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Cowboys experiment with Barber, Jones in same backfield
Aug. 3, 2008
The Cowboys are experimenting with using both Marion Barber and Felix Jones in the same backfield — one formation that has Barber as a fullback and Jones lined up behind him, and another where Barber is in a one-back formation and Jones flexes out. The Cowboys hope to create matchup problems and confuse defenses with these formations.
Cowboys SS Roy Williams is starting to play with his old swagger and aggressiveness, per secondary coach Dave Campo. Williams admitted this offseason that he didn’t feel comfortable in the team’s defensive scheme, but he appears to be playing with more confidence thus far in camp.
With all of the Giants’ injuries at wideout, Michael Jennings — considered a long shot to make the roster — has been terrific and could find his way onto the team. He has made more than one spectacular catch in practice and can help out as a returner.
So far, the Commanders are more than tickled with DE Jason Taylor’s play. Despite skipping all of the Dolphins’ offseason workouts, Taylor reportedly is in top condition and has impressed coaches and teammates alike with his work ethic.
Dallas
Aug. 1, 2008
Cowboys experimenting with defensive front
The Cowboys appeared to find a terrific solution at nose tackle last season when Jay Ratliff emerged as a strong starter. They bolstered the position with the midseason acquisition of Tank Johnson. But now they are tinkering with some position flexibility in training camp. Ratliff has taken snaps at left end, and Marcus Spears — last year’s LDE starter — has moved inside to Ratliff’s NT spot. The moves are not permanent, but they do offer the team some flexibility up front. Johnson has had a terrific offseason and appears to have carved out a regular role in one way or another, but he’s best on the nose. Ratliff doesn’t sound too pleased with moving, having previously shifted positions prior to finding a home at nose, but sources believe it could be Spears who loses the most snaps with this new arrangement.
View all WWHI for Dallas
NY Giants
Aug. 1, 2008
Boss steps forward as Giants put Shockey era behind them
It has been a week since the team dealt TE Jeremy Shockey, and the talk around Giants camp has been that head coach Tom Coughlin helped push the deal along by letting it be known to team officials that Shockey didn’t fit into the team’s plans because his flamboyant style conflicted with Coughlin's coaching approach. And with the Giants winning the Super Bowl — without Shockey on the field — Coughlin’s power with the team is at an all-time high. But the focus has turned to the new starter, Kevin Boss, and all reports on him thus far have been outstanding. He reportedly looks to be in fantastic shape, weighing around 265 pounds, and he has been one of the highlights of camp in terms of catching the ball. The Giants are deep at receiver, but with a number of injuries there, it has allowed Boss to take a prominent role in the passing game during practice and enhance his rapport with QB Eli Manning.
View all WWHI for NY Giants
Philadelphia
July 30, 2008
Where is Shawn Andrews? Eagles would like to know
Shawn Andrews
There have been few developments of substance on the strange absence from training camp of All-Pro OG Shawn Andrews. The team placed him on the reserve/did-not-report list, using the freed-up roster space to add free-agent OL Cameron Stephenson, but the mystery of Andrews continues. The Eagles have said that Andrews is missing camp because of personal issues, but head coach Andy Reid has not excused Andrews from the sessions and has bristled at Andrews-related questions from the media. Andrews’ agent has denied that his client’s absence is contract-related, although several reports have said that Andrews is not happy about his current deal. One strong possibility instead is that Andrews is staying away from Lehigh College in order to get out of some intense training-camp time. He has struggled with his weight at times in the past and he has battled depression, but a source close to the team told PFW that those prior issues are not believed to be related to the current situation. If there has been a bright side to Andrews being missing, it has been that Max Jean-Gilles, his replacement at right guard, has played very well in the early going. Jean-Gilles could end up battling Todd Herremans at left guard for a starting spot upon Andrews’ return, which we hear might be within a week.
