Cowboys Running Back Tashard Choice Makes Team Owner Jerry Jones Look Silly
Dallas Cowboys running back Marion Barber missed Sunday’s win over the Indianapolis Colts with a strained calf muscle. To replace him in the Cowboys’ two-running back rotation, Tashard Choice was promoted from third to second on the team depth chart. Dallas team owner Jerry Jones said before the game that Choice was going to have to prove himself on special teams before he was to receive any significant amount of carries this season. I mean, I know Jones is an idiot, but does he have amnesia, too? This is the same kid who took over as the running back in Dallas at the end of his rookie year in 2008 when both fellow backs Felix Jones and Marion Barber were out with injuries. In his first game as the starter, Choice carried the ball nine times for 91 yards and a touchdown against the Giants. He piled up 90 yards and a score on 17 carries the next game against the Ravens. Finally, Choice had 56 yards on just 13 carries in the season finale against the Eagles. Jones even called Choice a handicap. Oh yeah; it gets better.
On Tuesday, five days before the Cowboys’ victory at Indianapolis, Jones appeared on his weekly radio show. When asked about Choice’s playing time this season, Jones made frank, yet idiotic comments. “First of all, Tashard needs to be a better special teams player,” Jones said. “Your third back has to be a real contributor on special teams and he’s not. That really handicaps him.” What?! The only special teams action Choice has this year is three kickoff returns, in which he has averaged over 20 yards per return. Don’t give me some crap about special teams when this guy literally carried your football team down the stretch as a rookie. The Cowboys effectively used Choice in the season opener on one play, but never again after that. Choice gained 13 yards on that one play, but only received 13 carries through the next nine games. However, instead of moping around about it and saying, “I told you so” after his big day against the Colts, the Georgia Tech product was as modest and optimistic as ever. “I’ve got a lot of doubters,” Choice said. “I’m just going to make you believe in me one day. Nobody can judge me because it’s in my heart.” 
Indeed, a “doubter” is a nicer term for Jones than what I would have chosen. When asked about his comments, Jones produced a load of ignorant rubbish again. “We’ve talked about it, laughed about it before the game. I said, ‘You’re my insurance policy and I’m cashing in.’ After the ballgame, I said, ‘Now you’re some good insurance. Way to play.’” Jones should have apologized to Choice after the game, not called him an “insurance policy.” That seems to be the running theme in sports today. That’s what Jones called former receiver Patrick Crayton during the preseason and he’s not even with the team anymore. Jones may not have given Choice the credit he deserved, but the running back’s teammates sure did. “It was beautiful,” Dallas center Andre Gurode said. “It’s an amazing thing to watch. We played with Tashard before and he stepped up and had some good games for us before. So the guys trust in him. The guys knew what he was going to do and he got in there and didn’t disappoint us. He got in there and played his hardest. That’s all you can ask.”
Now instead of asking Choice to contribute more on special teams, Jones will want his frustrated young running back to rush for 100 yards every game. Mark my words; instead of praising Choice properly, Jones will find a way to say Choice still isn’t good enough without saying it word for word. The Eagles present the NFL’s 13th-best run defense, a much tougher challenge than the Colts’ porous 29th-best unit. Maybe this week Jones won’t insult Choice’s blocking skills and footwork. Maybe Choice will be the deciding factor in another huge Cowboys win when the Eagles come to Arlington on Sunday night. I’m not the president of the Tashard Choice Fan Club or anything, but I just can’t stand it when our idiotic owner says ignorant things about good players. I am, however, driving the bandwagon for Choice to get more playing time. Maybe Jones will listen after Choice’s performance on Sunday. But then again, it’s Jerry Jones. Who am I kidding?
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[...] Home › NFL › Cowboys Running Back Tashard Choice Makes Team Owner Jerry Jones Look Silly [...]
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[...] team owner and general manager Jerry Jones has made it clear in the past, or at least in 2010, that special teams performance is critical to a reserve player’s value. Apparently, McCann has done enough to earn the controversial [...]
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[...] back to Cowboys running back Tashard Choice’s promotion in Week 13 of 2010. Before the game, Jones publicly chastised Choice for not being a good special teams player although he was not on any special teams units. Choice [...]
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wanted to support the writer for the tashard choice column i just wish jerry jones could read n not just talk all the time. great job keep up the great articles. cowboys 4life win or lose