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RECENT NEWS:IRVING, Texas - Saturday's second preseason game against the Denver Broncos game has varied significance for the 22 rookies on the Cowboys' current 85-man training camp roster.Draft picks like Nick Folk, Deon Anderson and Alan Ball are auditioning for jobs. Fourth-round pick Isaiah Stanback and rookie free agent Alonzo Coleman simply need reps after missing most of camp with injuries, though Coleman's roster-making odds appear long.Then there's Anthony Spencer, the third linebacker taken in the first round by the Cowboys in as many years. No rookie needs to be more game-ready for the Sept. 9 season opener against the Giants than Spencer, whether Greg Ellis is on the field with him or not.Denver presents yet another tune-up at Texas Stadium."I feel like they're counting on me right now," Spencer said, knowing expectations wouldn't be much different if Ellis was 100 percent healthy. "I don't think it'll change from the season to right now."Spencer will make his second consecutive start at outside linebacker in place of Ellis, who is still sidelined by the heel soreness which developed July 25 in his first practice back from last November's season-ending Achilles tear. The Cowboys consider Ellis day-to-day at this point, and head coach Wade Phillips believes the 10th-year veteran could return to practice very soon.Phillips says he isn't ready to make any "if-not" contingency plans for Ellis' potential absence come Sept. 9. But if Ellis isn't back, the Cowboys' starting defense will look just like the group taking the field Saturday night - with Spencer lined up opposite DeMarcus Ware.Ware, the Cowboys' top pick in 2005, made Spencer's transition from 4-3 college defensive end to 3-4 outside linebacker. He, too, had to learn how to read defenses and wear many different hats, from playing the run, to dropping into coverage or re-routing receivers, to doing what was second-nature in college - rushing the passer.Spencer said he hadn't played linebacker - inside, mind you, not outside - since his sophomore year at Bishop Luers High School in Fort Wayne, Ind."Not the same at all," he laughed.He did drop into coverage often during his first two years at Purdue because the scheme called for a lot of zone blitzing. But like Ware and Ellis, who switched from defensive end after eight years in the league, Spencer is learning the versatility of his new position."When you're playing as a defensive end, you have your hand on the ground, you see the guy in front of you and you play off what he does," said Phillips, who knows a thing or two about converting ends to linebackers (see Shawne Merriman). "But outside 'backer has to see a lot of different things. He has to see the backs, he has to see the tight ends and a lot of different things."That's the first thing with them: Vision and who to look at, who to focus on, where things are going and what he has to do and how he reacts to those things."Spencer says he's already becoming more instinctive once the ball is snapped. Last Thursday's preseason opener against the Colts and this week's joint practices with Denver offered a nice gauge of his progress.The next step comes Saturday (7 p.m. CDT) against the Broncos' perennially powerful running game, which will test Spencer's ability in run support."He has good sense," Cowboys linebackers coach Paul Pasqualoni said after practice this week. "He has a good feel for football and when you put concepts and coverage up on the board, he does well. He understands it. Now the whole trick in this thing is taking it from the meeting room out there. That's the whole trick and he's done that good."Now it's a matter of taking it from this field and bringing to the game field where everything is going 100 miles an hour and the team's not huddling on you and you're getting the call at the last second. He certainly has a ways to go, but he's certainly working at it and going in the right direction."And as Spencer adjusts to his new surroundings, Ellis continues to wait patiently for his chance to practice again.It hasn't been easy, despite the team's opinion that his return could be swift.The 32-year-old has at times feared the worst, that perhaps last year's game against Arizona was the last of his career. Ellis' spirits improved considerably this week, though he doesn't want to set a timetable for his return."I want to be out there definitely for New York, so it's just frustrating to know I may not," Ellis said. "Not to say I definitely won't be out there. I want to be out there and the plans are for me to be out there in some capacity, but it's just not going the way I want this to go, obviously."I think this team can do something special this year and I want to be a part of it. That's the pressure I'm putting on myself and that's where the frustration comes in. Just got to be patient, just wait and give it time."Until then, Spencer's learning curve continues.Terrence Newman.IRVING, Texas - When it comes to respect, Terence Newman has plenty of it to go around when talking about Denver's Champ Bailey.The Cowboys cornerback admits Bailey is the best corner in the NFL. In terms of press coverage and reading quarterbacks, Newman said no one does it quite like him.So as Newman and his teammates get an up-close look at Bailey this week with the Cowboys and Broncos practicing here at Valley Ranch, certainly he would like to pattern his game around Denver's six-time Pro Bowler, right?Not exactly."No, I want to be better than Champ," Newman said. "You definitely take stuff from all the corners in the league that are the top guys. But you don't want to be them - you want to be better than them."So if that's Newman's goal this year, it's quite lofty, considering Bailey has been considered the best cornerback in the NFL for several years now.Like Newman, Bailey rarely gets many passes thrown his way. But still, he winds up getting his share of interceptions.Last season, Bailey had a career-high 10 interceptions, topping the eight passes he picked off in 2005. While