Critics miss the intangible assets

By DENNE H. FREEMAN / AP Sports Writer

IRVING, Texas (AP) -- It seems we've heard this song before from an old familiar score.

"The fading dynasty of the Dallas Cowboys. ...

"America's team on the verge of tumbling into the NFL's abyss. ...

"Troy, Michael, and Emmitt too old to cut the NFL playoff mustard anymore. ...

"Free agency, injuries, and old age keep the Cowboys down on the ranch. ..."

Critics have always been quick to cut the Cowboys because of their Super Bowl success. It's only human nature in the sports world to put a knock on the top dogs. Some can't wait for the Cowboys to crash and crumble like they did in the late 1980s.

The Cowboys won Super Bowls in 1992, 1993 and 1995. They did so with a certain arrogance, cockiness and swagger. Dallas detractors not only didn't like the fact the Cowboys won but they hated the way they did it.

There is truth to the cold fact that the Cowboys aren't the same old Cowboys. You can't lose 38 players to free agency and remain the same.

And the Cowboys are older, one of the oldest teams in the NFL. The wear and tear of violent collisions begins to tell.

Dallas has played more games than any other NFL team in the 1990s. Owner Jerry Jones has agreed to extra exhibition games and the Cowboys have been in more playoff games than any other team. Each year Dallas has played almost the equivalent of two college seasons.

Dallas is getting injuries it's never had in the past. Some of the players are breaking down. Fullback Daryl Johnston has a bad neck. Mark Tuinei is hurt again. Troy Aikman battles back spasms almost every week. Tony Tolbert is a tape-wrapped mummy.

The Cowboys likely lead the NFL in medicinal supply purchases.

Aikman admitted the other day: "We're not as dominating as we once were. Each game is a struggle and that's something the media is not used to. It's hard to win now. Even with our most dominating team, the one in 1992, we had to make a lot of plays in the fourth quarter to win like we did. We made the plays then. Now, it's a lot harder."

The Cowboys have won five consecutive NFC East titles yet when they started this season 3-3 it provided a perfect forum for those waiting to shoot Dallas down.

But sometimes the critics miss an intangible that usually rides in the saddlebags of these Cowboys. Old timers like Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin, Herschel Walker and Tuinei really want to win. They don't play just for the paycheck. They are in the game to earn the Super Bowl rings.

It's hard to write off a team of veteran players who care. Some teams of disgruntled veterans just mail in their performances. The results show.

However, there is a core of old timers playing for the Cowboys who actually get mad if they lose. And these guys still have talent, although they may be a step slow here or there.

And suggestions the Cowboys wear down in the second half of the season doesn't hold water.

For the last three years, the Cowboys have been 7-3 in the second half of the season as they made a charge to the playoffs.

This doesn't sound like an old team staggering to the finish does it?

Eventually, there will be a season when the aging Cowboys hit the wall and fall into pieces.

Maybe, it will be this year. Injuries do seem to be taking their toll. The Cowboys do have one of the most diabolic schedules in the NFL.

But you look out on the field and see Aikman, Irvin and Smith trying hard with all their might.

And you wonder: If Cowboys like that are trying so hard will this really be the year Valley Ranch turns into Death Valley?

The view from here halfway through the NFL season is that these old geezers just might make the playoffs again.

And, if they do, maybe they can make a strong run to San Diego. Whatever, they'll go down giving it their best shot.

These current Cowboys certainly won't just take off their boots and quit without kicking.