Cowboys Special Teams Not So Special

It began with the opening kick off against Houston Friday.

Texans kick returner Andre Davis crossed up midfield for 68-yards.

The Dallas Cowboys special teams have been less than special lately and that has raised eyebrows from everyone except the coaching staff.

"Special teams, you know the return teams are outstanding, have been this preseason," said Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips. "Our punt team had trouble the first game, and we've had some trouble on kick off coverage."

That may be the understatement of the day, but Phillips insists that until he gets his regular special team players in the game, they will continue to struggle.

"Well a lot has to do with losing Keith Davis," says fullback Deon Anderson, a key special teams contributor. "He was the special teams captain last year and he contributed a lot to the special teams."

Davis is gone as a free agent to Miami, creating one of many holes the Cowboys are trying to fill.

"We've had a couple of returns that we don't like, some of it is the learning curve from guys that haven't been in there and some of it is guys that won't be in there also," Phillips said.

Miles Austin, last season's kick returner, and Isaiah Stanback, who also returns kicks, have both been injured this preseason.

"The first game, I felt like it was our worst game on special teams, our last two games, I feel like we progressively got better, a couple of slip ups here and there," Austin says. "We just got to finish it up."

"Whenever we have weaknesses, we put someone else there, its like a chess game," Anderson says. "We still have moving pieces, you know."

Last season, the kick off return unit was one of the worst that Dallas has had in years, and the punt coverage team ranked 29th in the league.

So when it comes to special teams, Dallas hasn't been so special.

Dallas Stars Introduce Sean Avery

The Dallas Stars introduced Sean Avery at the American Airlines Center today. He certainly seemed like a level headed guy despite all the crazy things we've heard about him as the most hated man in the NHL. How about those knock down, drag out fights he has had with Stars Left Wing Brenden Morrow. "I think with hockey players, the one, is that we can have a battle, but as soon as we become teammates, it's kind of all forgotten," says Avery. He says even looking forward to perhaps getting a chance to play with him on the same line.

"You almost have more respect for guys battle, whether plain or actually fights," he says. "It's certainly going to be a lot of fun playing with him and Steve Ott, and it will probably bring my fighting majors down a little bit since I usually end up fighting one of those guys."

Do you think that will really happen?

Avery says hockey players leave all that stuff on the ice and says guys on the ice don’t hold grudges.

Crowne Plaza Invitational Has Had Some Crazy Moments

Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth has a rich golf history, and with that history, some great stories.

Mark Brooks grew up watching the tournament as a kid. “It was a little wilder in those days in the 70's, and since I've been playing, I haven't seen much. I've seen nothing,” he says laughing.

In 1993, Ian Baker-Finch made national head lines when he got a little breezy on the par 3, 13th.

“He took his pants off and stepped in the water to hit the ball up on the green, says Dorthy Townes, a golf fan will never forget that day. “He did it, okay, thank you!” she says.

Baker-Finch was mobbed by members of the media when he finished his round that day. “It was down there in the water,” he said, “So I just thought I would take my pants off and play it out, and put ‘em on quick.”

Thursday was round one of the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, and because it was a windy and there is water in front of the 9th green, the tendency was for golfers to hit the ball long. The only trouble is, some of the guys hit their shots way too long.

“I hit a perfect shot, and caught a flyer and two hits, hits the concrete and I’m over the world,” said 1987 Colonial Champion Keith Clearwater.

Clearwater ended up on the number one tee box, in the shrubs. After a quick drop by the putting green and he was on his way. But being spectator, got a dicey.

Jack Townes, said he could have used a hard hat. “I need one badly, but I'm with a hard head over there,” he said.

Dudley Hart, who shot a 3-under par 67, found his second shot on the sidewalk on the way the clubhouse.

“Well we hit it on the cart path quite a bit,” says Hart. “You'd be surprised.”

Which is fine, unless your sitting behind the green.

“That was quite a miss there,” says golf fan Tom Murphy. ”Those fans standing there, they don't know how dangers it is.”

Actually it wasn’t that dangers, just a little breezy.

Nascar's New Car Needs Fine Tuning

(Photo Courtesy Jimmie-Johnson.Net)
It sounds like the Car of Tomorrow needs a more work if they expect to have great races on mile and a half ovals like the Texas Motor Speedway.

Sundays’ Samsung 500 didn’t have the great side by side racing that most fans were looking for, which means NASCAR’s Car of Tomorrow has yet to become the Car of Today. Did you hear Jimmie Johnson? “I can’t believe how bad these things drove,” Johnson said. And this from a guy who finished second!

Maybe it’s a Hendrick Motorsports thing. After all, they were the ones who focused on the short tracks last year, and ended up winning 18 races. “We’re just really, really bad,” said Jeff Gordon who finished dead last. “I wish I had an answer for you. I don’t”

Two weeks ago when Johnson was in town, he said “Where the opinions are coming from is that we were sold one bill of goods and now it’s much different that what we were sold!” Ouch again.

