DMN Blog: Live from Oxnard VIII: Pacman gets physical with T.O.
by Tim MacMahon
Weather: 65 degrees and cloudy.
What a beautiful morning for a full-pads practice. They're about to start the first of two practices today.
Follow the jump, refresh, etc.
10:55 -- Seems to be a light media presence this morning. Bunch of softies sleeping in, I reckon. You'll be happy to know that Todd Archer, Calvin "Lucky" Watkins and I are bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.
10:59 -- Michael Irvin and T.O. were talking some good-natured trash to each other a few minutes ago. The crowd started chanting, "Michael! Michael! Michael!" with T.O. egging on the fans.
11:06 -- Stretching just started. ... CB Terence Newman will be on Irvin's ESPN Radio show in a bit. You can listen here.
11:10 -- Answering questions: See this post on Chris Simms. That's a pretty clear indication that the Cowboys aren't comfortable with their QB depth. Richard Bartel will have to prove during preseason games that he's worthy of a spot on the 53-man roster. He's got a great arm, but his decision making is shaky. Not sure whether Brad Johnson would be cut if the Cowboys got Simms. ... Isaiah Stanback has improved catching the ball, but he's still had a few drops. He's starting to understand how to use his big frame to shield DBs. ... I'd be very, very surprised if we saw Terence Newman practicing before Dr. Wade Phillips three-week timetable is up. ... Position drills just started.
11:19 -- Nothing exciting happening. Crowd is hushed. ... Hard Knocks has a microphone hanging over the backs, who are running through plays. Wish they would put that mic in the Jerry Jones/Stephen Jones/Tom Ciskowski huddle between the fields. Would like to hear what those fellas are chatting about.
11:24 -- Listening to Brad Sham and Irvin in the ESPN Radio tent to my left. They're explaining that ex-Cowboys C Derek Kennard was nicknamed "Big Juicy" because he tended to sweat a lot, especially on his wide rear, which always perturbed Troy Aikman. Is that more info than folks want?
11:27 -- Per request, here's an update on undrafted WR Daniel Polk. The South Oak Cliff product is sidelined by a sore hamstring. ... Should get some action soon. ... LB Tearrius George (knee), CB Quincy Butler (hamstring) and Newman (groin) are also out again.
11:31 -- WRs are working on catching passes in the back of the end zone after running slants. T.O. dropped the first one, prompting one emotional fan to holler, "That's all right, T.O.! I love you!"
11:34 -- You can't just make a Mike Jenkins/Orlando Scandrick comparison. They've both done some good things. I've seen Jenkins get beat more often, but that's because he's getting more reps against the 1s. ... Cowboys skill players not running plays vs. air. Jason Garrett likes what he sees. "Very nice, very nice," he keeps saying.
11:42 -- 11-on-11 about to start. Be back in a bit.
11:54 -- Several players moved around, as the coaching staff is trying to develop position flexibility. Bobby Carpenter worked both inside LB spots. Adam "Pacman" Jones worked cornerback on both sides. Justin Rogers worked at strong ILB and OLB. Marcus Spears and Jay Ratliff got reps at DE and NT. ... We'll get to highlights from that session later. They're going again, with offense backed down at about its 20. Romo hit T.O. on a deep out the first play and a hook in front of Pacman the third.
11:58 -- Romo went deep to Sam Hurd, but Pacman had great coverage on the go route. ... Kevin Burnett, who is the Cowboys' best cover LB, just had a PBU on an out to Martellus Bennett. He knocked down a pass in the first 11-on-11 session, too. ... Pretty over-the-shoulder by Mike Jefferson on the sideline. Brad Johnson's deep ball was on the money. Yes, you read that right. Evan Oglesby got beat.
12:00 -- Isaiah Stanback went to the ground to scoop a pass off the grass after getting some space on an out route against Mike Jenkins. ... Newman is about to go on Irvin's show. The link is above. ...
12:02 -- T.O. ran a nice zig-zag route to get open against the 1s. He would have gone a long way with it, assuming Alan Ball wouldn't have been able to tackle him. ... Romo put some serious zip on an out to Jason Witten, hitting No. 82 in the numbers before Mike Jenkins could get there. ... They're not tackling, but Patrick Crayton just fumbled after getting bumped by Bradie James. ...
12:05 -- TE Martellus Bennett dropped a pass that hit him in his mitts. He misjudged the out from Brad Johnson, jumping when he didn't need to. ... Nice catch by Tashard Choice on a ball behind him. .... 11-on-11 session over.
