Maybe the Deion, Kevin dream can be realized
nowMaybe the Deion, Kevin dream can be realized
now AUSTIN - When it became apparent last August that the Cowboys had a
legitimate chance to sign Deion Sanders, coaches and fans alike drooled
at the possibility of pairing him with Kevin Smith in the secondary.
Sanders, one of the best cover cornerbacks in NFL history, and Smith, a
young corner with star written all over him, would form the NFL's best cornerback
duo and throw fear into the hearts of offenses around the league.
But the dream didn't materialize in 1995.
Sure, the Cowboys signed Sanders, but only after they were forced to do
so after an injury to Smith.
The dream duo went up in smoke just two quarters into the 1995 season. While
defending on a post pattern in the second quarter in the season opener against
the New York Giants, Smith partially ruptured his right Achilles tendon,
forcing him to miss the rest of the season.
The injury came one day after Smith signed a lucrative long-term contract
that will probably keep him in Dallas the rest of his career.
Sanders was signed five days after the injury, but he was never paired with
Smith in the defensive backfield. Instead he helped Larry Brown collect
six interceptions in the regular season, three more in the playoffs and
the Super Bowl XXX MVP trophy.
Brown then signed with the Oakland Raiders in the offseason.
And with Brown gone, the Cowboys are counting on Smith to return to the
lineup as soon as possible. Without him, Alundis Brice will be starting
at cornerback opposite Sanders, who will also be playing a lot of wide receiver.
"If I had to go out and play a game tomorrow, I could," Smith
said. "But I don't have to prove myself in training camp. The coaches
know what I can do, and they know what kind of competitive attitude I have."
Shortly after his injury, Smith had surgery to repair the tendon and was
then put in a cast.
"The lowest point of the whole rehab process was at the beginning when
I was in a cast and I couldn't walk," he said. "I felt fine everywhere
else. My strength was good and my weight was up, but I just couldn't walk."
But soon he was fitted for a walking boot and shortly after that he was
out of that altogether and getting his leg back in shape.
"I realized pretty quickly that I had a 10 or 11-month rehab period
staring me in the face," Smith said, "so there was no sense in
getting down that early.
"First I had to walk, then jog, then sprint," he said. "And
after that I started working on running and being able to run out of a break."
Smith's situation is different than the normal person injuring an Achilles,
because he makes his living with his legs and has to be able to cut, start
and stop and backpedal.
"You hardly ever use straight-ahead speed in a game," he said.
"But I've gotten the quickness off the backpedal back, and I can cut.
I've been able to regain everything that I had before. It feels a little
different, but that happens after surgery and after it's been in a cast
and a walking boot."
The fourth-year cornerback said he's not even thinking about the possibility
of re-injuring the Achilles.
"I don't even think about that," Smith said. "I'm not worried
about it because I've been told that I have a better chance of tearing the
left one than the first one. It won't ever feel the same, but I don't even
think about it anymore."
But he is thinking about he and Sanders lining up in the same defensive
backfield.
"Deion just wants to go out and cover one guy, and I just want to go
out and cover one guy," Smith said. "All the stunts and packages
we run will come from the front seven. We plan on going out there and taking
the top two wide receivers out of the game. And then we'll attack with the
front seven. It should be fun."
It's what everyone's waited a season to see.