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Tony Romo calls these Cowboys the 'most complete' team of his Dallas career - FOXSports.com
Alex Marvez writes that Tony Romo said the 2013 Dallas Cowboys are the “most complete” team he has played on during his 11 years with the franchise. Romo bases this on what he’s seen from the players and coaches, and thinks the team can play at a "very high level for the next three to five years."
DeMarcus Ware 'loving' move to defensive end - J. Machota, FSSouthwest
Moving to the new 4-3 scheme and defensive end position is something DeMarcus Ware said is to his advantage.
"You're able to make a lot more plays because you're playing defensive end," Ware said. "Sometimes you can get a little more one-on-ones with the tackles. You're able to rush the passer, we'll say 94 percent of the time, and I'm loving it."
Cowboys MLB Sean Lee sheds pounds to adjust to new defensive scheme - R. Sabin, DMN
Sean Lee has shed some weight while he adjusted to the 4-3, as the scheme doesn't require the linebackers to be quite as heavy as in the 3-4.
“In the past, it was more of me trying to put weight on and keep weight on, whereas now it’s probably more of my natural weight where I feel comfortable,” Lee said. “Whatever weight you feel comfortable at where you feel like you’re running well, that’s what I want to be at. That’s what I feel comfortable at right now.”
If Sean Lee was "uncomfortable" the last couple of years, imagine what he'll play like now that he feels comfortable.
Tony Romo as a future Offensive Coordinator? - MMQB.com
Peter King raises an interesting aspect about Tony Romo:
Most players don’t like the obsessive grind of coaching, but I hear Dallas QB Tony Romo’s different. “He’d like to be a coordinator one day,” said one person close to him. Romo will attend some game-plan meetings and have more say in what plays end up in the gameplan.
Dez Bryant, showing focus and leadership, primed to join NFL's elite - CBSSports.com
Jason LaConfora writes that Dez Bryant is diligent in his drills and that Dallas' former problem child is taking on a leadership role in practice. It is an interesting read from a national writer, full of strange new words like "leadership", "consistency" and "elite".
Cowboys TE Witten is building Hall of Fame resume 100 catches at a time - C. Williams, Star-Telegram
Charean Williams does a nice piece on Jason Witten and why his numbers speak for themselves. Along the way, she provides this telling quote from Michael Irvin about Witten:
"Every year we say, ‘Oh, that’s [Tony Romo’s] security blanket.’ Yet, they don’t stop him from securing Tony. These are things that you measure a man with. We’re all trying to stop him, and we can’t stop him. They’ve been doing that about Jason Witten forever.”
Jason Hatcher: Ben Bass ‘is going to be the reason I’m playing on a different team next year’ - J. Machota, DMN
Hatcher addresses one of the harsh realities of life in the NFL when he talked about the potential of Ben Bass:
“Bass has it all,” Cowboys starting defensive tackle Jason Hatcher said. “Bass is going to be the reason I’m playing on a different team next year. He’s coming on. He’s coming on. I just have to keep my job security, keep playing my butt off.”
Garrett Taking New Steps In Making Players Accountable - N. Eatman, DallasCowboys.com
"Accountability" is a big word that gets thrown around a lot but isn't always filled with life. That's changed for the Cowboys this year, at least regarding penalties, as Nick Eatman writes
"This year, jumping offside before the snap doesn’t just get you pulled out of the drill. The entire group will go off the field as well."
"Garrett explained if a member of the first-team group jumps offside or has a false start, they will be replaced by the second-teamers. If the second group has the same infraction, the third group goes in. And if that happens again, the third-teamers gets bumped by the first-group. Garrett said that scenario won’t go over well to the starters."
Practice Report: Outstanding First Week For Veteran CB - B. Broaddus, DallasCowboys.com
Broaddus calls Orlando Scandrick "outstanding" in practices so far, is impressed with Gavin Escobar and likes what he sees from receiver Eric Rogers.
Wednesday Practice Report - DallasCowboys.com
The mothership delivers a rundown of Wednesday's activities. You will not find a detailed discussion of the offensive and defensive schemes practiced on Wednesday, but you'll find updates on D-line transactions, quick notes on what happened on and beside the field, notable standouts, the play of the day, an injury report and more.
Roster Moves: Cowboys add two defensive linemen - Star-Telegram
DT Landon Cohen and DE George Selvie were signed to help with camp practices while Ratliff, Spencer, Crawford and Igbinosun recover from their injuries. Recently signed receiver Lavasier Tuinei was released to make room on the roster.
NFL Preseason Power Rankings - Chris Burke, SI.com
Power rankings? Oh, well ...
"17. Dallas Cowboys: In back-to-back seasons, the Cowboys have finished 8-8 and missed the playoffs by virtue of a Week 17 intra-division loss. And this version does not look appreciably better (or worse) than its previous two incarnations. That makes it hard to count on a real change in the Cowboys' fortunes."
