IRVING, TEXAS ? Laughing at his awkward fist bump with top pick Demarcus Ware and smiling during a tricky game he played with punt returners, coach Bill Parcells had a good time Friday at the start of the Dallas Cowboys’ rookie minicamp.

The reason he enjoyed it so much was simple: After working nearly every day since last season ended to avoid another 6-10 meltdown, Parcells was happy to be on the field preparing for a 2005 season that seems to be off to a solid start.

After the workout, Parcells acknowledged being energized by the fresh start — and by a “tremendous fear” of failure.

“I always have had it. I don’t apologize for that,” he said. “I don’t care how many games you’ve won, I don’t care what’s happened in your life. You’re not winning now, so you suck. That’s the way it is.”

Parcells was a big winner his first season in Dallas, taking a club that went 5-11 for three straight years and getting them into the playoffs at 10-6. With high expectations to build on that in 2004, the Cowboys fell back, especially on defense.

So Parcells rolled up his sleeves Jan. 3 and began laying out a game plan to prevent it from happening again. He must be pretty pleased with how things have gone so far because Friday, in his most extensive news conference of the offseason, he twice thanked owner Jerry Jones for being aggressive in free agency and praised his scouts for a well-run draft.

But that doesn’t mean he’s satisfied. There are still question marks at free safety and right tackle, plus all the other, typical concerns coaches always have.

“We’ve got a lot to do here,” he said. “We still got some holes we need to talk about.”

Drafting Ware, a linebacker who can be an effective pass rusher, was a key to the planned changes for this fall. His versatility enables the Cowboys to use various formations, which means more ways to try attacking offenses.

Dallas cowboys coach Bill Parcells answers a question during a news conference after a minicamp. Parcells met with the media Friday at Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas.

Dallas also used a second first-round pick on defense, taking end Marcus Spears from LSU. The Cowboys spent six of their eight draft picks on defensive players, and Parcells said youth and inexperience could be issues with the unit this season.

“But maybe you just got enough of them that are eager and will hustle and try to do what you want them to do,” he said. “Guys like that can create a frenzy if they can make plays. Hopefully that will be what happens.”

Parcells also disputed what Pat Summerall, one of his closest friends in Dallas, was quoted early this offseason as saying, that Parcells contemplated leaving the Cowboys.

“That’s not true, that’s not true,” Parcells said softly. “You know, you get down and out once in a while. But I didn’t think about quitting.”