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Training camp issues: Martellus Bennett's dedication shows
12:49 AM CDT on Sunday, August 22, 2010
By GERRY FRALEY / The Dallas Morning News
gfraley@dallasnews.com
SAN DIEGO – The Cowboys used their entire roster in Saturday night's 16-14 exhibition win against San Diego at Qualcomm Stadium. The end result was more knowledge about players who could play roles on this season's team.
The breakdown:
Martellus Bennett
Bennett made his long-awaited exhibition debut at tight end. He put his newfound dedication to the game on display.
Bennett caught four of the five passes thrown to him for 45 yards and one touchdown. The first catch came on the opening offensive play. The last three catches came during a fourth-quarter scoring drive engineered by backup quarterback Jon Kitna. Bennett ended the series with a leaping 19-yard scoring catch.
Bennett also blocked well, helping a makeshift line keep Tony Romo on his feet.
"It was just like practice, only against different guys," Bennett said. "It felt good to play well, but I have a lot more to do."
Patrick Crayton
Crayton was barely visible in the first half. He did not have a pass thrown to him. Romo threw eight passes to wide receivers: five to Miles Austin and three to Roy Williams. In three exhibitions, Crayton has had only five passes thrown to him, catching three.
Crayton also missed a chance for an explosive punt return in the second quarter. The blockers had created an opening, but Crayton could not get there. He picked up 15 yards on a return that could have gone for more.
Felix Jones
A slimmer and faster Marion Barber had 13 yards on three carries, pushing his exhibition totals to 25 yards on eight carries. That's Emmitt Smith-like compared to the stronger Jones.
He had 4 yards on three carries, putting him at 15 yards on six tries for the exhibition schedule. Jones had a chance to show his speed early in the second quarter but could not quite clear the corner and gained only 1 yard.
Montrae Holland
It was hard to notice Holland started at left guard in place of Kyle Kosier. For an offensive lineman, that is praise.
This was Holland's most extensive playing time since the final exhibition game last season. Holland, who did not appear in a regular-season game last year, had no penalties and was not noticeably beaten on any play. This was significant, because the Cowboys expect Kosier to miss the first two regular-season games because of a knee injury.
With Holland, the first line did not clear much running space. Barber and Jones combined for only 17 yards on six carries. The first line also did not allow a sack on 11 passing plays and kept Romo out of harm's way.
"Montrae played great," center Andre Gurode said. "We didn't have any problems. He's a good player."
Danny McCray
As a free safety, McCray is raw and prone to mistakes. As a special-teams player, McCray could have enough to force his way onto the team.
McCray made three tackles on punt coverage. Two came in the final five minutes. The Chargers had a total of 3 yards in returns on those two kicks.
McCray seemed to make a mistake in coverage on a 56-yard throw that set up the Chargers' second touchdown. Cornerback Cletis Gordon played as if he expected to get deep help on the play.
• • •
12:49 AM CDT on Sunday, August 22, 2010
By GERRY FRALEY / The Dallas Morning News
gfraley@dallasnews.com
SAN DIEGO – The Cowboys used their entire roster in Saturday night's 16-14 exhibition win against San Diego at Qualcomm Stadium. The end result was more knowledge about players who could play roles on this season's team.
The breakdown:
Martellus Bennett
Bennett made his long-awaited exhibition debut at tight end. He put his newfound dedication to the game on display.
Bennett caught four of the five passes thrown to him for 45 yards and one touchdown. The first catch came on the opening offensive play. The last three catches came during a fourth-quarter scoring drive engineered by backup quarterback Jon Kitna. Bennett ended the series with a leaping 19-yard scoring catch.
Bennett also blocked well, helping a makeshift line keep Tony Romo on his feet.
"It was just like practice, only against different guys," Bennett said. "It felt good to play well, but I have a lot more to do."
Patrick Crayton
Crayton was barely visible in the first half. He did not have a pass thrown to him. Romo threw eight passes to wide receivers: five to Miles Austin and three to Roy Williams. In three exhibitions, Crayton has had only five passes thrown to him, catching three.
Crayton also missed a chance for an explosive punt return in the second quarter. The blockers had created an opening, but Crayton could not get there. He picked up 15 yards on a return that could have gone for more.
Felix Jones
A slimmer and faster Marion Barber had 13 yards on three carries, pushing his exhibition totals to 25 yards on eight carries. That's Emmitt Smith-like compared to the stronger Jones.
He had 4 yards on three carries, putting him at 15 yards on six tries for the exhibition schedule. Jones had a chance to show his speed early in the second quarter but could not quite clear the corner and gained only 1 yard.
Montrae Holland
It was hard to notice Holland started at left guard in place of Kyle Kosier. For an offensive lineman, that is praise.
This was Holland's most extensive playing time since the final exhibition game last season. Holland, who did not appear in a regular-season game last year, had no penalties and was not noticeably beaten on any play. This was significant, because the Cowboys expect Kosier to miss the first two regular-season games because of a knee injury.
With Holland, the first line did not clear much running space. Barber and Jones combined for only 17 yards on six carries. The first line also did not allow a sack on 11 passing plays and kept Romo out of harm's way.
"Montrae played great," center Andre Gurode said. "We didn't have any problems. He's a good player."
Danny McCray
As a free safety, McCray is raw and prone to mistakes. As a special-teams player, McCray could have enough to force his way onto the team.
McCray made three tackles on punt coverage. Two came in the final five minutes. The Chargers had a total of 3 yards in returns on those two kicks.
McCray seemed to make a mistake in coverage on a 56-yard throw that set up the Chargers' second touchdown. Cornerback Cletis Gordon played as if he expected to get deep help on the play.
• • •