analogy of a performer playing at a large Las Vegas casino. As Jones recalls, Parcells said he didn't want to be the lounge act — he wanted to play in the "big" room.

That was Sinatra-esque to Jones, whose franchise won two Super Bowls with Jimmy Johnson and a third with Barry Switzer in the 1990s then suffered a decline under Switzer, Chan Gailey and Dave Campo.

All with Jones as general manager.

Says Jones, "This addresses a perception that I wouldn't hire anyone but a yes man, that I couldn't work with a strong-willed coach and couldn't share center stage."

The Cowboys in recent years have burned themselves with a lack of discipline that some feel began with a lack of respect for the head coach.

"Yes, this is a philosophical change," Jones says. "But this is as much about the opportunity to get Bill as much as anything."

Quarterback job up in air

Parcells, who signed a four-year contract reportedly worth $17.1 million on Jan. 2, was a finalist for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2002 yet was denied primarily because of uncertainty over his retirement.

For all the stress that comes with coaching, it is natural to wonder how well Parcells — who had four heart procedures during the early 1990s, including bypass surgery — will handle the physical demands of the job.

To that end, Parcells appears to be keeping close tabs on himself. During a brief hallway chat last week, he brightened up when reporting that he had worked out three consecutive days and had heart-healthy cereal for breakfast.

"For personalities like mine, it's a killer game," he says. "It wears on you. But it's not about that. I made my decision to come back and coach, and I'm not looking back. This doesn't have anything to do with the past or future. I'm trying to do what I can now, for this year, for the Cowboys."

Parcells' effect is apparent instantly upon entering the Alamodome for a training camp practice. It is eerily quiet — save for echoes of football sounds, such as colliding shoulder pads.

The Cowboys' marketing department seemed to script the atmosphere last year. Players strained to hear instructions from the coaches during drills, with the rap music blaring from loudspeakers and the crowd worked into a frenzy by the team mascot, Rowdy, on a motorized tricycle.

There were ubiquitous camera crews, too, filming from "the inside" for HBO's Hard Knocks reality series. One episode included a lively team party at a dude ranch.

"That was like a circus," Edwards says. "It was all fun, and it kind of got you distracted. Now it's just straight work."

Still, the big picture won't begin to be altered until the results on the field change.

" 'Worrisome' is the right word for the present situation," says Parcells, whose 149-106-1 record, including playoffs, makes him the NFL's third-winningest active coach. "I've got a lot of moving parts here that I'm a little unfamiliar with."

And that was his take before a 13-0 road loss to the Arizona Cardinals in the preseason opener Saturday — the first time the Cowboys were shut out in the preseason since 1994.

Start with the quarterback position. Parcells opened the 1993 season in New England with a rookie quarterback, Drew Bledsoe. But at least he went into that preseason knowing he had a plan revolving around the No. 1 overall draft pick.

Parcells now is trying to feel his way through with Chad Hutchinson and Quincy Carter, young passers with promise derailed by inexperience and inefficiency. Hutchinson started against Arizona, and Carter is expected to start against the Houston Texans on Friday.

With neither standing out in the desert, Parcells' plan to name a starter before the third preseason game, Aug. 21 at the Pittsburgh Steelers, could be delayed.

"I really haven't been in a situation where at this point in time the quarterback situation was this unsettled," Parcells says.

If neither Hutchinson (12 fumbles, a low 66.3 passer rating in 2002) nor Carter (benched as the starter in October) emerges, Parcells might even improvise.

"If things aren't going well, I'm not worried about changing them," he says. "All you have to do is look at my past."

Challenges abound

Parcells thrives on a smash-mouth, ball-control offense that takes few risks and minimizes mistakes. That should help a passing game ranked 31st in the NFL last season.

Yet to play that style relies on a strong rushing game. That's another problem.

There is no longer Emmitt Smith — not even the aging Smith, who saw his rushing numbers decline the past three seasons. Parcells admits he's "very concerned" about the quality in his backfield.

First-stringer Troy Hambrick's preseason-opening line? Four rushes, minus 1 yard.

Other issues:

• Solidifying the offensive line, typically a strong suit for a Parcells team.

Former all-pro guard Larry Allen (rotator cuff surgery) was limited to five games in 2002 and started camp with conditioning problems. And the Cowboys lost second-round pick Al Johnson, their projected starting center, for the season with a knee injury.

• Improving a pass rush that produced 24 sacks in 2002, tied for second fewest in the NFL.

Dallas was unable to land a proven pass rusher during the offseason and lists former first-round pick Ebenezer Ekuban (15 starts, one sack in 2002) as first-team right end.

• Developing proficient special teams play.

Parcells says that's the quickest way to improve a team. His 1997 Jets dominated in gaining the "hidden yards" in the return/field-position game while improving from 1-15 to 9-7.

"There's no guarantee that this team will be successful, but he's going to do everything he can to get players who are going to fight every week to make that happen," says wide receiver Terry Glenn, who broke into the NFL in 1996 as a first-round pick under Parcells with the Patriots.

Asked to define the essence of a Parcells-coached team, Glenn, obtained in a trade from the Green Bay Packers in the offseason, uttered two words: "Fundamentally tough."

This is the same Glenn whom Parcells once referred to as "she" during a news conference at New England, which, at the time, seemed to be a cruel knock on an injured player's durability.

It's no secret that Parcells calls on his players to play through pain. Yet Glenn says the "she" remark was blown out of proportion because he already had heard it himself from a needling Parcells.

"He's truly a player's coach," says Glenn, who had his best season (90 catches, 1,132 yards, six touchdowns) in 1996. "He gets on you, but when he does, he makes you feel like you should rise up to expectations.

"If you're a true player, you won't have a problem."

Several of Glenn's new teammates have approached him for insight. Parcells has been known to push a psychological button with extreme drama — such as ordering coaches off the field and forcing players to practice without them — or with subtle hints.

Parcells stripped the Cowboys' star from rookies' helmets. He made first-round cornerback Terence Newman fetch him water. And then there are the nicknames.

Parcells has tagged Allen "Secretariat" (for leading the pack in running drills), and linebacker Dexter Coakley is dubbed "The Mascot" because he's so popular.

"Some of these young guys ask me, 'Why does he pick with me?' " Glenn says. "I tell them, 'Because he likes you. If he doesn't like you, you'd better watch out.' "

Not even a proven veteran such as 12th-year safety Darren Woodson is above being made an example.

"He was talking about how guys have to prove themselves all over again," Woodson says. "He said, 'Woodson, you've got to impress me. You've got to show me that you can still play.' I understood exactly where he was coming from, because, hey, I'm trying to show myself that I can still play."

All in the game plan for producing that winning "after" snapshot.

"He puts fear in you," Woodson says. "He doesn't necessarily do it during the game. He does it out here at practice. You never know when he's watching. That's how he imposes his will on you, like, 'Do it this way or that's it.' "

[Dooby]

Parcells will leave the 'Boys in better shape than when he found them. Ergo, his tenure, regardless of record, will be a success.