This is kinda amusing (from the Mercury News,btw evidently Nolan went a bit haywire post-game, threatening 'changes' in the secondary and perhaps at QB (according to the blog writers).
September 25, 2005
Cortez The Roofer
Attention, all you dads and moms who are out there in the back yard with the golf clubs, teaching your kid to be the next Tiger Woods.
Reboot. Teach the kid to be a place kicker instead.
Is it just me, or are good kickers in the NFL now more rare than a Rafael Palmiero sighting? In Sunday's game against the 49ers, the Cowboys trotted out Jose Cortez as their kicker -- and after he missed the first extra point, he nearly got into a fight with Dallas lineman Larry Allen, who grabbed Cortez's face mask and shook it.
Know what I think of that?
Allen didn't shake the face mask hard enough.
There are a lot of stupid things about the football culture, including all of the post-play woofing that goes on after a routine tackle or pass reception. But I never think it's stupid when a position player gets upset at a kicker for missing an extra point. That's the kicker's job. And I don't understand why it's so hard to do.
That brings us to Mr. Cortez, who has kicked for four teams in four years -- the Cowboys, Vikings, Commanders and, yes, the 49ers. You might recall that the 49ers released him after the 10th game of the 2002 season aftrer he missed a potential game-winner against San Diego.
Cortez is a former XFL kicker who became somewhat of a cult figure in San Francsico because he worked as a roofer while waiting to find a job when the XFL folded. So maybe that was what sparked the argument. Maybe Cortez had installed a roof on Allen's house and the shingles were not attached properly.
More likely, Allen was saying something like: "We get you out of the hot sun from on top of a housing development in Plano, and you can't hit a chip shot? Next time, I'll do more than shake your face mask. I'll nail you to the goal post!"
There are 119 Division 1A college football teams in America. Are you telling me that the top 10% of those kickers every year aren't good enough to kick in the NFL? Evidently not. So there must be a shortage of good kickers in college, too. Take my word for it, mom and dad. Sell the junior golf clubs. Buy a kicking tee. Today.
Posted by Mark Purdy on September 25, 2005 at 03:00 PM | Permalink
