Injury Update: Xavier OK, But Still Call Earl Thomas?
ARLINGTON - A few days ago, Xavier Woods was asked about the rumors connecting the Dallas Cowboys to free-agent safety Earl Thomas.
"It doesn't bother me anymore, man," Woods told us via a Zoom call. "I don't even pay no mind to it."
Of course, the Cowboys' fourth-year safety had no reason to "pay mind to it'' in one regard: Woods is a starter; an acquisition of the troubled seven-time Pro Bowler Thomas wouldn't impact his snaps negatively.
But something else might.
On Sunday night at the scrimmage here at AT&T Stadium, Woods went down with an injury. ... (Also hurt in the workout was receiver Ventell Bryant, who helped the club last year as a special-teamer. He sustained what is likely a minor knee injury.)
He "never felt a pop and never lost strength in it,'' Cowboys COO Stephen Jones reported on 105.3 The Fan regarding Woods' groin issue.
Great news. But admit it: When Woods went down ... the ability of Thomas, the Texas native with whom the Cowboys have flirted for two years, jumped into most everybody's head. And maybe the then-availability of another standout still on the shelf as of the weekend, Logan Ryan, jumped as well.
If Dallas makes that call on Woods - and the Cowboys have said on the record that the door is ajar there - it won't be to have Thomas beat out a healthy Woods.
It'll come because Woods will have himself a new running mate. Same with Logan Ryan. Either of them would've figure to end up starting here, alongside a healthy Woods - past-tense here because on Monday the Giants signed Ryan to a one-year, $7.5 million deal.
Woods is viewed by the Cowboys as somewhere between "reliable'' and a potential standout. He's never approached Thomas' level as a performer ... but of course Thomas, now 31 and essentially run out of two locker rooms in Seattle and Baltimore, isn't necessarily the most "reliable'' guy off the field right now.
There is no "rap sheet'' on what was keeping Ryan, 29, from being signed. His work with the Titans last year earned him the No. 60 spot in the NFL Top 100, and he views himself as a "hybrid'' DB who can play safety or cornerback. But that's a non-issue now.
And maybe Earl Thomas is as well.
On Sunday, when Woods exited, Dallas paired Ha Ha Clinton-Dix with Darian Thompson as first-teamers. There is some faith that second-year guy Donovan Wilson and rookie Reggie Robinson II (just converted from corner) have promise. And there is always the idea of asking vet Daryl Worley, a former full-time starter at corner with the Raiders, to switch inside.
The easiest and arguably the best answer is for Xavier Woods to be fully healthy. But even if he is ... The risk/reward on Earl Thomas (with behavioral red flags) makes an exploratory phone call worthy of being on the list of alternative answers.