Eddie Gossage, President of Texas Motor Speedway has asked NASCAR again and again to do more testing at his track to get things right, but apparently they won’t do it. “I’ve had 30 Sprint Cup drivers come to me and tell me, we need to be testing here. Nascar just won’t let ‘em come,” he said.

What did Gossage think of the race? “On competition, it gets a “C” minus. It’s a car in development.

When it comes to safety, the car passed the ultimate test when Michael McDowell drilled the wall during qualifying on Saturday. He escaped unscathed after his car barrel rolled 8 times. But when it comes to racing, the car may not be ready for Prime Time just yet.

Adam "Pacman" Jones Looks Like A Done Deal To Me

(Photo Courtesy USA Today)
Adam "Pacman" Jones spent three hours on Michael Irvin's talk show on ESPN radio, discussing who he is and where he's going.
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He offered a glimpse into his past, like the day he lost his father.

“He was robbed and shot two doors away from our front door.” Robbed and shot, Irvin asks? “Yes sir,” he answers.

That moment in his life instilled anger in heart that stayed for years.

“When he first passed, I was really angry about everything,” Jones says. “There was no joy in me, it took me probably two and a half years just to smile and not want to fight every day. My grand mother and mother helped me get through that you know, but the first two years, I was just an angry kid.”

These days, it’s the NFL who is angry at Jones for his run ins with the law, including a plea to obstruction of a police officer in Georgia which left him with a felony conviction.

“I've never pointed the finger at nobody about any of my incidents,” Jones says. “I'm a man, and I'll man it up and I've accepted my punishment, and I've done everything that came with the punishment. So, I do explain myself about certain things and certain things I'll say, no man I was just wrong in that situation.”

Jones kept mentioning that his suspension will reach the one year mark on April 10th and is hopeful that he will be reinstated at that time. It seems obvious to me that a deal is in the works or may have already been completed, a deal that will bring Jones to Dallas. That explains his arrival in Dallas and explains his appearance on Irvin's talk show. What else could it be?


“If I had been 35 or 36, my career would probably have been over with,” Jones says. “I'm really lucky to maybe get another shot, and I don't take that for granted at all.”

How did he end up on the ESPN radio in the first place? "I didn't talk to Jerry (Jones) about any of this," said Irvin after the three hour interview, "Because I always wanted to be able to have plausible deniability, you know what I'm saying." Sounds a little wink winkish to me!

Jones’ agent is working on a deal and wouldn't say if the Titans have given him permission to seek a trade.

Ironically, Jones says he’s still not committed to staying totally away from strip clubs which have been a source of some of his off the field problems.

Says Jones, “I can not say ever, ever, but I can say they won't see me in the next three four years in one. I have to do that the next three four years to change, so, no they won't see me in one.

Even when Jones left the studios of 103.3, he sounded like a man that would be moving to Dallas real soon.

"Hey, thank you all for having me," he said climbing in a limo. "I hope I'll be back here real soon."

That doesn't sound like a guy who was just in town to revisit his demons.

Former Olympic Sprinter Michael Johnson Helps Players Prepare For The NFL Combine

For the past eight years, sprinter and five time gold medalist Michael Johnson has showed former college football players how to impress scouts at the NFL combine. His workout facility at Craig Ranch in McKinney is simply known as the Michael Johnson Performance Center.

"It’s a matter of trying to get these guys be consistent," says Johnson. "If they do that, when they get to the combine, they'll have their best performance."

While Johnson has been training and guiding former college football players, this is the first time that he has been able to utilize his new center in McKinney. The NFL Combine will take place from February 20th through 26th in Indianapolis where speed is the name of the game. They need to learn how to better get off the line in the 40 yard dash so they can turn in their best time.

"We have to reteach guys how to run because they've been running the same way for years,” says Johnson. “A lot of times they're running with a ball, they're running with pads on, but a lot of is just inefficiency."

Among his prize students leading up to the combine is Arkansas' Darren McFadden, twice a runner up to the Heisman Trophy voting and a two time winner of the Doak Walker Award.

"I'm a very explosive person but the way they tell me I can always get more explosive," says McFadden. "By them showing me on a computer, I can actually look at what I’m doing."

Lance Walker, the Director of Performance and Sports Medicine for Michael Johnson Performance says, "McFadden's got so much power, like a real powerful boat, if you don't trim the motor just right, it'll just porpoise right out of the water. He’s got all this power we've got to harness.

Johnson knows all using a different running style, but it allowed him to win five Olympic Gold Medals. "I got criticized early on in my career for the style that I ran with," he says, "Obviously, it worked. But we decided, hey, we'll take a look at it and see.

The players he's coaching this week are on the verge of starting a career in professional football, and Johnson is trying to give them a physical and mental edge.

