MIAMI -- The quadruple-bypass surgery last month softened Atlanta Falcons coach Dan Reeves' no-nonsense image, a perception that had been slowly changing in recent years. The news conference only days later in which Reeves dissolved into tears did even more to create a softer, kinder Dan Reeves.

	Dan Reeves might wear a coat and tie all the time, but the Falcons coach still knows how to cut loose.

Or so it seemed.

Reeves' tough-guy image always has been more myth than reality, several of his players and at least one Bronco say. In essence, Reeves has gotten a bad rap for how he deals with players.

"Before I got here, I had a sense that coach Reeves was a hard-nosed, tough coach who never smiled. I'd never seen the guy smile before I got here," said 10th-year receiver Tony Martin, who signed with Atlanta as a free agent in the offseason.

"Then I got here and found out he loves his players, loves his players. He loves to joke around -- he's a joking coach. He's not that hard-nosed coach that everybody thinks he is," Martin said as Atlanta players and coaches faced the Super Bowl XXXIII media Wednesday at their airport hotel.

Falcons backup quarterback Steve DeBerg knows what to think of Reeves. DeBerg was drafted by Dallas in 1977 when Reeves was the Cowboys quarterback coach and offensive coordinator. DeBerg, who came out of retirement this season to sign a one-year deal with the Falcons, also was an assistant to Reeves in 1995-96 when Reeves coached the New York Giants.

Reeves the coach has changed considerably, DeBerg said. But Reeves the person hasn't changed as much.

"He's matured and progressed. He's so much better a coach now than he was with the Denver Broncos simply through experience. He's a better coach now than when I was coaching with him at the New York Giants. Basically the nature of the game is that you learn stuff all the time," DeBerg said.

"He's always had a great relationship with the football team because he's a great person. He's very honest. That's never changed," added DeBerg, Chris Chandler's backup.

	"	I got here and found out he loves his players, loves his players. He loves to joke around -- he's a joking coach. He's not that hard-nosed coach that everybody thinks he is. "
		-- Tony Martin on Dan Reeves

DeBerg has noted one important change in Reeves: "Personally, he seems to be more happy. That truly has a positive effect on the football team."

Offensive coordinator George Sefcik, also an assistant under Reeves with the Giants, said Reeves always has related well to players because Reeves was an undrafted running back who stuck with the Cowboys from 1965 to 1971.

"He's more upset when he has to release players than anyone I've ever been around because he hates to do it. He hates those kinds of decisions," Sefcik said. "He's tough. He's demanding. I think the players realize it's in a fair way. It's consistent. I've been with him for four years with the Giants and two here, and he's the same person."

Denver Broncos defensive back Tyrone Braxton, who was with Reeves for six of Reeves' 12 seasons in Denver, is still in Reeves' camp although he plays for Mike Shanahan, whom Reeves had once dismissed as an assistant in Denver.

"He genuinely loves and cares about his players. If something is wrong with you or your family, he's going to be there. He sent me a card when we won the Super Bowl last year," Braxton said. "He's a nice person. I sent him a get-well card (when he had heart surgery). I love and respect Dan because he's a great coach and a great person."

Falcons defensive tackle John Burrough said the team was aware of the harsh feelings between Reeves and Shanahan over the handling of Broncos quarterback John Elway.

"He's had a storied past with Denver, and I don't know what went on there, but I know that I've been here for two years, and the guys on this team love him. He's a great guy to be around. He cares about his players on the field, but he also cares about his players off the field," Burrough said.

But how do you explain why Reeves brought up that "storied past" with Denver? Braxton might have the answer. "I think he had some things on his mind, on his chest, that he needed to get off him," he said.

That weight must have been lifted, as Reeves has repeatedly said this week he doesn't want to discuss his remarks about Shanahan and Elway from a week ago.

Whether or not Reeves is a "player's coach" is still open to debate.

"I've never understood that term, player's coach," said Rich Brooks, Atlanta's assistant head coach and defensive coordinator. "I guess it's a compliment. Dan Reeves, first and foremost, is consistent and fair and extremely competitive. I think the consistency with which he has put together the organization, how he has treated the players is why we're where we are today."

Second-year player O.J. Santiago said, "When he tells me to do something whether it's in my regular life or on the practice field, I feel I can trust what he's saying because he's been through it all, he's done it all. I'd like to end up as he is, respected as a player. I don't think I can go wrong listening to advice from coach Reeves."

Linebacker Cornelius Bennett said while Reeves might be good to his players, he's certainly no pushover.

"Some coaches try to conform to what the players want. What coach Reeves wants is what coach Reeves gets. That's great. That's what we should expect as players. That one of the things missing in sports today. Coaches have started to conform to what the players want instead of players conforming to what the coaches want," Bennett said.

Reeves might be a great guy to his players, but conforming to Reeves' disciplined system is the key. Therein lies the rub.

"Dan is a guy with a definite plan. He likes guys to follow the plan, and as long as you're following the plan, you're OK," defensive tackle Shane Dronett said. "If you're off the plan and not willing to follow it, he'll find somebody else. I wouldn't consider him what I would call a player's coach. A player's coach sounds like a guy who gets bullied around by the players. Dan Reeves is not that at all. He has a definite plan, and he wants guys to follow it."