2008 Cowboys Off-season Thread

[Underdog]

Originally Posted by MavsX

bears released cedric benson!

can we sign him??

Why?

(especially considering the financial reality)

[MavsX]

Originally Posted by Underdog

Why?

(especially considering the financial reality)

i'm just saying.

[alby]

Originally Posted by Dirkgreatness

Found this on the Cowboys forum:

Quote:
Heard this on Sirius last night. Ray Lewis is going to be released and he desperately wants to come to Dallas. This came from Jerry Rice who says he has insiders from the Ravens organization and in the Ray Lewis camp.

Also stated that Strahan would not be returning to the Giants, his insiders tell him that Strahan has decided to retire

and this is the difference between the Cowboys and the Mavericks.

[ty]

Originally Posted by Terrance Newman

"It'll be good to get to work, but I can't wait until he gets fully reinstated because we have something special going on in Dallas and we're just missing that one link and I really believe he's the missing link," said Newman, who recently signed a six-year extension worth $50 million. "Once he gets reinstated, I think we're going to have the best secondary in the league."

Go Cowboys.

[snoop]

love that newman quote, it must be nice for him to know henry wont be getting burned by small speedy receivers anymore

[alexamenos]

in re the tnew quote -- I'm wicked excited about this squaqd next year. The upgrade they've made at the corner position is huge.....they went from mediocre to top 1 or 2 or 3 secondaries.

[ty]

...wel, if Pacman gets reinstated =X He better!

[Dirkgreatness]

ESPN making a big deal about the T.O news...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Y56LAvPMOE

[ty]

Yahh...but hey, when you're a big deal, big deals get made out of you...

[alby]

I love me some TO.

[Underdog]

Canty Signs One-Year Restricted Tender

link


Chris Canty hasn't received a long-term deal yet, but he has been a regular participant in the Cowboys' off-season workouts. And the fourth-year defensive end signed his one-year restricted tender Wednesday.

Canty received the first-round tender ($2.017 million), which means the Cowboys would have netted a first-round pick had another team signed him to an offer sheet during the restricted free-agent period and the Cowboys chose not to match.

Canty, entering his fourth-year in the league, started all 17 games for Dallas last season at defensive end and recorded a career-best 46 tackles. He finished tied for third on the team with 3.5 sacks and tied for fourth with four tackles for a loss. He also blocked a field goal against Minnesota (10/21/07) that Patrick Watkins recovered and returned for a pivotal touchdown.

For his career, Canty has started 34 of the 48 regular season games he has played and tallied 133 tackles along with seven sacks, nine tackles for losses, 18 quarterback pressures, three pass breakups and one forced fumble.

[dirno2000]

Newman's tune sure did change after he got his money.

[alby]

[Dirkgreatness]

Lorenzo Neal would like to play for Cowboys
2:26 PM Mon, Jun 09, 2008 | Permalink | Yahoo! Buzz
Tim MacMahon E-mail News tips

FB Lorenzo Neal has paved the way for several 1,000-yard backs, and he wouldn't mind adding Marion "The Barbarian" Barber to the list.

From Michael Silver's yahoo.com column:

Released in February by the San Diego Chargers, for whom the bruising fullback spent the previous five seasons clearing holes for record-setting halfback LaDainian Tomlinson, Neal, 37, isn't ready to call it a career. Made expendable in San Diego because of coach Norv Turner's preference for H-backs and blocking tight ends, as well as the organization's regard for fifth-year fullback Andrew Pinnock, Neal is hoping to hook on with a team that values a traditional power running attack. He lists the Dallas Cowboys, Denver Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers among his desired destinations.

"I don't know how that guy can still be on the street," says a high-ranking front-office executive for an NFC team. "If you want someone who can light up a defender on an 'iso' block, that's your guy."

Echoed another NFC team's general manager, which is not in the market for a fullback: "I know one thing - the guy can still block."

Neal ranks right up there with Moose Johnston among the best blocking fullbacks of all-time, but I refuse to lobby for a roster addition that would take playing time away from Deon "Cricket" Anderson.

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/ar...-for-cowb.html

[Underdog]

Everybody wanting to play in Dallas is a good thing, but we don't have money for all these FA's...

