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Cowboys must allow Jason Garrett to cut Rolando McClain
BY MAC ENGEL
tengel@star-telegram.com


Like so many before him, Jason Garrett was gelded long ago by his boss, and if the coach wants to regain any footing with his players he needs to cut linebacker Rolando McClain yesterday.

Actually, cutting Ro’ may not make a difference in a locker room that knows it’s not Coach Process who has the final say on who is and isn’t in that room.

If the Dallas Cowboys keep the recently re-suspended McClain on their roster, it will further erode whatever confidence anybody should have in Jason Garrett’s authority ... if he has any remaining.

Jerry Jones needs to approve a release of McClain, not for his own sake but for what remains of Garrett’s tattered reputation.

This week has been another full assault on the stature of the local football coach.

Last season, this guy was preaching “the right way” while he coached a man who was accused of beating the hell out of an ex-girlfriend, and the year before a player who this week was convicted of rape.

And this does not mention the failed drug tests of defensive players McClain, Randy Gregory and DeMarcus Lawrence.

Some of this is because Garrett works for an owner who, as one Cowboys Hall of Famer told me, “Jerry don’t give a [blank]. He’ll take anybody.”

Jerry has never pretended to be anything other than what he is. If Attila the Hun could have played left defensive end, Jerry would have signed him for a look.

Jerry’s head coach, however, continually spews pretty sounding rhetoric about “character” and “the right way” and “getting better every day.”

If he can’t do it, then he needs to stop.

And whatever “program” the Cowboys have in place — if it even exists — to aid their boneheaded players needs to be disbanded, too.

All coaches are full of (blank) to a degree, and all of us are stuffed with contradictions, but what Garrett has said versus what he has done creates the impression of a tone-deaf hypocrite.

It’s hard to utter phrases about character and then take on Greg Hardy. It’s hard to preach accountability and professionalism and then do nothing when Hardy gets into a physical altercation with one of his assistant coaches during a game last fall.

Why stress the importance of practice and allow McClain to remain on the team? Nobody on this team hates practice more than Ro’.

McClain was a necessary gamble when the Cowboys signed him two years ago, and when he has played he is good. He likes playing the games, and everything else bores him. He hates practice, so he ducks it.

This guy found a reason to miss minicamp, which infuriated the coaches. Jerry explained it as a man who simply wanted to spend time with his family in Alabama.

Because apparently McClain is the only Cowboys player to have a child who lives in a different state.

Now he is suspended the first 10 games of this season because he violated the NFL’s substance-abuse policy.

“I apologize to my family, the Cowboys organization, my teammates and Cowboys fans for my mistake,” McClain said in a statement. “I will not break the rules of my profession in the future, and I regret my error.”

This statement had a one-year shelf life; it was from McClain last year when he was suspended by the NFL for the first four weeks because he violated the league’s substance-abuse policy.

He joins defensive front-seven teammates DeMarcus Lawrence and Randy Gregory, who will each miss the first four weeks of the NFL season because they also failed drug tests.

Every team makes exceptions, and the Cowboys could justify dealing with McClain because of his talent. To do so now demonstrates the lack of players on the Dallas defense, and the shallowness of Garrett’s power.

But given how the team handled C.J. Spillman, we should not be surprised when McClain trots out in November for his first game of the season. If you thought McClain was out of shape last season ...

Spillman was on the team in ’14 after he was accused of rape, and it further enhances an image of a franchise that says one thing and does whatever else because there are zero consequences.

The Cowboys knew of these charges in September 2014, and very likely of the accusation from a different woman when he was with the San Francisco 49ers. But he remained with the team throughout that season.

Pro football is a dirty business full of deplorable double standards, but not for C.J. Spillman. You cut C.J. Spillman the moment you find out that these charges have merit.

Spillman is a bottom-of-the-roster player whose replacement is found with one phone call.

The Cowboys didn’t do anything then, and they don’t appear to be in a rush to find a replacement for McClain.

We are not surprised by any of this because Jerry is comfortable with all of it. Garrett’s words say he’s not, but his actions scream otherwise.

Jerry is never going to change, but for the sake of his head coach he should allow McClain to be cut.
 
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Thanks for posting Irv. Excellent article that points to what a fraud Garrett is.

This franchise is a joke thanks to its putrid leadership.
 

ThoughtExperiment

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Thought this was going to be another "Poor Jason is so hamstrung by Jerry! He'd be great if Jerry would let him but he just won't!" article. At least Engel reluctantly admitted Garrett looks like an idiot with the RKG stuff when he willingly rolls over and lets Jerry push him around.

That Spillman episode has gotten almost no press, but that might be the worst one of all. I remember when the guy was being investigated for that in 2014 when the team was staying at the hotel in town the night before a home game. Garrett and Jerry basically stonewalled the media about and it turned out the guy raped a girl. Why protect and keep a spare special teamer like that? Why?

My guess is that was the magical 2014 season and the team was so happy they'd stumbled onto a good year, they didn't want to do anything to possibly disrupt it. Even something as minor as releasing a journeyman nobody who covered kicks.
 
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I can't decide which is worse. Hardy for beating a woman violently. Spillman for raping a chick and being allowed to remain on the team. It McClain being given a free pass constantly even though he's the anti-"RKG" that this idiot head coach preaches about endlessly.
 

cmd34

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RKG ranks up there with "Jerry wants to win more than anyone".
Just things to appease the fanboys and justify years of underperformance.
 

NoMoRedJ

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I dont pay attention to anything Red says. The guy is as much of a BSer as Jerry. The only real difference is he can articulate without sounding like a rambling fool.
 

Doomsday

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The only real difference is he can articulate without sounding like a rambling fool.
It's just the same Ivy League word salad you hear from most anyone coming out of there. It's a speech pattern designed to make the speaker sound intelligent. Same inflections and terminology types you hear with Obama, for example.

It IS rambling, but it's carefully scripted and practiced, rambling.
 

NoMoRedJ

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It's just the same Ivy League word salad you hear from most anyone coming out of there. It's a speech pattern designed to make the speaker sound intelligent. Same inflections and terminology types you hear with Obama, for example.

It IS rambling, but it's carefully scripted and practiced, rambling.

Ive grown tired of Red's empty rhetoric, but I havent thought of comparing him to Obama. Thats a pretty low blow.
 

dbair1967

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The entire organization should want McClain gone. The fact that he isn't is an indictment of all there.
 

bbgun

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who cares who gives him the ax? just do it.

but I bet they won't.
 
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This article has to be wrong. According to the Zone, Garrett, McClay, and Stephen have been actually running the team. Jerry's permission is not needed to cut McClain.
 

GloryDaysRBack

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Thanks for posting Irv. Excellent article that points to what a fraud Garrett is.

This franchise is a joke thanks to its putrid leadership.

This franchise is absolutely a joke. Not sure you can blame Garrett here...he's a fraud for sure, but he has no power...until the death watch thread hits it's almighty climax, this franchise has no chance
 

5countem5

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Fanboys- never happy until someone gets cut...lol


You guys are hilarious...
 

cmd34

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and you'll kiss their ass when and if they do cut him

Yes, this is the homer's greatest weapon. Wait until the team makes a decision and then rationalize it.

Keeps him - Jerry is so devoted to these guys. He never gives up on them.

Cuts him - Jason is clearly in charge. Leadership!!!!!
 
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