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 Troy
Aikman concerned with perception of his Cowboys
By Gary Myers
New York Daily News
(August 2, 1996)
AUSTIN (KRT) - Troy Aikman has won three Super Bowl rings in
the last four years, is the NFL's highest-paid player, has negotiated
a detente with coach Barry Switzer and believes the '96 Cowboys
have the potential to be better than last year, which would mean
a fourth championship.
But when you play for the Cowboys, there's so much more to it
than just football.
Five players from the most recent Super Bowl team already have,
or will, serve suspensions for violating the league's substance
abuse policy. The most prominent, of course, is Michael Irvin,
forced to miss the first five games this year.
Sitting down in what amounted to a state-of-the-Cowboys address,
Aikman admitted he is "very concerned" with the perception
of his team, and when asked if he thinks people look at the Cowboys
as a class organization, he said, "Probably not. I'll be
honest with my answers here. But I think there are a lot of reasons
for that. Maybe the way Jerry (Jones) has gone about doing some
of the things he's doing fighting against the NFL. I think from
an image standpoint that probably wasn't real favorable for us.
And some of the things that have taken place with some of the
individual players."
Irvin and Aikman are good friends. Back in January, when Aikman
had to face questions during Super Bowl week about complaints
earlier in the year that he was singling out black players for
criticism, Irvin quickly came to his defense and dismissed it.
And last month, as Irvin sat in a Dallas courtroom at his drug
trial, Aikman was the only member of the organization to attend.
It was a decision to which he gave serious thought, weighing how
people would interpret his presence. But after reading that no
one from Irvin's family or the Cowboys had been there, he felt
that wasn't right.
"I knew there would be some criticism that came with it,"
he said. "And I really felt the criticism would be overwhelming,
to be quite honest. I knew the reason that I was going and I know
what I believe in as being right and what's wrong. Michael has
been a friend of mine and I've tried to be a friend of his. And
I think when you're a friend for someone, you're a friend through
the good times and bad times.
"I wasn't real proud to be there. And I wasn't condoning
the reason the trial was taking place. I was just there to show
support for Michael and show him, I'm here for you if you need
me. I think that people were then trying to draw the conclusion
that I was condoning Michael's behavior."
Aikman is on his way to the Hall of Fame. The Cowboys already
are the only team to win three Super Bowls in four years. This
season Aikman can join Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw as the only
quarterbacks to win four rings and the Cowboys can become the
first team to win six Super Bowls. To do that, they eventually
will need the big numbers from Irvin.
For now, Deion Sanders has moved from cornerback to wide receiver,
although when the real games start, Aikman believes Sanders will
still be a big part of the defense. He thinks Sanders can help
the Cowboys on offense.
"He's a good wide receiver. I think for anyone to think he
will come over to offense and be one of the top three wide receivers
in this league is a little naive," Aikman said. "Then
I think it gives the appearance that playing wide receiver in
the NFL is a simple thing to do. And it's not. He's got all the
talent in the world to be a great wide receiver, but it just takes
time. And I don't think the amount of time he's been able to put
into it is enough to make him a great player. I don't think he's
going to replace Michael Irvin. But I think he can be very effective
and really help us."
In 1993, the Cowboys started off 0-2 during Emmitt Smith's holdout.
This time, they will go five games without Irvin. And Aikman dismissed
the notion that Irvin's absence wouldn't be as severe because
wide receivers don't control games like running backs. He fears
the loss of Irvin, his "go-to guy" on third down, could
hamper the Cowboys' ability to keep drives alive.
Instead of getting down about not having Irvin for the first five
games, Aikman said, "I'm happy we have him for 11."
Cowboys camp really has a party atmosphere. The stands are packed
and fans line the fence. Players are treated like rock stars.
But it was a behind-the-scenes meeting between Aikman and Switzer
in the offseason that eventually could make this a calmer season
in Dallas.
Aikman's work ethic was more closely aligned with former coach
Jimmy Johnson, and Aikman had a difficult time adjusting to Switzer's
laid-back style. For now, Aikman has accepted it. He even said
Switzer deserves as much credit for last year's Super Bowl as
Johnson received for the first two. And Switzer apologized for
how he handled things when the racial innuendos against Aikman
- and subsequently denied by Aikman - were brought to his attention.
"The important thing for he and I to do is communicate. And
we've been able to do that," Aikman said. "I guess if
I were running a football team, I would do things differently.
My personality is very different from his. I've always said that
however you coach, you need to do whatever you feel more comfortable
doing. And he's done that. And for him it works."
It resulted in another Super Bowl. The question for the Cowboys
is whether the constant talk of their off-the-field problems will
wear them down before the season even starts. "I hope we
put all these things behind us and do some positive things,"
Aikman said.
That is their biggest challenge.
(c) 1996, New York Daily News. Distributed by Knight-Ridder/Tribune
Information Services.
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