[DirkFTW]

The only compensation these guys should want/get is a piece of bling to go on their fingers.

[ty]

Source: http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/ar...-rankings.html

PFW releases its annual player rankings
10:55 AM Fri, Jun 13, 2008
Albert Breer

There are already a slew of preview magazines out, and one annual feature that always distinguishes itself is Pro Football Weekly's player rankings. The list is compiled based on polling of scouts, coaches and executives across the league.

Five Cowboys made the Top 50 overall -- DeMarcus Ware (6th), Terrell Owens (8th), Tony Romo (18th), Terence Newman (36th) and Marion Barber (44th). By comparison, the Chargers (Tomlinson, Merriman, Gates, Cromartie), Colts (Manning, Sanders, Wayne, Freeney) and Seahawks (Jones, Hasselbeck, Trufant, Tatupu) had four each, while the Patriots had two (Brady, Moss) and the Giants had one (Umenyiora).

Here's the rundown of teams with multiple Top 50 players ...

Five: Cowboys

Four: Chargers, Colts, Seahawks

Three: Bears, Eagles, Texans, Vikings

Two: Bengals, Browns, Chiefs, Patriots

Follow the jump to see where some of the Cowboys' players ranked at their positions.

Quarterback: Tony Romo came in sixth with a 4.3 (blue chip) ranking, behind, in order, Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Carson Palmer, Ben Roethlisberger and Drew Brees.

Running Back: Marion Barber checks in at sixth with a 4.0 (blue chip) rating. LaDainian Tomlinson, Brian Westbrook, Adrian Peterson, Steven Jackson and Larry Johnson are in front of him, while he beat out Joseph Addai, Willie Parker, Fred Taylor and Willis McGahee, among others.

Tight end: Jason Witten is fourth with a 3.9 (red chip) ranking, and behind Antonio Gates, Tony Gonzalez and Kellen Winslow. Feel free to argue this one.

Wide Receiver: T.O. comes in second, behind only Randy Moss, and no other Cowboy is among the 33 listed at this spot. Owens has a 4.45 (blue chip) rating.

Center: Andre Gurode is tops at center, but only carries a red chip rating of 3.8. He edged out Jeff Saturday for the No. 1 spot.

Guard: Timmy Tabloid's favorite player, Leonard Davis, is second here, with a 4.0 (blue chip) rating, behind only Philly's Shawn Andrews. Kyle Kosier wasn't among the 24 guards listed.

Tackle: Flozell Adams is third, behind Seattle's Walter Jones and Buffalo's Jason Peters, and garnered a 4.0 (blue chip) rating. Marc Colombo came in 23rd with a 3.2 (red chip) rating.

Defensive End: Chris Canty had a 3.2 (red chip) rating, and 31st out of 31 players listed. Marcus Spears was not listed.

Defensive Tackle: Twenty-seven players were listed. Jay Ratliff wasn't, though he appeared in the "Top Veteran Prospects" category. Ratliff probably could have a beef here.

Inside Linebacker: Zach Thomsd comes in eighth with a 3.6 (red chip) rating, and is sandwiched between Jon Beason and Kirk Morrison. Bradie James has an argument here, not being listed among the Top 24 at the position.

Outside Linebacker: Ware's first, beating out Shawne Merriman, with a 4.45 (blue chip) rating. Like I've maintained for a long time, PFW believes he's the best player on the roster. Greg Ellis is 16th at the position with a 3.4 (red chip) rating.

Cornerback: Newman comes in fifth, with a 4.05 (blue chip) rating, behind Champ Bailey, Nnamdi Asomugha, Asante Samuel and Marcus Trufant. Newman did beat out Antonio Cromartie. No other Cowboy made the list of 27 at this position, though Pacman wasn't factored in.

Safety: Ken Hamlin drew a 3.65 (red chip) rating and was sixth, behind Bob Sanders, Ed Reed, Troy Polamalu, Adrian Wilson and Kerry Rhodes. Roy Williams was 17 at the position. with a 3.3 (red chip) rating.

Return Specialists: No Cowboys, though Pacman and Felix Jones, neither of whom were eligible for this list, could change that.

Kicker: Nick Folk isn't among the five kickers listed.

