April, 15, 2013
By Calvin Watkins | ESPNDallas.com
The Cowboys begin voluntary offseason workouts today at Valley Ranch.
Most players worked out prior to Monday or were rehabbing injuries.
Here's a primer:
Who runs the program?: Mike Woicik, the Cowboys strength and conditioning coach, has a program in place for every player. Lifting, running, eating (if necessary) is designed for every player. Woicik, who has won Super Bowl titles with the New England Patriots and Dallas Cowboys, monitors every players weight. There were numerous hamstring injuries last season, including from safety Matt Johnson, who missed the entire season because of it. You could blame the hamstring injuries on how the players are getting trained, bad luck or the players themselves. Miles Austin has endured hamstring injuries his entire career, so you can't blame Woicik for that. Coach Jason Garrett said you have to protect Austin from himself sometimes and he needs to have communication with the strength and conditioning staff to let them know how his leg feels.
The media: We're not allowed at Valley Ranch today, so please don't ask about how the workouts are going, because reporters are banned from the facility. The next time reporters will be allowed at Valley Ranch is for the predraft news conference with owner/general manager Jerry Jones.
The injured: The Cowboys endured numerous injuries last season and some players have recovered to begin workouts. Among the players who were injured last season: Chris Jones (knee), Orlando Scandrick (hand), Barry Church (Achilles), Sean Lee (toe), Bruce Carter (elbow), Caleb McSurdy (Achilles), Orie Lemon (hamstring), Dez Bryant (finger), Phil Costa (ankle), Ben Bass (ankle), Donavon Kemp (knee) and DeMarcus Ware (shoulder).
What does voluntary mean?": Well it means a player isn't required to show up to workout and be in the offseason program of lifting weights and running. However, there have been times when players didn't show up at Valley Ranch. The latest example was Mike Jenkins last year who didn't arrive at Valley Ranch during the voluntary period as he recovered from shoulder surgery. Jenkins was irked by the Cowboys 2012 offseason moves where they signed cornerback Brandon Carr and drafted Morris Claiborne. Jenkins eventually showed up, at the mandatory period, so he wouldn't get fined. Austin also failed to showup at voluntary workouts after he was franchised by the team a few years ago. When several teammates, including quarterback Tony Romo noted Austin's absence, he arrived.
Who gets paid?: Some NFL players get a financial incentive to begin offseason workouts while others could lose if they don't complete the programs. We review some of the Cowboys' players: Ware gets a $500,000 workout bonus, Mackenzy Bernadeau loses $250,000 if he fails to complete the workout program, Bryant gets $250,000, Jason Hatcher loses $250,000, Jermey Parnell gets $100,000, Carter earns $50,00 Lawrence Vickers loses $100,000, DeMarco Murray gets $25,000, Tyrone Crawford ($10,000), David Arkin ($20,000) and Dwayne Harris ($10,000) pick up extra money for the workouts.
Mandatory time: The Cowboys will have a mandatory minicamp on June 11-13.
By Calvin Watkins | ESPNDallas.com
The Cowboys begin voluntary offseason workouts today at Valley Ranch.
Most players worked out prior to Monday or were rehabbing injuries.
Here's a primer:
Who runs the program?: Mike Woicik, the Cowboys strength and conditioning coach, has a program in place for every player. Lifting, running, eating (if necessary) is designed for every player. Woicik, who has won Super Bowl titles with the New England Patriots and Dallas Cowboys, monitors every players weight. There were numerous hamstring injuries last season, including from safety Matt Johnson, who missed the entire season because of it. You could blame the hamstring injuries on how the players are getting trained, bad luck or the players themselves. Miles Austin has endured hamstring injuries his entire career, so you can't blame Woicik for that. Coach Jason Garrett said you have to protect Austin from himself sometimes and he needs to have communication with the strength and conditioning staff to let them know how his leg feels.
The media: We're not allowed at Valley Ranch today, so please don't ask about how the workouts are going, because reporters are banned from the facility. The next time reporters will be allowed at Valley Ranch is for the predraft news conference with owner/general manager Jerry Jones.
The injured: The Cowboys endured numerous injuries last season and some players have recovered to begin workouts. Among the players who were injured last season: Chris Jones (knee), Orlando Scandrick (hand), Barry Church (Achilles), Sean Lee (toe), Bruce Carter (elbow), Caleb McSurdy (Achilles), Orie Lemon (hamstring), Dez Bryant (finger), Phil Costa (ankle), Ben Bass (ankle), Donavon Kemp (knee) and DeMarcus Ware (shoulder).
What does voluntary mean?": Well it means a player isn't required to show up to workout and be in the offseason program of lifting weights and running. However, there have been times when players didn't show up at Valley Ranch. The latest example was Mike Jenkins last year who didn't arrive at Valley Ranch during the voluntary period as he recovered from shoulder surgery. Jenkins was irked by the Cowboys 2012 offseason moves where they signed cornerback Brandon Carr and drafted Morris Claiborne. Jenkins eventually showed up, at the mandatory period, so he wouldn't get fined. Austin also failed to showup at voluntary workouts after he was franchised by the team a few years ago. When several teammates, including quarterback Tony Romo noted Austin's absence, he arrived.
Who gets paid?: Some NFL players get a financial incentive to begin offseason workouts while others could lose if they don't complete the programs. We review some of the Cowboys' players: Ware gets a $500,000 workout bonus, Mackenzy Bernadeau loses $250,000 if he fails to complete the workout program, Bryant gets $250,000, Jason Hatcher loses $250,000, Jermey Parnell gets $100,000, Carter earns $50,00 Lawrence Vickers loses $100,000, DeMarco Murray gets $25,000, Tyrone Crawford ($10,000), David Arkin ($20,000) and Dwayne Harris ($10,000) pick up extra money for the workouts.
Mandatory time: The Cowboys will have a mandatory minicamp on June 11-13.
