IRVING – Ken Hamlin and Roy Williams have occupied the starting safety positions this off-season, but Keith Davis is doing what he can to keep himself in the conversation.
Davis worked with the first team with Hamlin and Williams not in attendance Friday and came up with an interception and pass deflection during the organized team activities (OTA).
"I think I'm getting a good opportunity to show if I can play or not," said Davis, who started six games last season after starting 15 games in 2005. "They're moving me around. I'm playing in the dime. I'm playing at safety. They're letting me play. I think I'm doing a pretty good job so far."
Been there, done that: Tony Romo said he enjoyed serving as a judge in the Miss Universe pageant Monday in Mexico City. He even had some empathy for Miss USA Rachel Smith, who slipped and fell during the evening gown portion.
"You feel bad for her at the time, but I thought she composed herself well, and I gave her a little better number because of how she composed herself. I can definitely understand when someone on a national stage doesn't do exactly what they want," he said, smiling to accentuate the comparison to his own gaffe during last season's playoffs.
Ayodele on the mend: Linebacker Akin Ayodele has been a spectator for most of the OTAs because of arthroscopic knee surgery, but he hopes to begin running next week.
Ayodele is not sure he will be ready for next week's mini-camp that runs Friday through Sunday, but he has no doubt he will be 100 percent for training camp.
"I'd say I'm ahead of schedule as far as the time frame of coming back," Ayodele said. "We're just seeing how it feels, and once I start running, I'll get some strength back."
Owens earns bonus: Because he was on the roster at 3 p.m. Friday, Terrell Owens became $3 million richer.
Owens is due a $3 million roster bonus Sunday but because the league office is closed on the weekend, the Cowboys would have had to cut Owens on Friday to avoid having to pay him the money. Owens will count $9.66 million against this year's cap.
The same scenario will present itself next June, when he is due another $3 million roster bonus as part of the final year of his contract.
Briefly: Linebacker-turned-fullback Oliver Hoyte saw action at inside linebacker Friday. Hoyte made the switch to fullback in the middle of last season and is listed as the team's starter. ... Outside linebacker Greg Ellis said he has not met with team officials about re-working his contract, saying, "the ball is in Jerry's court." ... Running back Tyson Thompson missed Friday's session because he was attending a friend's wedding. ... The Cowboys spent $103,500 in signing bonuses for their 14 undrafted free agents, with quarterback Matt Moore and receiver Jerard Rabb getting the most at $15,000 each.