Punter: Mat McBriar got screwed!

Cowboys have the most of all teams. =D

[Underdog]

Tight end: Jason Witten is fourth with a 3.9 (red chip) ranking, and behind Antonio Gates, Tony Gonzalez and Kellen Winslow. Feel free to argue this one.

Kicker: Nick Folk isn't among the five kickers listed.

Punter: Mat McBriar got screwed!

I can't disagree with the rest of the list, but Witten is (arguably) the best all-around TE in the league, Folk had the 5th-most points scored out of ANY player in the NFL last season and McBriar is one of the most powerful/accurate punters out there...

[ty]

McBriar definitely got the shaft.

Also, don't two straight 50 yard field goals at the buzzer count for something on Folk's resume? ;]

[Underdog]

Hamlin, Glenn Situations Remain Unclear; T.O. Excused

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IRVING, Texas - After four straight weeks of OTA practices, Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips said he is using this week's three-day mini-camp to pull back the coaching reins and see how the players respond.

That might be the case at most positions, but getting a good read at wide receiver will be tricky, especially with both expected starters missing at least the first day of the mini-camp, which began Tuesday at Valley Ranch.

Terrell Owens had an excused absence and will likely miss all week because of a family matter. But the Cowboys are also without Terry Glenn, whose status with the team has become murky, although team owner Jerry Jones didn't seem too concerned when he spoke with reporters during the afternoon practice.

Glenn recently told ESPN that he has no plans of signing the $500,000 injury waiver the Cowboys have offered him to protect the club in case he re-injures the right knee that forced him to miss 15 games last year.

"I'm not signing any waiver," said Glenn, who hinted at a possible release if the Cowboys force him to sign the injury settlement. Glenn's base salary is $1.74 million for 2008 and if he is on the 53-man roster for the first game of the season, it will all be guaranteed.

But when asked Tuesday if he was aware of Glenn's comments, Jones said he was not.

"I haven't talked to Terry at all. I just haven't talked to him about that," Jones said. "We'll see what happens between now and training camp. Last time I talked to Terry, his agent and him agreed to what they were going to do and we had an agreement. Since that time, he's got a new agent and I haven't talked to him."

Glenn fired his longtime agent Jim Gould, but has not officially hired a new agent. It has even been reported that the veteran receiver was acting as his own agent. Jones said on Tuesday that he believes Glenn at least has a representative to help him negotiate the situation.

Two weeks ago, Jones made the comment that he paid Glenn a $5 million bonus before last year and got only four regular-season snaps from the wide receiver. Jones would not get into specifics if the Cowboys would possibly increase the settlement figure, perhaps to half of Glenn's base salary.

Jones even tried to have some fun when asked when he felt the situation needed to be resolved.

"Let's see . . . the day after Labor Day," Jones said, referring to the Sept. 2, which would be the day Glenn's base salary is guaranteed should he still be on the roster. "As far as I'm concerned, Terry can play at any time. I'm not worried about him missing these mini-camps."

And he has the same feeling toward Hamlin, who has not signed his franchise tag offer of $4.396 million. Since the Pro Bowl safety is technically not under contract, he is not subject to a fine for missing the mandatory mini-camp.

"I'm not at all," Jones said when asked if he was concerned about Hamlin's situation. "That's a lot of money . . . He'll play."

While Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips would certainly like to have both Glenn and Hamlin out on the practice field, he said there are benefits to their absences.

Phillips said younger players at both positions have gained valuable practice reps this off-season.

Without Glenn and Owens, the Cowboys worked Patrick Crayton with the first-team offense, along with a rotation of Sam Hurd and Miles Austin, who both took reps with the first unit.

Overall, Phillips said he is not concerned about the wide receiver position.

"We'll see where we are. I think we have a good group," Phillips said. "Our passing game I'm comfortable with. But we want to improve in all areas certainly. A lot of that is the individual's improvement. So that's what we're working on and that's what the off-season truly is.

"There are specific things we've gone over with Sam Hurd that he needs to do better, Miles Austin things that he needs to do better, and they seem to be doing better in those areas. And we're optimistic at this time of year certainly, but I think rightfully so with those two guys."

