NFL experience. Also know they very well could be 3-1, because say what you want about all the other games, but that Washington loss was just a total el foldo.
And another thing, and this according to Jones: That the Cowboys were able to sign Drew Bledsoe in the off-season has all to do with why the Cowboys want their cake and eat it, too. They just feel his quality at quarterback gives them some ability to offset the youth spread all over this team.
But had they tried to pull this youth movement off with a first-year starting quarterback - Romo or Henson - then they know there would have been no cake eating. See Eli Manning last year. See Troy Aikman in 1989. Sometimes it's easier to develop a young quarterback on a more established team than to put him in there with guys knowing little more than he does.
"So to take advantage of your window, you need to have experience at quarterback," Jones said, meaning take advantage of having so many high first-round draft choices here over the last four drafts. "And what you don't want to do is break in a new quarterback after paying $30 million to bring in veterans.
"Signing Drew Bledsoe along with the recent drafting of young talent."
That is why the Cowboys are going in the direction they're going. That is why against the Raiders, Barber gets a carry on second-and-one or Thompson misses a blitz pickup with Thomas not even in uniform. That is why Ware is lined up offsides to cancel out a La'Roi Glover sack. That is why Petitti is burned by Derrick Burgess to sack Bledsoe. That is why you see Crayton running for a 63-yard touchdown with Price in street clothes.
Just part of this process, which at times can be painful. Maybe even cost you a game or two along the way. Or need I remind you of 1-15 in 1989, or the Cowboys standing no better than 3-7 in 1990, or even 6-5 in 1991 before everything just took off?
So Jerry, do you think you can have your cake and eat it, too?
"Yes," Jones said, "because I think we'll come together."
That is what Jones and Parcells are banking on, and why Parcells might seem overly harsh when judging the rookies, and why he was so pointed with his comments after the 19-13 loss to the Raiders, saying the next day, "I'm just hoping for more quicker."
And don't think the veterans feel sorry for the rookies having this bull's-eye on them already, just four games into the season.
"They need to hear it, it's true," Glover said of Parcells' hanging a few of them out to dry. "DeMarcus is not a rookie anymore, because he's going to play a lot. Canty is not a rookie. He's got to grow up quickly."
How quickly they grow up, along with all the rest, and that's a bunch, will determine if the Cowboys ever find out just what that cake tastes like.
MICK SHOTS
| ! | Still too much rush to judgment. Cowboys beat San Diego, and they're going to the playoffs. They blow a 13-0 lead to Washington, and it's no different than last year. They mount a stirring comeback to beat San Francisco and they are the next gift to offense. Then they lose to Oakland, standing 2-2, which I'm guessing most thought they would be after four games, and suddenly the season is at a crossroads. Please. "It's still early, still got to have faith and press on," Glover says. "If you throw in the towel now, you won't have the opportunity in the future." Truer words were never spoken. |
| ! | Cowboys beware: The Eagles have the NFL's top-ranked offense, and they don't even bother trying to run the ball. They have that No. 1 offense thanks to having the league's No. 1 passing offense, averaging 356.5 passing yards a game - seven more yards than the Cowboys average totally. Only four teams have fewer rushing attempts than the Eagles. |
| ! | And just to tie up all this rookie stuff, don't think these guys are on some
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