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by Tuna Helper on May 11, 2008 12:44 AM CDT

Who wouldn’t want to be like Mel Renfro?

He’s a Hall of Famer. He’s in the Ring of Honor. He’s arguably the best defensive back to ever wear the star. He was an All-American running back in college. If there was ever a guy to emulate in this organization, as far as the secondary goes, Renfro is it.

Ray Buck gets this and details Renfro’s excellence in his newest installment of the Old Boys Club.

My problem with this article isn’t the focus on Renfro. He’s a legend and that’s what the series is about – highlighting the past. But what kind of chaps my hide is the references to Pacman Jones.

When Renfro retired, after Super Bowl XII, Adam "Pacman" Jones was still five years, eight months away from being born.
(Memo to Pacman: Longtime Cowboys fans have a standard for even the most highly decorated, punt-returning CBs to follow — and it’s way up there.)

"I’m kind of opinionated about these things," said Renfro, now 66, and a limited partner in Hall of Fame Mortgage on Preston Road in Dallas. "In my day, someone’s chances of making the pros were 1-in-10,000. Certainly, that makes it a privilege."

While the Cowboys await NFL commissioner Roger Goodell’s decision on when, or even if, Jones’ suspension will be lifted, Renfro expressed a willingness to give Pacman Jones a second chance.

"The guys who hurt you most are the me-me-me guys," Renfro said. "But I think Pacman is a team player. He’s had some off-field issues, but I certainly know he’ll help this team. Everyone deserves a second chance.

Renfro’s opinions about Pacman are certainly newsworthy but it just seems like it takes the reader away from the focus of the article. I wanna hear war stories from Renfro about battling against competitors in the playoffs or playing in the Super Bowl. Buck eventually gets to it when Renfro discusses Super Bowl V.

Some losses are harder than others to accept. This was one of those.

Perhaps it was best summed up by Bob Lilly’s helmet toss as soon as the game ended.

"Lilly yanked off his helmet and sailed it left-handed 50 yards upfield," wrote the Star-Telegram the next day.

And what did Renfro do?

"I just sat on the bench and cried," he said.

A Sports Illustrated photographer captured a solitary Renfro, mired in his own misery on the Dallas bench, long after everyone else had left.

"I sat there with my helmet buried in my hands," Renfro recalled. "I didn’t move for four or five minutes."

Great. Really great stuff.

Then Buck has to go and ruin it by mentioning Pacman again.

Back to that memo to Pacman: Now you see, there was a similar guy who played here before you ever talked, walked or even crawled. And he was pretty good.

Renfro reiterated that playing pro football is not a birthright. It’s a privilege.

Even after he played his best four-game stretch of a Hall of Fame career, Renfro could stop and think how this made "others" feel good.

"To me, I represented the Dallas Cowboys," he said. "I could imagine that people could see what I did at the Pro Bowl and think, ‘Hey, maybe the Cowboys are coming back.’ And, of course, we did.

"We won the Super Bowl the next year."

Did we really need the part about Pacman? Just gimme the good stuff, Ray. Stop giving me the cup filled with foam when I ask for a beer.

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