12:07 -- Some highlights from the earlier 11-on-11 work: Sam Hurd beat Anthony Henry on a deep slant. ... Henry jumped an out route from Richard Bartel to Mark Bradford and almost picked it off. ... Danny Amendola caught a quick hook and probably would have had his head knocked off by Bradie James, who arrived a beat after the ball. ... Miles Austin made a pretty leaping catch on the sideline in front of Mike Jenkins. ... Special teams drills have started.
12:16 -- Nothing thrilling from special teams drills. ... By the way, news about Terry Glenn potentially signing with the Dolphins is neither surprising nor concerning to the Cowboys. While Jerry publicly left the door open for Glenn's return, they didn't expect that to happen. And they've been pleased with the work of Sam Hurd and Miles Austin so far in camp.
12:19 -- Headed to the field. Be back with highlights later.
12:38 -- I've got all sorts of good stuff from 7-on-7 and pass-rush drill, including a Play of the Day candidate (sorry about slacking on that feature). Will get to it after practice. 11-on-11 coming right at blog central now. ... Witten just caught a curl from Romo. ... Spears at NT, Ratliff at DE. ... T.O. caught a cross with Pacman a step behind and turned on the jets.
12:40 -- Nice coverage by rookie OLB Erik Walden on a pass to Tony Curtis in the flat. But Walden got his butt kicked by Doug Free in pass-rush drills. ... Felix Jones showed his vision and burst by bouncing a draw outside and accelerating through the secondary. ...
12:43 -- Brad Johnson had Isaiah Stanback wide open on a 20-yard crossing route, but he one-hopped the pass. ... Johnson went back to throwing the ball in the flat after that.
12:46 -- Romo missed Patrick Crayton on an out route... Be back in a bit. They're down on this end of the field, and I can't see the corner. Lots of stuff coming after practice.
12:48 -- Check that. Relocated to abandoned Sirius Radio table. ... Pacman broke up a slant to T.O. in the end zone. T.O. was inside Pacman, who got physical and fought for the ball, shoving T.O. to the ground at the end of the play. ... Felix Jones lost his footing on a draw when Jay Ratliff clogged the hole.
12:51 -- Brad Johnson just doesn't look very good. He doesn't make bad decisions, but you're surprised any time he gets the ball downfield to a receiver. He just skipped one in the flat.
12:53 -- Erik Walden got roughed up in pass-rush drills, but he just beat Doug Free on a speed rush for a would-be sack. ... End of practice. Gotta go. Will be back with highlights of earlier 7-on-7 and pass-rush drills, headlined by Courtney Brown's spectacular leaping pick of a Tony Romo pass in the end zone.
1:15 -- Some 7-on-7 and pass-rush drill observations to wrap up this post: I'll have much more on SS Courtney Brown later. His pick was an absolute thing of beauty. He read Romo's eyes and perfectly time his jump to snare a pass Romo was trying to loft to Patrick Crayton in the back of the end zone. ... LB/blogger Kevin Burnett had a great practice. He got his hands on several passes this morning, including a ball over the middle intended for Jason Witten. Burnett batted the ball high in the air but couldn't grab the rebound. ... Miles Austin made a great adjustment to catch a deep ball on the sideline with Alan Ball a half-step behind him. Burnett made hand motions to indicate that Austin was out of bounds, but you can never trust a defensive player on those kind of things. ... Austin didn't catch a ball he should have on a crossing route. The pass was high, but Austin got both hands on it. ... Ball had great coverage to force an incompletion on a T.O. crossing route. ... During from-the-5 work, Isaiah Stanback almost made a highlight-reel, leaping one-hand grab in the back of the end zone but couldn't cradle the ball. He went up with one hand because he used the other to push off on Pacman. ... On to pass rush: Rough session for RT Marc Colombo, a brawler who doesn't always look pretty during practice. He was beat on inside and outside moves by Greg Ellis, and Spencer beat him with an outside move. Colombo made undrafted rookie Darrell Robertson pay, burying the poor kid in the ground when he tried to speed rush. ... DE Chris Canty had impressive bull-rushes against Gs Kyle Kosier and Joe Berger. Canty also had a sweet spin to beat Kosier inside. ... DeMarcus Ware gave LT Flozell Adams fits, just as Ware does every LT the Cowboys face. Adams' best chance when Ware speed rushes is to push him past the play. .
