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IRVING, Texas -- When the Cowboys pick up their second organized team activity of the offseason today at Valley Ranch, they won’t get a chance to see much of anything from their draft class.

First-round pick Morris Claiborne is recovering from left wrist surgery. Third-round pick Tyrone Crawford did not practice Tuesday because of a calf injury. Neither fourth rounder will be on the field: Kyle Wilber is out with a right index finger and Matt Johnson cannot attend the OTAs until Eastern Washington lets out school. And fifth-round pick Danny Coale will have surgery on his foot this week.

So what can you expect from the rookies in 2012?

Claiborne, Wilber and Coale will not get on the field until the end of July. While Crawford’s calf injury isn’t considered serious, missing time has to hurt at least a little. Johnson will have to play catch up when he returns in early June, but can he legitimately compete for a starting safety spot?

Maybe there’s a lesson to be learned from last summer when players were locked out.

Tyron Smith, last year’s No. 1 pick, was a Day 1 starter at right tackle and some observers wondered why he didn’t make the Pro Bowl. A lack of offseason didn’t seem to hurt him. Once DeMarco Murray, a third-round pick, became the featured back, he seemed fine too. Seventh rounder Bill Nagy was the opening day starter at left guard, although in part because there was a lack of options.

Clearly this is not the start the Cowboys wanted to have with their rookie class. They knew Claiborne would take some time to recover. The injuries to Crawford, Wilber and Coale are more bad luck. Johnson’s absence is more league protocol than anything else.

Coaches across the league have talked about the benefit of a normal offseason in 2012 with the league in labor peace but also murmured about the cut-back practice time thanks to the new collective bargaining agreement.

To be successful the Cowboys will need their rookies to be contributors, but now they might have to show more patience than they originally planned.

The Dallas Cowboys begin three weeks of organized team activities today at Valley Ranch. It's the first time the entire team will be available to the Cowboys coaches on the field since the 2011 season ended.

We tell you what's going on.

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Jenkins won't be here: Cornerback Mike Jenkins will not attend the three days of organized team activities. Yes, the OTAs are voluntary, but most, if not all, the players are expected to show up for the three-day teaching sessions. Jenkins, who is seeking a trade from the Cowboys, is irked somewhat by what's going on at the cornerback position. Brandon Carr and Morris Claiborne are the projected starters at corner, with Jenkins and Orlando Scandrick battling for the No. 3 cornerback position. Most of the people that matter at Valley Ranch have praised Jenkins' play last season, when he was tied for the team lead with 10 pass breakups while playing through shoulder, neck and knee issues. Without attending the sessions, it will be difficult to know far Jenkins has progressed from offseason shoulder surgery. Jenkins has attended only a handful of voluntary workouts at Valley Ranch.

Rookies will be here, too: If a rookie is not here, it's because school is still in session. One rookie who will attend the sessions but not participate is first-round pick Morris Claiborne. Claiborne is still recovering from left wrist surgery. He got three pins taken out recently and will wear a soft cast. He said he wants to be ready for the veteran minicamp, but it's doubtful if the team will allow that. Expect Claiborne to get a majority of practice reps when training camp starts in late July.

Who is injured? Let's see, Jenkins and Claiborne won't get any work in. DeMarco Murray (ankle) said he's 100 percent and should be a full participant in the sessions, though it wouldn't surprise any if he was limited. Bill Nagy (ankle), Raymond Radway (leg), Barry Church (shoulder), and Phillip Tanner (hamstring) finished the season on injured reserve and will get a chance to work out fully. Newly-signed guard Mackenzy Bernadeau (hip) will not be available to work out because of his recent surgery. Bernadeau won't be around until the second week of training camp. Also, fourth-round pick Kyle Wilber (finger) will not be around due to his surgery. He should be ready for training camp.

No media access until Wednesday: The media has access only one day, Wednesday, so please don't ask how certain players are doing today because we won't know. The media will speak with certain players and coaches once a week for the next three weeks during OTAs.

Notes: There were no OTAs last year because of the lockout and defensive coordinator Rob Ryan said that led to rushed teachings of his defensive scheme once the players were allowed to attend training camp. With OTAs and minicamps, Ryan can take a more measured approach to teaching his 3-4 scheme. ... Much has been made about leadership this offseason. It will be interesting to see who is the most vocal on the practice fields among the players. ... With Jenkins and Claiborne out, reps at corner will start with Carr and Scandrick.

During a podcast with NFL Network's Rich Eisen scheduled to air Thursday, The Triplets -- Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin -- talked about the 20th anniversary of the 1992 Super Bowl title, the first for Jerry Jones, and various other subjects.

