Per Ross Tucker: Some players don't care about making the playoffs

[Bleu Star]

I figured it would Hos. I think deep down they all want to win a championship, but it's what they have to do to get there that is the problem.

It is funny how things have changed in the NFL I remember reading Cliff and Charlie's book and they had a passage in their that the playoff money was their big bonus, where as now some players look at it like a pay cut to in the post season.

Money changes everything...

 

[Bleu Star]

My take on BJ is that it wasn't a question of desire or effort, it was more of a question of being physically unable to perform at the required level.

My take on BJ is that he's living a lie and could have told Jerry he had no skill left before Jerry decided to place him in one of the most important positions on a Super Bowl aspiring team. Instead he decided to absorb yet another payday while someone that's probably much more capable at the QB position is shucking newspapers somewhere.

 

[morasp]

I'll go back to when Romo got his big payday. I don't have the stats but before that he was magic. Gurode snaps it over his head, no problem he runs around for a while and passes for a first down. It seemed like the guy could do no wrong. You look at him since he got his contract and he is still competent but your not really counting on him in the clutch moments.

 

[Dodger12]

Just my opinion and I've said it before; Dallas has become a place where players come to hit the lottery and get rich knowing that Jerry will pay (or over pay in some cases).

This was a team of blue collar guys who had to earn their paycheck after some prolonged production. I think of guys like Romo, Barber, Crayton, Witten, Ratliff and Columbo to name a few. If football wasn't one of the most important things in your life, you didn't play for the Cowboys. If you weren't going to work hard in the off season to stay in shape, you weren't long for this team.

Now we have brought in some guys who are supremely talented but their work ethic has been questioned. Guys like Big Davis, Bennett, Hamlin and RWII. Couple that with a "soft" coach who has become an appologist for bad and uninspired play and it's a recipe for disaster because it sends the wrong message to the blue collar guys.

When your first round pick gets fined $100.00 for a no call-no show for a mandatory rehab session, that's a bad sign and, to me, is completely unacceptable. When a guy like Bennett, who has all the talent in the world, only hears it from his position coach and not the HC, it sends the wrong message. That's not a slight on Bennett. Some players need a stronger hand at the helm to push them. Our scouting department identified it prior to the draft but who's the guy that's going to put his foot on his kneck? Is that Witten's responsibility? I can see it now, some players are working hard, trying to play through an injury/pain and Bennett, who has just become an instant millionaire, has to miss practice to take care of his dog.

JMO, but this stuff just unermines the fabric of a team. In any event, I'm off to Philly where I'll be surrounded by drunken fools and low class fans chanting silly fight songs. The crosses I bear for our Cowboys knows no boundaries........

 

[5Countem5]

Is it wrong to hope for a Super Bowl victory- not for the history involved but just to shut some of our "fans" up?


Just wondering...

 

[Wrangler87]

I kept thinking of Flozell Adams as I read this

Funny thing, that was the first name that came to me.

 

[5Countem5]

Funny thing, that was the first name that came to me.

Why would Flozell's name come up? Penalties?

I can't remember hardly ever hearing a quote from him about anything of substance, so is it because he has penalties that some would assume he doesn't care?

 

[Wrangler87]

Why would Flozell's name come up? Penalties?

I can't remember hardly ever hearing a quote from him about anything of substance, so is it because he has penalties that some would assume he doesn't care?

Demeanor.

 

[icyhot]

Playoff payoff? Some players don't believe the postseason is worth it

by Ross Tucker





The playoff push will come to a screeching halt this Sunday as teams that have fought furiously down the stretch find out whether they have a spot in the 12-team tournament. Some teams' Super Bowl hopes are about to vanish. Coaches' livelihoods will be at stake. Yet there's one surprising thing about some NFL players this time of year that fans and media alike are unaware of: Not all of the players really care if their team makes the playoffs.


It is strange, but true, and one of the secrets of the NFL I learned firsthand. It happened my rookie year, in 2001, under Commanders head coach Marty Schottenheimer. We were in the thick of the wild-card race coming down the stretch and I remarked to one of the veteran players about how awesome it would be if we could get in. He just shrugged.


"Don't you want to make the playoffs?" I asked.


"Nah, not really," he replied.


I was floored. I was a bright-eyed youngster loving every second of the NFL and his response brought me back to the harsh reality of the business. He went on to say he just wanted the season to be over so that he could head down to Florida for New Year's Eve. He showed up to the last game with a packed-to-the-gills U-Haul attached to his SUV. He was leaving right from the stadium, right after the game.


Granted, players like this are the exception and not the rule, but they do exist. Like their peers, they're mentally and physically exhausted from a marathon season that starts in late July with training camp. They just want to go home, and the playoffs aren't motivation enough for them. Some doubt their team would even get very far even if it did make the postseason.


These players are almost always motivated solely by money, and they look at playoff income as a pay cut rather than a bonus. Case in point, most people know that NFL players get paid their entire salary during the regular season. That means a guy making $1.7 million, a fairly common salary in the NFL, gets $100,000 every week of the season. Every player on a playoff team will receive an $18,000 check, which is why some players feel as if they are performing at a lower rate of pay.


Sounds ridiculous to most people, I'm sure, but the truth is the playoffs are simply not as important to some players as they are to the fans of that team. Those players aren't fans of that team. They probably didn't grow up in that city. They may or may not be in the last year of their contract. For them, this is just a high-paying and extremely physical mode of employment.


These type of players are usually former high-round picks who have already made a lot of money during their career and are jaded by the business. Obviously, players like this are not the type any fan, coach or teammate wants on their team. Franchises must find a way to weed out players like this. Can you imagine a player with that kind of attitude lasting very long in Indianapolis or New England?