Weather: 65 degrees and cloudy.
What a beautiful morning for a full-pads practice. They're about to start the first of two practices today.
Follow the jump, refresh, etc.
10:55 -- Seems to be a light media presence this morning. Bunch of softies sleeping in, I reckon. You'll be happy to know that Todd Archer, Calvin "Lucky" Watkins and I are bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.
10:59 -- Michael Irvin and T.O. were talking some good-natured trash to each other a few minutes ago. The crowd started chanting, "Michael! Michael! Michael!" with T.O. egging on the fans.
11:06 -- Stretching just started. ... CB Terence Newman will be on Irvin's ESPN Radio show in a bit. You can listen here.
11:10 -- Answering questions: See this post on Chris Simms. That's a pretty clear indication that the Cowboys aren't comfortable with their QB depth. Richard Bartel will have to prove during preseason games that he's worthy of a spot on the 53-man roster. He's got a great arm, but his decision making is shaky. Not sure whether Brad Johnson would be cut if the Cowboys got Simms. ... Isaiah Stanback has improved catching the ball, but he's still had a few drops. He's starting to understand how to use his big frame to shield DBs. ... I'd be very, very surprised if we saw Terence Newman practicing before Dr. Wade Phillips three-week timetable is up. ... Position drills just started.
11:19 -- Nothing exciting happening. Crowd is hushed. ... Hard Knocks has a microphone hanging over the backs, who are running through plays. Wish they would put that mic in the Jerry Jones/Stephen Jones/Tom Ciskowski huddle between the fields. Would like to hear what those fellas are chatting about.
11:24 -- Listening to Brad Sham and Irvin in the ESPN Radio tent to my left. They're explaining that ex-Cowboys C Derek Kennard was nicknamed "Big Juicy" because he tended to sweat a lot, especially on his wide rear, which always perturbed Troy Aikman. Is that more info than folks want?
11:27 -- Per request, here's an update on undrafted WR Daniel Polk. The South Oak Cliff product is sidelined by a sore hamstring. ... Should get some action soon. ... LB Tearrius George (knee), CB Quincy Butler (hamstring) and Newman (groin) are also out again.
11:31 -- WRs are working on catching passes in the back of the end zone after running slants. T.O. dropped the first one, prompting one emotional fan to holler, "That's all right, T.O.! I love you!"
11:34 -- You can't just make a Mike Jenkins/Orlando Scandrick comparison. They've both done some good things. I've seen Jenkins get beat more often, but that's because he's getting more reps against the 1s. ... Cowboys skill players not running plays vs. air. Jason Garrett likes what he sees. "Very nice, very nice," he keeps saying.
11:42 -- 11-on-11 about to start. Be back in a bit.
11:54 -- Several players moved around, as the coaching staff is trying to develop position flexibility. Bobby Carpenter worked both inside LB spots. Adam "Pacman" Jones worked cornerback on both sides. Justin Rogers worked at strong ILB and OLB. Marcus Spears and Jay Ratliff got reps at DE and NT. ... We'll get to highlights from that session later. They're going again, with offense backed down at about its 20. Romo hit T.O. on a deep out the first play and a hook in front of Pacman the third.
11:58 -- Romo went deep to Sam Hurd, but Pacman had great coverage on the go route. ... Kevin Burnett, who is the Cowboys' best cover LB, just had a PBU on an out to Martellus Bennett. He knocked down a pass in the first 11-on-11 session, too. ... Pretty over-the-shoulder by Mike Jefferson on the sideline. Brad Johnson's deep ball was on the money. Yes, you read that right. Evan Oglesby got beat.
12:00 -- Isaiah Stanback went to the ground to scoop a pass off the grass after getting some space on an out route against Mike Jenkins. ... Newman is about to go on Irvin's show. The link is above. ...
12:02 -- T.O. ran a nice zig-zag route to get open against the 1s. He would have gone a long way with it, assuming Alan Ball wouldn't have been able to tackle him. ... Romo put some serious zip on an out to Jason Witten, hitting No. 82 in the numbers before Mike Jenkins could get there. ... They're not tackling, but Patrick Crayton just fumbled after getting bumped by Bradie James. ...
12:05 -- TE Martellus Bennett dropped a pass that hit him in his mitts. He misjudged the out from Brad Johnson, jumping when he didn't need to. ... Nice catch by Tashard Choice on a ball behind him. .... 11-on-11 session over.