Smith, the Hall of Famer and NFL's career leading rusher with 18,355 yards, likes the Cowboys' running backs but made some interesting comments about backup Felix Jones.

"And then when you look at the running back corps, they have two good guys – very good guys – and either one of them can shoulder the load and shoulder the burden at any point in time," Smith said. "We need Felix Jones to step up because we know DeMarco Murray can make it happen. We need Felix to step up a little bit – that’s a true statement."

Now, let's repeat, Smith said the Cowboys, "have two good guys, very good guys" as running backs. Yet his comments about Jones are worth looking into.

When you look back on that 2008 draft, we can think about at least five running backs selected after Jones who have produced better numbers. Jones has rushed for 2,326 yards on 458 carries. He's got only eight rushing touchdowns. By the way the five backs we thought about were Rashard Mendenhall, Chris Johnson, Matt Forte, Ray Rice and Jamaal Charles. When the Cowboys drafted Jones, it was mainly to back up Marion Barber.

But do you really waste a first-round pick on a backup?

Jones is a terrific running back, someone who can make defenders miss in space. He doesn't have the speed of, say, Johnson, but he's a running back who is hard to chase down at times.

The Cowboys have always described Jones as a complementary back and with good reason. He backed up Barber since he came into the NFL and when given the chance to become the full-time starter last season, he lost the gig to DeMarco Murray due to injury.

Jones has played 16 games in a season only once in his career.

Yes, running back is a tough position and few teams go with just one back, but Jones' durability is something that has been an issue for him throughout his career.

And as he enters the final year of his contract, you begin to wonder if he'll get a second deal with the Cowboys.

Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray calls into SportsCenter to provide an update on the status of his ankle and discuss the team's outlook for 2012.

Cowboys lead running back DeMarco Murray told a crowd in San Antonio on Sunday that, "I'm back 100 percent."

The quote comes from the San Antonio Express-News, who covered the Cowboys' Fan Fest, a marketing event designed to keep the team's name alive in their former training camp home. The Cowboys will have training camp in Oxnard, Calif., this summer.

Dez Bryant, Sean Lee, Miles Austin and Murray attended the Fan Fest.

Murray suffered a fractured ankle in a loss to the New York Giants on Dec. 11, ending a fantastic rookie season. Murray saying he's 100 percent should be viewed as good news for Cowboys fans. He's expected to participate some at the veteran minicamp next month.

Murray, who led the Cowboys with 897 rushing yards in 2011, said he's enjoying the voluntary offseason conditioning program led by strength and conditioning coach Mike Woicik.

"Mike Woicik has been great to work with," Murray said. "In college, usually everyone did the same type of program. But here it's more position specific. I definitely feel better prepared."

Here's more from the event.

The NFL announced recently that teams can have up to 90 players on their roster heading into training camp.

With the Cowboys adding cornerback Akwasi Owusu-Ansah on Tuesday, they have 88 players on their roster and more are on the way as the team is expected to sign some players who tried out last weekend at Valley Ranch.

But the free-agency period is still ongoing and it begs a question: Should the Cowboys sign a veteran free agent?

We look at three positions that could use a veteran.

Wide receiver: The starters are Dez Bryant and Miles Austin, talented and explosive players. The No. 3 receiver is uncertain. There's a gaggle of players battling for the final three receiver spots, leading with the underachieving Kevin Ogletree, but the Cowboys drafted Danny Coale from Virginia Tech in the fifth round as a possible slot receiver. Signing a veteran could help bolster this unit, considering how Bryant and Austin battled injuries last season. Patrick Crayton comes to mind, but it's doubtful the Cowboys would go back to the talkative receiver, especially after he asked for a trade when Bryant was drafted. Jerheme Urban is another possibility but it's not known if the Cowboys like his skill set.

Running back: This position, like wide receiver, is a strength for the Cowboys. DeMarco Murray and Felix Jones are a solid 1-2 punch. Phillip Tanner can play special teams and get some snaps as a No. 3 runner, but all three running backs were injured at some point last year. Murray didn't finish the season, needing surgery to repair a broken ankle. You can't have four running backs on the roster, yet signing someone such as Patrick Cobbs (North Texas) to mainly play special teams and become an insurance policy might be a good move. Ronnie Brown, a former first-round pick, while he might not play special teams, is someone to look at too.

Punter: Chris Jones is the favorite to win the job, but Mat McBriar, who is a free agent, is recovering from leg surgery. There's some uncertainty regarding McBriar's availability for teams, because some might want him to prove he can punt after recovering from surgery. McBriar should be ready to kick in training camp. Daniel Sepulveda (Baylor) punted with Pittsburgh last season and in eight games had a 40.6 net average. If Jones struggles and McBriar is unavailable due to health or signing with another team, getting a veteran such as Sepulveda might be worthwhile.

