DALLAS STAR AIKMAN WILL MISS IRVIN : QB, SWITZER HAVE SETTLED DIFFERENCES FROM 1995.

Byline: Gary Myers New York Daily News 

Troy Aikman has won three Super Bowl rings in the past four years, is the NFL's highest-paid player, has negotiated a detente with coach Barry Switzer and believes the '96 Dallas Cowboys have the potential to be better than last year, which would mean a fourth championship.

But when you play for the Cowboys, there's so much more to it than just football.

Five players from the most recent Super Bowl team already have, or will, serve suspensions for violating the league's substance-abuse policy. The most prominent, of course, is Michael Irvin, forced to miss the first five games this year.

Sitting down in what amounted to a state-of-the-Cowboys address, Aikman admitted he is ``very concerned'' with the perception of his team, and when asked if he thinks people look at the Cowboys as a class organization, he said, ``Probably not. I'll be honest with my answers here. But I think there are a lot of reasons for that. Maybe the way Jerry (Jones) has gone about doing some of the things he's doing fighting against the NFL. I think from an image standpoint, that probably wasn't real favorable for us. And some of the things that have taken place with some of the individual players.''

Irvin and Aikman are good friends. Back in January, when Aikman had to face questions during Super Bowl week about complaints earlier in the year that he was singling out black players for criticism, Irvin quickly came to his defense and dismissed it.

And last month, as Irvin sat in a Dallas courtroom at his drug trial, Aikman was the only member of the organization to attend. It was a decision to which he gave serious thought, weighing how people would interpret his presence. But after reading that no one from Irvin's family or the Cowboys had been there, he felt that wasn't right.

``I knew there would be some criticism that came with it,'' he said. ``And I really felt the criticism would be overwhelming, to be quite honest. I knew the reason that I was going and I know what I believe in as being right and what's wrong. Michael has been a friend of mine and I've tried to be a friend of his. And I think when you're a friend for someone, you're a friend through the good times and bad times.

``I wasn't real proud to be there. And I wasn't condoning the reason the trial was taking place. I was just there to show support for Michael and show him, I'm here for you if you need me. I think that people were then trying to draw the conclusion that I was condoning Michael's behavior.''

Aikman is on his way to the Hall of Fame. The Cowboys already are the only team to win three Super Bowls in four years. This season Aikman can join Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw as the only quarterbacks to win four rings and the Cowboys can become the first team to win six Super Bowls. To do that, they eventually will need the big numbers from Irvin.

For now, Deion Sanders has moved from cornerback to wide receiver, although when the real games start, Aikman believes Sanders will remain as a big part of the defense. He thinks Sanders can help the Cowboys on offense.

``He's a good wide receiver. I think for anyone to think he will come over to offense and be one of the top three wide receivers in this league is a little naive,'' Aikman said. ``Then I think it gives the appearance that playing wide receiver in the NFL is a simple thing to do. And it's not. He's got all the talent in the world to be a great wide receiver, but it just takes time. And I don't think the amount of time he's been able to put into it is enough to make him a great player. I don't think he's going to replace Michael Irvin. But I think he can be very effective and really help us.''

In 1993, the Cowboys started off 0-2 during Emmitt Smith's holdout. This time, they will go five games without Irvin. And Aikman dismissed the notion that Irvin's absence wouldn't be as severe because wide receivers don't control games like running backs. He fears the loss of Irvin, his ``go-to guy'' on third down, could hamper the Cowboys' ability to keep drives alive.

Instead of getting down about not having Irvin for the first five games, Aikman said, ``I'm happy we have him for 11.''

Cowboys camp really has a party atmosphere. The stands are packed and fans line the fence. Players are treated like rock stars. But it was a behind-the-scenes meeting between Aikman and Switzer in the offseason that eventually could make this a calmer season in Dallas.

Aikman's work ethic was more closely aligned with former coach Jimmy Johnson, and Aikman had a difficult time adjusting to Switzer's laid-back style. For now, Aikman has accepted it. He even said Switzer deserves as much credit for last year's Super Bowl as Johnson received for the first two. And Switzer apologized for how he handled things when the racial innuendos against Aikman - and subsequently denied by Aikman - were brought to his attention.

``The important thing for he and I to do is communicate. And we've been able to do that,'' Aikman said. ``I guess if I were running a football team, I would do things differently. My personality is very different from his. I've always said that however you coach, you need to do whatever you feel more comfortable doing. And he's done that. And for him it works.''

CAPTION(S):

2 Photos

Photo: (1) Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman says h e has mended differences with coach Barry Switzer.

(2) The Dallas Cowboys are loaded again, but highly paid quarterback Troy Aikman dislikes the team's image, which includes owner Jerry Jones.

Daily News File Photo