Cowboys' Ellis Defends Roy Williams

Dallas Cowboys linebacker Greg Ellis is tired of hearing people criticize teammate Roy Williams.

"As a teammate, I feel bad that people are saying Dallas needs to do something to Roy," Ellis said Thursday. "Is some of this stuff getting back to Roy? I don't know. My job is to defend him. I want Roy on this team. I know he wants to be on this team."

Williams may want to be on the Cowboys, he just doesn't want the ball thrown his way. Hence, the criticism.

Ellis also doesn't know why Williams works out before his teammates arrive at the team's facilities.

"I hate the fact he's isolated himself from the team," Ellis said. "I get there at 7:30 in the morning and Roy is leaving, man."

What does it say about a player who a.) openly admits that he doesn't want the ball thrown his way, b.) openly admits that he doesn't fit in the defense, and c.) isolates himself from his teammates at a time in the NFL calendar where teams are often bonding?

I don't know, but it's real easy to deduce that maybe Williams doesn't want to be a Dallas Cowboy anymore. Tim MacMahon discussed the cost of letting Williams go yesterday.

How did Williams make the Pro Bowl over Deon Grant last year?
NFL News and Notes

If the Cowboys want to add a wide receiver, it'll likely be in a player-for-player deal.

A pair of New York Giants rookie linebackers should be able to handle the classroom aspect of the NFL.

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb is concerned about how professional athletes are continually robbed in his hometown of Chicago.

Green Bay Packers rookie quarterback Brian Brohm didn't have a favorite team when he was growing up, he just watched the quarterbacks.

The Detroit Lions had excellent attendance during their OTA's. Lions wide receiver Roy Williams thought that he'd be traded this off-season.

Travis County released Chicago Bears running back Cedric Benson's booking video.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are not one of the two teams that are interested in giving wide receiver Chris Henry a tryout.

New Orleans Saints first-round defensive tackle Sedrick Ellis' goal is to play as soon as possible.

The Atlanta Falcons will hit the field for five mandatory mini-camp practices starting on Saturday.

Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren has lost 25 pounds this off-season, and told Jim Moore of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer that his weight-loss goal is "pretty ambitious". Clare Farnsworth writes that there are lot of "ifs" on the Seahawks offense and offers his first impressions of the free agents the Seahawks added this off-season.

Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic looks at what the Arizona Cardinals rookie contracts might look like in 2008.

Kevin Lynch of the Niners Insider reports on what the San Francisco 49ers first team offense and defenses looked like during last weekend's mini-camp.

The St. Louis Rams will begin a three-day mini-camp for veterans and rookies today. This will be the only Rams mini-camp this off-season.

Former New York Jets wide receiver Wayne Chrebet's restaurant has allegedly been targeted by police and fire marshals.

Miami Dolphins rookie quarterback Chad Henne missed some assignments during rookie mini-camp.

After being robbed in Chicago early Monday morning, Pittsburgh Steelers rookie running back Rashard Mendenhall will take more precautions in the future.

The agent for Shaun Alexander expects to be in contact with the Cincinnati Bengals today.

Baltimore Ravens cornerback Fabian Washington plans on proving that he's worth more than the 4th round pick Baltimore paid to acquire him from Oakland. The sleeper of the Ravens' draft class could be safety Haruki Nakamura, writes Mike Preston.

Tennessee Titans kicker Rod Bironas signed his one-year tender worth $1.47 million on Thursday. Titans running back LenDale White is excited about the addition of first-round running back Chris Johnson. (And baked goods.)

Houston Texans head coach Gary Kubiak moved up the team's mini-camp so that Alex Gibbs and Ray Rhodes can better evaluate players. The NFL's youngest offensive coordinator will step on the field today when the Texans open mini-camp.

Keeping all their talent will be hard for the San Diego Chargers to do.

After not having a Plan B when Josh Brown signed with St. Louis, the Kansas City Chiefs kicker situation is unsettled.

Oakland Raiders rookie mini-camp is underway.

SpyGate Zone

Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter remains skeptical about the NFL's immediate stance regarding the videotapes turned over by Matt Walsh.

Bud Shaw of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer writes that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell botched the SpyGate issue badly.

Tony Grossi writes that if Belichick was cheating back in his Cleveland days, why didn't it work as well back then?