from theboysblog.com: By Rafael Vela Of all the questions and responses in Bill Parcells? two pressers last weekend, this one raised my eyebrows the most, ?This was probably the toughest job I?ve ever had? not because of the cooperation or the effort or the wherewithal?.It?s just where it was, and then where it went, and then we had to take a step back to get some things squared away.? (emphasis mine) Do I detect an admission of fault on Parcells? part? An ever so subtle cop to the charge that he lost the plot in 2004? Given his ego and his demeanor, I?m going to take this as a yes, in part because it echoes what I?ve heard from people close to the game. One told me weeks ago that the worst thing to ever happen to the Dallas Parcells was going 10-6 in 2003, because it delayed the bold overhaul that took place in the 2005 and 2006 offseasons. Parcells convinced himself that his 2004 team had more talent than it did. He left his defense in the philosophical clutches of Mike Zimmer and Jerry Jones and tinkered little during the ?04 free agency. In the coach?s defense, some situations were beyond his control. The ?this is the toughest job I?ve ever had? line is an old one; Parcells told it to the press last year, citing the will-o?-the-wisp that was Quincy Carter. ?It took us a full year and a summer training camp before we knew that it wasn?t going to work,? he said. ?At the other places during the second year, I had a quarterback in place.? No one could have anticipated Carter?s wipe out with drugs that year. Nor could anybody have forseen Darren Woodson?s back would give out two weeks before the season, crippling Dallas? secondary in the process. You wonder, however, what Parcells could have done had he made the committment to change his defensive philosophy one year sooner. The speed of his changeover from the 4-3 to the 3-4 has been breathtaking. Looking at the ?04 free agents ? which were a motley group as a whole ? one name jumps out: Steelers LB Clark Haggans. The four year veteran only drew interest from the Lions and re-signed with Pittsburgh for four years and $10.5 million. That modest contract drew some criticism from Steelers fans, who had not been impressed by a backup with only 7.5 sacks in four years. Once he became a starter, Haggans proved the perfect bookend to Joey Porter, bagging 15 sacks the last two seasons. He got exactly the type of futures deal the Cowboys gave OG Kyle Kosier two months ago, one based on anticipated future production. He?s repaid the Steelers brass handsomely. We can only hope Kosier?s career follows the same arc. You wonder what might have been done had the team not been bound by the need to replicate ?03. Might a free-agent QB like Brian Griese been signed? Might the team have tried trading up to draft one? Might Parcells have dangled valuable 4-3 players like LaRoi Glover and might the 29 year old version have brought more in return than the 31 year old model did, which was nothing? Might Dallas have pursued unsung 3-4 players like Haggans? Those are questions we can ponder, but not for too long. However long it took, the rebuilding has been squared away. The team is better. It is on the right track. How much better? We?ll have to wait three months before we begin to find out.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>One told me weeks ago that the worst thing to ever happen to the Dallas Parcells was going 10-6 in 2003, because it delayed the bold overhaul that took place in the 2005 and 2006 offseasons.</div> I 100% agree with this. The 10-6 season was kind of a fluke and it really increased team and fan expectations going forward. I'd be interested to see the state of the team and any alternate direction they might have headed in had they gone 6-10 that first year.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Pack Attack)</div><div class='quotemain'>The 10-6 season was kind of a fluke and it really increased team and fan expectations going forward. I'd be interested to see the state of the team and any alternate direction they might have headed in had they gone 6-10 that first year.</div> Oh, great! Jinx the Dolphins. LOL. Of course, I said for years on that "other site" that having the Dolphins go 6-10 or 5-11 under the previous regime might not have been a bad thing. It would have eliminated the vanilla stain and gotten some fresh blood and new attitude in S Fla. So, 2004 was a blessing in disguise?
