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| Tuesday, December 5 By Ed Werder Special to ESPN.com | |||
| IRVING, Texas -- Despite considering fired Redskins coach Norv Turner one of the top innovators in the league, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Monday night that he will not pursue the ex-Dallas assistant.
Turner helped the Cowboys to two Super Bowl titles while transforming Troy Aikman into a Pro Bowl quarterback in the early 1990s.
"I think everybody knows how much respect we have for Norv Turner's coaching, but we're just getting started with this coaching staff," Jones said. "That is not something we're going to give consideration to at this time. But I will say this: I'm glad he's not going to be on that other sideline Sunday."
Despite a 4-9 record that hints at a 4-12 finish, Jones insisted without equivocation that Dave Campo will return as Dallas' head coach next season -- regardless of what happens during the final three weeks of the regular season.
Jones said while he does not intend to fire Campo or his staff, he does plan to change the responsibilities of some members of the coaching staff, including those belonging to Campo. Jones confirmed that Campo and defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer will be responsible for specific defensive positions next season to take advantage of their experience.
"With Dave being promoted to head coach and Mike to defensive coordinator, they had new responsibilities and so we replaced them with other people who had new responsibilities," Jones said. "The result is we got pretty new on the defensive side of the ball, and we've paid a price for that. We probably overreacted to our loss to Philadelphia the first week in terms of some of the changes we forced on the players in terms of alignments, techniques. There have probably been two or three changes like that, and we've compromised our players and their ability to play aggressively on defense."
The Cowboys re-hired Jack Reilly and appointed him offensive coordinator and added Ernie Zampese as a consultant to re-install the offense that Turner supervised while he served as Dallas' offensive coordinator from 1991 through 1993. Aikman has called Turner the most influential coach of his career and maintains a personal friendship. But Jones downplayed the notion that having Turner in the organization might convince Aikman to continue playing despite his recent physical ailments and inconsistent play.
The Cowboys must decide before March 8 whether Aikman will continue playing. That is the date by which Jones must pay Aikman a $7 million bonus to either extend his contract through 2007 or to terminate the agreement. The only way the Cowboys can avoid paying that sum is by releasing Aikman beforehand.
If Aikman is released before the bonus is paid, he would count $10 million against the 2001 salary cap; if the bonus is paid and he returns for only one season, the Cowboys' cap charge would be approximately $14 million in 2002.
While Aikman has said this will be the first time he considers his physical state while pondering retirement, Jones says Aikman must continue to demonstrate an ability to remain healthy and to perform well in the closing weeks if the Cowboys are to retain him.
"I think overall the last three games have been something of an uptick as we look at whether our future is with Troy," Jones said.
When asked about his expectations for Aikman continuing to play next season, Jones said, "At this time, I expect him to play."
Jones said the decision regarding Aikman's future with the organization would be a joint one and could probably be made within three weeks of the end of the season. | ALSO SEE
D.C. follies: Redskins fire Turner as head coachMort Report: Last laugh could be on Snyder Garber: Turner-Snyder divorce was inevitable Athletes Channel: Troy Aikman's official Web site | ||