Each week the DMN blog will feature five questions with Bill Barnwell of Football Outsiders.
There is the requisite "Roy Williams is bad in coverage" but they also say that Marc Columbo is the most underrated player on the Cowboys. Here is what they have to say about Adam Jones.
2. Adam "Pacman" Jones arrived here with a lot of talk about his Pro Bowl potential. How close was he to being an elite cornerback for the Titans?
He wasn't close. He already was one. Jones often lined up in man coverage, and absolutely shut down opposing wideouts in 2006. His success rate was 63% -- that was second-best amongst all corners, and the 5.4 yards he gave up per pass were the best in the league. It's impossible to say what he'll be this year because of the year off, his obviously bizarre mental state, and the time it may take to adjust to a new system, but when his mind is right, Adam Jones is on the shortlist of best cornerbacks in football.
The Cowboys had a rain soaked practice open to the public yesterday at Texas Stadium. Several Cowboy greats were on hand to sign autographs before the practice, including Tony Dorsett.
"I can remember coming down here and yelling and screaming, 'It's nothing but a party. This is our house,'" Dorsett said. "We were going to do this and do that while we were following Tom Landry down the tunnel. But I had some sad feelings from the standpoint that this may be the last time that I ever walk down this tunnel."
DC.com has an article about the practice here.
Terence Newman has taken Mike Jenkins under his wing to ensure the rookie is as up to speed as possible as the season approaches. Newman is expected to be back on the field next week, but you never know what might happen. Jenkins has had an up and down preseason so far, but Terrell Owens likes what he sees.
"My first impressions of him when I went against him is that he has great feet [and] good technique," receiver Terrell Owens said. "It’s all about going out getting a feel, getting some reps and having himself feel comfortable out there. Once he does that, he’s going to be one of the best corners in the league
Jenkins allowed a touchdown pass last week, mainly because he has yet to learn all the new NFL rules.
"I didn’t know I could steer the receiver wherever I wanted once the quarterback rolled out of the pocket," Jenkins said. "There are still a lot of rules I don’t know yet. Once I know all the rules I’ll be pretty good out there."
This is where Newman comes in. Throughout he’s had Newman either in practice, in meetings or afterwards telling him what to look for, or what to do.
"From Day 1 he went down he came back to practice from doing treatment and he stayed on me," Jenkins said. "It shows a lot of class. A lot of guys wouldn’t do that. They’d feel threatened."
Terrell Owens says be patient, things will pick up once the starters get a rhythm going.
“Once the game starts, everybody gets that lather going, and you're ready to go out there and play,” Owens said. “You get into a little bit of a groove, and then the coaches say, ‘You're out.'
“You can't really get in a flow.”
But coach Wade Phillips says he plans to play his starters well into the third quarter Friday against Houston.
“To get timing offensively, especially in the passing game, you need some game time,” Phillips said Monday.
And is sad news, Gene Upshaw passed away suddenly after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer just four days ago.
Hat tip to Deke for his Fanpost.