Wednesday, November 25, 1998

Aikman seems even better after layoff

By Clarence E. Hill Jr.

Knight Ridder Newspapers

(KRT)

IRVING, Texas - He can't throw the deep ball.

He's too mechanical.

He doesn't like the shotgun.

Such were some of the preseason comments regarding Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman's ability to adapt to coach Chan Gailey's new wide-open offense.

That all seems like folly now.

As the Cowboys (8-3) head into the Thanksgiving Day showdown with the Minnesota Vikings (10-1), Aikman has become more formidable than ever in Gailey's spread-the-wealth offense.

Few quarterbacks have been hotter in the past four weeks since Aikman returned from a broken collarbone. He has completed 72 of 109 passes (66 percent) for 836 yards with six touchdowns and one interception in leading the Cowboys on a four-game winning streak and back into the realm of being a bona fide Super Bowl contender.

"He's doing a great job, an unbelievable job," Gailey said. "But I always thought he was great for this offense. It's not about people adapting to it. It's about putting people in position to do what they do best."

What Aikman, 32, does best is read defenses and pick out receivers. Gailey's offense simply maximizes those strengths - which was evident the past two games in which Aikman completed passes to eight receivers in a 35-28 victory against the Arizona Cardinals and hit 10 receivers in Sunday's 30-22 victory against the Seattle Seahawks.

"I feel comfortable with what we are doing and I feel like I'm throwing the ball well," Aikman said. "I feel like I've made improvements with what we are doing over the past four weeks. I feel good about the way things are going. Hopefully, that will continue."

Vikings coach Dennis Green said Aikman has been the difference for the Cowboys. And he said the offense is turning the six-time Pro Bowler into a bigger weapon than he was during the Cowboys' Super Bowl title seasons of 1992, 1993 and 1995.

"What the new offense has done is give him more people to throw the ball to," Green said. "During the championship years, they relied on the run, getting the ball to Michael (Irvin) and occasionally throwing it over the top to Alvin Harper. He's absolutely more dangerous now because you have to defend the whole field. Any time a guy is open he'll be able to get them the ball."

Gailey said that was the point all along.

"If I'm coaching defense, he's more dangerous because defense is about monitoring threats," Gailey said. "If you have to monitor every threat, then it makes you less able to defense them all."

Gailey said nobody takes advantage of defensive mistakes better than Aikman, because of his arm and his mind.

"A lot of guys have the accuracy and can throw," Gailey said. "But Troy sees the mistakes, anticipates and can put it there. The physical part is just part of it. Troy is so sharp that it's funny."

Aikman has played well in the Cowboys' offense all season, considering that the Cowboys averaged 30.6 points per game in the six games that he has finished. However, there is no doubt that the five-game injury layoff set back his development in Gailey's system.

But he has improved in each outing since he returned and is now playing as well as anyone in the league. His combined quarterback rating over the past four games of 107.5 tops that of Vikings quarterback Randall Cunningham, who is the league's top-ranked passer but has managed a rating of only 94.48 in his past four outings.

And Aikman's success has come despite not completing a single pass to longtime favorite target Michael Irvin two weeks ago and losing new-found favorite target Ernie Mills to injury Sunday.

"There's no doubt he's getting better with every game," Irvin said. "He's not just making the reads, but anticipating the reads. That gives you a chance to look at one thing and throw back to another because you know it's there. And the more he plays, the better he's going to get."

"And the scary part," Gailey added, "is that he will continue to get better."

(c) 1998, Fort Worth Star-Telegram

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