A Diamond surrounded by Trash

[Guest Vern Gagne]

ESPN.COM

 

SAN ANTONIO – Emmitt Smith told Sports Illustrated that breaking the NFL career rushing record was his only highlight of the 2002 season, the Dallas Morning News reported Friday.

 

Smith, now with the Arizona Cardinals, told the magazine that last season "was the worst year I ever went through playing football. Too much damn drama. Too much selfishness by too many guys on the team. Too much media frenzy around the team," according to the paper.

 

"People always looking to me for answers, and I didn't have the answers for them about why we were so bad. It felt like being a diamond surrounded by trash," Smith said to the magazine, according to the report.

 

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said that he was unaware of the depth of Smith's frustrations.

 

"He never showed his frustration, he just tried to do anything he could to help us win ball games," Jones said to the paper Thursday. "That's the way he has always been.

 

"If you can have a highlight when you win five games, he certainly was the highlight and arguably the highlight of the last 14 years."

 

Last season, Smith finished under 1,000 yards rushing for the first time since his rookie season in 1990. He broke Walter Payton's all-time rushing yardage record with a 109-yard outing against Seattle at Texas Stadium.

 

"It was just a mental grind," Smith told the magazine about the season, according to the Morning News. "When I got the record, it was like God said, 'I'm going to give you one moment this year.' "

 

Smith was released by the Cowboys in February and signed a two-year deal for about $8 million to play for the rebuilding Cardinals, who lost their starting quarterback and top wide receiver and running back from last year.

 

The Cowboys head to Arizona for a preseason contest on Aug. 9 and the Cardinals and Smith make a regular season visit to Dallas on Oct. 5.

 

Smith should shut his mouth. He's a washed up running back, who should be greatful the Cowboys kept him around has long as they did. He didn't help a team that should of been in rebuilding mode.

[Guest razazteca]

Too much selfishness by too many guys on the team. Too much media frenzy around the team," according to the paper.

Emmit Smith was one of the selfish players, it was not just Troy Hambrick demanding the ball every down.

[Gert T 0]

And now he'll be Cubic Zirconia surrounded by trash.

[Guest Zero_Cool]

i watched every Dallas Cowboys game last season, and Troy Hambrick was right to be demanding the ball every down. the stats of course may not show it, but he was the better back..he shouldve had the ball every down so the cowboys couldve at least had a shot to win a few more games.

 

But eh, Emmitt will be exposed this season as a high priced blunder.

[Guest Choken One]

speaking of which...who the hell did Zona sign as Starting QB after Plummer left?

[Guest the pinjockey]

Jeff Blake

 

And fuck Emmitt. If he wasn't limping his way to the record they could have been rebuilding. (And I am an Eagles fan so I am happy it didn't happen, but fuck him for saying that)

 

I don't have a problem with him staying there to get the record. He should have, a Cowboy his whole career he should have gotten the record as a Cowboy. But don't talk trash about the old team once you leave. They sacrificed their rebuilding plans to get him that record last year, there is no need for the pot shots.

[Guest Choken One]

Ahh...Good Choice.

 

Seriously...Too bad Boston isn't there...

 

Blake could just do his 80 yard hail mary Pass every play and hope it works 6 times a game.

 

 

I'm thinking Jeff Blake will be what Mike Vick turns into if he has a Coach that doesn't teach him the complete cycle and run him to the ground.

[Guest the pinjockey]

If they don't reign Vick in a little he is going to skip Jeff Blake and move directly into Monday Night Football Steve "Career Ending" Young.

[Guest Choken One]

And that's a Bad thing? The Concussions aside...

[Guest the pinjockey]

The concussions were my point. I wasn't talking about Steve Young though, I was talking about the last image of Steve Young on MNF with his eyelids fluttering. He may skip right to that.

[Guest Choken One]

Did Vick ever even get Sacked all that much?

 

I think he had like 3 sacks on him...

 

With Price there...I think he won't be Blakeing the field.

[Guest Redhawk]

He doesn't get sacked a lot, but if he's going to scramble so much he's gonna take big hits from guys after gaining some yards. On top of that there's your normal big hits that all QBs take. I am worried about Vick, but only because he's on the front of the new Madden video game. And you all know that Madden is cursed.

[Guest Vitamin X]

So Emmitt says he was a 'Diamond surrounded by trash' being on the Cowboys....

 

 

So how exactly is being on the Arizona Cardinals any better/different?

[Agent_Bond34 0]

i watched every Dallas Cowboys game last season

I pity you.

 

Sort of.

[Guest BobbyWhioux]

Even if his assessment of the '02 Cowboys is RIGHT.

 

You don't go around saying that sort of thing.

 

I think this underscores how frustrated Emmitt was with the end of his run in Dallas, because I've always associated Emmitt with this image of more of a class act. You know, in contrast with the off field episodes usually associated with the Cowboys of his era, as well as the demonstrative on field antics too (I'm thinking primarily Irvin and Newton, also to a lesser extent a young Brock Marion on special teams [one of the pioneers of the "dance like mad and celebrate every little special teams tackle"] and even Aikman had a couple on-field tantrums here and there when things kept not going well).

 

Emmitt doesn't normally go this route.

 

Then again...this is a new situation for him. And playing this year with the Cardinals is unlikely to be a fun year for him...

[Guest razazteca]

Now Emmitt will be Cubic Zirconion surrounded by compose pile.