What's The Scoop: If Demarcus Ware had any concerns about his head injury, he sure didn't show it. The 6-4, 262 pound All-Pro linebacker was back at Friday morning's practice taking first-team reps, showing no signs of any lingering effects.
"I just had a little mild concussion two practices ago," Ware said walking off the field here in Oxnard, Calif. "But I'm alright now."
Ware initially injured his head at the end of Wednesday morning's practice when his and offensive tackle Marc Colombo's helmets collided in an 11-on-11 drill. Ware attended Wednesday afternoon's special teams practice, but missed Thursday's lone practice because of a slight headache and wooziness.
"I knew that instead of coming out (for Thursday's) practice and getting hurt again and being out for a week," Ware said, "why not take this day off and make sure everything's all right and take it from there."
Ware sported a helmet pumped with more air on Friday, presumably to give him extra support for his head when he makes contact. Ware said he had experienced several slight concussions before and this was nothing new.
"It's no big deal," Ware said. "I'm a football player. I'm not scared; having injuries is part of the game."
Linebacker Tyson Smith missed Friday morning's practice with a similar injury after getting rocked by running back Marion Barber in Thursday's sole practice. He's expected to return sometime this weekend.
Quick Shots:
Recently retired defensive end Michael Strahan made an appearance at Friday morning's practice, prepping for his new gig with Fox's NFL Pre-game show. He spoke with Zach Thomas after practice, who said to Strahan, "I'm glad you retired."
When practicing short yardage situations, the offense came out in another formation featuring running backs Marion Barber and Felix Jones. They lined up in the left and right slots pre-snap, but motioned to fullback and tailback. The play was an inside handoff to Barber with a fake pitch to Jones.
In an 11-on-11 goal line drill, Martellus Bennett was working with the first team as a second tight end and pulled down a couple touchdowns from quarterback Tony Romo in what amounted to a mini-camp practice session (no pads). The 6-6, 265-pound rookie tight end presents a unique size matchup for defenses in the red zone and will likely be utilized more when the offense gets inside the 20-yard line.
NFL officials were at practice again Friday, showing the media a video describing the newest rule changes. The players have been having fun with the refs the past few practices, and linebacker Kevin Burnett was the latest to plead for a penalty claiming tight end Tony Curtis was guilty of offensive pass interference in a goal line drill.
You Should've Seen: Defensive tackle Tank Johnson leaped in the air to bat down a Tony Romo pass in an 11-on-11 drill in Friday morning's shorts and helmets practice, but apologized vehemently afterward as he jogged off the field saying, "I'm sorry . . .I'm sorry." The reason? The offense was focusing on execution and making correct reads and Johnson disrupted the drill.
Who's Hot: Tony Curtis. "Touchdown" Tony Curtis is up to his same old tricks after catching three passes for three touchdowns in an 11-on-11 goal line drill during Friday morning's practice. The third-year tight end has been catching the ball well and was used in a variety of blocking situations in Friday's practice.
Who's Not: Kyle Kosier. The two-year starter at left guard has struggled at times during one-on-one drills, letting defensive tackle Tank Johnson get the better of him in Thursday's lone practice. And as if his shaky camp wasn't bad enough, Kosier's backup, Joe Berger, has had potentially the best camp of all the backup offensive linemen, prompting head coach Wade Phillips to say he "could challenge to play some."
Injury Update: LB Tyson Smith, blow to head (7/31)
CB Alan Ball, sprained ankle - day-to-day (7/30)
CB Terence Newman, groin - out three weeks (7/28)
CB Quincy Butler, hamstring - day-to-day (7/27)
LB Tearrius George, bone bruise - day-to-day (7/26)
Missed Practice: CB Terence Newman (groin)
CB Quincy Butler (hamstring)
CB Alan Ball (ankle)
LB Tyson Smith (head)
LB Tearrius George (knee)
Returned to Practice: OLB DeMarcus Ware (head)
Transactions: WR Todd Lowber, signed (7/27)
WR Terry Glenn, waived (7/25)
QB Jeff Terrell, signed (7/25)
LB Khari Long, waived (7/24)
Wade's Best: "Some guys listen well and then they don't write the stories very well. And vice versa, some of them don't listen and they write great stories."- After comparing the media to players who practice well but don't play well in games.
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