Monday, February 16, 1998

Chan's a pretty good pick for the Cowboys

By CANDY REAGAN / Abilene Reporter-News

Well, finally the Dallas Cowboys have a new coach, and I'm happy with the choice.

Oh sure, the Cowboys could have done better, but they also could have done worse.

And realistically speaking, with Jerry Jones as general manager and owner, Cowboys fans probably shouldn't have expected to fair as well.

So rather than bemoaning the fact that both George Seifert and Sherm Lewis seemed much more qualified, I'm consoling myself with the fact that Jerry Jones seems to have somehow stumbled into a potentially good head coach in spite of the fact that good coaching skills were way down on his list of necessary qualifications.

Jones' top priority apparently was hiring a man who would stoop to his terms. I'm thanking my lucky stars that Terry Donahue -- the least qualified of the candidates and therefore Jones' apparent first choice -- would not stoop to those terms. Otherwise, he'd be the coach now.

Instead, the Cowboys have Chan Gailey, former offensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Steelers, who at least has NFL experience. He also has good character, a high regard for discipline and an apparent knack for running an offense.

Getting those qualities was likely just an accident on Jones' part, but hey, I'll take it.

Now that Gailey is hired, the fun part begins. Thanks to Jones, he starts his job under the media's critical glare. But he starts his job in a much better position than his predecessor, Barry Switzer.

Because Gailey was willing to stoop to Jones' demands, his ability to be a head coach will be questioned.

And because Jones has so obviously enjoyed playing head coach in the absence of a real one -- he has hired and fired assistants at will, made plans for free agency and evaluated rookies -- Gailey will continuously face the criticism that he is merely Jones' puppet .

You can bet that any time Gailey concedes to Jones -- even if it's a legitimate concession -- he will be criticized.

But Gailey has a good shot at improving the Cowboys and is bound to be more popular with the fans.

For one thing, Gailey can't be much more of a puppet than Switzer was. For another, he's got an advantage over Switzer in that fans wanted a change. Few fans, if any, wanted Switzer. Most were furious that Jones fired a proven Super Bowl winner in Jimmy Johnson.

Consequently, Switzer had an uphill battle he never could win -- even if he had been a good coach.

Gailey, however, is a welcome change. Fans wanted Switzer gone, and they will welcome Gailey with open arms.

Switzer also had a disadvantage in that he took over a Super Bowl team. How do you improve on that? Instead, he left the team as one of the 10 worst in the NFL. Gailey, on the other hand, takes over a struggling team and has a lot better chance of showing some improvement.

Frankly, I've liked what I've seen on Gailey. He's well-respected for his offensive skills. Heaven knows, the Cowboys need that.

He's said to be gifted at working a system around the people he has. The Cowboys need someone who will adapt a good offensive system to account for their age.

Gailey's character is reportedly impeccable, and he's spent several years working for the extremely disciplined Bill Cowher. The Cowboys have a tarnished image, and a bunch of undisciplined superstars that need cleaning up.

It sounds like Gailey may be able to handle the Cowboys. Whether he can handle their owner or not is another question.

The answer to that may well determine the success of the Cowboys and Gailey in the coming years.

Candy Reagan, a local free-lance writer and avid sports fan, writes a weekly sports column commenting on sports happenings. You may contact her by e-mail at reagan@camalott.com.