Post by ccboy on Nov 1, 2008 2:35:55 GMT -7
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Rob Phillips - Email
DallasCowboys.com Staff Writer
October 30, 2008 6:07 PM Change Font Size A A A A
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Phillips has made clear that Brad Johnson will start a third consecutive game Sunday.
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IRVING, Texas - Cowboys quarterback Brooks Bollinger wisely chose not to elaborate on head coach Wade Phillips' description of his Wednesday practice workload with the first-team offense.
"I'm going to have to stick with Coach on that," he said Thursday, smiling. "It's about a couple (reps)."
No matter how many first-team snaps Bollinger has taken this week, Phillips has made clear that Brad Johnson will start a third consecutive game Sunday in place of Tony Romo (fractured pinkie finger), who is expected to return as soon as the Nov. 16 game at Washington.
Bollinger, the typical third-string quarterback behind Romo and Johnson, is staying ready.
"When you're the third guy you're two snaps away and when you're the second guy you're one snap away," he said. "You never know when it's going to happen and when you're going to get an opportunity."
Bollinger has gotten few regular-season opportunities in his six-year career. He's started 10 games, including nine with the New York Jets in 2005, but had been primarily an idle backup in Minnesota the last two years.
He has worked with the scout team almost exclusively since signing with Dallas in Week 2.
"I've been a backup quite a bit in the NFL and you never get a lot of reps when you're the backup, anywhere I've been," Bollinger said. "So you have to teach yourself to be able to kind of have a good imagination and see yourself in there and execute the play when you're not physically doing it."
Phillips on Wednesday deflected speculation that Bollinger might enter the game if Johnson struggles, saying, "We're not going into the game saying, 'This guy's going and we're going to pull him if he doesn't do anything. We're going to go in with a more positive attitude than that."
Even so, Bollinger at the very least would have to play if Johnson were to suffer an injury, which makes those first-team reps valuable this week.
"I really haven't seen Brooks do a whole lot. He's been limited as far as practice reps and what he can do," tight end Jason Witten said. "Obviously he's mobile, he does different things, but I don't know. We haven't seen enough of him to really make a comment on it."