A news roundup of the first day of rookie mini-camp.

The Breerman gives you five more quick impressions. Short version: Mark Bradford made the play of the day on a long bomb, Orlando Scandrick looked like the best CB on the field, Mike Jenkins recovered nicely in his second practice of the day, Danny Amendola actually dropped some passes in the second session and Richard Bartel looked like a real QB.

Mike Jenkins has a little Prime Time in his past as his uncle, Tracy Sanders, was a CB with Prime at FSU. Deion has been mentoring the kid who is now our second CB from the University of South Florida, the alma mater of Anthony Henry.

Danny Amendola is attracting a lot of attention in camp, especially from Jerry.

"He's certainly showed he's refined," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said after the first rookie practice Friday. "He will be able to separate. He's going to be able to get away from people. I'm glad we got him."

He may be refined on the field but certainly needs some work on his interviews. Not exactly smooth in the post-practice gab-fest.

But speaking of who is smooth, that seems to be the operative word for Felix "El Gato" Jones. 

"He's smooth," Jerry Jones said. "You can see that he can run when he gets that ball. The most important thing that I saw out here today was just how smooth he looks when he's running and cutting."

Don’t forget about Isaiah Stanback either.

"He's doing a great job, and I'm really pleased with the way he's running routes and catching the ball," [Ray] Sherman said. "He's in shape, and I'm very impressed with the way he runs his routes. He's a contender at that position.... I like our group."

Meanwhile, in veteran news, it apperas that the Tuna did want his former first round pick Bobby Carpenter but the Cowboys said no dice.

According to an NFL source, the Dolphins wanted Bobby Carpenter, but the Cowboys weren't willing to part with the 2006 first-round draft pick. So Dallas included Ayodele in the deal.

As noted by many, including Brandon in his post, Captain Caveman is on the move again.

He's currently backing up veteran Zach Thomas. Carpenter said he's been studying game film with Thomas and already has picked up quite a bit in the short time the veteran free-agent acquisition has been with the Cowboys.

Hat tip to Deke for posting the Bobby Carpenter non-trade article.

Mickey answers some mail.  Short version: Fasano stunk and was about to lose his job to star of stage and screen Tony Curtis so get something for him. More Jones vs. Mendenhall blather, the secondary is improved but no one is sure what the rotation back there will be. And this statement on the ever-popular Roy Williams (the Dallas one).

Again, [Roy] Williams' poor play at times has less to do with his talent and more to do with his preparation. Camps is already working on that, I understand. And with the plethora of cornerbacks the Cowboys might have, pending Adam Jones' reinstatement, the addition of Zach Thomas and the continued good health of Kevin Burnett, Roy very well might be reduced to a two-down safety even more if he doesn't improve.

We’ve got more special teams return guys now than Jerry’s got money. DC.com explores the subject further. 

Here’s a weird tidbit about the Cowboys trying to sign UDFA’s. 

Maurice Purify wished the only bad thing happening to him Sunday was not being picked in the NFL draft.

Purify was under the impression from Dallas-based agent Gary Glick that he would be, at worst, a late-round draft pick. Instead, he was left to find an interested team along with a number of other undrafted former [Nebraska] Huskers. Only there was this little deal with the Dallas Cowboys and a potential free-agent agreement.

"My agent called me and I said, 'Go ahead with it if the contract is good,'" said Purify, the former Nebraska receiver. Purify could live with going to Dallas. Maybe this was meant to be. "We had something set right after the draft with the Cowboys and it fell through," Purify said Monday. "I guess they had a mixup in their organization and didn't know that they had signed a receiver from Stanford."

Mark Bradford got a ticket to Dallas and Purify another restless night.

Peter Schrager from FOX Sports. 

I had Georgia Tech DE Darrell Robertson going 57th overall in the second round. Robertson was not drafted.         

The myth is that it’s better to be an UDFA than to get drafted in the late rounds. Pat Jones, a former NFL assistant, says the reality is that it’s not, drafted players are treated better. Unless you’re a priority free agent like new Dallas cowboy FB Julius Crosslin. 

There are different levels of free agents. A "priority free agent" like Oklahoma State fullback Julius Crosslin, who signed with the Dallas Cowboys an hour after the draft ended on Sunday, has an advantage over other free agents.

"Unless you're a very high-rated free agent, someone you had a fifth- or sixth-round grade, they're just bringing you in to be a body for training camp," Jones said.

A short introduction  to new UDFA Andrew Brecher of Harvard.  

Harvard offensive tackle Andrew Brecher of Needham agreed to a free agent deal with the Dallas Cowboys. The 6-foot-5, 300-pound Brecher was an all-Ivy League and all-New England selection in 2007, and was named an FCS All-American by the Sports Network after leading the Crimson to the Ivy League title.

Nick Eatman has a few more UDFA’s for the Cowboys.

Mark Bradford WR Stanford
Keon Lattimore RB Maryland
Andrew Brecher OT Harvard

The full list looks like this:

Danny Amendola WR Texas Tech
Drew Atchison TE William & Mary
Mark Bradford WR Stanford
Andrew Brecher OT Harvard
Julius Crosslin FB Oklahoma State
Dowayne Davis SS Syracuse
Marcus Dixon DE Hampton
Brandon Hale OT Sam Houston State
Keon Lattimore RB Maryland
Jay Ottovegio P/K Stanford
Daniel Polk WR Midwestern State
Darrell Robertson DE Georgia Tech