Tuesday, October 15, 1996

Shante Carver, Charles Haley cleared for return to Cowboys
By Richard Justice
The Dallas Morning News
(Oct. 15, 1996)

IRVING, Texas (KRT) - Troy Aikman calls it "getting our confidence back." On Monday, the Cowboys had confidence and a bit more back as defensive ends Charles Haley and Shante Carver returned to Valley Ranch and prepared to join the NFL's No. 1-ranked defense for Sunday's game against winless Atlanta.

The prospect of getting one or both players back added to a feeling of optimism a day after a 17-3 victory over Arizona at Texas Stadium. Since a 1-3 start, the Cowboys have won back-to-back games and were especially encouraged by an offense that put together two sharp touchdown drives in the second half Sunday.

"Can you imagine getting people of that caliber at this point?" Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. "That's quite a fuel injection."

Carver was cleared to play after serving a six-game suspension for violating the NFL substance-abuse program. Coach Barry Switzer said Carver's conditioning will be evaluated this week, but that he'd definitely be in the defensive line rotation against the Falcons.

Haley's situation is more complex. Three weeks ago, doctors ordered him to rest his ailing back. Having done that, he'll now attempt to determine if he's ready to play, at least on a limited basis.

"I think it's a real possibility," Jones said. "He's going to let us know after Wednesday. He wants to do some conditioning work the next couple of days and see where he's at."

Haley appeared to be in a good mood Monday but offered only one cryptic comment.

"Love heals," he said, smiling.

The long-range plan is to play Haley as much as he can play. Carver will be at right defensive end primarily on rushing downs, and Hurvin McCormack, now the starter at right end, will move inside to back up tackles Leon Lett and Chad Hennings. Tony Tolbert, who is tied for the NFL lead with eight sacks, will be the full-time left defensive end.

Even if Haley plays only in passing situations, his presence would give the Cowboys three premier pass-rushers in Lett, Tolbert and Haley. However, Haley was the Cowboys' best defensive player in their two Super Bowl victories over Buffalo, and coaches want him on the field as much as possible. At 32, and with a history of back problems, his days of being an every-down player probably are over.

"If Haley's healthy, we might start him," defensive coordinator Dave Campo said. "We'd like to play him every down. Even if we have him as a nickel rusher, that would be a real plus. We've got to get a feel where he's at with the conditioning."

The Cowboys have had high hopes for Carver since he played well down the stretch last season. The Super Bowl was the only playoff game he didn't start, but he played enough to get a career-high five tackles.

"I want to build off what I did at the end of last season," Carver said. "Unfortunately, I got in trouble and wasn't able to be with them from the get-go." During his suspension, Carver said he'd worked out on his own, lifted weights with Michael Irvin "and tried to keep myself occupied." He said he added 10 pounds of muscle to his 262 pounds.

"It was weird being on the other side, watching instead of playing," he said. "It hurts not to be out there with the boys. It should teach you a lesson about how much things mean to you. It wouldn't be worth it if I didn't get something out of it. If you don't learn from your mistakes, the whole process wouldn't be worth it. Everyone is not perfect. I made some bad judgments."

(c) 1996, Dallas Morning News. Distributed by Knight-Ridder/Tribune Information Services.

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