I talked to a few players, coaches and scouts on and off the record at the Taste of the NFL, hosted by DeMarcus Ware and Preston Pearson, at the Gaylord Texas Hotel Sunday night.
Here is the essense of what I learned and heard etc...
* Several players are getting together for strength and conditioning at Southlake Carroll High School under the direction of former assistant strength coach Todd Devers. That group includes Jason Witten, David Buehler, Marc Colombo and Chris Gronkowski among others.
DeMarcus Ware has his own trainer and is working out at the former Hummer Dealership in Grapevine.
* The players have talked about holding player run workouts like other teams are doing around the league. Jason Witten said it will happen but no date has been set as of yet. And while the Cowboys don't plan to make a public announcement about it, it hasn't started yet either.
*The players and coaches are aware of the struggles receiver Dez Bryant has had of late. Unless they were living under a rock, how could they not? According to Witten, players have reached out to Bryant to give him support and advice. His situation is considered one of the problems with the current lockout situation. He misses the accountabilty of a structured environment. The programs the NFL has in place to help Bryant deal with some of his situations are not available during thhe lockout. The coaches are not allowed to make contact with the players. As one staffer lamented, "it is what it is."
*According to coach Jason Garrett, the Cowboys have not made a decision on what they are going to do with the No. 9 pick in the NFL Draft. They are still gauging interest from teams about a possible move down to pick up extra picks.
Garrett said nothing should be read into the fact that he went to the USC Pro Day to scout tackle Tyron Smith up close and personal. He said many of the other tackles worked out at the combine. Smith didn't work out so the trip worked out with his schedule and it gave him a chance to do his due diligence by getting a look at the workout.
Still the Cowboys like Smith and he remains the most logical option if they stay at No. 9 because he has the most upside. Of course depending on if and how far they trade down, he could be a possibility there as well.
Keep in mind that the Cowboys are well aware that none of the teams picking ahead of them are projected to take a tackle so Smith and/or several other top tackles could be still on the board if they trade down.
* Another option at the No. 9 pick is Nebraska cornerback Prince Amakumara. He had a chance to curry favor with the Cowboys during a one-on-one visit last week. The Cowboys came away impressed with Amakumara as a person but at least one staffer doesn't consider him worthy of the ninth overall pick. Now picking him up in a trade down is another option as well.
* Smith's visit to Cowboys one week after they hosted 29 other national visitors was because he had a conflict in his schedule not because the Cowboys wanted an exclusive visit with him.
* Former Cowboys fullback Robert Newhouse, who suffered a stroke earlier last summer, was at the event along with his son Rodd Newhouse. The elder Newhouse walks with the help of a cane but he is getting stronger.
Clarence E. Hill Jr.
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