Thursday, November 26, 1998

Cowboys finding surprising success with substitutes

By David Moore

The Dallas Morning News

(KRT)

DALLAS - A certain electricity surrounds Thursday's game between the Cowboys and Minnesota Vikings.

The anticipation of Deion Sanders on Randy Moss generates some of the wattage. So does the fact this game pits two of the NFC's best on national TV on Thanksgiving Day.

Still, there's a sense of excitement at Valley Ranch these days that goes deeper than Troy Aikman's performance, Emmitt Smith's resurgence or the team's 8-3 record. It has to do with the quality depth the Cowboys have developed and the number of young players who are making key contributions.

"We have put so much emphasis on how I'm doing, how the offense looks, but you guys (the media) miss the key ingredient," Smith said. "We've had some injuries, and we've had some backup guys step in there and fill their roles.

"We're winning with substitute players. That ought to give you an indication of how good we can become and how good our chances really are."

The Cowboys will field seven starters who are age 25 or younger for Thursday's game. There are 15 players on the roster who have started or currently fill prime backup roles.

Not all of the contributors are young. Backup quarterback Jason Garrett and running back Chris Warren are the most notable thirtysomething exceptions.

Again, those are the exceptions. An emphasis on developing young talent and Chan Gailey's offensive scheme have formed this transitional bridge from the team's Super Bowl years. It has fostered a climate where eight different players can start in the offensive line and that group still can allow the fewest sacks (11) in the NFL and be the moving force for a rushing attack that ranks second in the league.

"It's part of our responsibility to make sure if a guy plays, he's prepared to play," Gailey said. "Now, can I give him the same number of reps I give a starter? No. But you hope you give each guy, whoever it might be, enough reps and enough situations where they can go in and play well."

The focus this week shifts to receivers Jeff Ogden and Patrick Jeffers. They will be asked to do more now that veteran Ernie Mills is expected to miss the remainder of the regular season with a perforated small intestine.

Gailey said he has no qualms about putting these two unproven players into the game. That showed in Sunday's victory over Seattle when Ogden and Jeffers combined for six catches for 66 yards, with several of those receptions coming on third down.

"I would think our depth offensively is as deep as what we've had in a number of years," said Aikman, who completed passes to 10 players against the Seahawks. "I think a lot of the reason for that is we continue to develop the younger players even once we broke training camp, which is something we probably didn't do as good of a job of in the past.

"The approach taken by Chan and the rest of the coaches is that we can put some other players in and still have success."

The philosophical shift behind this approach occurred in January 1997. As owner Jerry Jones watched his team lose to Carolina in the divisional playoffs, a game in which Michael Irvin and Deion Sanders went down with injuries and Jay Novacek never made it to the field because of a recurring back problem, he determined the Cowboys must change. A franchise that had won three Super Bowls in four years needed an infusion of youth to supplement the veteran core.

"We started consciously giving young players an opportunity to beat out the veteran players," Jones said.

Gailey's arrival, and an offensive system that uses three- and four-receiver sets, accelerated the process. Jones likes how this offense affords more opportunities for skill players than in the past. It gives the club a chance to evaluate young receivers without thrusting them into crucial roles.

"I've seen the time around here where a Jeff Ogden could come and go and never get on the field," Jones said. "You would never know what he would do in a football game."

Those are the broader principles that help explain the depth the Cowboys have begun to develop. The specifics: more plays are run in practice, giving backups more time on the field; additional meetings to review the offense; a special Monday practice session with offensive linemen, defensive lineman and linebackers that concentrates strictly on techniques; retaining 53 players on the active roster and the full compliment of five players on the practice squad, which is something the team hasn't done in recent years.

"We try to tell our guys you're only one play away from having to go play an entire ballgame or the rest of the season," Gailey said. "So make sure you prepare yourself.

"They have accepted that challenge."

This season, it's a challenge they have accepted over and over.

"When you think back to when we were really good, five to six years ago, we had that kind of depth," Smith said. "I think we have that kind of depth now where guys step in, do the job, and you're not really missing a beat."

INJURY UPDATE:

Running back Emmitt Smith (ankle) and right tackle Erik Williams (knee) practiced Tuesday and are expected to play against the Vikings.

Cornerback Deion Sanders (toe) and running back Chris Warren (groin) didn't practice, but Cowboys' Coach Chan Gailey said he was "cautiously optimistic" that both would be ready for Thursday's game.

Receiver Ernie Mills, out for the remainder of the regular season with a perforated small intestine, was moved out of intensive care and into his own room. Trainer Jim Maurer said Mills would remain in a local hospital for several days.

Minnesota, meanwhile, will be without receiver Jake Reed because of a disk problem in his lower back.

ROSTER MOVES:

The Cowboys activated cornerback Terry Billups from the practice squad Tuesday to provide depth for an injury-riddled secondary. The club made room for him on the active roster by placing guard Everett McIver (knee) on the injured list.

Linebacker Brandon Tolbert, who played at Georgia with starter Randall Godfrey, was signed and will take Billups' spot on the practice squad.

(c) 1998, The Dallas Morning News.

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