IRVING, Texas -- A couple of notes from two days of news conferences at Valley Ranch.

* There are no new talks involving the team and outside linebacker Anthony Spencer. He signed his $8.8 million franchise tag Monday and reported to the voluntary workouts at Valley Ranch. However, team executive vice president Stephen Jones did say of any contract talks, " No, but they can happen fast."

* Running back DeMarco Murray (ankle) and wide receiver Raymond Radway (leg) are progressing in their recovery from surgeries. Coach Jason Garrett said he expects to see Murray and Radway work out with the team for the veteran minicamps in June, though it hasn't been determined if those two players will be limited in any way.

* In the last two drafts, the Cowboys picked up starters from the first round in Dez Bryant (2010) and Tyron Smith (2011). Sean Lee (second-round pick in 2010) moved into the starting lineup last season and Bruce Carter (2011 second rounder) is expected to compete for a starting role this year. Can it happen again? "But your expectations are certainly first-and second-round players are starters for you sooner rather than later," Garrett said.

* Nice retirement ceremony for tackle Marc Colombo on Wednesday. He rarely spoke with reporters but was polite and always had time to talk Red Sox and Celtics. "He's inspirational," Garrett said, adding later, "A damn good football player." You hope a similar thing can be done for former center Andre Gurode and inside linebacker Bradie James whenever they decide to retire, if they want to retire as Cowboys, which was the case for Colombo.

* Tom Ciskowski, assistant director of player personnel, said the Cowboys don't have any holes and when asked to expound on it said, "Well, I look at our team and what we’re hopefully going to draft over the next three days to upgrade, like I mentioned earlier. But we’ve got some depth at some positions and I just think even we’re not drafting today we can go play tomorrow. And I think Jerry [Jones] alluded to that that we’re just going to try and find the best football players that we can regardless of the position to help us."

IRVING, Texas – The Cowboys have four picks in the top 113, and with those selections Jason Garrett hopes to land three eventual starters and a solid role player.

“Our objective independent of this year would be to in the first round, the second round and the third round have guys who can be starting players for you,” Garrett said. “Now, are they Day 1 starters? You can’t say that. Nobody can say that, but at some point in their careers you would like to think that they’re a starter, and the sooner the better. Now, if you can get in the fourth round and start getting a starter player, maybe he’s a younger player who needs time to develop but can be a starter down the road, you get four of them. Or maybe that fourth-round player is a [special] teams’ guy. Maybe he has a particular role and will never be an every-down player but he has a role for you that’s fairly defined.

“And then when you get in the fifth, sixth and seventh [rounds], I think you’re looking for players with special traits. Again, maybe a role for your team or maybe a guy who isn’t ready to play but maybe has the measurables and the makeup and you think down the road can be a player for you in a given role or maybe even as a starter. But your expectations are certainly first- and second-round players are starters for you sooner rather than later. You would like to be able to say that about the third round or a really defined role and the fourth round starts to get a little bit different than that, but we’re all optimistic enough or maybe naïve enough to think that we can judge these players and order them in a certain way that they can help our football team in some way, shape or form as starters or as significant role players now or in the future.”

Using that criteria, the Cowboys' projected starting lineup in 2012 has 10 starters picked by the Cowboys from Rounds 1-3: Dez Bryant (2010), Tyron Smith (2011), Jason Witten (2003), DeMarco Murray (2011), Jason Hatcher (2006), Anthony Spencer (2007), Sean Lee (2010), DeMarcus Ware (2005) Bruce Carter (2011) and Mike Jenkins (2007). The fourth round led the Cowboys to Doug Free (2006) and the seventh round led to Jay Ratliff (2005).

Felix Jones and Marcus Spears, first rounders in 2007 and '05 respectively, should play large roles in sub packages.

Players will begin arriving at Valley Ranch today for the start of the voluntary offseason workouts. It's a three-phase, nine-week program.

This is the first time Cowboys players will be around the complex on a consistent basis since the end of the regular season. However, under the new rules of the collective bargaining agreement, Jason Garrett and the rest of the coaches can't be around the players for the next two weeks in phase one of the program.

Only the strength and conditioning staff, led by coach Mike Woicik can be around the players.

A few things of note:

1. Anthony Spencer. He's been franchised at $8.8 million and it's not known if he'll show up to the voluntary workouts. He doesn't have to because he's not under contract and it's voluntary. Miles Austin, who was given a first-and-third-round tender in 2009, didn't initially show up for the voluntary workouts but eventually did. (UPDATE: Spencer did not attend Monday's workouts.)

