The answer is that MB3 is working out in Miami. Nick Eatman has a very good article looking at the situation involving Marion Barber and to a lesser extent Ken Hamlin. Both players have yet to sign the tenders and the thought is that their agents and the Cowboys are trying to hammer out long-term deals. Eatman wonders why they can’t be at Valley Ranch anyway seeing as how both will be playing for the Cowboys this year. They have until June 1^st to sign their current tenders and after that point the Cowboys can actually lower them. I wouldn’t expect any shenanigans like that occurring but the underlying point of them not being at the Ranch is valid. Surely Felix Jones and Tashard Choice could benefit from MB3’s presence even though he’s one of the quietest Cowboys on the team. They could watch his work ethic and follow his examples in their first steps towards having an NFL career. On the other hand, Hamlin is considered one of the vocal leaders on the defense and could definitely be helping guys like Jenkins and Scandrick get acquainted with the Cowboys secondary. It’s not that unusual for players who have yet to be signed to work out elsewhere during the offseason, sometimes even players who are signed don’t make regular trips to the facilities during this period. But it sure would be nice if MB3 and Hamlin were there. Chris Canty, another player who still hasn’t signed his tender, has been present at all Valley Ranch functions.

MB3’s situation is getting tricky considering the initial reports about the money he’s asking for – LT-type money. The Cowboys are not going to go down that road and may be taking a page out the Romo playbook by waiting to see how MB3 performs this year as the undisputed starter. If the Barbarian proves to be a feature back that can be counted on to carry the load, they might be willing to give him a fairly sizable contract thought I doubt they are going to break the bank the way Drew Rosenhaus would like them to do. But at least the Cowboys have some insurance by drafting El Gato and Taster’s Choice, but those two have to prove it on the field before they can turn into real leverage in the MB3 negotiations.

The Cowboys also are bring in Ray-Ray’s little bro, Keon Lattimore. Being an ACC guy I watched Lattimore play on a few different occasions and thought he was an OK back. When he told his older brother Ray Lewis that he had signed an UDFA contract with the Cowboys, Ray broke down and cried. 

"When he called me and said, 'Bro, I'm a Cowboy,' the tears came easy," Lewis said. "I love him like a brother, but I've always looked at him like my child, too. When your child accomplishes something like that and you know you had a major part in it, it's an amazing feeling.

"The emotions I felt that day were overwhelming."

Zach Thomas fells like he’s ready to go and that the injuries are not going to bother him this season.

"When I see my game decline or I'm at risk health-wise, I'll shut it down. There are guys that can't turn the page. I'm not one of those guys. I know I still have game."

I’ve tried to stay away from Romo’s romantic life but I had to pass along this zinger in the San Jose Mercury News. 

Jessica and Tony: Well, are they or aren't they?

It's The Great Debate: Are Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson done? "Extra" and "Access Hollywood" say no. TMZ.com and the Dallas Morning News say yes. And the Cowboys are just thankful to have the calm, stabilizing influence of Terrell Owens and maybe Pacman Jones.

Nice. BTW, if you’re interested, here’s a pic of the supposed new-woman Romo’s pursuing. Gee, you think Romo might have "a type?"

Patrick Crayton on Tony Romo's singing:

"That's the first time you got to hear Romo sing," Crayton said. “We get to hear it daily, and it's like horrible. It is bad. He finally got a replay back of it, and he finally admitted it. I'm like, 'Dude, I've been hearing it for four years. You're just now admitting that?'"

Zach Thomas on leadership:

"Leadership is shown by actions," Thomas said. "If you're making plays and doing everything the right way - doing what they're telling you to do in the weight room, showing up for everything, being consistent and being accountable - that's leadership. It's not giving a great pep talk. If you give a great pep talk and do all the right things and don't play well, there really isn't much leadership there. My leadership is coming in and playing well and getting the respect of my teammates."

Brian Stewart on the meeting with Roy Williams:

"I think all three of us left that meeting feeling comfortable that we've got an open line of communication," Stewart said. "Everyone knows where everyone stands. The past was the past, and now we've got a chance to move forward."

