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Harvey - The role of Witten: Excessive digression
Buck Harvey
Web Posted: 10/11/2010 12:00 AM CDT
ARLINGTON — The NFL franchise with little to celebrate this season was the one ruined by an excessive celebration penalty.
But the player who started the celebration — and could have stopped it — adds another twist.
Jason Witten proved, again, even the most well-meaning can be pulled into the Cowboys' big-screen culture.
Witten also made some statistical history Sunday, moving to fourth in league history for receptions by a tight end. That suggests Witten — as it was with a player he passed on the list, Kellen Winslow — will someday be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
But as Witten ended with five catches and a touchdown, and Tony Romo threw for over 400 yards, and Felix Jones ran for over 100 yards, the Cowboys still found a way to lose. This time, they had to be creative.
Leonard Davis acted as if his bye week had been extended. Wade Phillips overlooked another dozen penalties. And then there was a tipped pass in the fourth quarter. That set up the Tennessee Titans with the always-effective 1-yard, four-second drive.
But nothing the Cowboys did was as correctable or as silly as when Witten scored late to tie the game. Then he did what he's often done, which is step to the edge of controversy.
When Romo went on his infamous Cabo trip with Jessica Simpson before the playoffs in January of 2008, there was Witten, smiling in the background of the tabloid pictures. And when Terrell Owens decided he needed an enemy, he pulled Witten into another mess.
That's some history for a guy whose teammates like him almost as much as the media does. Sometimes he plays with sore ribs or ankles, and sometimes he runs in the open field without a helmet.
The other home loss this season showed all of that. Then Witten reacted angrily when trainers wouldn't let him re-enter the Bears game after suffering a concussion.
He plays and talks as if he cares. Maybe that's why, after he scores touchdowns, he's often given the football to Marc Colombo, the offensive tackle, to spike in the end zone.
“Those guys work hard,” Witten said Sunday, as if they somehow need to be rewarded by touching the football.
But that gesture is also telling of how environment can affect anyone. Playing in Dallas, under the lights and a massive video board, without a strong head coach in charge, there's encouragement to play to the crowd.
So Witten scored and handed off responsibility. Colombo spiked. Everyone laughed. And as Colombo and Witten jumped to bump chests, Colombo slipped and fell.
Colombo added what some have called a somersault, but it was closer to a fat guy reacting to gravity. An official, seeing too much frivolity, ruled that Colombo going to the turf had constituted excessive celebration.
Argue whether refs should be asked to measure the nuances of joy. But the moment underscored an undisciplined team without a sense of what mattered. Typically, Phillips defended Witten and Colombo afterward.
Bill Parcells would say, instead: Choosing to risk anything there — given the score and time — was stupid.
The Titans responded by returning the short kickoff all the way to the Dallas 5-yard line, setting up the winning points. And Jeff Fisher knew why.
“That return probably doesn't happen,” the Titans coach said, “unless they're kicking off from the 15-yard line.”
Witten, true to his nature, wasn't defensive afterward when explaining himself. He said he and Colombo aren't “flashy types of players,” and that their intention wasn't what happened.
“But you have to take accountability for it,” Witten said, again being true to his nature.
Still, nothing he said could change what had happened. The careless receiver wasn't Roy Williams, who says he's never gotten a celebration penalty in his career, or Dez Bryant, the rookie.
It was Witten.
bharvey@express-news.net
Buck Harvey
Web Posted: 10/11/2010 12:00 AM CDT
ARLINGTON — The NFL franchise with little to celebrate this season was the one ruined by an excessive celebration penalty.
But the player who started the celebration — and could have stopped it — adds another twist.
Jason Witten proved, again, even the most well-meaning can be pulled into the Cowboys' big-screen culture.
Witten also made some statistical history Sunday, moving to fourth in league history for receptions by a tight end. That suggests Witten — as it was with a player he passed on the list, Kellen Winslow — will someday be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
But as Witten ended with five catches and a touchdown, and Tony Romo threw for over 400 yards, and Felix Jones ran for over 100 yards, the Cowboys still found a way to lose. This time, they had to be creative.
Leonard Davis acted as if his bye week had been extended. Wade Phillips overlooked another dozen penalties. And then there was a tipped pass in the fourth quarter. That set up the Tennessee Titans with the always-effective 1-yard, four-second drive.
But nothing the Cowboys did was as correctable or as silly as when Witten scored late to tie the game. Then he did what he's often done, which is step to the edge of controversy.
When Romo went on his infamous Cabo trip with Jessica Simpson before the playoffs in January of 2008, there was Witten, smiling in the background of the tabloid pictures. And when Terrell Owens decided he needed an enemy, he pulled Witten into another mess.
That's some history for a guy whose teammates like him almost as much as the media does. Sometimes he plays with sore ribs or ankles, and sometimes he runs in the open field without a helmet.
The other home loss this season showed all of that. Then Witten reacted angrily when trainers wouldn't let him re-enter the Bears game after suffering a concussion.
He plays and talks as if he cares. Maybe that's why, after he scores touchdowns, he's often given the football to Marc Colombo, the offensive tackle, to spike in the end zone.
“Those guys work hard,” Witten said Sunday, as if they somehow need to be rewarded by touching the football.
But that gesture is also telling of how environment can affect anyone. Playing in Dallas, under the lights and a massive video board, without a strong head coach in charge, there's encouragement to play to the crowd.
So Witten scored and handed off responsibility. Colombo spiked. Everyone laughed. And as Colombo and Witten jumped to bump chests, Colombo slipped and fell.
Colombo added what some have called a somersault, but it was closer to a fat guy reacting to gravity. An official, seeing too much frivolity, ruled that Colombo going to the turf had constituted excessive celebration.
Argue whether refs should be asked to measure the nuances of joy. But the moment underscored an undisciplined team without a sense of what mattered. Typically, Phillips defended Witten and Colombo afterward.
Bill Parcells would say, instead: Choosing to risk anything there — given the score and time — was stupid.
The Titans responded by returning the short kickoff all the way to the Dallas 5-yard line, setting up the winning points. And Jeff Fisher knew why.
“That return probably doesn't happen,” the Titans coach said, “unless they're kicking off from the 15-yard line.”
Witten, true to his nature, wasn't defensive afterward when explaining himself. He said he and Colombo aren't “flashy types of players,” and that their intention wasn't what happened.
“But you have to take accountability for it,” Witten said, again being true to his nature.
Still, nothing he said could change what had happened. The careless receiver wasn't Roy Williams, who says he's never gotten a celebration penalty in his career, or Dez Bryant, the rookie.
It was Witten.
bharvey@express-news.net