Believe me, players in the middle and back-end of a roster would never have this mentality. They know how important it is to their future to make the playoffs. The $18,000 is a welcomed bonus, sure, but a bigger motivation comes from knowing that the only constant in the NFL is the change on every team from one season to the next. That change is amplified when a team fails to make the tournament; it is minimized if a team exceeds expectations and makes the playoffs. I know that all too well.
I started 12 games for the Buffalo Bills in 2004. We won six in a row heading into the season finale. Alas, we didn't beat the Steelers to make the playoffs, and the first change came in February, when the team released Drew Bledsoe and handed over the reins to J.P. Losman. We all know how that turned out. I was eventually released as well. There is no telling what personnel decisions would have been made had we secured a postseason spot. That is why most coaches and players realize how valuable those opportunities really are.


Even higher profile players can comprehend the tremendous increase in exposure they receive for being a top player on a playoff-bound team. Even that, however, is not what the playoffs is really about. For most NFL personnel, at least I hope, the biggest motivation comes from having the opportunity to win a championship and being able to say that you were a part of something special. Every organization should strive to have people in place that wholeheartedly believe that at their very core. And isn't that what makes the NFL playoffs so special in the first place? That it really isn't about the money. It is about the pursuit of a title, the chance for a ring, and the glory and lifelong memories that come as a result of it.


For the vast majority of NFL players, the answer is yes. For a select few, sadly, the answer is no.


http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/ross_tucker/12/22/takes/index.html


I wonder if any of our boys feel this way.

Interesting that this article is out. Greg Hill who used to play running back for the Kansas Cheifs said this same thing last week on his sports show here in Dallas. Alot of callers were calling in and trying to dispute him. He was saying its all about the money mlets be real about it he said. Now this article comes out to back everything he was saying.

 

[5Countem5]

Demeanor.

How so? On the field? Off?

 

[LittleBoyBlue]

Our starting QB does come to mind though based on his reactions. And thats sad.

I dont believe that he doesnt care about making playoffs or not... but based on what you wrote... the problem I have with Romo is... he is too good at giving the "well we gave it our all and we tried".... "try harder next year" or "I did my best"... its seems scripted and unreal.


THAT bothers me.

 

[5Countem5]

I dont believe that he doesnt care about making playoffs or not... but based on what you wrote... the problem I have with Romo is... he is too good at giving the "well we gave it our all and we tried".... "try harder next year" or "I did my best"... its seems scripted and unreal.
THAT bothers me.

After a loss, when I get on posters who are whining- I always get dressed down by several who say that I should lighten up, that not everyone reacts to a loss the same way or in ways that I should expect.

Seems you all should Romo that same latitude...

 

[Chocolate Lab]

I kept thinking Leonard Davis. I was thinking of that story where he tells Romo to stop doing the quick snaps and Romo says that it's necessary to keep the defense off-balance and Davis just replies, "Stop doing the quick snaps."

Really? I never even heard that one. Did Tony stop doing it?

And on Tony... People like Irvin and Deion have said how competitive Tony is on the basketball court when nothing is on the line. We've heard the same about his golf. (US Open qualifying isn't a relaxing, fun round.) Parcells said he had, er, cajones. So I don't think Romo is in this class.

 

[Wrangler87]

How so? On the field? Off?

He came to my mind, not yours. I don't have to justify why.

 

[Wrangler87]

Really? I never even heard that one. Did Tony stop doing it?

And on Tony... People like Irvin and Deion have said how competitive Tony is on the basketball court when nothing is on the line. We've heard the same about his golf. (US Open qualifying isn't a relaxing, fun round.) Parcells said he had, er, cajones. So I don't think Romo is in this class.

Yeah, Romo never came to my mind. He would be the last person I would think of on the entire team.

 

[5Countem5]

He came to my mind, not yours. I don't have to justify why.

Oh well... Sorry for trying to figure out why you would call out a guy for not wanting to win. I just thought it strange seeings how Flo is not in the limelight and is seldom heard from.

If you have no basis for this belief, I guess that's fine too...

 

[sbark]

With Witten & Romo being very close friends......dont see Witten "allowing" Tony to have anywhere near that attitude......

he would either change it.......or cut ties with Romo: Road roomies etc....

 

[peplaw06]

Maybe he needs to can the "oh well, it happens" or the "well its just like a punt" kind of quotes after losses and bad interceptions.

Isn't a QB supposed to have short term memory? What do you want? Do you want him to stew over every single mistake he makes and turn into Brad Checkdown Johnson?

 

[theogt]

Really? I never even heard that one. Did Tony stop doing it?

And on Tony... People like Irvin and Deion have said how competitive Tony is on the basketball court when nothing is on the line. We've heard the same about his golf. (US Open qualifying isn't a relaxing, fun round.) Parcells said he had, er, cajones. So I don't think Romo is in this class.

It was on an episode of Inside the Huddle. Romo was telling it as a joke. His delivery and impersonation of Davis made it hilarious. From the sounds of it, he stopped doing the quicksnaps for a little bit.

 

[fanfromvirginia]

Oh well... Sorry for trying to figure out why you would call out a guy for not wanting to win. I just thought it strange seeings how Flo is not in the limelight and is seldom heard from.

If you have no basis for this belief, I guess that's fine too...

I agree with Wrangler on this. What's the evidence? Flozell has the talent to be a top 5 LT consistently and he isn't. His best year was under BP -- we finally saw what the guy could do with the right coaching formula. But that coaching formula is extremely difficult to produce and therefore rare due, arguably, to his lack of motivation.

Anybody who hasn't been frustrated with Flozell over the years on multiple occasions hasn't been paying close enough attention, IMHO.