Denver took some heat for trading away Clinton Portis to the Redskins for Bailey, he hasn't disappointed, picking off 21 passes in three years with the club.And that's where Newman knows he needs to be.Newman said one of the differences is the scheme Denver plays, compared to what the Cowboys have done in recent years.Bailey rarely is used in press coverage at the line of scrimmage anymore because the Broncos play more zone defense, allowing their cornerbacks to keep receivers in front of them, and then make plays on the ball."He used to be one of the best press corners in the league, but now they don't press at all," Newman said of Bailey. "It's different to take that aspect (from him). They play a totally different technique than us. But just the fact that he knows the game so much. He knows exactly what's going to happen. That's what I want to get to."While his feet might be as quick as Bailey's and his coverage skills could be the same or even better, Newman is certainly lacking when it comes to stats.Newman has just 12 interceptions in four years, including a career-low one last season."That's really the biggest difference that I see between them," Cowboys defensive coordinator Brian Stewart said. "Newman just doesn't have the same stats. And that's what he needs if he wants to be considered one of the best."Newman said if he had to name one cornerback as the NFL's elite, he would say Bailey, though he said there are a handful of others, including himself, who aren't far behind.But he ranks Bailey first, stating his preparation and understanding of his position sets him above the rest."He's smart. He knows how to read quarterbacks and receivers," Newman said. "But the same things that makes him great, also makes him vulnerable. Double-moves are a big thing against him because he's reading the cornerback and he's reading so many things, so once he goes, he goes. I'm definitely not that great at reading quarterbacks, so I can take some things from him."Bailey was able to do the same early in his career. In fact, he had the good fortune of playing alongside arguably the NFL's best cornerback of all-time for a season. In his second year in the league, Bailey was joined by Deion Sanders in Washington for the 2000 season."He was a guy I looked up to when I got to the league," Bailey said of Sanders. "I had the privilege of playing with him. So I definitely picked his brain a little bit. I still do to his day."Sanders, who actually was present for Thursday's practice at Valley Ranch, played for five different teams in his career, including five seasons with the Cowboys from 1995-99.But when asked to compare his game to Sanders, Bailey had only one major difference."We're about the same, but obviously, I tackle a little bit better than him," Bailey said. "And I'm sure he'll co-sign on that."While Bailey is certainly confident in his own game, he's not above giving credit when it's due, and he threw a little Newman's way on Thursday."He gets out there and gets in everyone's' face," Bailey said of Newman. "He hasn't had a problem with any receiver that I've seen. That says a lot about a cornerback because there are a lot of good receivers in this league."Bailey has expressed those thoughts to Newman face-to-face."One of the greatest things that happened to me was when we played those guys on Thanksgiving," Newman said of the Cowboys' Turkey Day meeting with the Broncos in 2005. "(Bailey) saw how I played the game and said, 'Hey, you should be in Hawaii this year.' I didn't make it, but the fact that he said that . . ."Newman knows he might have let a Pro Bowl opportunity slip through his fingers in that game when he dropped an interception that not only would've resulted in a Cowboys touchdown, but probably would've led to a victory. Instead, the Cowboys lost in overtime, 24-21.Newman knows he can't afford to waste many opportunities like that. He agreed the lack of passes thrown his way result in a lack of interceptions, which ultimately result in a lack of league-wide attention, and that could be a reason why he hasn't made the Pro Bowl in his four years in the league."You could say that, but at the same time, I'd rather get to the Hall of Fame," Newman said. "For me, that'd be much better than getting to the Pro Bowl. Because I know what I can do on the field. These guys know what I can do. Those (receivers) know what I can do."And not just any receivers, but the best ones, too. In years past, the Cowboys have not been afraid to let Newman shadow some of the best receivers all over the field. Newman has gone toe-to-toe with the likes of Steve Smith, Marvin Harrison, Torry Holt and even Terrell Owens when he played in Philadelphia.No one has to tell Newman how well he's performed. He already knows."I didn't give up a touchdown in '05, and in '06 I gave up two or three," Newman said. "Guys that were giving up 10, 12 touchdowns made it (to the Pro Bowl). It's not for me to decide. All I can do is just try to keep making plays."And that's not exactly limited to the cornerback position. Newman likely will get a chance to return punts again this year, and maybe even more than that.Newman often runs through receiver drills in practices and said he will always lobby with the coaching staff to get a few snaps on the offensive side of the ball."I don't know. We'll have to wait and see," Newman said with a big grin. "I'm always lobbying. If it happens, it happens. But if you're a playmaker and you're not doing much on defense, why not try to play some offense."Not a bad question, considering that's what teams do with playmakers. The Bears are doing it this year with return specialist Devin Hester. And Bailey has even tried his hand at receiver with both Washington and Denver."I always want to do it," Newman said. "But we've got some pretty good receivers here in T.O, and (Terry Glenn). So, we'll have to see."But while Newman waits for the day and the opportunity to dabble at wide receiver, he can just continue to improve his craft of stopping them.Whether he gets ample credit for it or not.
