The Dallas Cowboys enjoyed a nice Friday train ride down the Pacific Coast to San Diego from their training camp in Oxnard, Calif., for their first pre-season game of 2008 against the San Diego Chargers Saturday night.
While the game is only an exhibition, it should still be competitive. Both of these teams want to win the game. The Chargers and Cowboys are similar in that each team has an established starting 22. Very few jobs are at stake. The competition in each camp is for backup and special teams positions.
Online oddsmakers at Sportsbook.com have the Chargers favored by a 3-point chalk against the spread with a money line price of -160. The Cowboys are getting +140 money line odds while the betting total is holding at 35.5.
The game will be the debut of Adam “Pacman” Jones in a Cowboys uniform. The Cowboys new cornerback missed all of the 2007 season from a much publicized off-field incident in a Las Vegas strip club. There are question marks as to how rusty Jones might be after missing a full season.
Look for Cowboys’ top pick, rookie running back Felix Jones to draw extensive playing time in this game as well as rookie cornerback Mike Jenkins. Other rookies to get a long look are running back Tashard Choice, safety Dowayne Davis and receiver Danny Amendola.
Two-time rushing leader La Dainian Tomlinson is not expected to play in this game. Chargers coach Norv Turner has indicated he needs his MVP running back well rested before the season. Quarterback Phillip Rivers will not play beyond the first quarter before making way for backups Billy Volek and Charlie Whitehurst.
The same goes for the Cowobys first team. Don't look for quarterback Tony Romo and receiver Terrell Owens to play beyond the first period.
For the Chargers, competition is intense for the No. 2 running back slot behind Tomlinson between Jacob Hester and Darren Sproles. It will be interesting to see how playing time is divided between the two backs.