2. DeMarco Murray. The starting running back is recovering from ankle surgery and it's a chance for Woicik and his staff to get a look at how his rehab program is going and to judge how much running he should be doing.

3. Chemistry. Some say this is overrated, but there's nothing wrong with being around your teammates on the practice fields for the first time since the 2011 regular season ended. Tony Romo mentioned during last year's lockout how the practices at a local high school bonded the team. It doesn't mean more victories are coming for the Cowboys, but building relationships on and off the field are important.

The second phase of the offseason is three weeks where Garrett and the staff are permitted to work with players on individual drills. No helmets or physical contact is allowed during this phase.

The third phase is four weeks of organized team activities. Players can work out with coaches for three days per week for a stretch and then four days a week. Helmets are OK, but no pads.

Of course there will be the rookie minicamp following the NFL Draft, which is April 26-28. In mid-June, the Cowboys will also have a minicamp with the entire team.

IRVING, Texas -- As the Cowboys look toward 2012, running back Felix Jones figures to play a prominent role.

Responding to an ESPN Dallas story on Tuesday that stated the team had “internal discussions” about trading Jones, executive vice president Stephen Jones said, “No discussions – or speculation – on the possibility of a trade involving Felix Jones have ever taken place among individuals in this organization who would have the authority to explore such a scenario. Any reports of apparent internal discussions along those lines would involve people who have no input or relevance in the process.”

Jones, one of the team’s two first-round picks in 2008, is entering the final year of his contract.

He missed four games in 2011 with a high ankle sprain and finished the year with 575 yards on 125 carries and one touchdown. He had three 100-yard games, including back-to-back efforts in December after regaining the every-down back role following DeMarco Murray's broken ankle. Jones also caught 33 passes for 221 yards.

Call me Pineapple.

I don't think they're trying to rub anything in, but the Power Rankings voters have convened for an offseason edition of our popular feature, and four of the five have the New York Giants ranked at the top. Their reasoning, I have discovered after an unscientific poll, is that the Giants are the defending Super Bowl champs, and barring any major personnel losses, you're always supposed to rank the defending champs No. 1 in the first poll of the new year. I'll buy that, and truthfully there's not another team that I believe has a completely convincing claim on the spot. Sure, they only won nine regular-season games while the Patriots won 13 and the Packers won 15. But there's no reason to think the Giants won't be contenders again for the Super Bowl next season, along with several of the teams in this poll's top 10, and probably a couple in the bottom 10. (Who saw the 49ers coming last year?)

Anyway, as usual, Power Rankings are a harmless debate point, intended to spark discussion, and so I'll let you know what I think and you can take it from there.

1. Giants: As I said, sure, they could be great again. They have the quarterback, and the receivers, and the pass rush. And while there are issues to address on the offensive line and in the running game, they feel good about their ability to address them. And who am I to doubt but a humbled pineapple?

12. Philadelphia Eagles: Obviously, the hopes in Philadelphia are that the 2012 version of the Eagles will finish much higher in the rankings than this. And there's reason to consider them the Giants' strongest challenger in the NFC East. But we've all been burned before, by basically this same group, so it's perfectly understandable for the voters to wait for the Eagles to prove themselves.

14. Dallas Cowboys: They finished in the middle of the 2011 pack, so they start 2012 in the middle as well. It's far too early to know what to expect from the Cowboys, who have made great strides in free agency, but have work to do before they convince us the defense can hold it together for a full season this time. The offense should be fine, especially as long as DeMarco Murray returns. But it's that defense that we just never know about in Dallas these days.

25. Washington Redskins. Optimism in Washington is much higher than such a ranking reflects, and I'm sure Redskins fans are looking as far as 10 spots up the list and thinking their team, behind Robert Griffin III, has a chance to be better than a lot of the teams in front of them. And it does. But the guy's still going to be a rookie quarterback, and that can go either way. Again, it's hard to blame the voters for wanting to see it first.

We're not sure what the Dallas Cowboys are going to do when the draft comes around in late April, but we've seen positive things in the first three days of free agency.

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It started with cornerback Brandon Carr and his five-year $50.1 million deal. Carr is an upgrade over Terence Newman, who struggled the last two months of the season.

Carr can play man-to-man, and the Cowboys believe he can make plays on the ball, something that was missing in the Cowboys' secondary last year.

You can say the Cowboys overpaid for Carr, but his contract is what the market pays.

