NFL: Roy E. Williams and the 9 Most Disappointing Dallas Cowboys of All Time

No matter how successful your favorite NFL team may be, that team has no doubt had its fair share of failures and disappointing players.

Sometimes without much pomp and circumstance, these players were ushered out as quickly as they were brought in.

For the Chargers, it's probably Ryan Leaf, and for the Browns, maybe it's Tim Couch.

The Dallas Cowboys play a grand part in this play as well. There have been more than a few players to pass through the halls of Valley Ranch who were expected to eventually have their names enshrined in the Cowboys Ring of Honor.

But what’s the definition of disappointment? Is it a player who fails to live up to fans' expectations or maybe a player who fell short of his critics' expectations? Would we talk about Leaf in the same way if he were a fifth-round pick who stumbled upon the starting job in San Diego? 

Each failure has its own definition, as each fan has his or her own hopes for that player.

Let’s take a look at a few of the most disappointing players in Dallas Cowboys history.

David LaFleur, TE

David LaFleur was drafted to be the next great tight end in Cowboys history. He was big, strong and seemed to have all the tangibles needed to eventually develop into one of the league’s best at his position.

Unfortunately, it didn’t turn out that way.

With Jay Novacek no longer around, the Cowboys turned to LaFleur, and he quickly flamed out. His best season came in 1999 when he recorded 35 catches for 322 yards. Since that was the best we ever saw from the former LSU tight end, his career soon ended in Dallas.

Roy L. Williams, S

Here is what I think about anytime someone mentions Roy Williams' time in Dallas:

During his rookie season with the 'Boys, they faced off against the hated Washington Redskins at Cowboys Stadium, and both teams were struggling. This was Williams' 12th game in the NFL, and he was already making a name for himself.

In the third quarter of that game, the Redskins were backed up close to their own end zone. Quarterback Danny Wuerffel hiked, he was blitzed and tried to dump the ball off for Kenny Watson.

It was picked off and returned for a touchdown by Roy Williams.

I remember leaping from my chair because I thought the Cowboys had found a player.

It may be a little unfair to call Williams one of the most disappointing Cowboys ever, but in terms of expectations and production, he completely fell off the map. He was boxed because of his inability to effectively cover the pass,—or more specifically, the deep ball—and he never could get rid of that nasty horse collar tackle.

Williams wowed fans in the beginning, but that slowly faded once fans continued to see receivers blow past him on the jumbotron. He has great talent, but it never fully materialized during his time in Dallas.

Quincy Carter, QB

"I be strokin'/that’s what I be doin’/I be strokin'!" –Clarence Carter

The great soul singer had a hit with his song "Strokin" way back in the day, and his song comes to mind when I think of Quincy Carter.

Clarence's song has nothing to do with Quincy, but I like the song nonetheless.

At any rate, the Cowboys placed their playoff eggs right in Quincy's basket after he led the team to the playoffs in 2003. But Quincy—and his lisp—were released in 2004 due in part to the quarterback’s drug habit. Dallas may have made it back to the playoffs with Carter under center, but most fans' expectations were tempered.

Head coach Bill Parcells and team owner Jerry Jones did a great job of selling Carter to the public, but in the end, the disappointment leaned more toward what happened in his personal life than what the troubled quarterback did on the field.

Shante Carver, DL

Shante Carver was beastly, but this giant of a man never forced a fumble during his short stay in Dallas.

Cowboys players even asked who scouted Carver because he was so bad at his job as a defensive lineman.

Carver eventually ended up in the Arena League because he was such a bust in the NFL. Oh—and he had a history of drug problems.

Bobby Carpenter, LB

The Cowboys tried their best to push Carpenter on and off the field as the next great linebacker in Dallas. He was a frequent guest on ESPN’s First Take, debating with Skip Bayless on the popular "1st and 10" segment.

The knock on Carpenter is he was soft, and anytime a player is drafted 18th and he doesn’t exactly pan out, he’s labeled a bust.

Carpenter couldn’t play the pass that well, or the run for that matter. Dallas eventually traded him to the Rams for offensive lineman Alex Barron in 2010.

See how well that worked out for Dallas.

Sherman Williams, RB

If Cowboys fans don’t remember Sherman Williams, it's because he didn’t last that long in Dallas.

Williams was short and quick, but if he didn’t have a penchant for illegal narcotics, he may have been a great Cowboys player.

Williams' career-high in rushing yards was close to 500 back in 1997, but that’s the best the team ever got out of the former University of Alabama product.

Do a quick Google search, and I’m sure you can find Sherman’s mug shot somewhere on the Internet.

Dennis Holman, WR

The ‘Boys had a future Hall of Famer on their hands with Bullet Bob Hayes at wide receiver, and the team went looking for a player to match up with the speedster.

Enter Homan and the recipe for success to a Super Bowl title.

Problem with that recipe was that it was missing a key ingredient: Homan’s hands. He caught a grand total of 23 passes during his time with Dallas, and his best season came in 1969 when he had 240 yards.

Antonio Bryant, WR

Bryant’s disappointment comes from his inability to play up to his talent level. He was in Dallas for all of two seasons, and once he threw his practice jersey in Parcells' face, you knew his time would be cut short.

He wore No. 88, which is a number dripping in the legacies of Drew Pearson and Michael Irvin. Bryant never recorded a 1,000-yard season in Dallas, and his temperament always seemed to outweigh his gift.

Roy E. Williams, WR

Roy E. Williams was brought in the fold to bring extra firepower to the Cowboys' offense, and be the Robin Terrell Owens' Batman.

He’s never lived up to expectations, and his mouth seems to run faster than he can.

Williams still fashions himself as the top receiver in Dallas no matter how great Miles Austin and Dez Bryant play. Yet so far his best season in Dallas was in 2009 when he had 38 receptions for 596 yards.

Bust.