Jerry Jones on Marion Barber and Ken Hamlin:

"We've had visits and talked with them and their representatives," Jones said. "If their contracts were done, then I would expect them to be part of OTAs and minicamps. ... We expect to [make deals], and I think we'll do that certainly within the time frame that's good for everybody."

 Julius Jones' new position coach on his time in Dallas:

“I think playing for Bill Parcells in Dallas really helped bring out the best in Julius and he’ll tell you that,” Ruskell said. “That’s what he talked about with us when we brought him in as a free agent.

“Julius ran really hard and took advantage of what that line was trying to do in Dallas. With what we’re trying to do in changing our running game, I think that fits.”

Ken Hamlin's interview on Sirius radio.

Hat tip to DCFanatic for the Hamlin interview.

Last season I had some fun by calling T.O. a pod-person. It was kind of in jest but it was kind of serious. When I heard we were signing T.O. a couple of years ago I was very skeptical. I knew he had the talent, I saw what he did in San Francisco and what he did in Philadelphia, but that was on the field. He was already starting to tear apart the team in San Francisco off the field before they jettisoned him. I watched the sideline tantrums, the belittling of Jeff Garcia, and of course, the despicable desecration of the star. At that time I wanted no part of him. Then he ended up in Philly and when he helped them get to the Super Bowl and made a super-human effort to play in that game coming off of the leg injury, it made me ill. Basically, any time Philly succeeds in football it makes me ill. But when the next season rolled around and the old T.O. was back and was ripping apart another team, I giggled in glee. Good, I thought, glad to see the Eagles going down in flames.

Then Jerry Jones decided he was going to bring T.O. to Big D and I thought he’d lost his mind. Sure I salivated at his talent, but dreaded the inevitable blow-up that would crush our team. The first year was a rocky one as T.O. and Tuna never could get together. But last year, once Wade Phillips was brought on board it was like we had a re-born T.O. And that’s when I started the pod-person jokes because it was like an alien presence had invaded his body and created a whole new persona. I was still a little weary; I thought the old T.O. could come back at anytime.

But now, I’m almost convinced that T.O. is a changed person for good. I know I might be jinxing things by saying it, but he really does appear to be a new man. If there was one thing I thought might trigger a repeat of his past was the fact that he’s entering the final year of the three-year contract he originally signed. The words renegotiation, T.O. and Drew Rosenhaus together scare me more than Romo’s singing at a Cubs game. Seriously, if there was to be a meltdown I thought this would be the trigger.

But go to this article or this article and read the comments from the new T.O. Unless his recent stint on Flavor Flav’s new show has turned him into Al Pacino, I don’t think he’s acting. He sounds sincere.

The highlights are he wants to end his career in Dallas and go into the Hall of Fame as a Cowboy. He claims he’ll let the negotiations play out and it won’t be a distraction. He wants to play another 3-5 years if he’s still playing at a high level. He wants everyone to remember that Terry Glenn could be back and that even if Jerry did bring a Roy Williams or Chad Johnson or whoever, he would be just fine with it. He only cares about winning and not individual stats. He wants to get back to the playoffs badly and finish it this time with a Super Bowl victory. He says he helped Tank Johnson fit in when he came on board and will do the same with Pacman. T.O. praises Jerry Jones, Calvin Hill and crew for making the Cowboys a team where everybody can fit in.

Yeah, it does sound too good to be true. But that’s the new T.O., as long as he's not just acting.

The Dallas Cowboys are going Hollywood. By now everybody knows we’ll be on HBO’s Hard Knocks this summer. But wait, there’s more. T.O. will make his own Hollywood mark this week.

T.O. will make his sitcom acting debut on the MyNetworkTV show "Under One Roof" as the long-lost brother of the show's star, Flavor Flav. Owens tries convincing Flav and sitcom sibling Kelly Perine that they're all brothers in hopes of getting them to invest in his Web site.

T.O.’s debut will be this Wednesday, but it’s only the beginning for the receiver-turned-entertainer.  

"If I'm going to really consider doing acting after football, this a great start to let me get my feet wet," Owens said. "For an actor trying to become an A-lister, I think I'm on the bottom of the pile. I'm a D-lister."