"I've learned that I can get a lot more flexible and a lot faster," says Derek Lokey who starred at Texas as a defensive tackle. "Here, I've learned a lot about myself and also learned a lot of mental tricks."

"This is my job now. I love it you,” says Tony Hills, a former teammate with Lokey at Texas. "For all the kids out there, education is important, but I tell you what, it’s a lot easier just to play football."

Johnson has his trainees working six to eight hours a day, six days a week. No one said preparing to face NFL scouts would be easy, but he’s determined to have his group of NFL hopefuls ready for the combine.

SMU'S JON KILLEN IS A STUDENT FIRST

SMU Point Guard Jon Killen fits the definition of a student athlete. He’s one of three seniors on the men’s basketball team and is a graduate of Arlington Martin High School. This year, in his final season, he has become Head Coach Matt Doherty’s leader on the court.

“He's one of the best players in the league now,” says Doherty. “He plays more minutes than anybody else. I don’t think you can argue the fact that he is more valuable to our team than any other player is to their team.”

Killen compares his position to a player football. “Being the point guard is kind of like being the quarterback,” he says. “No one has to say anything. You are the leader.”

Because he grew up in the North Texas, Killen says he plans to stay in the Dallas Fort Worth area. “I plan on living in the area after I graduate so if there was anywhere to go, it was SMU.”

Playing basketball for SMU is a great way to attend college, but Killen takes his commitments off the court even more serious. He's about to graduate with a double major in Business Management and Sociology and maintains 3.4 GPA. Says Killen, “SMU athletes embody student athletes and that's somebody who first goes to school and works just as hard on the court as they do off the court.”

To make his point, Killen is doing research to help co-author a book, but his favorite moment in school is when he received the Myer Brothers Academic Award. It’s given to an athlete for academic success, athletic performance and community involvement.

“I know it’s a new award, but it’s supposed to embody a student athlete who works hard on and off the court,” he says. It’s a student involved on campus and things like that, so that's really a big deal because we've got so many good kids here at SMU.

Doherty says Killen may have a chance to play professional basketball in Europe, but until that happens, he says he has no idea what the future holds.

“You know, I wish I knew. I wish I knew,” he says. “I'm just so busy to make sure I graduate my senior year.”

Doherty gives him a ringing endorsement. “Every time I talk publicly, if you want to have a successful company, you should hire Jon Killen.”

Wade Phillips Looks For First Post Season Win As Head Coach

Wade Phillips Is Looking For His First Post Season Win In The Post Season

The Cowboys may have reached their initial goals, but now there is a new target of gathering more wins in the playoffs. But there is an interesting story about Wade Phillips who has never won a game in the post season as a Head Coach.

Phillips dismisses the notion and says he isn’t bother by the past, claiming his teams weren’t that good.

“The only time I’ve been in the playoffs as a Head Coach, was on the road as an underdog,” Phillips says. “This is a stronger team and we’re playing a home. I’ve taken some pride in the teams that didn’t make it because we coached them well, and the ones that barely made it, that didn’t end up going anywhere, I thought we did a heck of a job.”

His three playoff chances as a Head Coach were all Wild Card games. In 1993, Phillips was coaching the Denver Broncos and lost to the LA Raiders 42-24. Five years later in 1998, he was coaching at Buffalo and lost to Miami 24-to-17. Then the following year, it was a heart breaking loss to Tennessee in the Music City Miracle game, 22-to-16.

Now he hopes to take a 13-and-3 team to the Super Bowl despite a lackluster month of December.

“Our momentum was basically winning, getting in the playoffs, win our division, getting a bye and getting home field,” he says. “We have accomplished every single one of our goals.”

But as a team, the Cowboys have precious little playoff experience to draw from. Only six players, five who are active, have ever been on a team that has actually won a playoff game.

“I didn’t know that stat,” says Linebacker Akin Ayodele. “I’ve never won a playoff game, so I’m looking forward to winning my first one.”

Safety Ken Hamlin was part of a Seattle team that went the Super Bowl and lost. “I'm hoping everyone is ready for a win,” he says. “I'm definitely ready for a win and that's what I'm getting prepared for. I can’t look at somebody’s past. I mean, you can look at my past and say we only won a certain amount. We didn’t win a super and that doesn’t mean anything.”

Tight End Jason Witten is also looking for his first win the playoffs. “This is a first time for everything,” he says. “It’s the first time we won a division, so we're just glad to be playing at home.”

Al Walker, who takes care of the facilities at valley ranch, already has what the players want. He has three Super Bowl rings from the 90’s. Says Walker, “I’ve been around a while.”

Dallas has a long history of reaching the playoffs and winning in the playoffs. Five Super Bowl Championships speak for themselves, but that hasn’t been the case for more than a decade. Phillips hopes his timing is perfect.