COWBOYS WILL MISS ELLIS...
By mark rogers
May 27, 2009
...not so much on the field as in the locker room and as a team spokesperson.
For more than ten years, Greg Ellis played his heart out in a Dallas Cowboys' uniform. The absolute professional was well-spoken, took time to talk to the media and sign autographs and never caused any disruptions in the locker room.
He never won a single playoff game and will either be released or traded in the next few days.
Ellis was drafted by the Cowboys out of North Carolina and has never played for another team.
For those of us who remember minor details about the Cowboys (like me), we'll remember that his last few offseasons with the club were clouded by disappointment and frustration with his contract and security with the team.
But that's not what Ellis should be remembered for...
He came to practice every day and worked.
He left it all on the field every game he ever played.
I used to cover the Cowboys a few years ago. Before every game, Ellis would grace the field (by himself) in his game pants and t-shirt and go through drills and stretch...getting focused and preparing himself for the battle ahead.
During these drills he would often look stiff and uncomfortable, but when that game started, he sure was fun to watch.
Dallas won't miss him on the field with Demarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer holding down the end spots...two guys that make up arguably the best DE combo in the league.
We also won't miss him in the bank since he'll free up about 4.5 million dollars...which will probably go to Ware in the near future.
We'll miss him for the type of person and player that he was.
Greg Ellis was a great Dallas Cowboys, but he won't ever make the Ring of Honor or Hall of Fame. Had he played in another era or on a different team? Who knows...
I'll remember Greg Ellis for what he meant to the Cowboys during one of the worst stretches in franchise history...a constant force on the defensive side of the ball, positive team representative and a role model for young players all across the nation by the way he composed himself on and off the field.
We'll miss you Greg...and wish you the best of luck. Please don't dominate us if we ever play the team you end up with.
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