After those two, the Cowboys have also been impressed with the improvements made by Isaiah Stanback, who spent most of last year either injured or trying to make the adjustment from college quarterback.

"Stanback is probably where Miles and Hurd were last year," Phillips said. "Now how fast he comes along is hard to gauge. But he's gotten a year in, he's learned a lot but he was out a lot. That got him behind. But the OTAs and off-season stuff, he's been 100 percent attendance in, I think has helped him. We'll just see how he progresses from now on. But he's like those guys. He shows flashes. He makes some plays and you say, 'Wow.' Then every once in a while, he doesn't run a route exactly the way you want it. But he's coming along well."

The situation is similar at safety. With Hamlin out, Pat Watkins is taking most of the reps, but the playing time has increased for second-year safety Courtney Brown.

"The more reps they get the better they get," Phillips said. "All of our safeties are getting a lot of work. Hamlin is a veteran player that knows what to do, probably better than anyone we have back there. Even though he's missed this time, I think he'll be fine."

Phillips said Hamlin has even initiated contact with the coaching staff, trying to stay abreast of the defense's new wrinkles.

"He's very conscientious about what we're doing," Phillips said. "It's been him, not us. He's called us. He finds out what we're doing. He's not behind at all. He's right there."

Not bad for a guy who hasn't been here at all this off-season.

[ty]

Competition Begins
Pacman Gets First-Team Reps; Henry Frustrated

LINK

IRVING, Texas - Official depth charts are never released until sometime in training camp.

Not only is it too early to hand over starting roles, but it's also a chance for the coaches to experiment with moving players around without calling it an official change.

And just maybe that's what the Cowboys did on Wednesday in the second day of mini-camp here at Valley Ranch.

In more than one drill, both individual and team, the Cowboys worked cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones in at first-team right cornerback, replacing veteran Anthony Henry at times.

Now Cowboys secondary coach Dave Campo said not to read into it.

"We're not really going in any depth chart right now," Campo said. "You guys know the guys who are going to be here, but we're mixing and matching."

However, Henry doesn't seem too excited about it.

"I've been playing in this league for eight years. I'm not blind to it," Henry said of Jones replacing him at practice. "I knew what time it was when the transaction happened at the draft. I already knew what time it was. It's just a matter of when. And maybe when is now."

Henry is obviously referring to the Cowboys acquiring Jones in a draft-day trade with Tennessee.

There has been some talk about Henry possibly moving to safety, but it doesn't appear it will happen this season. The Cowboys are working on some dime packages that include Henry playing a position that other safeties, including Roy Williams and recently-departed Keith Davis have filled.

But as for moving to safety on a full-time basis, it doesn't appear to be in the cards for this season. Henry has said he would like to move at some point in his career, like other cornerbacks have done to prolong their careers. But he also said he would prefer that kind of move to occur early in the off-season, when he could have plenty of time to learn the position.

On Tuesday, head coach Wade Phillips said he doesn't expect Henry to move much from cornerback.

"We haven't really moved him around. We moved him inside on our sub package," Phillips said of Henry. "He's been playing right corner the whole time in everything else that we do and some on our sub. We moved him inside to be able to basically to cover tight ends man-to-man in third-down situations and passing situations. He's done exceptionally well there."

Phillips said he could see Henry eventually moving to safety, but doesn't want to try that now.

"He's certainly big enough. He's 210 pounds and he's athletic enough. He just plays corner so well," Phillips said. "He was leading the league [in interceptions] when he got hurt last year. He's tremendous. He's played really well at corner, so we're going to keep him at corner as long as we can. Later on, we'll look and see. I think he could go back there, but then you've got Ken Hamlin who can play free safety pretty well. He was in the Pro Bowl."

So it sounds as if the Cowboys have no interest in moving Henry from cornerback. But even Henry doesn't sound so sure that his starting spot will be intact.

[Underdog]

Seems like a good problem to have...

[sike]

Originally Posted by ty

Competition Begins
[B]Pacman Gets First-Team Reps; Henry Frustrated

play Henry at safety

[ty]

Pacman, by the way, politely declined to speak to the media today. He said he needs to get his cornrows tightened up, and will talk tomorrow.

