Wednesday, March 26 Emmitt agrees to deal in principle with Cardinals -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By Len Pasquarelli and Chris Mortensen ESPN.com For the first 13 years of his career, a road contest against the Arizona Cardinals was almost like a home game for Emmitt Smith. In his 14th NFL campaign, a matchup at Sun Devil Stadium will be a home game for the leading rusher in league history. ESPN.com has learned through league sources that Smith, released by the Dallas Cowboys four weeks ago, has reached agreement in principle with the Cardinals on all major football aspects of a contract. There remain some marketing issues to still be addressed but both sides acknowledged that those elements of the deal are close to completion. Smith will wear the same No. 22 he wore with the Cowboys. "Emmitt will start,'' coach Dave McGinnis said, adding that he will also help break in Marcel Shipp, who led the Cardinals in rushing last season in his second year. The deal is believed to be worth $7-8 million over two years. Smith contributed to the Cardinals' woes over the years. He scored 25 career touchdowns against them, his highest total versus an opponent. Overall, Smith ranks No. 1 in NFL history with 153 rushing TDs. The Cardinals are expected to announce the agreement with Smith at a news conference late Wednesday afternoon. Smith will not be in attendance, but sources said an introduction to his new home city is tentatively set for Thursday, with the Wednesday acknowledgement a public relations bonanza for the media assembled in Phoenix at the annual league meetings. "The (football) side of things is finished," said one source. "The other stuff is all part of the contract and that will be completed shortly." Smith, 33, visited with Cardinals officials two weeks ago and, at this point, Arizona appears the only opportunity available to him as a starter. "I've always been very confident in my abilities,'' Smith said right after being released by Dallas. "I think I'm a 1,300-yard back, and I will be out to prove that. "I am not a guy that is afraid of competition. I walk up and face it full throttle. I will help someone's organization get to the Super Bowl, get back to the Super Bowl or win the Super Bowl.'' Dallas owner Jerry Jones told ESPN's Chris Mortensen he is "not surprised" by Smith's decision. "I think it's a pretty good opportunity for him," Jones said. "But to me, he'll always have that star on the side of his helmet." If nothing else, Smith should help boost attendance -- the Cardinals have rarely sold out since moving from St. Louis after the 1987 season. And when they have, it often was against Dallas, which still retains a solid fan base that existed before the Cardinals arrived. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report. http://espn.go.com/nfl/news/2003/0326/1529948.html
I can't believe they would sit M. Shipp behind Smith, and pay Emmitt so much money. He's a solid back-up but I can't believe they still think he is a starter over Shipp who was super when Jones went out. Best of luck to Emmitt though he's a great guy.
So either Smith is plainly after stats (20,000yd mark) and extra cash or every other team in the league realized he has no value as a prominent back in the league anymore. I don't think he even had an interview with another team. A publicity stunt for the fan-strapped Cardinals. Like Hank Aaron, Joe Namath, and Tony Dorsett before him... a living legend moves on to smaller and dimmer things.
Emmitt and the Cards were made for each other. I'm a Cowboys fan and feel like Emmitt was among the top 3-5 RBs of all-time. But off the field, this guy is a crying me-first baby. He's a classless guy playing on a joke of an organization. A match made in heaven. I hope you enjoy a 5-11 season with the Cards, while splitting carries. At least your collecting your check, right?
Emmit will start and if he flames, Shipp's startin' I'm a cowboys fan so Good Luck to Emmit, but ****, if yer gonna be 5-11, ya might as well stay with the cowboys! J/K, they'll be at least 500 with Parcells as coach or better... Someone remind me why Cowboys dropped him? Was it all about the money? What where the Cowboys gonna pay him? Or was it the starting vs. backup thing?
Jerry Jones didn't want to pay him the $9.5 he was due this season. I believe he was willing to bring him back for a SEVERE pay reduction, but Smith refused and wanted to test the free agent waters. Bill Parcells has stated that he wouldn't have minded bringing Smith back, but I doubt he would have been handed the starting position automatically. Arizona was the only franchise to make a serious attempt to sign him with the promise of money + a chance to start. Smith signed on the dotted line.
Your post is classless, the guy gave Dallas the best years of his career and you knock him because some team was stupid enough to give him all that money. Very mature. I'm not even a Dallas fan but Emmitt was the guy I respected most on that team, I know his image is a bit sugarcoated by the Dallas media, but that guy did nothing but good for you Dallas fans and this is the goodbye you give him, he proved who was most valuable to that team during the second superbowl year when he heldout and your beloved Cowboys offense was inept.
I agree with pgabriel here, and I'll go a step further. Your comments are completely off-base. I worked for the Cowboys for 2 summers, and I had the pleasure to meet many people in the organization, including Emmitt. He was extremely classy and is/was well liked by the entire organization. According to employees at Valley Ranch and Texas Stadium (I worked at both places), Aikman was a bit of a loner and not really receptive to the people around him. Emmitt, on the other hand, was extremely personable and nice to everyone. You could say he was the heart and soul of that team. And as for Parcells wanting to retain Emmitt, that's just lip service. Take it from someone who knows. Emmitt still has the desire to play, and he found work where he can be a starter. Should he have retired? Probably. But that's his decision.
what a tool... Money probably wasn't that much of an issue. He knew the Cardinals would give him a lot of money because they're a pathetic organization, and he could have simply signed a contract with a contender that was incentive laden. He wants to make sure he puts that rushing record out of reach for anybody.
Everybody here goes to work for the same reason- security and peace of mind. If E. Smith can put the total yards record out of reach for 20 years, he becomes more marketable after his career is over. I think he is making a very intelligent decision for himself and his family.
I agree, but with the Cardinal's offensive line, it might take Emmett 20 seasons to gain 4,000 yards!
I love #22, but I think the Cardinals are over paying... The only reason I can think he's getting that much $$$ is due to the merchandising... If they have a receiver to balance out the run and a good OLine, then he will have a good year, which I hope he does, especially against Dallas...
"I've always been very confident in my abilities,'' Smith said right after being released by Dallas. "I think I'm a 1,300-yard back, and I will be out to prove that The ONLY way Emmitt is running for 1300 yards is if he plays a season on his Playstation or XBox
The Cards are in for a tough season this year no Plumber, Boston they are going to be worse than last year. Emmitt must really love playing football, cause its going to be a loooong season.
I never dissed his ability. I question his motives. E$pecially when he refused to show up for his own induction to the Texas Sports Hall of Fame, because he demanded they pay him 25k to speak at a ceremony honoring HIM. I could care less for Emmitt the person. Emmitt the football player was the best RB of our era.
