Cowboys Corner

Cowboys' wives raise money for pets

The Dallas Cowboys Women’s Association (DCWA) raised enough money through their Poker for Pets to build a new SPCA facility. Live and silent auctions, a raffle and a Texas Hold ‘Em tournament raised about $105,000 Thursday night.

 

The Rees-Jones Foundation agreed to donate $2 for every $1 the DCWA raised, so the total will be more than $300,000. That closes out the final phase of a $15 million fundraising campaign to build a new 39,000-square-foot adoption center and veterinary clinic off I-30 near downtown Dallas.

 

"A lot of players on our team are dog lovers, and many of them have multiple dogs," right tackle Marc Colombo said. "It's something that we're passionate about. ...It feels good to be able to raise that much money for such a worthy cause."

 

The third annual event, organized by the wives and girlfriends of players and coaches, drew 250, including more than 20 players and six coaches. Backup quarterback Jon Kitna was the last player standing in the Texas Hold 'Em tournament, and he finished second.

 

“It’s unbelievable the fact that we have such chemistry among the team, even the wives, that we’re able to team up and do events like this,” Michelle Witten, the wife of tight end Jason Witten, said.

 

-- Charean Williams

Witten likes what he sees

If spring training is a time to be optimistic in baseball, then halfway through the offseason is a good time for positive vibes in football. Jason Witten has participated in the Cowboys offseason organized team activities and you know what he likes? 

The way Tony Romo carries himself. Witten sees it as a continuation of Romo's performance last season when the quarterback had a career low nine interceptions.

"That was just a dimension of his game that he added, as far as [saying] 'I'm going to do what I have to do to protect the ball.'" Witten said. "Even if sometimes it means throwing the ball away and not taking a chance on plays that he maybe had done in the past. I think when he has that mindset, all of us are alert and the turnovers are not just on him but on everybody. But when he takes the mindset that he has to really protect the ball and just create, it’s just a good setting for all of us."

-- Jan Hubbard 

Slim Barber

Marion Barber has lost 10 pounds and by all accounts is quicker than he has been. Maybe he's heard the questions about whether he's lost a step because of all the hits he's endured in his career. Or maybe he's been reading about why Felix Jones should be the starter this season instead of him. Or maybe he saw what Jones did in the last six games of last season, including the two playoff games, when Jones was the team's best running back. Or maybe he's listening to advice for the strength and training staff and his coaches on how to prolong his career now that he's 27.

Whatever the reason, Barber has worked out this off-season like he has something to prove. And the Cowboys have taken notice.

"Marion is very deliberate," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. "Nothing happens by accident with Marion Barber. So I'm confident that 90 percent of what you see is Marion Barber deciding that I can do a better job [by getting] a little lighter. ...Marion is someone who is very responsible, is a veteran, been through more collisions than most backs, real collisions, so he's got a Harvard business degree on how to do it and what he wants to get done."

-- Charean Williams
 

 

More praise for Marty B

Maybe Marty B is all grown up with some place important to go.

The Cowboys expected so much from Martellus Bennett, their backup tight end, last season, but he let them down. He caught only 15 passes for 159 yards and no touchdowns. That prompted questions about how committed Bennett is to football. The Cowboys have gone out of their way to talk him up this off-season.

Owner Jerry Jones again stated that Bennett, now in his third year, has matured.

"In how hard he’s working, in what he’s doing in his off-season, his business attitude," Jones said. "It happens to every player, and it’s happened to him. He’s got two years under his belt. He had some dips last year that he would be the first to recognize [he has to] build off those. He’s doing that. I’m really impressed with how well he’s working. ...He’s having a great off-season."

Tight ends coach John Garrett said Bennett is just more comfortable in the offense.

"Every day he's just starting to prove that he's getting better in every aspect, being more prepared, and he’s just more comfortable with the offense," Garrett said. "Year three, you're just more familiar with it. You've done it on the field, that type of thing."

-- Charean Williams

Jones not worried about spies

The Cowboys moved one day of their rookie minicamp to Cowboys Stadium. They had an OTA practice there Wednesday. They also will have one of their minicamp practices indoors in Arlington. For the price of a tour, fans are allowed to watch practice, though they are banned from bringing in video cameras. The only problem with charging is: It means scouts from other teams could be in the building as well.

It's an unwritten NFL rule that scouts won't attend free training camp practices of other teams. But you might remember a few years ago when the Redskins charged fans for entry to training camp, and scouts showed up to watch. The Redskins no longer charge.

So I posed the question to Jerry Jones: Are you afraid scouts are going to show up to these practices?

"I don’t want to be cavalier about it, but we certainly can have scouts or potential scouts at our training camp [breaking the unwritten rule]," Jones said. "We’ve had in the past. We move our people along pretty good, and our plan with our tourists is to move them along pretty good."

 

Jones added that when the Cowboys were winning Super Bowls in the 1990s, every team in the NFL knew their plays and what they were going to do. They just couldn't stop the Cowboys.

 

-- Charean Williams

Defense quiet but confident

The Cowboys offense was prolific last season when it gained the second most yards in the league, trailing only New Orleans. The Tony Romo-Miles Austin combo was flashy. Jason Witten quietly caught 94 passes. Marion Barber had his moments and Felix Jones had a few electrifying bursts down the field.

A potent and exciting offense, indeed. Even the defense knows that.