Media should know better...never stop a man goin to go get his cornrows done.

[Underdog]

Trenches Battle
Tank's Emergence Providing Competition At Nose

link


IRVING, Texas - The Cowboys would probably never admit it.

But going back one year ago, there's no way head coach Wade Phillips, or even defensive coordinator Brian Stewart, could imagine the club would have a strong competition at nose tackle this year.

OK, they might have expected some competition, but probably not involving the two guys who will likely engage in one when training camp begins next month in Oxnard, Calif.

For one, Jay Ratliff was a defensive end and the Cowboys didn't know just how long he would hold up if he played over the ball at nose tackle.

Secondly, Tank Johnson wasn't even on the team yet. And when he finally returned from an NFL suspension in mid-season, he had too much rust for one to think he would be ready to take over as the starter inside.

Now, as the Cowboys have just one mini-camp practice remaining on Thursday before they begin training camp in late July, it's starting to look like a real competition could form at the nose tackle spot.

In fact, it even has the Cowboys toying with an idea of moving Ratliff back to defensive end in certain packages in an attempt to get the team's best defensive linemen on the field at once.

Just maybe, when it all shakes out, Ratliff and Johnson will be included in that mix.

For now, the Cowboys are trying a few new wrinkles, including a package that has Johnson playing over the ball, and Ratliff at end, the position he played in college at Auburn and his first two years in Dallas before making a switch last year.

"I'm used to moving around," said Ratliff, who moved from end to tackle last year after Jason Ferguson suffered a season-ending biceps injury in the first game. "I get used to it. It's really not a big deal. You know what they say, 'the more you can do . . .' So that's what I'm trying to do. Wherever they put me, I'm fine with that."

And that's what Ratliff was saying last year. However, he admitted then his preference was end, his initial position. But now, after starting 14 games at nose tackle last year, Ratliff is changing his tune.

"I'll be honest, that position has grown on me," Ratliff said of nose tackle. "It's the first position I've had for more than one year, since college. I'm not going to call it my spot just yet. I don't want to limit myself to one thing. But we'll see what happens."

But the progress of Johnson, who served an eight-game suspension last year from the NFL for violating the league's personal conduct policy, has forced the Cowboys to consider all of their options.

That comes as no surprise to Johnson, who says with a full off-season conditioning program for the first time in two years, he's in the best condition of his life.

"Man, I'm a beast. I'm a beast right now," Johnson said. "This is my first off-season and I'm enjoying it. I have found I am a lot bigger, stronger and faster than I've ever been. It's just because I had the opportunity to work and that makes a huge difference."

And it's not just a difference in physique for Johnson. His knowledge of the game has changed as well, especially with another year with this defense under his belt.

Former Cowboys coach Bill Parcells had a phrase he used often. He even plastered it on a poster that once hung in the hallways near the locker room in Valley Ranch.

"Knowledge is confidence. Confidence lets you play fast."

To Johnson, that statement is nothing short of the truth.

"You can't play as fast when you are thinking. I don't care who you are or how good of a talent you are," Johnson said. "If you have to think where you have to go or where you have to line up, you can't play as fast."

And being a part of the team's OTA (organized team activity) practices and this week's mini-camp has allowed Johnson to learn the plays individually, rather than the crash course he received midway through last season.

"When you come in Week 11 they already have 50 plays in, so you go through the off-season (and) our installations is one or two plays a day," Johnson said. "I am learning one by one this year and it's a lot simpler. Now that I know where I am going and I can get my foot in the ground and hand in the dirt and get to my spot I am a lot more confident."

Will that confidence be enough to land him a starting job? Possibly, but if so, it will only mean that Ratliff will slide over to a defensive end position.

The Cowboys shelled out a five-year, $20.5 million contract to Ratliff last year, which included an $8 million signing bonus. So he will remain in the plans.

But Ratliff said it won't stop him from playing with the same hunger he had back in 2005, when he was disappointed to get drafted in the seventh round.

"I'm always going to be hungry," he said. "That won't ever change. I'm never satisfied; there's a lot more things I can improve on and get better at. That's what I plan to do."

And if it means competing once again for the starting job with Johnson, then Ratliff said he's prepared to do that as well.