An undervalued position is fullback and the team got the better player in signing Lawrence Vickers from the Houston Texans. There was much praise for Tony Fiammetta's work in 2011. But a hamstring and later an inner ear infection cost him games. The Cowboys want players who play, not players who sit in the trainers' room.

Vickers is a physical presence who the team will use 10-to-14 snaps a game. If DeMarco Murray and Felix Jones loved how Fiammetta blocked, wait until they see Vickers.

Jon Kitna was past his prime and his back issues forced him to retire. Stephen McGee just isn't a No. 2 quarterback in this league. So the Cowboys did the right thing by signing Kyle Orton, a player the team laid a claim on last season.

Orton has been a starter in the NFL, and Garrett said he's confident he can win games with him if Tony Romo gets injured.

Another solid pickup was inside linebacker Dan Connor. He replaces aging veterans Keith Brooking and Bradie James to back up Sean Lee. He's not going to start, Bruce Carter is the future, but one thing Garrett likes to have on his team is competition. If Connor challenges Carter for a starting job, then so be it.

The Cowboys also gained younger and more experienced players along the offensive line in signing Nate Livings and Mackenzy Bernadeau.

Depth along the offensive line is improved.

So all that's left in the draft is to find the best player available.

The Cowboys, despite signing Brodney Pool, could draft a safety and maybe a wide receiver in the first two days of the draft.

Things are looking up at Valley Ranch as the offseason moves get under way.

IRVING, Texas – Tony Fiammetta quickly became something of a legend last year as the Cowboys’ lead blocker for DeMarco Murray.

It seemed the move to a more traditional fullback helped open up avenues for the running game that the Cowboys did not have with their tight ends serving as blockers. And the stats backed up the thought.

But Fiammetta could not stay healthy. He missed five games last year. He missed eight games in his first two seasons with Carolina.

As much as the Cowboys wanted to keep him, they did not want to pay him $1.26 million as a restricted free agent. They had talks with his agent about a multi-year contract that would have been more cap friendly but when one did not materialize they decided not to tender him a contract.

That made Fiammetta free to sign elsewhere but it also made the Cowboys free to shop elsewhere.

They signed Lawrence Vickers to a two-year deal Wednesday, leaving him unemployed for not long after Houston cut him. Vickers is older (he turns 29 in May) but he’s bigger and he has shown to be more durable. He has missed just two games in the last three years in opening holes for Peyton Hillis in Cleveland and Arian Foster last year.

The decision to sign Vickers shows that Jason Garrett believes there is something to having a true fullback on the game-day roster.

But it also comes at a cost and the Cowboys did not want to overpay for a guy that would play 15 or so snaps a game.

The Cowboys had plans to offer a tender to only one restricted free agent, fullback Tony Fiammetta.

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That has now changed according to a source, because the team is now working on a new multi-year contract with Fiammetta.

The Cowboys were expected to give Fiammetta a tender offer of $1.26 million, which would also give the team the right of first refusal. If a team matched the tender, the Cowboys would pick up a fourth-round pick because that's the round Fiammetta was drafted in by Carolina in 2009.

Fiammetta played in 10 games last season, but he was viewed as a valuable asset to the running game. Starting running back DeMarco Murray praised the blocking of Fiammetta during the season.

A health scare cost Fiammetta three games in late November/early December. He was diagnosed with an inner-ear infection. There was some uncertainty about bringing Fiammetta back due to this health issue, but once the Cowboys' medical staff deemed Fiammetta was physically fit to play, the team felt it best to bring him back long-term.

Before free agency starts, we've decided to give you the base salaries and cap numbers for the projected returning members of the Cowboys.

These financial figures might change next week as the Cowboys begin the process of restructuring deals to get more cap room.

Have fun.



Notes: Miles Austin and DeMarcus Ware restructured their deals to lower their cap numbers for 2011 and Tony Romo restructured his deal last season to get lower cap numbers for 2011 and 2012. The following players are due either roster, workout or option bonuses this year: Ware ($500,000 workout), Ratliff ($500,000 workout), Bryant ($1.4 million roster and $250,000 workout), Coleman ($100,000 workout), Carter ($50,000 workout), Murray (25,000 workout), Lee ($510,000 roster), Arkin ($20,000 workout), Chapas ($7,000 workout) and Harris ($10,000 workout). Tyron Smith gets $3.7 million from deferred money on March 15. Anthony Spencer was tagged at $8.8 million but he hasn't signed the tender yet.

The following players enter the 2012 season in the last year of their contracts: Felix Jones, Kenyon Coleman, Mike Jenkins, LP Ladouceur, Stephen McGee, Victor Butler, David Buehler, John Phillips, Barry Church, Phil Costa and Danny McCray.