Camp begins without Irvin; Jones not worried AUSTIN - The Dallas Cowboys opened defense of their Super Bowl championship
Wednesday without Michael Irvin and without any clue as to when he would
return.
Irvin, who was involved in a high-profile drug case in Dallas after his
arrest in March, pleaded no contest Monday to felony drug possession charges.
He was sentenced to probation and 800 hours of community service on Tuesday.
But he dropped a bomb on team officials when he announced that he wouldn't
be at training camp when it opened Wednesday. Instead, he said, he would
return to Miami with his family and assess his situation.
And, true to his word, Irvin wasn't anywhere near the St. Edward's University
campus when his teammates began reporting for training camp.
Irvin, owner Jerry Jones and head coach Barry Switzer met Tuesday night
to dicuss his decision, but didn't give either man a timetable as to when
he might return.
"The feeling I got after discussing it with Michael was that's it's
not anything to be concerned about," Jones said of Irvin's absence.
"The time he'll spend with his family is in his best interests.
"We should all be able to see that the time Michael will spend with
his family will be beneficial to him," he said. "We do - on a
personal basis - support that very much."
While Irvin's plea of no contest has helped avoid any jail time, he could
still face some sort of punishment by the National Football League. He could
be severely fined or suspended from anywhere from four games to a full season.
But Jones said he doesn't have any indication as to when the league's ruling
will come down. When it does, Jones said, he doesn't expect the decision
by commissioner Paul Tagliabue to have been influenced in any way the team's
legal troubles with the NFL.
"The process we have in place for dealing with players is a good one,"
Jones said. "I know first-hand how fairly Paul Tagliabue has handled
player situations in the past. He doesn't take other legal issues with a
team over to dealing with players."
On the football side, Irvin's absence leaves the Cowboys extremely short-handed
at wide receiver. With him out, they only have one player - Kevin Williams
- who has caught more than six passes in a single season.
He was the team's second-leading receiver last year with 38 catches for
613 yards and two touchdowns. Irvin led the team with 111 catches for 1,603
yards and 10 touchdowns.
Deion Sanders - who will be working more on the offensive side of the ball
than the defensive side of the ball in the preseason - caught two passes
for 25 yards last year. The All-Pro cornerback is expected to help take
up the slack created by Irvin's absence.
Other than those two, the Cowboys will be looking for help from a group
that includes second-year players Billy Davis and Edward Hervey, third-round
draft pick Stepfret Williams and free agents Kendricke Bullard, Oronde Gadsden,
Mark Harris and Jason Shelley.
And with their salary cap almost all used up, the Cowboys probably couldn't
offer any more than the league's minimum salary to some of the available
veteran free agent receivers. That list includes Andre Rison, Art Monk,
Gary Clark and Willie Anderson.
"We have 80 players and x-number of receivers here," Switzer said.
"We'll work them all, see what we have and who can help us."
Irvin's absence will also mean the practice field could be a lot quieter
when workouts begin.
"Two years ago when Michael wasn't practicing because of shoulder surgery,
I was told by the coaches how he would elevate the level of practice and
the level of his teammates," Switzer said.
"And I saw that on the first day that he came back. It was an exciting
practice, and football practice is very rarely exciting. Just the way Michael
works and goes at things creates excitement."
But right now, the only thing Irvin is creating is suspense over just when
he'll return to the Cowboys.
"When that will be I don't really know," Jones said. "He'll
come back when he's ready to come back. And when he's mentally ready to
come back, we'll welcome him with open arms."