But the defense also had a great season. It allowed the ninth fewest yards during the 2009 regular season and finished second in points allowed. The Jets allowed 14.8 points per game while the Cowboys allowed 15.6.

But most of the headlines went to the offense, which is fine with the defenders.

“Offense sells tickets,” defensive end Marcus Spears said, smiling. “But we’ll continue to play well on defense and work as hard as we need to work in order to be the best defense in this league and that’s everybody’s mentality. We have this identify that we’d rather fly under the radar.

-- Jan Hubbard

An eloquent "no comment"

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was asked about unhappy receiver Patrick Crayton's recent critical comments. Crayton was upset when the Cowboys drafted receiver Dez Bryant with their No. 1 pick, and he recently asked to be released immediately.

That, of course, makes no sense for the Cowboys, who are paying Crayton $2 million a year. Although Crayton undoubtedly is headed for a lesser role -- or perhaps even a release before the regular season -- as long as the Cowboys continue to fulfill their part of his contract, he has to do the same thing. Plus there is little doubt that Crayton is insurance in case of an injury to another receiver.

The Cowboys worked out at Cowboys Stadium today and Jones talked with the media for almost a half hour. When asked about Crayton's comments that the team was messing with his life and that the Cowboys should trade him or release him because it would be the best thing for his family, you could tell Jones was not happy.

At first, he said he would not comment. And then he talked for the next 95 seconds, which is a very long no comment. 

"I don’t have anything to comment on that at all," Jones said. "I know how meaningful the NFL is. I know how meaningful it is to the people that are lucky enough to get to participate in it. And no one respects the benefits of playing in the nfl any more than I do, and no one appreciates it any more. It is a privilege and an honor to get to play in the NFL. 

"But I wouldn't specifically address to any player, any player, their individual perspective on how it impacts them. Patrick has done everything that we could have ever asked him to do and has become a very, very productive player in the NFL as a free agent, which in and of itself is very impressive, 

"And that’s about all I would say about it. But I wouldn’t get into bantering as to what it means. The business and the strategies involved relative to your team, putting the players on the field for your team, it’s all about putting the right players out here and the ones that complement each other the best."

Jones answered all follow-up questions and ended up speaking nearly four minutes after saying he had no comment. But that's one of his asset. Even when he doesn't answer questions, Jones answers them.

The bottom line from Jones' statement is that all players who get to play in the NFL are fortunate. They earn a lot of money but sometimes are put into difficult situations. It's all part of being a professional. Sometimes the team has to protect itself and inconvenience athletes, but that's part of the business. That is evident to everyone when they sign a contract. 

Crayton not attending the current workouts is not hurting the team. And it is his right to not be there because they are voluntary. The Cowboys have a minicamp in mid-June and there is a requirement to attend. Jones said he expects to see Crayton at that minicamp.

-- Jan Hubbard

Jones happy with defensive backfield

The St. Louis Cardinals have failed to reach contract agreement with safety O.J. Atogwe, whois now a free agent, but Cowboys owner Jerry Jones indicated little interest in Atogwe.

In fact, because Jones was not certain whether or not Atogwe was no longer under contract, he did not want to talk about the safety for fear of a tampering charge.

"We don’t comment on any of those players and I’m not even for sure what his status is right now," Jones said. "He’s a great safety but really because I don’t know succinctly what his status is, I wouldn’t comment. I know they’re involved in negotiations and that’s good enough for me.

The discussion of another safety led to another question on whether Jones is happy with the depth at safety, where Alan Ball and Gerald Sensabaugh are starters and Mike Hamlin and Patrick Watkins are backups.

"I’m ready to go to our season with the safeties we have," Jones said. "That might answer your question [about Atogwe]."

-- Jan Hubbard

JUST CHILL: Ball still option as fourth cornerback

 

Clarence Hill 

Depth at cornerback was already a concern for the Cowboys. They had few answers at fourth cornerback behind starters Mike Jenkins and Terence Newman and nickel back Orlando Scandrick.

The concern only increased last week when Scandrick fractured his finger, sidelining him until at least training camp.

The injury presents an opportunity for rookie Jamar Wall or veteran Cletus Gordon to step in.

Until then, the Cowboys are going to work safety Alan Ball as the slot guy in the nickel, even though he is competing with Mike Hamlin for the starting spot at free safety.

"He needs to play other positions, that is one of his strengths," coach Wade Phillips said of Ball. "He is versatile as a second nickel, as well as a safety."

If Ball is the starter at safety, then the Cowboys would bring Hamlin off the bench to play deep safety and use Ball on the slot receiver. Unless someone else steps up, Ball is going to be the second nickel cornerback behind Scandrick when teams go four-wide against the Cowboys.

Just CHILL: Bryant still wearing Nike

Clarence HIll 

With rookie receiver Dez Bryant still undecided on whether he will go back to wearing Under Armour cleats, the apparel company sent in reinforcements to Cowboys practice Tuesday.

Former Cowboys defensive end Eric Ogbogu, who helped bring the company prominence with his "We must protect this house!" commercials, stopped by to chat with Bryant.

"I just came to see where his head was at and what the problem is," Ogbogu said. "As a former player, maybe I can understand where he is coming from."

The rookie receiver signed a marketing deal with Under Armour before the draft but has worn Nikes since having problems with his footing at his pro day in April. Bryant has worn Nike during all of his practices with the Cowboys without incident. He said he still hasn't made a final decision.

"It's a business decision," Bryant said. "We are just going to see what we are going to do."