Sunday, September 16, 2007

Dallas Cowboys "Stonewall Defense"

After reading the case study on the Dallas Cowboys, it took me back to the time of the incident. I remember the controversy, but not as much as I remember other events in Cowboy history or even that year.
That is odd considering the severity of a cut on a players neck caused by a pair of scissors, which is usually the cause for and assault charge and in some cases a attempted murder. At the time Michael Irvin was on probation and any crime that violated parole would result in his jailing.
The fact that no one in the organization told, is an example of Utilitarian perspective. It benefited the Cowboys to keep Irvin on a Super Bowl caliber team, and his presence on the team gave everyone a better opportunity to win it. This could have been used as leverage to keep members of the team and staff quiet on the incident, because if they told and Irvin was arrested it damaged the chances for even the back-up players to win a Super Bowl ring.
Even Everett McIver could have taken the approach that his chance of winning a ring is more important than getting justice or his story out, and thus staying quiet is the better option.
If the organization did take a Communitarian approach to its players and issues than McIver, an average guard on the team would have been treated as equal as Irvin, a superstar wide receiver, and McIver would have been protected the team and Irvin would be punished for his involvement.
Reporters are always able to get someone on the team to talk, even if its the last person on a depth chart, for attention. However in this case the Utilitarian approach to handling the situation prevailed as the greater number of people benefited, while McIver did not get his justice.
The practice of Stonewalling put the organization in jeopardy if the story had gotten out that the team was covering up for criminal activity. However, it was effective because the story never got out and anything that was public was never confirmed and thus uncreditable. It made the media look bad, and the team look questionable until the incident blew over and everyone went on happy.
That was until the Cardinals upset the Cowboys at home in the first round of the playoffs, even after Dallas had defeated them twice in the season.

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