YOU EITHER like Keyshawn Johnson or you detest him. There’s no middle ground, and he doesn’t really give a damn on which side of the tracks you reside. This, of course, is one of his virtues and, at the same time, one of the things he does to turn people off.
I choose to like him, because there’s too much good to overlook.
Is Keyshawn Johnson too cocky and brash for some people’s taste? Sure he is.
Does Keyshawn Johnson sometimes exude an overinflated opinion of his talents, what he’s capable of and where he stands on the food chain of superstardom? Sure he does.
So what? Get over it. He’s not perfect, which is fine. We don’t live in a perfect world. In my eyes, the bottom line about Keyshawn Johnson the person and the football player can be defined by these things:
He’s entertaining. He’s funny. He’s smart. He’s perceptive. He’s honest.
He’s available nearly as often as he believes he’s open, which is 24-7. He backs his brash words with production on the field.
He’s a terrific talent on the football field that can be a difference-maker who can take over a game. He desperately wants to win. He wants to be better and, because of that, is very coachable. He works as hard as anyone on the team, so he can never be labeled a lazy star.
He’s media-savvy, knows what we’re after as reporters and columnists, understands the business to more of a degree than most professional athletes, and unless you’ve rubbed him the wrong way, he’ll almost always accommodate your needs as a journalist. His wife, by the way, was a broadcast journalism major.
Here are the facts: Johnson is growing into a legitimate superstar on the field, where he’s capable of controlling a game, and off the field, where he’s a solid citizen and family man. He’s a championship away from owning New York.
Johnson’s only fault should be that he brings too much attention to himself with his mouth. But that, based on some of the sordid actions so many athletes are involved in these days, should hardly be a punishable crime.
Yet there’s no question, because of Johnson’s brashness, that there are people waiting patiently in line to pounce on him if he fails.
The theory here is jealousy. People are, by nature, jealous of those who seemingly have it all — fame, money, power, the ability to do what they want whenever they want. After all, isn’t that the goal of so many people? Yet only a few ever attain such lofty status.
A word of advice: Enjoy Johnson’s talents and his engaging personality while he’s here, because it’s a waste of energy to dislike him for his loquacious style. Regardless of what his critics (most of whom have never met him) say, he’s a very good player and not a bad guy either.
HERE’S a sliver of a hint for those who are hoping Bill Parcells comes back in 2000 for one more run. He likes his players.
“I’m too old to lose,” Parcells said, using a phrase he often repeats. “It’s not worth it if you’re going out there with players that you don’t like. I don’t want to go through that crap. I’ve been through that — a lot. There’s only so much tread on a tire.”
Parcells likes the makeup of this team, and he knows he’ll have Vinny Testaverde and others back and healthy next season.
The belief here is that the only thing that’ll keep him from coaching one more year will be if he decides his health is a factor. And so far, Parcells has spoken about how much better he feels physically this year compared to last season.
THIS week’s challenge for Parcells is figuring out what he did right last week to revive his players after their no-effort loss to the Giants. “I’m trying to think, ‘Well, why did they respond the right way? Why did they bounce back?’ You try to think of some of the things you did to get them to bounce back.”
Parcells said he’s watching what the Super Bowl runner-up Falcons are doing.
“I’m watching Atlanta very closely, because I have a lot of respect for Dan Reeves and I know he knows what he’s doing,” Parcells said. “They had one of their best games [a 35-12 win over the Saints two weeks ago], and [Sunday] they had a hard time [losing to the 49ers]. Maybe I’ll talk to him and see what happened to his team. Dan thinks the same way I do in some respects.”
WHEN the Jets play the Cowboys at Texas Stadium Sunday, they’ll be facing a Cowboys’ team that’s 6-0 at home this season. The 11-2 Rams are the only other team undefeated at home this season.
Of some help to the Jets, though, it’s possibly Cowboys’ RB Emmitt Smith might not play because of a groin injury. Dallas coach Chan Gailey said he has “no feel whatsoever” about whether Smith will play.
Smith, who has 1,055 rushing yards and 10 TDs this season, is listed as questionable. With the stakes as high as they are for the 7-6 Cowboys, look for Smith to at least try to play. How effective he’ll be will be key to the outcome.