"It's a competition," he said. "Everyone wants to play on Sunday. I want to start. He wants to start. We're going to compete. That's natural."

The good thing about this competition is that whoever ends up starting, the Cowboys will certainly find a place for the other.





Cowboys Cut Five Players; Reduce Roster to 79

link


IRVING, Texas - The Cowboys don't have to trim their roster to the NFL-mandated 80 players until they sign all of their draft picks, which usually takes place the week before training camp.

However, the Cowboys started moving in that direction late Wednesday, cutting five players to reduce the roster to 79.

Three of the five players were undrafted rookie free agents - wide receiver Joe West, offensive tackle Brandon Hale and linebacker Alain Karatepeyan. The Cowboys also cut cornerbacks Justin Phinisee and Jerron Wishom.

With NFL Europa no longer in existence, teams do not have roster exemptions, meaning the roster cannot exceed 80 players at any time during training camp. The Cowboys might add another player, possibly an offensive lineman, before the start of camp.

Among the 79 players, that includes all six of the team's draft picks, which are currently unsigned, and safety Ken Hamlin, who isn't technically under contract since he has yet to sign his franchise tag offer of $4.396 million.

Before this week's three-day mini-camp, which concludes Thursday, the Cowboys conducted four straight weeks of OTA (organized team activity) practices. The club had three days of OTA practices per week.

Apparently, that was enough time for the Cowboys to realize those five players were not likely to compete for a roster spot.

The Cowboys are extremely deep at cornerback, where as many as eight players have a legitimate shot to make the squad. By releasing Phinisee and Wishom now, they both have a chance to latch on with another club before training camp, which begin for most teams near the end of July.

The Cowboys report to training camp on July 25 in Oxnard, Calif., with the first practice scheduled for July 26.

[Ninkobei]

might have to pick the Dallas Defense this year in fantasy football...Tank's emergence + pacman...made of pure win!

[MavsX]

being a cowboy fan sure is exciting. lets hope this is our year!

[DirkFTW]

I better look to join a fantasy league with non-Dallas people.

[ty]

79? Does that mean we're gonna sign a legit 2 receiver? ;]

[alexamenos]

dave campo is 2ndary coach for the 'boys?!?!

a) yeah...
b) where the hell have I been?

[ty]

In other news:



Felix Jones & Dave Chapel...the same person?

[alexamenos]

if felix jones is a fast as chapelle is funny, this will be fun to watch.....

the "world's only black white supremacist" and his crackhead character are about the funniest damn things ever.

[Dirkgreatness]

Martellus Bennett struggling with mental adjustment

TE Martellus Bennett, the Cowboys' second-round pick, acknowledges that he's having a hard time with making the mental adjustment from college to the NFL.

"College football is a whole lot easier," Bennett said. Less thinking, less knowledge of the game - you just really just go out there and play every weekend. Now, you've got to go out there and read everything. Man, this is like college times 20."

It'd be easy to make an Aggie joke here, but I don't want to perturb the fine folks in College Station. Plus, I like Bennett and hope that he fulfills his potential.

He confirmed that he's basically thinking his way through every step at this point, and the result is that he's not moving as fast as he needs to and is making uncharacteristic mistakes. He had one ball clank off his hands -- resulting in a pick by DB Jerron Wishom -- in the morning practice. Bennett also got stripped by LB Bradie James after catching a ball over the middle.

Bennett, who is behind Touchdown Tony Curtis in the competition to be the No. 2 TE, understands that he needs to arrive at training camp with a firm grasp on the Cowboys playbook (an estimated "1,000 pages" thicker than Coach Fran's). His plan is to hunker down at Valley Ranch every day between now and when the Cowboys leave for Oxnard.

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/ar...th-mental.html

[mkat]

Originally Posted by ty

In other news:



Felix Jones & Dave Chapel...the same person?

throw Roy Williams from the Lions in that list as well. His picture on Madden is like a copy of a Chappelle photo.

[Underdog]

Cowboys Add OT Ryan Gibbons; Roster Maxed Out

link


IRVING, Texas - While training camp doesn't begin for nearly a month, from a roster standpoint the Cowboys appear ready to go.

