Cowboys: Team may stay in S.A.
by Tom Orsborn
Express-News
DeMarcus Ware, Marion Barber and other young players who figure to be Dallas Cowboys for years to come would be wise to take a good look around when they arrive in San Antonio today for training camp.
There's an excellent chance it could be their summer home for the next 10 years.
After training the last three years in Oxnard, Calif., the Cowboys are back in town after striking a five-year deal with the city for rent-free use of the Alamodome.
The Cowboys have the option after the 2008 camp to extend the deal another five years. In an interview last week, team spokesman Rich Dalrymple indicated the team would take a serious look at training here well into the next decade.
"Everything about San Antonio is right for the Dallas Cowboys," Dalrymple said. "It's the most ideal place for us to have training camp and we look forward to a long-term association with the city."
The architects of the current arrangement, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and Mayor Phil Hardberger, will be on hand at 7 tonight when the club opens its 16-day camp with a pep rally at the dome.
The Grammy Award-winning Los Lonely Boys will headline the free event, billed as the Dallas Cowboys 2007 Kick-Off Spectacular. There also will be appearances by coach Wade Phillips and the team's players and cheerleaders.
The first practice is 2:30 p.m. Wednesday. Workouts are free and open to the public.
After upgrading their offensive line and secondary with the free-agent signings of guard Leonard Davis and free safety Ken Hamlin, the Cowboys are the pick of many league observers to win the NFC East and make a deep run in the playoffs.
The Cowboys went 9-7 last season before losing a heartbreaking wild-card playoff game in Seattle. Hard-driving Bill Parcells retired after the season and was replaced by the affable Phillips, who hopes to lead the team to its first playoff victory since 1996.
"This is a good time to be a Cowboys fan," said CBS analyst Boomer Esiason. "The Cowboys are the most balanced, loaded team in the NFC East. They have a good man as their coach; a young, talented, energetic quarterback (Tony Romo) with plenty to work with; and a young, aggressive defense that should love the way (Phillips) runs the 3-4."
The Cowboys trained in San Antonio in 2002 and 2003. A scheduling conflict forced them to move to California in 2004. The team planned to return the following summer, but a squabble with City Council over rent kept it away.
After the sports-minded Hardberger was elected in 2005, the Cowboys and the city resumed talks. The parties hammered out a deal in March 2006.
"There are a huge amount of Cowboys fans in San Antonio and I wanted to give them a chance to really meet the team up close and personal," Hardberger said. "I also felt what happened with the Cowboys (before he took office) was another one of those deals that had been handled roughly and everyone went off unsatisfied.
"I don't like to leave San Antonio in that kind of condition. I wanted to straighten things out and have good relations between San Antonio and the Cowboys."
Hardberger said the city could pocket as much as $200,000 from concession sales and parking.
"We're getting entertainment, but we are also making money," he said.
Likewise, the Cowboys see no downside to training here.
"It's a big-league city in a major market and it has an unusually large amount of fans that embrace the team as its own," Dalrymple said. "Of the teams that travel to camp, there isn't another club that goes to a major metropolitan city that has its own major league sports franchise, that is home to national corporations and that has a media contingent very experienced in covering a very successful sports franchise.
"All of those factors, plus the vision of the local government, make this the best place for us. It's a nice marriage."
San Antonio also provides a perfect setting for the team to entertain sponsors, Dalrymple said.
"It's a 365-days-a-year tourist destination, so it is very appealing for fans from all over the state and the region," Dalrymple said. "You can enjoy all the things available in a large metropolitan area, and we are happy to be a part of that mix."
Notebook: Right tackle Marc Colombo is not expected to practice Wednesday after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right knee about three weeks ago, Jones told reporters Monday in Irving. ... Rookie receiver Isaiah Stanback (shin splints) and possibly left tackle Flozell Adams, who had a scope performed on his left knee in June, also are expected to be on the sidelines early in camp. While the team isn't overly concerned about the tackles, Jones said it would be "pretty patient" with Stanback. "We're going to be real guarded there," Jones said of the fourth-round pick from Washington, who missed all of the summer workouts with a foot injury. ... Jones said he plans to meet with disgruntled linebacker Greg Ellis this week about his contract concerns.
