A Cowboy Tragedy

[monk81]

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/c...toryindex.html

San Antonio Express-News



Buck Harvey: Carter out on strike two? Why Parcells did it
Web Posted: 08/05/2004 12:00 AM CDT


Don't kid yourself. The Cowboys are not better off without Quincy Carter.

If one of Vinny Testaverde's 40-year-old knees buckles — and that can happen in a buffet line — then get ready for Chad Hutchinson, The Sequel.
So why would Bill Parcells do this to himself? If this is about drugs, why wouldn't Parcells let the league substance-abuse program run its course on Carter, then regroup?

The A to the Q: Already tired of Carter's poor decisions, Parcells couldn't live with this latest one.

Carter isn't just another athlete who was careless with his gifts. He was careless with what he didn't deserve.

Jerry Jones gambled on Carter in the draft, taking him 53rd overall, higher than scouts projected. Then the Cowboys gambled even more. They made him a rookie starter.

Even former prospects named Staubach and Aikman had to work to earn the position. Carter had it handed to him.

Jones marveled at the obvious. Disguised by his quarterback number, concealed by a proportional build, Carter had an Elway-ian body. Rare is the passer who is tall, strong and quick.

Think Troy Aikman with Michael Irvin's speed.

Little wonder Carter had his moments, sometimes zipping past the 49ers on a Sunday afternoon, sometimes shocking the Giants on a Monday night. Little wonder Jones also didn't mind announcing he had been right.

Carter could also impress with his attitude, even when he lost, saying the best quarterbacks had to take their lumps. Once, not long ago, he summed up the highs and lows of the NFL with a telling statement.

"It's like," Carter said to microphones, "being on cocaine."

Not that he knew anything about that. He quoted the Bible, brought his mom to training camp and said he was treating football like work.

But the whispers that started at Georgia continued in Dallas. Then, last season, someone arrived with everything but "rehab" in neon.

John Lucas stood on the Cowboys' sideline, he said, because he wanted to see first-hand how Parcells operated.

That made sense for Lucas, always going against the grain. But for Parcells? He would have wanted Lucas around only if Lucas could help him.

Lucas denied last season he was there to counsel Carter, but Wednesday's news conference gave a contrasting timeline. Then Jones confirmed he knew about Carter's frailties when he hired Parcells.

Carter crept closer to the edge even with Lucas around. Carter talked too often about the pressure of playing in the NFL, as if he were trying to convince himself he could handle it.

And his bold statement at the start of training camp this summer came across as hollow. Then he said the quarterback job wasn't open. It was his.

Testaverde hadn't signed for that. He wanted to compete for the job.

Now the addition of Testaverde, as well as the trade for Drew Henson, takes on new meaning. Did Parcells see this coming?

There's reason to think that Parcells questioned even a drug-free Carter. At times Parcells lost faith, and his opinion of Carter appeared to bottom out in Philadelphia in December.

Then Parcells took the ball out of Carter's hands, and the numbers showed that. The Cowboys failed to complete a pass to a starting wide receiver.

Carter still completed one to an Eagles DB. That came on what Parcells hated most, the patented Carter "impulse throw."

If Parcells thought these mistakes were merely blips, then Wednesday would have never happened. After all, Parcells has overlooked bad urine in a good player before; he once coached Lawrence Taylor.

What happened in Miami underlines this other side. Ricky Williams left the Dolphins with a trail of failed drug tests, and Dave Wannstedt howled at his loss.

Parcells howls, instead, at lost time. He had endured the wrong read and the wrong throw from the wrong guy. He wasn't going to put up with the wrong lifestyle, too.

So did Carter end his career in Dallas because of what he put into his body?

What kept coming out of his brain, to Parcells, meant more.



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bharvey@express-news.net

[SKINSnCANES]

I like how they basically say he was careless with a job he didnt deserve to have anyways, heh.

[monk81]

I like how he gave a huge "hint" about his problem ....talking about the "highs" and lows of the NFL....

"It's like," Carter said to microphones, "being on cocaine."

Guess he knew

[monk81]

Originally Posted by SKINSnCANES

I like how they basically say he was careless with a job he didnt deserve to have anyways, heh.

It all stems from the fact that Jerry Jones was the one that drafted Carter so Jerry's ego allowed him to be the starter even though he knew how awful he was......Jerry preferred to have his ego get it's way instead of doing what was best for his team....well now Jerrah is reaping what he's sowed

[sportscurmudgeon]

Change the QBs name to Jeff George and the owner to Danny Boy.

Forget the cocaine allegations for a moment and you have a pretty decent picture of the Redskins in Norv's final season and the one glorious year of Martyball in DC.

A QB with great physical skills mesmerizes the owner who signs him and then wants him on the field. A coach gets fired when he doesn't play the QB enough and then the next coach cuts the QB because he was a bonehead. It's Dallas' turn now...

[Redskins_P]

Originally Posted by sportscurmudgeon

Change the QBs name to Jeff George and the owner to Danny Boy.

Forget the cocaine allegations for a moment and you have a pretty decent picture of the Redskins in Norv's final season and the one glorious year of Martyball in DC.

A QB with great physical skills mesmerizes the owner who signs him and then wants him on the field. A coach gets fired when he doesn't play the QB enough and then the next coach cuts the QB because he was a bonehead. It's Dallas' turn now...

Great analogy Curmudgeon.

[SKINSnCANES]

...im hoping to but those years behind me now and move ahead to more years with gibbs.

[BrudLee]

Originally Posted by Redskins_P

Great analogy Curmudgeon.

Except we should've known better. Carter's skills as a QB were raw, but he was young, so they thought they could shape him. George's were very good (not for Marty-ball, but he's got a gifted arm), but he was a known malcontent evertwhere he played. Dallas made a mistake, we committed a sin.

[Carnage]

Who is John Lucas?

[SmootSmack]

John Lucas was a star point guard for the University of Maryland in the late 1970s. Before that he was a two-sport star in high school. Dominating in both basketball (where he broke Pete Maravich's all time scoring record) and in his first love, tennis.

He was drafted no. 1 overall by the NBA, the first point guard ever drafted no. 1 I believe. Anyway, at this point his life started to spiral downward. He became a hardcore drug addict. Before long he was kicked out of the NBA.
He was ultimately reinstated and has coached the Spurs, Sixers, and Cavs. Most recently he coached the Cavs before he was fired before last season.

But what he's made a name for himself now is as a counselor and advisor basically for athletes who are recovering addicts. He helps athletes with drug addictions get their act together and improve their lives physically and mentally. He commands a lot of respect because he's been through the same thing.

[Carnage]

Thanks, I thought (was hoping) they were talking about Ray Lucas!