T.O. talks a lot more about his potential acting career in the article.

[UPDATE] - The promotions people at MyNetworkTV wanted me to let you guys know that the show is on Wednesday, May 14th at 8 PM EST. They also sent me some links to a couple of clips from T.O.'s performance. Enjoy!

T.O. clip 1

T.O. clip 2

[END UPDATE]

Not to be outdone, Tony Romo sang Take Me Out To The Ballgame at a Cubs game yesterday and threw out the first pitch. The reviews for his first pitch? 

Cubs fans showered Dallas Cowboys quarterback and former Eastern Illinois star Tony Romo with loud boos as he threw out the first pitch.

But what about his singing? Well, you can be the judge by watching the clip, here.

I'd say his voice ranks somewhere between his girlfriend's and a constipated basset hound.

Hat tip Deke for posting the link to the video.

ESPN has it’s early Power Rankings out and the Cowboys come in at #4. 

Felix Jones should help the running game immediately. But who will emerge as the No. 2 receiver? Patrick Crayton wasn't up to the task in late '07.

Crayton’s playoff game performance still haunts this team. He better use it as motivation.

And finally, when I want opinion on the reinstatement of Pacman Jones, there’s only one place I turn to – The BBC. 

Tell me you didn’t see this coming from a mile away in regards to Bengals WR Chris Henry. 

"There are two teams that I would always love to play for: that's New Orleans and Dallas," Henry said. "New Orleans is home for me. That's always been a big dream of mine. Hopefully I can get in there and sit down with the coaches and maybe have an opportunity to get down there. And Dallas is another team that I've always looked up to as a kid and wanted to play for them."

I say go for it Jerry. If you’re gonna do something, don’t do it halfway! I’m sure you could get some cash under the table from HBO’s "Hard Knocks" to help offset the bill. Pacman and Chris Henry at the same training camp, I smell Emmy. Heck, HBO could just wipe out their regular schedule for the couple of weeks of training camp and turn it into a live show 24/7. Who wouldn’t watch that? Throw in a little Jessica Simpson for sex appeal, mic up Drew Rosenhaus as he negotiates contracts for Marion Barber and T.O. and you’ve got broadcast gold. They could even do a little stunt-casting and dig up Quincy Carter from somewhere and sign him to a contract. Heck, maybe O.J. could be talked into making a comeback.

Eh, maybe not.

Anyway, back in the world of reality, here’s a good article on how "Hard Knocks" is going to work at Oxnard. 

Seven robotic cameras with zoom capabilities will be stuck here and there, around the facilities at Oxnard, Calif. At least four film crews will shoot each day.

A total of 30 producers and editors are assigned to the project. But not even a billionaire owner like Jerry Jones will have any input in what gets shown -- or not shown.

The Cowboys have no input, except maybe if something goes really bad. 

Say Pacman Jones enters an Oxnard strip club. Say an HBO cameraman is there on the street. Say said cameraman flips the switch and records the whole thing. Does that make it to air? Do the Cowboys have a say?

And since I'm not specifically trying to pick on Pacman, what if HBO gets footage of a player getting into a barfight or something like that? Do the producers check with the Cowboys first? Or do they just go ahead and break the news?

"That's hard to say, it depends on what it is," [HBO Sports president Ross] Greenburg said. "My instincts are if we're in the position of actually recording and breaking a news story, we'll have an interesting situation within the offices of NFL Films, HBO and the Dallas Cowboys. I don't know. I can't even answer it. It'd be a case-by-case situation and we'd just have to look at it at that time."

Am I going to have to stakeout all the strip clubs in Oxnard this training camp? For you guys, I would do it.

Hat tip to downsetgo for posting the Henry story in a FanPost.

Back to normal football stuff. Tony Romo failed to qualify for the US Open. Did I say normal football stuff?

 OK, this is sort of normal; we hired another Garrett.

Judd Garrett, the younger brother of Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason Garrett and tight ends coach John Garrett, will be named the team's assistant director of pro scouting, owner Jerry Jones confirmed Wednesday.

Garrett replaces Brian Gaine, who was hired as assistant director of player personnel with the Miami Dolphins in December.