Express-News
DeMarcus Ware, Marion Barber and other young players who figure to be Dallas Cowboys for years to come would be wise to take a good look around when they arrive in San Antonio today for training camp.
There's an excellent chance it could be their summer home for the next 10 years.
After training the last three years in Oxnard, Calif., the Cowboys are back in town after striking a five-year deal with the city for rent-free use of the Alamodome.
The Cowboys have the option after the 2008 camp to extend the deal another five years. In an interview last week, team spokesman Rich Dalrymple indicated the team would take a serious look at training here well into the next decade.
"Everything about San Antonio is right for the Dallas Cowboys," Dalrymple said. "It's the most ideal place for us to have training camp and we look forward to a long-term association with the city."
The architects of the current arrangement, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and Mayor Phil Hardberger, will be on hand at 7 tonight when the club opens its 16-day camp with a pep rally at the dome.
The Grammy Award-winning Los Lonely Boys will headline the free event, billed as the Dallas Cowboys 2007 Kick-Off Spectacular. There also will be appearances by coach Wade Phillips and the team's players and cheerleaders.
The first practice is 2:30 p.m. Wednesday. Workouts are free and open to the public.
After upgrading their offensive line and secondary with the free-agent signings of guard Leonard Davis and free safety Ken Hamlin, the Cowboys are the pick of many league observers to win the NFC East and make a deep run in the playoffs.
The Cowboys went 9-7 last season before losing a heartbreaking wild-card playoff game in Seattle. Hard-driving Bill Parcells retired after the season and was replaced by the affable Phillips, who hopes to lead the team to its first playoff victory since 1996.
"This is a good time to be a Cowboys fan," said CBS analyst Boomer Esiason. "The Cowboys are the most balanced, loaded team in the NFC East. They have a good man as their coach; a young, talented, energetic quarterback (Tony Romo) with plenty to work with; and a young, aggressive defense that should love the way (Phillips) runs the 3-4."
The Cowboys trained in San Antonio in 2002 and 2003. A scheduling conflict forced them to move to California in 2004. The team planned to return the following summer, but a squabble with City Council over rent kept it away.
After the sports-minded Hardberger was elected in 2005, the Cowboys and the city resumed talks. The parties hammered out a deal in March 2006.
"There are a huge amount of Cowboys fans in San Antonio and I wanted to give them a chance to really meet the team up close and personal," Hardberger said. "I also felt what happened with the Cowboys (before he took office) was another one of those deals that had been handled roughly and everyone went off unsatisfied.
"I don't like to leave San Antonio in that kind of condition. I wanted to straighten things out and have good relations between San Antonio and the Cowboys."
Hardberger said the city could pocket as much as $200,000 from concession sales and parking.
"We're getting entertainment, but we are also making money," he said.
Likewise, the Cowboys see no downside to training here.
"It's a big-league city in a major market and it has an unusually large amount of fans that embrace the team as its own," Dalrymple said. "Of the teams that travel to camp, there isn't another club that goes to a major metropolitan city that has its own major league sports franchise, that is home to national corporations and that has a media contingent very experienced in covering a very successful sports franchise.
"All of those factors, plus the vision of the local government, make this the best place for us. It's a nice marriage."
San Antonio also provides a perfect setting for the team to entertain sponsors, Dalrymple said.
"It's a 365-days-a-year tourist destination, so it is very appealing for fans from all over the state and the region," Dalrymple said. "You can enjoy all the things available in a large metropolitan area, and we are happy to be a part of that mix."
Notebook: Right tackle Marc Colombo is not expected to practice Wednesday after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right knee about three weeks ago, Jones told reporters Monday in Irving. ... Rookie receiver Isaiah Stanback (shin splints) and possibly left tackle Flozell Adams, who had a scope performed on his left knee in June, also are expected to be on the sidelines early in camp. While the team isn't overly concerned about the tackles, Jones said it would be "pretty patient" with Stanback. "We're going to be real guarded there," Jones said of the fourth-round pick from Washington, who missed all of the summer workouts with a foot injury. ... Jones said he plans to meet with disgruntled linebacker Greg Ellis this week about his contract concerns.
posted by The Gryphon at 8:11 PM
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