Cowboys Going for Greatness : Football: How can Jimmy’s bunch follow up a near-perfect Super Bowl season?

The Dallas Cowboys’ first meeting of the 1993 football season was only five minutes old when Coach Jimmy Johnson walked in.

There were handshakes, some hugs and quite a few laughs. And then Johnson cleared his throat.

Time for business.

“Gentleman, you were good last year, and you won a Super Bowl,” Johnson said. “But if you win two in a row, we will be considered great. We want to be a great football team.”

The Cowboys have a chance to become the fifth franchise to win consecutive Super Bowls. Dallas made it look relatively easy last year in Super Bowl XXVII, routing the Buffalo Bills, 52-17. The Cowboys still have all their stars -- Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin, Ken Norton, Jay Novacek -- but there are critics who say it’s nearly impossible to win consecutive Super Bowls.

Why?

“The new free-agent system, contract negotiations, injuries, egos, kiss-and-tell books,” said wide receiver Irvin.

Dallas has some of those problems, but Irvin says it’s nothing to worry about.

“You hear it all the time, about teams self-destructing,” said Irvin. “But look around here, we’ve had virtually none of that. Sure, Troy has a back problem, Emmitt is holding out and there reportedly are differences between owner and coach.

“But Troy is in camp, and the coach seems happy. We’re a close-knit team. We really like each other. We really do. So NFL, watch out. It’s a year later, and the Dallas Cowboys are backkk.”

*

Troy Aikman stands on the sidelines wearing gray, team-issued shorts and a matching shirt. The baseball cap is on backward. He smiles a lot. Has a great tan.

Does this look like a guy who is worried about playing in the season opener?

“When it comes to injuries, I’ve always been ahead of the time schedule,” said Aikman. “I’ll be ready for the season opener (Sept. 6) against the Redskins.”

Aikman, the Super Bowl MVP who threw for 3,445 yards last season, suffered a herniated disk in May while lifting weights, and underwent surgery in June.

An early prognosis had Aikman not throwing for six weeks. Aikman threw in four. Doctors said he would be out 12 weeks. Aikman plans to play in the team’s Aug. 27 exhibition game against the Chicago Bears. That would make it 10 weeks.

“I was probably looking forward to this season more than any, because I wanted to get us back where we left off,” said Aikman. “Then the injury came, and I found myself wishing the season wasn’t coming so fast.”

Aikman takes part in most of the team’s non-contact drills and has two daily stretching sessions with assistant trainer Jim Maurer.

“Sometimes he does so much I have to back him off a little,” said Maurer. “As long as he shows no signs of discomfort, we let him do as much as he wants.”

If Aikman can’t play in the opener, the Cowboys will turn to Hugh Millen, who was with the New England Patriots last season.

But bet on Aikman.

“I’ve always been able to come back from injuries real well,” said Aikman. “I might not play up to my potential, but I’ll play against the Redskins.”

*

Where’s Emmitt Smith?

“I bet you he’s at his home in Florida with his satellite dish, sitting in a room watching us sweat,” said linebacker Norton. “He’s probably sipping one of those drinks with the umbrella stuck between his fingers.”

When workouts began July 15, Dallas Owner Jerry Jones said he was optimistic that Smith, the two-time defending NFL rushing champion, would have a contract before the season started.

Now, Jones has ordered his staff to prepare for the season without Smith.

Negotiations reportedly came to a standstill last month, when Bills running back Thurman Thomas signed a four-year, $13.4 million contract.

Thomas’s new deal is $4.4 million more than the Cowboys’ four-year offer to Smith and apparently $2.5 million less than Smith wants.

“Obviously, you miss someone of that talent,” said Johnson, whose team is 20-1 when Smith rushes for more than 100 yards. “I don’t know what it will mean to our offense. But my job is to prepare the players I have the best I can. The main thing is to be ready to play with whoever is on the field.”

There have been reports that the Cowboys are interested in unsigned Ram running back Cleveland Gary.