IRVING, Texas - If things go according to plan, Thursday will have been a monumental occurrence in Dallas Cowboys history.
It will have been the day the Cowboys' 2009 draft class, the team's largest since 1992, first assembled at Valley Ranch as a group, joining with undrafted free agents and first-year players to prepare for this weekend's rookie mini-camp, which begins Friday.
The Cowboys flew in most of their new recruits Thursday, conducting physicals and snapping photos of the 12 draft picks, eight rookie free agents and seven first-year players who will participate in the weekend's drills, something of an introduction to the professional game. After the players assembled at the team hotel in the afternoon, a bus brought them to the training facility, giving many of the rookies their first chance to meet one another.
"I think this is a little bit of a humbling experience," sixth-rounder Stephen Hodge of TCU said. "We're all coming in like a deer in the headlights; it's all new to us. Everybody's a little wide-eyed just like a freshman getting to college. But it's also refreshing because I already know (Mike) Mickens, I know Manuel Johnson and I know (Michael) Hamlin from meeting him at the Combine."
Some of the newest Cowboys are a little more familiar with their surroundings after visiting Valley Ranch during the pre-draft workouts season. One such player is former Texas A&M quarterback Stephen McGee, who the Cowboys selected with their first of three fourth-round choices. He said the bus ride over gave him a chance to interact with some of his new teammates for the first time.
"I think everyone's a little bit quiet just because we're not quite sure what's going on," McGee said. "But it's awesome. These will be the guys hopefully you'll be playing with many years down the road. It's a special experience, I know for all these guys, to have the chance to play in the NFL. . . . I got to take a visit here before, so I've seen most everything, but when you actually get to see your name on the locker, it's a dream come true."
Jason Williams, the Western Illinois linebacker who was the team's first pick at No. 69 overall, had much the same reaction.
"Once I got to the locker room and saw my nameplate it finally hit home," Williams said. "It was like 'Alright, I'm a Dallas Cowboy now."
The excitement of the first visit to the locker room will be gone by Friday, the beginning of a work weekend for the players and coaches. While the veterans are away, the Cowboys rookies will be learning how their position coaches want drills to be run, getting in the playbook for the first time, even football minutiae like how to line up for stretching and where to stand in the huddle.
Not all of these guys can make the team, so it's the first chance to make an impression on the team's decision-makers. After a marathon draft season, the real work is just beginning for some of the players who will find themselves on the bubble in training camp.
"My expectation for this weekend is just to start learning the playbook so when we go to camp there will be less mistakes," Hodge said. "Just to put my best foot forward and come in and show why they drafted me. . . . I tell people getting drafted was Phase 1. Phase 2 starts today. Phase 3 is to make the cut."
Of all the Cowboys' picks, none were selected in the first two rounds. The team already has a fairly talented roster, so anyone from about the fifth round and down could conceivably be off the team if they disappoint this summer. One of the Cowboys' stated goals in this draft was to create competition, and that begins immediately. No one is going to make the team because of a great performance the first weekend in May, but some players will make the most of this learning experience, which should go a long way in preparation for three rounds of Organized Team Activities (OTAs), another mini-camp in June with the full squad, and training camp in San Antonio, set to begin at the end of July.
"I'm just going to come in and learn as much as I can," McGee said. "And just try to be sharp with everything and just soak it all in right now before I go back home and have a lot of stuff to work on and get better on before I come back in May."
The Cowboys won't have enough players on hand to run actual plays or even 7-on-7 drills this weekend, but the coaches and scouts can still grade their performances in position drills and one-on-one work.
As important as getting a head start on the competition is, mini-camp should also be fun. These players have spent their time flying around the country for workouts and practicing the 40-yard dash and short-shuttle drills for months. The five practices over the next three days will be their first live football action since bowl season, something fifth-round defensive back DeAngelo Smith said he's been anxiously awaiting.
"It's just exciting to get started and get practicing," Smith said. "I've been at home all spring in Cincinnati watching spring ball, just kind of getting lonely. I missed (spring practices) a little bit, just getting to practice that whole month. I was like, 'Man, I need to be doing something.' Usually it was spring ball, but now it's a mini-camp."
Here are the 28 players attending this weekend's rookie mini-camp.
Draft Choices
LB Jason Williams, Western Illinois
OL Robert Brewster, Ball State
QB Stephen McGee, Texas A&M
LB Victor Butler, Oregon State
LB Brandon Williams, Texas Tech
DB DeAngelo Smith, Cincinnati
S Michael Hamlin, Clemson
K David Buehler, Southern Cal
LB Stephen Hodge, TCU
TE John Phillips, Virginia
CB Mike Mickens, Cincinnati
WR Manuel Johnson, Oklahoma
Undrafted Free Agents
G Travis Bright, BYU
QB Rudy Carpenter, Arizona State
WR Julian Hawkins, Boise State
TE/LS Jamar Hunt, Texas-El Paso
G Greg Isdainer, West Virginia
WR Kevin Ogletree, Virginia
FB Asaph Schwapp, Notre Dame
T Michael Turkovich, Notre Dame
First-Year Veterans
FB Julius Crosslin, Oklahoma State
DE Marcus Dixon, Hampton
G Ryan Gibbons, Northeastern
TE Rodney Hannah, Houston
RB Keon Lattimore, Maryland
LB Steve Octavien, Nebraska
C Matt Spanos, Southern Cal
DT Casey Tyler, Portland State
Home | Email | Print | Register for New Alerts | RSS
Josh Ellis - 
