FITTING END TO SEASON OF TUMULT.

Byline: Denne H. Freeman Associated Press 

Michael Irvin, a big tear streaming down his cheek, hugged Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and mumbled, ``I'm sorry. . . . I'm sorry.''

A red-eyed Jones, the Cowboys' season of discontent now over, grabbed Irvin around the shoulders, saying, ``I know. . . . I know.''

Dallas' season ended as it began, in disarray and without Irvin. The wide receiver who missed the first five games of the season on NFL suspension went out with a broken collarbone in the first quarter of a 26-17 loss to the Carolina Panthers.

Quarterback Troy Aikman said the loss of Irvin threw the offense for a big loss. Without him, the Cowboys' scoring problems resurfaced.

``The injury hurt, and then we lost Deion Sanders in the fourth quarter and that hurt some more,'' Aikman said. ``Still, we had our opportunities. I missed some throws. We had some throws dropped. We couldn't score touchdowns and had to settle for field goals. It was that way all year.''

Sanders was knocked out of the game in the fourth quarter at the end of a 22-yard reverse. Woozy and barely able to stand, he was taken to the dressing room with a head injury.

A CAT scan was negative, but Sanders was to spend Sunday night at Carolinas Medical Center before returning to Dallas today.

Aikman said the Cowboys went about as far as they could go, despite the almost-weekly distractions.

``Considering what we went through this year, we gave it a good battle,'' said Aikman, who was intercepted three times. ``It was disappointing. It could have been a much better year.''

As it is, there will be no fourth Super Bowl triumph in five years. Injuries, suspensions and daily disruptions finally took a toll.

``We didn't make things happen, and that's the bottom line,'' running back Emmitt Smith said. ``We were down there (near the goal line) three times and didn't score touchdowns. We had to settle for field goals. That was the story all year. We struggled all season and struggled today.''

The Cowboys lost Irvin on their second offensive play when he was tackled by Lamar Lathon after catching a 22-yard pass from Aikman.

Irvin returned to the bench area in the second half, his arm in a sling under a gold jacket and brocade vest, and watched the rest of the defeat.

However, upstart Carolina, which hadn't lost a game in its home stadium all season, would have been difficult to beat even with Irvin in the lineup.

Irvin had come into the game after a tumultuous week in which he and teammate Erik Williams came under police investigation for sexual assault. The accusation by a 23-year-old women created a circus atmosphere at Valley Ranch, and Dallas officials decided to close the locker room to the press.

``We battled against tough odds,'' Cowboys coach Barry Switzer said. ``It was the same old story we had all year long, and it finally caught up with us.''

He added of the game: ``We got into scoring position, but had to kick field goals.''

Switzer said he would be back to try to put everything together again next season.

``That's bad news for some of you, I know,'' he told reporters.

Aikman, however, refused to say he would definitely be back.

``As long as I enjoy myself and this team is committed to winning I'll keep playing,'' Aikman said. ``I'll have to evaluate these things.''

Aikman said the black eye dealt to the Cowboys' image could influence his decision.

``It could be a part of it,'' Aikman said. ``I'm ashamed about some of the things that happened this year from an image standpoint. I'll have a talk with Jerry at some point about it.''

But Aikman added, ``I don't really see any reason why I won't be back.''

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Photo

Photo: The wreckage of Dallas wide receiver Michael Irvin's season piled higher when he broke his collarbone in the first quarter.

Associated Press