By signing offensive lineman Ryan Gibbons on Monday, the Cowboys now have 80 players on the roster, including the six draft picks who have yet to sign their contracts and safety Ken Hamlin, who hasn't signed his franchise tag offer but is expected to do so before July 15. If Hamlin doesn't sign the tender by then, he will not be able to turn the one-year deal into a long-term contract with the Cowboys until the final week of the regular season.

The Cowboys usually don't start negotiating with the draft picks until two weeks before the start of camp.

Last week, after completion of the team's only mandatory mini-camp, the Cowboys released five players, including rookie offensive lineman Brandon Hale.

The Cowboys basically have replaced him with Gibbons, released once again by Jacksonville last week after spending parts of the last two years with the Jaguars.

The 6-6, 330-pound tackle signed with Jacksonville as a rookie free agent from Northeastern in 2006. He spent his entire rookie season on the Jags' practice squad before playing last summer overseas in NFL Europa.

Gibbons was a member of the World Bowl champion Hamburg Sea Devils before returning to Jacksonville last year. He spent the first three weeks of 2007 again on the practice squad before he was released. The Jaguars re-signed him after the season before cutting him again.

Gibbons becomes the third offensive linemen with experience to sign with the Cowboys this off-season. The club signed guard Adam Stenavich and tackle Cory Lekkerkerker earlier to add depth.

Lekkerkerker has played in San Diego and Miami over the last three years, working under offensive line coach Hudson Houck, who returned to coach the Cowboys' line this season.

Stenanvich was on Carolina's practice squad in 2006 but out of football last season.

Competition for the backup spots will likely be intense, especially at tackle. Pat McQuistan and Doug Free will likely enter training camp the second-team tackles, backing up starters Flozell Adams and Marc Colombo.

The Cowboys are working last year's third-round draft choice James Marten inside at guard, but he will likely continue to get reps at tackle as well.

The team departs for Oxnard, Calif., on Thursday, July 24 with the first practice scheduled for Friday, July 25.

[ShaggyDirk]

Originally Posted by Dirkgreatness

Martellus Bennett struggling with mental adjustment

TE Martellus Bennett, the Cowboys' second-round pick, acknowledges that he's having a hard time with making the mental adjustment from college to the NFL.

"College football is a whole lot easier," Bennett said. Less thinking, less knowledge of the game - you just really just go out there and play every weekend. Now, you've got to go out there and read everything. Man, this is like college times 20."

It'd be easy to make an Aggie joke here, but I don't want to perturb the fine folks in College Station. Plus, I like Bennett and hope that he fulfills his potential.

He confirmed that he's basically thinking his way through every step at this point, and the result is that he's not moving as fast as he needs to and is making uncharacteristic mistakes. He had one ball clank off his hands -- resulting in a pick by DB Jerron Wishom -- in the morning practice. Bennett also got stripped by LB Bradie James after catching a ball over the middle.

Bennett, who is behind Touchdown Tony Curtis in the competition to be the No. 2 TE, understands that he needs to arrive at training camp with a firm grasp on the Cowboys playbook (an estimated "1,000 pages" thicker than Coach Fran's). His plan is to hunker down at Valley Ranch every day between now and when the Cowboys leave for Oxnard.

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/ar...th-mental.html

the problem isn't College to NFL....It was Fran to any thing resembling an offense. Bennett is a pretty articulate dude, so I don't think it has anything to do with football intelligence.. It was just so bad in C.S. that the town pee-wee league had a more sophisticated offensive playbook.

[alby]

Originally Posted by ShaggyDirk

the problem isn't College to NFL....It was Fran to any thing resembling an offense. Bennett is a pretty articulate dude, so I don't think it has anything to do with football intelligence.. It was just so bad in C.S. that the town pee-wee league had a more sophisticated offensive playbook.

Ain't that the truth.

[ty]

Aggies suck! Hook 'em!

[dalmations202]

Originally Posted by ty

Aggies suck! Hook 'em!

Just a FYI

t.u. sucks! Gig 'em !!!!

[ty]

Originally Posted by dalmations202

Just a FYI

TU sucks! Gig 'em !!!!

I never understood why Aggies would say TU. Please explain.

In the mean time:


\m/