View all WWHI for Philadelphia
Washington
July 30, 2008
Commanders' Golston might make most of Montgomery's injury
There are few spots up for grabs on the Commanders’ defense, but one to watch is at defensive tackle where Kedric Golston is making a strong push to rejoin the starting lineup. After starting as a rookie and playing relatively well, Golston lost his spot to Anthony Montgomery, although the two often rotated. But now with Montgomery suffering a broken hand and perhaps facing a recovery time of 2-6 weeks, it seems only likely that Golston will replace him and Golston could end up staying there. In coordinator Greg Blache’s scheme, Golston’s low base and sneaky quickness from the interior could be a nice fit. And Blache admitted that Golston was so good in the wild-card playoff loss to the Seahawks that he likely would have started the next week had the Commanders won. It’s not as if Montgomery was having a bad offseason or training camp before the injury, spies say, but Golston has been so impressive to date that he might have earned the starting spot anyway.
View all WWHI for Washington
Aug. 3, 2008
Dallas
Aug. 1, 2008
Cowboys experimenting with defensive front
The Cowboys appeared to find a terrific solution at nose tackle last season when Jay Ratliff emerged as a strong starter. They bolstered the position with the midseason acquisition of Tank Johnson. But now they are tinkering with some position flexibility in training camp. Ratliff has taken snaps at left end, and Marcus Spears — last year’s LDE starter — has moved inside to Ratliff’s NT spot. The moves are not permanent, but they do offer the team some flexibility up front. Johnson has had a terrific offseason and appears to have carved out a regular role in one way or another, but he’s best on the nose. Ratliff doesn’t sound too pleased with moving, having previously shifted positions prior to finding a home at nose, but sources believe it could be Spears who loses the most snaps with this new arrangement.
View all WWHI for Dallas
NY Giants
Aug. 1, 2008
Boss steps forward as Giants put Shockey era behind them
It has been a week since the team dealt TE Jeremy Shockey, and the talk around Giants camp has been that head coach Tom Coughlin helped push the deal along by letting it be known to team officials that Shockey didn’t fit into the team’s plans because his flamboyant style conflicted with Coughlin's coaching approach. And with the Giants winning the Super Bowl — without Shockey on the field — Coughlin’s power with the team is at an all-time high. But the focus has turned to the new starter, Kevin Boss, and all reports on him thus far have been outstanding. He reportedly looks to be in fantastic shape, weighing around 265 pounds, and he has been one of the highlights of camp in terms of catching the ball. The Giants are deep at receiver, but with a number of injuries there, it has allowed Boss to take a prominent role in the passing game during practice and enhance his rapport with QB Eli Manning.
View all WWHI for NY Giants
Philadelphia
July 30, 2008
Where is Shawn Andrews? Eagles would like to know
Shawn Andrews
There have been few developments of substance on the strange absence from training camp of All-Pro OG Shawn Andrews. The team placed him on the reserve/did-not-report list, using the freed-up roster space to add free-agent OL Cameron Stephenson, but the mystery of Andrews continues. The Eagles have said that Andrews is missing camp because of personal issues, but head coach Andy Reid has not excused Andrews from the sessions and has bristled at Andrews-related questions from the media. Andrews’ agent has denied that his client’s absence is contract-related, although several reports have said that Andrews is not happy about his current deal. One strong possibility instead is that Andrews is staying away from Lehigh College in order to get out of some intense training-camp time. He has struggled with his weight at times in the past and he has battled depression, but a source close to the team told PFW that those prior issues are not believed to be related to the current situation. If there has been a bright side to Andrews being missing, it has been that Max Jean-Gilles, his replacement at right guard, has played very well in the early going. Jean-Gilles could end up battling Todd Herremans at left guard for a starting spot upon Andrews’ return, which we hear might be within a week.
View all WWHI for Philadelphia
Washington
July 30, 2008
Commanders' Golston might make most of Montgomery's injury
There are few spots up for grabs on the Commanders’ defense, but one to watch is at defensive tackle where Kedric Golston is making a strong push to rejoin the starting lineup. After starting as a rookie and playing relatively well, Golston lost his spot to Anthony Montgomery, although the two often rotated. But now with Montgomery suffering a broken hand and perhaps facing a recovery time of 2-6 weeks, it seems only likely that Golston will replace him and Golston could end up staying there. In coordinator Greg Blache’s scheme, Golston’s low base and sneaky quickness from the interior could be a nice fit. And Blache admitted that Golston was so good in the wild-card playoff loss to the Seahawks that he likely would have started the next week had the Commanders won. It’s not as if Montgomery was having a bad offseason or training camp before the injury, spies say, but Golston has been so impressive to date that he might have earned the starting spot anyway.
View all WWHI for Washington
