Zach Thomas Back on Track in Dallas?

The status of Zach Thomas' career comes down to verb tenses:

It's a matter of whether he was or is a great player.

Age and injury can combine to severely reduce effectiveness, issues the top linebacker will have to face if he wants to rebound from his miserable 2007 with his new team in Dallas. On the other hand, the way Thomas has played throughout his career indicates he's disposed to not just conquer this obstacle but attack and whoop it really bad.

It will be difficult.

Recovering from head injuries like Thomas can be tricky, as concussions and migraines are more delicate to rebound from than a hurt knee or bicep. He also has to be concerned with any potential consequence further playing could have on his life after the game, although that's a decision and risk that only the athlete can and should assess.

While it's his choice to make, Thomas' ability to play, much less start, could be impacted by the wounds that nagged him and eventually ended his last season in Miami.

Also not in Thomas' favor is the calendar, as he will turn 35 on Sept. 1, right before Week 1. Fans will cite the multiple geezers who are members of the Patriots linebacking corps as proof that Thomas can still be valuable, but "New England does it" means that something is either 1) innovatively difficult to reproduce, or 2) an amoral flaunting of rules. Copying Bill Belichick's method is the grown-up equivalent of jumping off a bridge because your friends do it.

Still, Thomas' situation is unique, and this contract grants him the genuine opportunity to prolong his career.

For one, he's going to have plenty of months to heal and see if he'll be ready for contact. That's especially true considering he last played a game on Oct. 21; being placed on injured reserve last year may help him out this year. Time helps, and he'll have as much of it as possible to clear the cobwebs.

Also on the plus side for those making Thomas' case is the fact that 2007 was the first year where he missed significant time to injury: He played in either 15 or all 16 contests during eight of his 11 prior seasons. He was held out of five games in 2000 thanks to a sprained ankle that caused him to be sidelined for the most action of his career until this past campaign.

That's a fine track record of durability for a position where the player is guaranteed to face a tremendous physical burden.

There's also the incentive of playing in his home state, something that can invigorate even those who would be considered elderly by pro football standards. Born, raised, and schooled in Texas, Thomas has to be enthusiastic about the prospect of returning to his native region to compete, an intangible that may give him more energy than even a poorly drawn Red Bull commercial would dare claim to provide.

While he may enjoy a general feeling of excitement because of having a single star both on the state flag above and each side of his helmet, Thomas has to more specifically hope that he can excel with this defense. Wade Phillips is known for tending to use his 3-4 defense relatively aggressively, and that could bode well for the team's new forceful linebacker, who is Michael near the line of scrimmage and Tito in coverage.

Thomas' active style is reflected in his overwhelming statistics: According to the Dolphins, he has 1,866 career tackles, a mind-boggling total that belies his 5-foot-11 height and fifth-round draft status.

Simply put, Thomas is a football player, one who has never bothered to let himself be discouraged by the fact that those analyzing 1996's selections might not have forecast him starting in the NFL, much less be eventually discussed as a possible Hall of Famer.

Aside from the fact that Miami and Dallas, two franchises whose mutual animosity would seem to have begun and concluded with Super Bowl VI, have once again seen an employee jump from one franchise to the other, the fact remains that Thomas is one player who is equipped to overcome challenges.

Aches, age, and slowness could doom this experiment, but one thing that won't ruin it is a lack of effort from the defender in question.