Kavorka!
By Joe Torosian
“Writing without revising is the literary equivalent of waltzing gaily out of the house in your underwear.”—Patricia Fuller
Kick it!
In writing, the first lesson taught—maybe not the first but early on—is the Faulkner line: “Kill your darlings.”
This means somewhere along the way, you’re going to turn a great phrase, conceive an awesome alliteration, or come up with a cool word in your rough (first) draft. But then discover it needs to be deleted in the rewrite.
And some of the biggest mistakes made are when that lesson is ignored. It hurts, we’ll be hacked, but after some time and a fresh read-through—we’ll see it was necessary.
This is what the Los Angeles Rams do really well. They can “kill” (release/cut/waive/trade/move-on from) their darlings. The Les Snead-Sean McVay era has demonstrated the ability to say, “I love you, honey, but I just can’t smile.”
The Dallas Cowboys, on the other hand, love what feels good. They love what sounds good. They do not know how to kill their darlings. They needed to recognize, two-seasons ago, that they got the best out of Ezekiel Elliott and moved on. All those guys on the offensive line were signed to contracts with no thought to attrition and their bodies breaking down. Amari Cooper was given a fat-contract when he should have been given a “Healthy Choice” contract.
Jerry Jones and his family love everybody, but they cannot kill their darlings, and it keeps them trapped in their first draft. The first draft is okay. In football terms, the first draft is 8-8, maybe 9-7. But the first draft is likely never to turn into a (bestseller) conference final or Super Bowl ring.
I like Dak Prescott, but I like Matthew Stafford better. I still don’t know what Stafford is exactly, but I know what Prescott is—very good. He’s just not very great.
The Cowboys should have moved on, but it didn’t feel good, it didn’t feel right, and Dak looks excellent in that uniform with the star on his helmet. And by all accounts, he’s a tremendous person. So they gave him a huge contract.
But does Prescott’s contract make his team better than the Tampa Bay Buccaneers? Are they better than the Rams? Are they better than the Green Bay Packers?
Let me ask you this, are the Cowboys a lock to win the NFC East over Washington in 2021? That defensive front in D.C. is pretty awesome, and with a quarterback found at the local car wash (Tyler Something), they gave the Bucs a pretty good push in the playoffs.
Now Dallas is on the hook for that contract, and it looks like a darling. It looks salary cap malleable, but will it bring home a championship?
If I was a Cowboys fan, I might think it was the worst news. I’ve seen this team, I’ve seen this quarterback, I’ve read this story. I’d want a rewrite. I see Dak and a flawed organization, and I see 8-8, 9-7, maybe 10-6.
As a Rams fan, I’m thinking how marvelous! Because I have a team that knows how to kill its darlings (Jared Goff, Brandin Cooks) and is always working on a rewrite.
Part of that painful rewrite began again when they did not put a Franchise Tag on safety John Johnson III, which means he’s gone. (Guess which NFL team really needs a safety? The Dallas Cowboys.)
I hate killing my darlings. It’s awful but necessary for a team to keep moving forward and reach a final, finished draft. One that ends with either a glass slipper or a shiny ring.
The Dude abides…
1,178
1 Corinthians 14:20
Joe T. is the author of “Tangent Dreams: A High School Football Novel” … “Temple City & The Company of The Ages” … “The Dead Bug Tales” … “The Dark Norm” & “FaithViews for Storm Riders”…all five available through Amazon.com.
www.JoeTorosian.com
jtbank1964@yahoo.com
Follow Joe on Twitter @joet13b
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MeWe: Joe Torosian
Be sure to read:
The Saxon Top 25—Every Monday (College Bball)
The Urena Express—Every Wednesday (MLB)
