Cowboys anxiously await word on Emmitt
By Ed Werder
The Dallas Morning News
(August 18, 1996)
DALLAS - The Cowboys competed Saturday night in something Barry
Switzer and every other football coach dreads - a meaningful
pre-season game. Emmitt Smith's sprained left knee made it important.
Having Smith writhing in pain on the artificial turf represented
a cruel twist for Switzer. The Cowboys made protecting starting
players the only priority throughout camp.
Five days after signing an eight-year, $42.5 million contract
with a $10.5 million signing bonus Monday, Smith took his first
snaps in a 20-3 loss to the Denver Broncos. A Cowboys team that
has often had more talent in the whirlpool than in the huddle
hopes those were not his last for a long while.
Smith, who also sprained his ankle, has been scheduled for a
magnetic resonance imaging test late Sunday afternoon to determine
the severity of damage to his medial collateral ligament.
The Cowboys believe it is merely sprained and hope to confirm
that and the preliminary diagnosis of orthopedic surgeon Dr.
Robert Vandermeer that the anterior cruciate ligament - the major
stabilizing ligament - was not injured. Trainer Jim Maurer said
X-rays performed at halftime revealed no obvious ligament tears
or bone fractures.
"I talked to Emmitt personally, and he feels this is the
worst injury he has had," Switzer said. "But I saw
the replay and it looked like Emmitt barely got his knee out
of there and maybe kept it from being real serious. But he's
obviously going to be out for a while."
Smith, who mildly sprained the same knee 10 days ago, left the
locker room in a straight-leg splint before reporters were allowed
entrance.
The Cowboys were consistently frustrated in their attempts to
run the football with him. Now, with the regular season two weeks
away, they confront the dubious prospect of possibly having to
find a reason to believe they can do so without the four-time
NFL rushing champion.
Smith was running behind a revamped offensive line when he went
down with 6:05 remaining in the first half. Offensive lineman
Erik Williams lost control of his 324 pounds and collapsed the
running back when he fell across the outside of his left knee.
Switzer already considered his the thinnest team in the league.
The Cowboys' depth chart listed 12 rookies as second-team players
while Denver had four.
"We're a team without a lot of depth right now, so any injuries
we have affects us a lot more than other teams," quarterback
Troy Aikman said.
This marks the third consecutive week Dallas has at least temporarily
lost an offensive starter to a knee injury. Left tackle Mark
Tuinei and tight end Kendell Watkins preceded Smith. Already
playing without Michael Irvin and Jay Novacek, the Cowboys have
been outscored, 83-16, in losing the past three games.
"Our football team has a lot of problems. That should be
obvious to everyone," Switzer said. "You take our No.
1 receiver away, our tight end, and the other problems and we're
not as good a football team as we have been.
"Without Emmitt, Jay and Michael, that is a nightmare for
Troy to think about those things."
The Dallas coaching staff treated the hard-running Smith like
porcelain, refusing to play him until starting offensive linemen
Williams and Ray Donaldson recovered from injuries and took their
places in the starting lineup.
That happened against the Broncos, and Smith decided to play
with Larry Allen at an unfamiliar left tackle position and George
Hegamin, proven only in the World League, at right guard.
Switzer, who often defers to the whims of his players, declared
before the team broke training camp that Smith would not play
until next Saturday's exhibition finale in Orlando. The Cowboys
regretted changing those plans midway through the second period.
Smith broke an attempted tackle - his trademark - changed direction
in heavy traffic and churned for more than the four yards he
had gained when Williams collided with him.
Despite playing Aikman and Smith together for the first time
with the other starters throughout the first half, the Cowboys
were more futile than prolific. Smith, who ran for 114 yards
against Denver last regular season, had seven carries for 11
yards.
While John Elway led the Broncos to 13 first downs in the first
half, the Cowboys compiled a meager two and failed to score a
touchdown in the game for the third consecutive week.
The Dallas first downs came on a 52-yard pass from Aikman to
Kevin Williams on the first Dallas possession and a 39-yard completion
from Aikman to Deion Sanders - the first NFL player to start
both ways in the do-rag era.
The Cowboys were presented other scoring opportunities and refused
them. They went three-and-out after taking over at the Denver
49 and after having the ball at their own 49.
"We would be pretty foolish if we weren't concerned,"
Aikman said. "We're obviously concerned."
All content copyright 1996, AP, The Abilene
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