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Playing with the Devil and losing

I thought it made sense at the time.

For a team on the verge of the Super Bowl, maybe it was. You add a high-risk, high-reward player at a reasonable salary. If it doesn't work, he's gone. If it does, you gambled and won.

I realized the risk at the time. I acknowledged his baggage. His arrests. The naysayers. It was a Faustian deal with the Devil and I believed we'd see a championship before hellfire.

Turns out I was wrong on both counts. The Cowboys weren't on the verge of anything except implusion. And Pacman Jones was high-risk alright. But the rewards never surfaced.

Jones did play hard and he did lead the team in pass deflections. But he wasn't the punt returner we envisioned nor the impact player we gambled for.

Now, according to reports, his days as a Cowboy are over.

The Adam Jones' experiment is over.

The Cowboys will release Jones on Friday, the first day teams are allowed to waive players, severing ties with the oft-troubled player and leaving the sixth overall pick in the 2005 NFL draft without a job again.

The Cowboys acquired Jones from Tennessee last April for a fourth-round pick while he was under league suspension for multiple violations of the personal conduct policy. He was fully reinstated on Aug. 28 by the league after he was allowed to participate in the organized team activities, training camp and preseason games.

We played with the Devil and got burnt. I'm not saying Pacman is the devil. Go down to the local police department and read the police blotters and you'll see that. But we opened ourselves up to an unnecessary distraction when we should've been focused on football and it bit us in the butt. That's the Devil to me. Not being focused on the real reason we all come here: football.

I hope the burning sensation lingers a little bit.

We should learn from this.

Another user-created commentary provided by a BTB reader.

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I

dont think we lost too much. Chalk it up as a fail, and move on.

They've done studies, you know. 60% of the time it works, every time.

by what_the_crap on Jan 7, 2009 6:20 PM CST reply actions   0 recs

I would call it gettting our leg hairs synged but not burned.

JJ got some picks they still had the opportunity to develop our rookies while he was suspended. Pac did not have a role on this team that did not have a comperable or better replacement in line should the experiment fail. Punt returner, they have several options (Austin, crayton, scandrick (I think) and the rookies were just as good if not better and will only improve. No cap impact from cutting him, the only loser here is pac and this could be it for him in the nfl.

Ignore the Mainstream Media, EMBRACE THE HATE!!!!

by cowboy78 on Jan 7, 2009 6:27 PM CST reply actions   0 recs

I thought it was a good deal at the time

I also thought this was a solid team with solid veterans who would come together to make a deep playoff run and Romo would leap to elite status this year.

Talk about being wrong all over the place.

by Billito on Jan 7, 2009 6:39 PM CST reply actions   0 recs

Pac-rat was a waste of time and space

I knew from day one that he would never of worked. The guy is trouble witha capital T. The second biggest mistake jerry made, the first being trading for the idiot, was not cutting him after he suckered a bodyguard paid by the organization to keep him out of trouble..

The next clown that should go next in my opinion, and couldn’t come fast enough for me is T.O and Roy, “the thong” Williams…

by Deke on Jan 7, 2009 6:52 PM CST reply actions   0 recs

I would like to get rid of TO

and when I made a fanpost suggesting as much, I was lambasted. He will continue to decline physically while his bitching will increase exponentially. If horse collar williams is a cowboy next year I will just assume the season is lost and not have to endure my annual december heartbreak.

by Billito on Jan 7, 2009 7:07 PM CST up reply actions   0 recs

+1

First Pac, then Tank and finally TO. Let’s move on with character for a change.

Garrett needs to get a clue!

by BulletBob on Jan 8, 2009 11:37 AM CST up reply actions   0 recs

Don't stop there!!!

While we"re getting rid of “i’m Pac’nman” make sure he takes Tank “Big Mouth little reward” Johnson, Brad " I need a running start to throw the ball twenty yards" Johnson, Roy “I can”t cover and forgot how to tackle" Williams, Bobby" I"m a first round bust poster child" Carpenter, Greg “Let me whine somemore” Ellis, Patrick “Bricks for hands, now I”m eating crow" Crayton, Flozell " Slowzell I lead the universe in false starts at home and OMG on the road" Adams, I’m sure I’m forgetting some others but the last one that has truly struggled and is in over his head, please take Jason Garrett. He has little if any creativity, cannot make halftime adjustments, cannot figure defesive schemes out, cannot protect the QB with blocking schemes, does not require the reievers to run any precise routes( they run around in directions until they get open causing Romo to hold the ball until they break free or he gets sacked or forces the ball). Dallas has zero timing and rythym patterns except for Witten. Obviously as a Cowboy fan, this team having all the the hype for the Superbowl in the beginning of ‘08, 13 probowlers, the most talented team in football on and on, how disappointing to not even make the playoffs and get completely blownout in the "Win and You’re in" game by the Eagles. This was not just a disappointment, it was betrayal. This team has no HEART and Tony Romo’s comments after that embarassment of a game told the entire story for the season. They have bigger things in thier lives, " It’s just a game" Thanks Tony for your lack of heart and effort but “tell the fans to keep buying my jersey.”

by Martin79 on Jan 7, 2009 9:08 PM CST reply actions   0 recs

+1

You Can Pay for School but You Cant Buy Class

by Bloomth on Jan 8, 2009 1:25 AM CST up reply actions   0 recs

saying its just a game

has absolutely nothing to do with heart, its about maturity in dealing with a loss instead of crying about it like a 5 year old.

If Romo wasn’t all heart, he would have never made in the NFL.

In Romo we Trust

by Terry on Jan 8, 2009 8:30 AM CST up reply actions   0 recs

Nice rant

unfortunately for Cowboy fans, you are 100% correct.

by Billito on Jan 8, 2009 9:18 AM CST up reply actions   0 recs

good post Martin...I'm behind ya 100%

A true diehard Cowboys fan since 1975.

President - Garrett MUST GO campaign -

by BoyzRback on Jan 7, 2009 11:54 PM CST reply actions   0 recs

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