With the draft dominating my time here lately, I haven’t really talked about Pacman Jones and his coming to Dallas. For some of you, that’s probably a good thing. But I just can’t ignore it any longer so let’s discuss. On the field, supposing he actually gets there, the Cowboys have brought in a player who is worth much more than the 4^th-round pick we gave up this year, and the 6^th next. In my estimation Pacman is one of the top CB’s in the league and it all depends on what kind of shape he’s in when he finally arrives as to where and how much he’ll play. Given that the Cowboys traded for him and drafted two other CB’s I think it’s a given that they are looking to replace Anthony Henry or at least move him to reserve status. Another possibility is moving him to safety which the Cowboys brain-trust didn’t exactly rule out in their post-draft press conference. At minimum, if Pacman is any kind of shape he’ll open the season as the nickel CB. If the Cowboys can somehow get the commish to let him workout at Valley Ranch pre-training camp, it’s possible he could open the season as the starter. My best guess though is that he will be the nickel to open the season then eventually slide into the starter role opposite Newman. When I graded the draft I didn’t include Pacman as part of it, but if you do that certainly makes this draft that much better. Of course the big question is whether he will be re-instated and when. The commish didn’t sound at all like it was a sure thing and he is taking into account the recent revelations about the “extortion” money paid by Pacman and said he didn’t know about that previous to the recent news stories. So things are looking very dicey in that respect.

Now that the trade has been finalized and the league has signed off on the contract, the ball falls into the Cowboys court to start the reinstatement process.

[Manny] Arora said he and [Pacman] Jones will meet with Cowboys owner Jerry Jones in the near future to develop a strategy for the player to seek reinstatement from NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and perhaps attempt to modify the current terms so that he can work out and interact with his new teammates at the Cowboys' Valley Ranch complex. Arora said he anticipates the Cowboys taking the lead role in that process.

Jerry has a lot of pull in the NFL as one of the most influential owners and he’ll have to put a lot of his credibility on the line with the commish to even try to make this happen. Getting Pacman into Valley Ranch as soon as possible could have a lot to do with how much Pacman plays this year. It could be the difference between starting or playing a reserve role and being utilized as a punt returner.

The good news from my standpoint is that the Cowboys have a new contract with Pacman that is heavy on non-guaranteed money and incentives to keep him on the straight and narrow.

The contract between the Cowboys and Jones includes no signing bonus or other guaranteed money. While the Cowboys and Arora have declined to reveal specific components of the contract, a source told ESPN that the agreement is incentive-based with roster bonuses that financially encourage Jones to refrain from the behavior that has resulted in six arrests. The source also said Jones will have to play at least three seasons in Dallas before he has an opportunity to become one of the top-paid corners in the league.

We’ll all be keeping and eye on this situation through the rest of the offseason. Here’s another article about Pacman coming to Dallas.

I usually don’t go for all the TMZ-style reporting over Tony Romo and his relationship with Jessica Simpson. What he does in his personal life isn’t that interesting to me. But this story is so outlandish I had to post it. It has a lot of fun details about Tony Romo and his recent weekend in Vegas that includes tidbits about other Cowboys. The crazy part though is the report that he lost $2.5 million dollars gambling over the weekend and that Jessica is very upset. I don’t believe that for a minute. I know he just signed a big contract but come on, $2.5 million? Hogwash. So I don’t believe it at all but thought you guys might like reading the article just for kicks.

Hat tip to Deadspin for the link.

Here’s the story about the Eagles suing T.O. for some cash.

Having withdrawal from mock drafts? Don’t worry, here are a couple for 2009!

SI.com

31. Cowboys -- Brian Robiskie, WR, Ohio State -- Receivers Terrell Owens and Terry Glenn are getting old.

ESPN

31. Dallas Cowboys -- Demetrius Byrd, WR, LSU

Wide receiver is the one area Dallas did not address during an otherwise promising 2008 draft. Byrd has a lot to prove as a senior but he certainly has the blend of size and deep speed it takes to emerge as a first-round draft pick.

The debate over Felix Jones and Rashard Mendenhall continues to dominate discussions about the Cowboys draft, in the media in general and on this blog. Here’s another.