Spagnola: First Week Of OTAs Produces Disturbing Early-Warning Signal
Friday, May 27, 2016 6:59 PM CDT
Mickey Spagnola
DallasCowboys.com Columnist
IRVING, Texas – Here is what you should like most about the first week of OTAs for the Dallas Cowboys.
That
Tony Romo is back at quarterback. That
Dez Bryant is nearly back at wide receiver, and will be so in plenty of time for the Sept. 11 season opener.
Orlando Scandrick will be back at corner, too.
Let’s see,
Tyrone Crawford is out there playing without a torn rotator cuff.
Morris Claiborne is back out there without that injured hamstring, and by the way, at left cornerback, with
Brandon Carr on the right side and
Josh Thomas in the slot for now on the first defense.
Byron Jones is where he belongs at free safety.
Terrell McClain is back, adding depth to the defensive line interior. Like the looks of
Cedric Thornton,
Maliek Collins and
Charles Tapper, too.
Oh, and Ezekiel. All you needed to do was watch him on a couple of carries jump in the hole and scoot to thoroughly understand he’s not just any ol’ running back.
Sort of a reminder of what the Cowboys were missing or trying to play through for the majority of last season, along with some impressive add-ons for this season.
Now then, here is what you should dislike most during the first of their three, three-a-week “voluntary” OTA sessions, concluding then with the mandatory three-day minicamp in the middle of June.
And this will have nothing to do with backup offensive guard
Ronald Leary withholding services, his new agent demanding his client be traded, a request and maneuver without one ounce of leverage since he’s already signed his one-year, $2.553 million restricted free-agent tender absent $1 of guaranteed money or services desperately needed. Their only hope for movement would be someone such as
Chaz Green, who hasn’t played a down of football since the end of the 2014 college season, shows enough ability to not only play some tackle, but also guard, too, thus making Leary somewhat expendable for a modest draft choice in return.
No, this worry has to do with the absence of
Rolando McClain, who always seems to have
something getting in the way of offseason football, practicing or just simply weight and conditioning. This time it’s personal family issues he’s trying to take care of, though Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett says he should be back at The Ranch next week.
OK, that would be fine, or at least palatable. But his offseason work at The Ranch has been sporadic, and the biggest worry would be conditioning and physical shape. Last thing you need is for someone to jump back in there after extended inactivity and pull a hamstring or groin. We’ve seen similar nagging injuries occur with guys who hadn’t been working out diligently or returning from injury and then hurting something else.
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