NFL Wire Notes | Outcast Pacman backed by Tank

IRVING, Texas — Tank Johnson looked into the camera and sent a message to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, loudly, clearly and with a big smile: "Roger, please, let him play! From Tank. Thanks, buddy."

"Him," of course, is Adam "Pacman" Jones.

The status of the suspended cornerback remains the main topic of interest surrounding the Dallas Cowboys, especially with each nugget of progress in his bid to get reinstated.

The latest was a meeting between Jones and Goodell in Atlanta last week, the morning after NFL meetings wrapped up. Nothing has changed, though.

Jones still can't set foot on team property, much less join his new teammates for organized team activities being held Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Goodell could give permission for either of those without fully welcoming him back to the league — sort of like he did with Johnson last year. Goodell let Johnson practice about a month after being signed, three weeks before his suspension ended.

Jones is suspended indefinitely, but Goodell repeatedly has said he'll review the case before training camp.

Jones and Johnson became linked as guys who endured Goodell's wrath. Now their Cowboys connection has turned them into kindred spirits.

The team's department that works with troubled players hooked them up as sort of a mentorship. Nate Newton, Michael Irvin and others helped Johnson, and now he's reaching out to Jones.

"I speak to him on the phone often," said Johnson, who played for Washington. "His head is in the right place. He's eager to get out here with his teammates."

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones doesn't like talking about Pacman's reinstatement process. He insists he's staying out of it.

"I don't think it's my place to get in here and call them up and say, 'What'd he say? What'd he do? What do you think?' " Jones said.

Notes

• Six-time Pro Bowl defensive end Jason Taylor doesn't sound like he's in any rush to settle his stalemate with the Dolphins.

"I'm under contract with the Dolphins. So again, I'm looking forward to playing some golf. Football doesn't start until July and training camp, so I'll be all right," Taylor said Wednesday after playing in a pro-am for the Principal Charity Classic, a Champions Tour event in Iowa. "I've been in L.A. and so far removed from it. Like I said, I'll deal with that when I get there."

Taylor will return home after a three-month break to host a charity golf tournament this weekend. The Dolphins, who are upset that Taylor spent the offseason on the hit TV show "Dancing With the Stars" rather than in South Florida working out with teammates, likely won't have Taylor on hand when they hold a mandatory minicamp June 6-8.

• Eight months after Jake Delhomme grabbed his right elbow in agony, and five months after the Panthers ended a miserable season without him, Delhomme began team drills in Wednesday's optional workout. Delhomme downplayed the significance of throwing about 40 passes in his latest rehabilitation milestone following ligament-replacement surgery, but his teammates and coaches weren't as reserved.

"It's awesome to have your leader back under center," tight end Jeff King said.

RB Jonathan Stewart of Oregon didn't participate in workouts because his school hasn't finished classes.

• Former Denver Broncos punter Todd Sauerbrun pleaded guilty Wednesday to disturbing the peace in a confrontation with a taxi driver last December and was sentenced to perform 24 hours of community service. Outside the courtroom, Sauerbrun insisted he is innocent and said he accepted a plea deal with prosecutors only because his record could be cleansed after a year.