IRVING – A few weeks ago, Bill Parcells put his starting defensive ends on notice, now it's the starting running back's turn.
Parcells isn't planning on benching Julius Jones, but he would like his No.1 running back to play better, especially with a division title hanging in the balance on Monday afternoon against Philadelphia.
"I'm hoping Julius can get back on track a little," Parcells said. "He had a couple of reads [against Atlanta last week] that looked real good on film for gains and it looked like he had his mind made up to do something else."
Jones has rushed for 166 yards on 34 carries the last three games. He averaged a season-low two yards per carry in the victory last week.
"We're going to need to get him going a little bit better than recently," Parcells said.
Jones rushed for more than 1,000 yards for the first time in his career with 26 yards on 13 carries last week. Jones has 1,019 yards, eighth in the NFC, but he only has four touchdowns.
Jones' brother, Thomas, with Chicago has 1,121 yards rushing, good for fifth in the conference.
It's the first time in NFL history two brothers have rushed for more than 1,000 yards in the same season.
"We both had a chance to make history and it was a great day for us and our family," Julius Jones said. "I never would have thought we would have a chance to do something like that. It's something we've both talked about. It's pretty special."
Parcells has curtailed the number of carries for Jones to keep him fresh for the stretch run and to possibly stop any injuries that may occur. Jones has missed 11 games because of injuries in three NFL seasons.
"I've done everything I could to keep him from being over carried," Parcells said. "Now, he does have almost 250 carries, that's quite a few, but I think he can find some reserve here and get back on track."
■ Parrish to get some reps: Newly signed free safety Tony Parrish is behind starter Patrick Watkins and backup Keith Davis in practice reps. Parcells is hopeful to play Parrish, but he's not sure if three safeties should be active for a game.
Parcells said Davis is his best special teams player so he wants him to play.
So Parrish waits.
"I'm ready, but it's whatever," Parrish said. "You just need to be ready when the time comes."
■ Parcells on Romo's Pro Bowl: Parcells called a potential Pro Bowl berth ludicrous and ridiculous for Tony Romo a few weeks ago. Now that it's happened Parcells offered this reaction: "I'm not allowed to comment on that. I feel good for my own players. I'm happy for the players, of course, but other than that, that's all I have to say about it."
When asked was he surprised, Parcells said: "Am I surprised? I don't think that would be a strong enough word."
■ Gift giving from the linebackers: Bradie James and Al Singleton were in the Christmas spirit when they gave their fellow linebackers presents. James gave the group an iPod stereo system, and Singleton handed out stylish black briefcases.
"When you're a young player you always look up to the older players because you feel like they have more money," James said. "Here I am a little older so I got them something. It's something you do because those are the guys you go to battle with."
■ Briefly: CB Jacques Reeves is listed as questionable with a dislocated left elbow. FB Oliver Hoyte (knee) did practice. SS Roy Williams has a sore right shin but practiced.
E-mail cwatkins@dallasnews.com
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The record of Philadelphia's starting quarterback Jeff Garcia vs. the Cowboys while he was with San Francisco and Cleveland. In those four games he has 11 touchdown passes and three interceptions.
— Todd Archer
Do the Cowboys game plan for each team that they play, or do they just stick to a "base" defense?
Cesar Canizales, Washington, D.C.
Dallas definitely puts together a different game plan for each team, which is why it blitzed like crazy against a team like Indianapolis and didn't do nearly as much against New Orleans.
Several factors go into the game plan like how good the opposing offense is as a whole, how good their skill position people are and how good their line is.
That said, the complexion of the game could change the game plan quite a bit, especially if the opponent comes out with something the Cowboys didn't expect.
— Jean-Jacques Taylor