12:07 -- Some highlights from the earlier 11-on-11 work: Sam Hurd beat Anthony Henry on a deep slant. ... Henry jumped an out route from Richard Bartel to Mark Bradford and almost picked it off. ... Danny Amendola caught a quick hook and probably would have had his head knocked off by Bradie James, who arrived a beat after the ball. ... Miles Austin made a pretty leaping catch on the sideline in front of Mike Jenkins. ... Special teams drills have started.
12:16 -- Nothing thrilling from special teams drills. ... By the way, news about Terry Glenn potentially signing with the Dolphins is neither surprising nor concerning to the Cowboys. While Jerry publicly left the door open for Glenn's return, they didn't expect that to happen. And they've been pleased with the work of Sam Hurd and Miles Austin so far in camp.
12:19 -- Headed to the field. Be back with highlights later.
12:38 -- I've got all sorts of good stuff from 7-on-7 and pass-rush drill, including a Play of the Day candidate (sorry about slacking on that feature). Will get to it after practice. 11-on-11 coming right at blog central now. ... Witten just caught a curl from Romo. ... Spears at NT, Ratliff at DE. ... T.O. caught a cross with Pacman a step behind and turned on the jets.
12:40 -- Nice coverage by rookie OLB Erik Walden on a pass to Tony Curtis in the flat. But Walden got his butt kicked by Doug Free in pass-rush drills. ... Felix Jones showed his vision and burst by bouncing a draw outside and accelerating through the secondary. ...
12:43 -- Brad Johnson had Isaiah Stanback wide open on a 20-yard crossing route, but he one-hopped the pass. ... Johnson went back to throwing the ball in the flat after that.
12:46 -- Romo missed Patrick Crayton on an out route... Be back in a bit. They're down on this end of the field, and I can't see the corner. Lots of stuff coming after practice.
12:48 -- Check that. Relocated to abandoned Sirius Radio table. ... Pacman broke up a slant to T.O. in the end zone. T.O. was inside Pacman, who got physical and fought for the ball, shoving T.O. to the ground at the end of the play. ... Felix Jones lost his footing on a draw when Jay Ratliff clogged the hole.
12:51 -- Brad Johnson just doesn't look very good. He doesn't make bad decisions, but you're surprised any time he gets the ball downfield to a receiver. He just skipped one in the flat.
12:53 -- Erik Walden got roughed up in pass-rush drills, but he just beat Doug Free on a speed rush for a would-be sack. ... End of practice. Gotta go. Will be back with highlights of earlier 7-on-7 and pass-rush drills, headlined by Courtney Brown's spectacular leaping pick of a Tony Romo pass in the end zone.
1:15 -- Some 7-on-7 and pass-rush drill observations to wrap up this post: I'll have much more on SS Courtney Brown later. His pick was an absolute thing of beauty. He read Romo's eyes and perfectly time his jump to snare a pass Romo was trying to loft to Patrick Crayton in the back of the end zone. ... LB/blogger Kevin Burnett had a great practice. He got his hands on several passes this morning, including a ball over the middle intended for Jason Witten. Burnett batted the ball high in the air but couldn't grab the rebound. ... Miles Austin made a great adjustment to catch a deep ball on the sideline with Alan Ball a half-step behind him. Burnett made hand motions to indicate that Austin was out of bounds, but you can never trust a defensive player on those kind of things. ... Austin didn't catch a ball he should have on a crossing route. The pass was high, but Austin got both hands on it. ... Ball had great coverage to force an incompletion on a T.O. crossing route. ... During from-the-5 work, Isaiah Stanback almost made a highlight-reel, leaping one-hand grab in the back of the end zone but couldn't cradle the ball. He went up with one hand because he used the other to push off on Pacman. ... On to pass rush: Rough session for RT Marc Colombo, a brawler who doesn't always look pretty during practice. He was beat on inside and outside moves by Greg Ellis, and Spencer beat him with an outside move. Colombo made undrafted rookie Darrell Robertson pay, burying the poor kid in the ground when he tried to speed rush. ... DE Chris Canty had impressive bull-rushes against Gs Kyle Kosier and Joe Berger. Canty also had a sweet spin to beat Kosier inside. ... DeMarcus Ware gave LT Flozell Adams fits, just as Ware does every LT the Cowboys face. Adams' best chance when Ware speed rushes is to push him past the play. .
posted by The Gryphon at 5:41 PM
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