IRVING, Texas -- Boy, how Bill Parcells has changed things at Valley Ranch. It wasn't so long ago that simply being above .500 would have made the Dallas Cowboys giddy.
This season, Parcells' first in Dallas, the Cowboys aren't even happy with their 5-1 record.
"We let one slip away (against Atlanta)," Cowboys offensive tackle Ryan Young said. "There is just so much more stuff that we could be doing better. This is a marathon, not a (sprint)."
The Cowboys have adopted Parcells' mentality that nothing is ever good enough.
They are over .500 for the first time since being 7-6 in 1999. They have the same number of victories after six games that they had in all of 2000, 2001 and 2002. They lead the NFC East by two games. They rank first in total defense and fourth in total offense. They are coming off a 38-7 victory over the Detroit Lions.
Nonetheless, the Cowboys have yet to prove to Parcells they are a good team. He even referred to their five-game winning streak as "lucky."
"There are certain things, that if we don't get them fixed, are going to come back and haunt us. They really are," Parcells said. "So far, they haven't done it yet, but they easily could have. Easily. We've got to try to correct those things that I don't think are efficient now.
"Look, this isn't going to be without several crisis. They're coming. There's no doubt about it. You just have to hope you're improving enough (to deal with them)."
The Cowboys will discover a great deal about themselves Sunday when they play the defending Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-3). Dallas also has a four-game stretch against Buffalo, New England, Carolina and Miami in November.
Critics aren't convinced the Cowboys are for real, pointing out the combined 10-27 record of their first six opponents as well as injuries that allowed Dallas to play the Jets without Chad Pennington, the Eagles without a healthy Donovan McNabb and the Lions without a healthy Joey Harrington.
McNabb is one of those who have questioned just how good the Cowboys really are. The record has made believers of others.
"I'm amazed," Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin said. "When I saw the schedule and we played the Dallas Cowboys at home on Oct. 26, with all due respect to Coach Parcells, I was ... liking the schedule. I'm not liking it now. I mean, holy cow, they're 5-1, and it's not a lucky 5-1. It's a 5-1 playing good football on both sides of the ball. It's a tremendous job. They're legit."
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones signed Parcells to a four-year, $18 million contract in January, only a year after Parcells made an 11th-hour decision to turn down Tampa Bay. The Cowboys had been considered his toughest rebuilding project.
The Cowboys went 49-63 overall and 1-3 in three playoff appearances from 1996-2002. They haven't been to the playoffs since 1999, and they haven't won a playoff game since 1996. Their drafts since 1995, their last Super Bowl season, have produced one Pro Bowl player.
But with a starting lineup nearly the same as the one Dave Campo had last season, Parcells has turned the Cowboys back into America's Team in less than a season.
"I still don't think it's a quick fix," Jones said. "It's faster than I thought. But there have been no miracles here. The kinds of things we are doing are solid. It's based on (Parcells') effort. I can see why good things are happening here."
It's the difference between last season's 31-27 loss to the San Francisco 49ers and this season's 35-32 overtime victory over the Giants.
The Cowboys, who held a 27-24 lead on the 49ers last Dec. 8, faced a fourth-and-one with a little more than two minutes remaining. Campo called for a play, but then-offensive coordinator Bruce Coslet didn't have one, prompting a 47-yard field goal attempt.
Billy Cundiff missed with 2:21 left, and the 49ers drove 63 yards for a touchdown. That was the beginning of a four-game losing streak.
On Sept. 15 of this season, the Cowboys trailed the Giants, 32-29, with 11 seconds remaining and the ball on their own 40. Parcells called a play the Cowboys had practiced so many times that Carter knew the instant he heard it that it was going to work.
A 29-yard reception by Antonio Bryant allowed Cundiff to try a 52-yard field goal -- which he made to tie the game -- on the last play of regulation. The Cowboys won in overtime, the beginning of their current five-game winning streak.
The Cowboys, who blew seven games when they were leading or tied in the fourth quarter last season, no longer regularly beat themselves with stupid penalties, costly turnovers or questionable coaching decisions. They are mentally tough and physically prepared.
