Thursday, May 29, 2008

Cowboys Trying to Integrate Pacman into the Gameplan . . . But There's a Limit

Source: The Dallas Morning News

IRVING, Texas _ He has taken a physical. He has met with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. He has moved to Dallas and recently worked out with a handful of pro and college football players at SMU.
But the Cowboys have no idea when _ or even if _ Pacman Jones will be reinstated.

"Do I have information that makes me think something is imminent?" owner and general manager Jerry Jones said. "The answer is no."

Whenever Goodell makes a decision to reinstate Jones, whose suspension is about to enter its 14th month, the Cowboys will have a plan in place for Jones off and on the field.

The Cowboys' player development program _ which is headed by Bryan Wansley, with Calvin Hill as a consultant _ is among the best in the league.

Jones introduced himself to teammates at a charity bowling event hosted by Jason Witten.

"When you come to a new team, you really don't have any friends that you know very well," said nose tackle Tank Johnson, who came off an eight-game suspension last season after signing with the Cowboys.

"Those guys make the transition easier by introducing you to the guys and having you go out to dinner and taking you out with those guys."

Because of the suspension, Jones is not allowed at Valley Ranch. He has not received a playbook yet, but secondary coach Dave Campo has readied a few tapes to help facilitate the learning curve if reinstatement comes.

Campo said Jones' biggest adjustment will be learning the system, although Jones' two years of experience helps.

The Cowboys have two more weeks of organized team activities before their mandatory minicamp June 17-19. The off-season conditioning program runs through early July, and under league rules, players are not allowed at a team's facility 10 days before the start of training camp.

"Pretty much coverage is coverage, but the terminology is different," Campo said. "When I left here (in 2004), I'd been in the same defensive system for 16 years and then went to Cleveland and used the same system, so that's 18. Then in Jacksonville, completely different terminology. It was like reading a new dictionary."

There will be a physical adjustment, too, although Jerry Jones said Pacman Jones "relatively speaking is in good shape. Certainly not ready to play in a ballgame, but nobody else out here is either."

Jones has not played competitively since the 2006 season finale against New England.

During the weekend, he took part in Deion Sanders' Prime U at SMU for informal workouts with players such as Cincinnati's T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Chicago's Devin Hester and Texas Tech's Michael Crabtree.

"It'll probably be a little shock when he gets back because of the speed of the game is what he's got to get used to," Pro Bowl cornerback Terence Newman said. "He can do a lot of things, but you never can simulate going against a receiver or pressing a guy and having a guy run full speed. . . . The sooner he gets here, the better."