Is Pacman Jones Worth Having?

That’s the million dollar question at Valley Ranch this offseason. With the trade complete, Dallas awaits Commissioner Roger Goodell’s decision on reinstatement. As Randy Galloway pointed out today, the contract deal is a no-brainer. There is no guaranteed money in Jones’ new contract and Dallas only gave up a 4th round pick to get him. If he pans out like Jerry hopes, Pacman will be a steal. If he doesn’t, he’ll cost the Cowboys next to nothing? Or will he?

Randy had a columnist from the Tennesse Titan area on the line today, and we heard a very different story on Pacman than we’re getting from the Cowboys’ front office or the Dallas media. Where we thought the only issues were staying clean and getting into shape, it turns out that locker room presence is another issue we need to be concerned about.

Apparently, Pacman intimidates some of his fellow teammates. His crazed yelling and fits of anger in the locker room apparently made him a royal pain in the team’s ass. Quite a few Tennessee players are happy to be rid of him. This is a totally different picture than we got just three weeks ago. We were told that many players considered him a valuable asset in the locker room. A team leader, even. Not so, says the latest report.

The greater risk, says one reporter, is the affect Pacman will have on the Dallas locker room. If indeed his bad boy days aren’t over, who will he bring down with him? There are always weak men in every locker room; men who can be influenced by peer pressured into unwise situations. If Pacman goes down and takes any current players with him, he will have been a mistake for this franchise.

It’s anyone’s guess what will result from this. Dallas is a far cry from Cincinnati’s thuggery, but the scales could already be tipped the wrong direction.