Monday, January 6, 1997

Hard decisions abound for the Cowboys

By DENNE H. FREEMAN / AP Sports Writer (Jan. 6, 1997)

IRVING, Texas (AP) - Put a big sign up at Valley Ranch: Defending Super Bowl Champion Dallas Cowboys Under Reconstruction!

Owner Jerry Jones has some big decisions to make in the coming months to keep the Cowboys' talent level competitive with the rest of the wild, unpredictable NFL.

The 26-17 NFC divisional playoff win by the Carolina Panthers on Sunday shows how far parity has gone.

"There's not much difference between teams anymore," said Dallas quarterback Troy Aikman.

Aikman will meet with Jones during the off-season to see just what will be done to keep some Cowboys' free agent standouts. That group includes fullback Daryl Johnston, linebacker Darrin Smith, safety George Teague, linebackers Jim Schwantz and Broderick Thomas, running back Herschel Walker, punter John Jett and placekicker Chris Boniol, currently on a streak of 34 consecutive field goals.

Aikman would be sorely unhappy if his pal Johnston were cast adrift on the free agent market. Several years ago Jones failed to sign another one of Aikman's friends, offensive lineman Kevin Gogan, who ended up with the Oakland Raiders.

Smith, a speedy outside linebacker and a good pass defender, likely will be off to greener pastures. The Cowboys don't pay their linebackers, which is one reason Ken Norton wound up in San Francisco.

Teague, picked up off the free agent market for the NFL third-year minimum of $196,000, made big play after big play once he replaced the injured Brock Marion, who also is a free agent. The Cowboys probably will let Marion go and try to sign Teague.

Other free agents include tight ends Tyji Armstrong and Johnny Mitchell, 14-year veteran Bill Bates, wide receiver Billy Davis and defensive back Wendell Davis, defensive lineman Ray Childress, quarterback Jason Garrett, offensive lineman Derek Kennard and linebacker Godfrey Myles.

"We need to get back to work quickly," said running back Emmitt Smith. "We're ready to take the abuse from the media and get back to work."

Said Jones: "We're very disappointed but now we have to look to the future. We still have a lot of great players for the next several years to build a team around."

Aikman, whose contract runs for the rest of this century, said he has no reason to believe he won't be back next year. "As long as I'm enjoying myself and the team is committed to winning, then I'll keep playing," he said.

If anything drives Aikman away, it will be the team's image, which keeps taking big hits. The suspensions of Michael Irvin and Leon Lett were the most prominent in 1996.

"It could be the thing that makes me end my career," Aikman said. "It's disappointing to see some of the things that happened. I'm ashamed about some of the images we had this year."

Johnston said he hopes to work out something with the Cowboys but said he also will study the team's image before he makes a decision.

"It (the image) causes a lot of difficulty," Johnston said. "I'll take some time off, then take a look at things."