"We've always thought we had the talent," said Cowboys quarterback Quincy Carter, who has completed 58.5 percent of his passes for 1,367 yards with seven touchdowns and five interceptions. "Now, we've got the coaching to go with it."
http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-3/1066973401245300.xml
This season, Parcells' first in Dallas, the Cowboys aren't even happy with their 5-1 record.
"We let one slip away (against Atlanta)," Cowboys offensive tackle Ryan Young said. "There is just so much more stuff that we could be doing better. This is a marathon, not a (sprint)."
The Cowboys have adopted Parcells' mentality that nothing is ever good enough.
They are over .500 for the first time since being 7-6 in 1999. They have the same number of victories after six games that they had in all of 2000, 2001 and 2002. They lead the NFC East by two games. They rank first in total defense and fourth in total offense. They are coming off a 38-7 victory over the Detroit Lions.
Nonetheless, the Cowboys have yet to prove to Parcells they are a good team. He even referred to their five-game winning streak as "lucky."
"There are certain things, that if we don't get them fixed, are going to come back and haunt us. They really are," Parcells said. "So far, they haven't done it yet, but they easily could have. Easily. We've got to try to correct those things that I don't think are efficient now.
"Look, this isn't going to be without several crisis. They're coming. There's no doubt about it. You just have to hope you're improving enough (to deal with them)."
The Cowboys will discover a great deal about themselves Sunday when they play the defending Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-3). Dallas also has a four-game stretch against Buffalo, New England, Carolina and Miami in November.
Critics aren't convinced the Cowboys are for real, pointing out the combined 10-27 record of their first six opponents as well as injuries that allowed Dallas to play the Jets without Chad Pennington, the Eagles without a healthy Donovan McNabb and the Lions without a healthy Joey Harrington.
McNabb is one of those who have questioned just how good the Cowboys really are. The record has made believers of others.
"I'm amazed," Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin said. "When I saw the schedule and we played the Dallas Cowboys at home on Oct. 26, with all due respect to Coach Parcells, I was ... liking the schedule. I'm not liking it now. I mean, holy cow, they're 5-1, and it's not a lucky 5-1. It's a 5-1 playing good football on both sides of the ball. It's a tremendous job. They're legit."
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones signed Parcells to a four-year, $18 million contract in January, only a year after Parcells made an 11th-hour decision to turn down Tampa Bay. The Cowboys had been considered his toughest rebuilding project.
The Cowboys went 49-63 overall and 1-3 in three playoff appearances from 1996-2002. They haven't been to the playoffs since 1999, and they haven't won a playoff game since 1996. Their drafts since 1995, their last Super Bowl season, have produced one Pro Bowl player.
But with a starting lineup nearly the same as the one Dave Campo had last season, Parcells has turned the Cowboys back into America's Team in less than a season.
"I still don't think it's a quick fix," Jones said. "It's faster than I thought. But there have been no miracles here. The kinds of things we are doing are solid. It's based on (Parcells') effort. I can see why good things are happening here."
It's the difference between last season's 31-27 loss to the San Francisco 49ers and this season's 35-32 overtime victory over the Giants.
The Cowboys, who held a 27-24 lead on the 49ers last Dec. 8, faced a fourth-and-one with a little more than two minutes remaining. Campo called for a play, but then-offensive coordinator Bruce Coslet didn't have one, prompting a 47-yard field goal attempt.
Billy Cundiff missed with 2:21 left, and the 49ers drove 63 yards for a touchdown. That was the beginning of a four-game losing streak.
On Sept. 15 of this season, the Cowboys trailed the Giants, 32-29, with 11 seconds remaining and the ball on their own 40. Parcells called a play the Cowboys had practiced so many times that Carter knew the instant he heard it that it was going to work.
A 29-yard reception by Antonio Bryant allowed Cundiff to try a 52-yard field goal -- which he made to tie the game -- on the last play of regulation. The Cowboys won in overtime, the beginning of their current five-game winning streak.
The Cowboys, who blew seven games when they were leading or tied in the fourth quarter last season, no longer regularly beat themselves with stupid penalties, costly turnovers or questionable coaching decisions. They are mentally tough and physically prepared.
"We've always thought we had the talent," said Cowboys quarterback Quincy Carter, who has completed 58.5 percent of his passes for 1,367 yards with seven touchdowns and five interceptions. "Now, we've got the coaching to go with it."
http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-3/1066973401245300.xml
