The wrong read

Sporting News, The, Oct 21, 1996 by Paul Attner

"Look, I'm realistic enough to know that if you are judging things on championships. then I rank up there with some of the greats," he says, "but if you are judging on statistics. I am not going to rank quite so high."

Aikman pushes a "team-first" concept hard in our conversation. He says he learned from Jimmy Johnson the unimportance of individual achievement if the team flops. Johnson used the 1988 Cowboys as lesson No. 1. "Herschel Walker :led the NFC in rushing that season and they finished 3-13," Aikman says. "Jimmy said, `What did it mean to the team what Herschel did?' It doesn't matter what I do as an individual if the team doesn't win.

"I wouldn't be much of a competitor if I didn't have thoughts some of the time about what it would be like being in an offense like Dan (Merino) had. I have too much confidence in my ability; I think I would flourish. But to win three Super Bowls, I gladly give up individual stats."

Aikman always has had the gift of being able to throw a ball where he wanted. Not just to a receiver, but to the ideal spot for that receiver to catch it. Next time you watch the Cowboys, notice how infrequently they have to leap or lunge awkwardly for a pass. It is a rare skill, but he does it so naturally, he makes his job look easy.

Cowboys offensive coordinator Ernie Zampese tutored Hall of Famer Dan Fouts with the Chargers. Yet the first time Zampese watched Aikman at practice after joining the Cowboys in 1994, he was shocked. He had never seen any quarterback be so precise and consistent. Even in :workouts, Aikman rarely throws a bad pass.

"I love Dan Fouts," Zampese says, "but Troy just has more physical tools, no question about it. And he just doesn't do a lot of dumb things to get you beat."

But Aikman flares at any inference that it has been easy to reach this pinnacle. He recalls jumping rope in college to improve his footwork, which now is so good that it dictates his accuracy. He recalls lifting weights until 2 a.m. in high school after a basketball game. Even now, he stays late to watch film, studying even harder than when he was younger. Friends talk about how he constructs his offseason travel schedule around workouts.

"I don't know if I am more gifted than a lot of other quarterbacks in the league, but I take it very seriously, and that is my greatest strength right now," he says. "Of the things that make a quarterback stand out, I think talent is the last factor.

"I have a real fear still of going out and not playing well, and that keeps me going. I have never been comfortable in my past successes. I don't feel I can rest on what we have done and say if I don't have a good year, then what the heck, look what I have already done. Maybe all of us have this sense of insecurity about our abilities that pushes us to show we still can do it. I still want to show I can perform at the same level I have in the past."

It is fascinating to talk to Aikman about playing quarterback. He makes a very complex position seem uncomplicated. "That is one of his strengths," Cowboys backup quarterback Jason Garrett says. "He has a great capacity in life as well as in football to keep things simple. He is a guy who, in a game, sees if one option isn't open, he goes immediately to another. A lot of guys would be saying, `Maybe I should hang in with the first guy.' But that is not in his thinking. He is able to go from one to two to three without hesitation. Simple, quick."