Cowboys' candid cameras

Bill's Rant

There's a new sports jinx looming on the horizon, but Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones apparently couldn't care less.

He agreed to allow his team to be the subject of this year's version of the HBO football reality series, Hard Knocks. Cameras follow an NFL team through training camp, complete with all the subplots that weave their way through the preseason - injuries, the occasional holdout, players competing for positions and getting cut.

The Ravens were the first team to allow themselves to be filmed candidly for the series in 2001 after their Super Bowl victory. They finished 10-6 that season, earned a wild-card playoff berth and were eliminated in the second round.

Dallas took its first turn on Hard Knocks in 2002 and had a second straight 5-11 season. The series resumed last season, when the Kansas City Chiefs agreed to be the team under the microscope. They finished 4-12.

Now here come the Cowboys again after failing to win a playoff game last season and the pressure already on coach Wade Phillips. Of course, this is a team that also features such retiring characters as Terrell Owens and Adam "Pacman" Jones (if his suspension is lifted).

Maybe Jones, the owner, just wants Phillips to fail so he can hand the coaching job to Jason Garrett.