IRVING, Texas -- Jason Garrett knew when reporters started asking five months ago that he would no longer call plays for the Dallas Cowboys. He just couldnt bring himself to say it until Tuesday -- a week after a strong hint from owner Jerry Jones forced Bill Callahan into a sheepish admission that he was the new play-caller. "We made that decision a long time ago," said Garrett, who has called plays since joining the Dallas staff in 2007. "Where I made a mistake as a head coach was making sure the communication publicly happened more cleanly. It didnt happen as cleanly as I wanted it to last week, and I take full responsibility for that." Garrett didnt do his perception any favours when he flatly refused to acknowledge what had become obvious. It gave the pundits one more chance to say Garrett was being stripped of his power by the meddlesome Jones, and therefore wasnt on board with giving up a role he kept even after he was promoted from offensive co-ordinator to head coach in 2010. Garrett said last week he didnt care about perception. He said this week hes always been on board with what he frequently calls collaborative decisions. "Just to say it one more time," Garrett said after the start of a three-day mandatory minicamp at team headquarters. "Mr. Jones, Stephen (Jones) and I, were all on the same page and have been on the same page for months and been acting that way around this building. We just hadnt said it out loud." Garrett offered something of a "trade secrets" defence for why he kept quiet for so long after the decision was made. He said he had been around coaches who never revealed their play-callers, after saying last week he just wasnt sure it was in the teams best interest for him to give up those sorts of details. Jones has long said he insisted on Garrett keeping the play-calling role when he became head coach, just as Wade Phillips did with the defence before he was fired after a 1-7 start in 2010. Then the owner engaged in something of a public debate last year with former coach Jimmy Johnson, who pointed out the virtues of a "walk-around" head coach -- one who doesnt call plays --when Garrett was being criticized for poor game management. The Cowboys won three Super Bowls with Johnson letting others call plays, but New Orleans won the title four years ago with Sean Payton handling that duty. "There are a handful of teams that have had the head coach be the acting offensive co-ordinator and calling plays," Garrett said. "They happened to be some of the best offences, so there was always that argument that we made, Some of the best guys do it this way, and so we had that tug and really have had that tug for the last couple of years. We finally decided this was the best way to do it." During game situations Tuesday, quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson stood next to Callahan radioing plays in to backup Kyle Orton, who is getting all the first-team reps in off-season workouts while Tony Romo sits out after a procedure to remove a cyst on his back. "I dont think there will be a huge change from the quarterback perspective," Romo said. Callahan is entering his second season in Dallas and has actually carried the title of offensive co-ordinator since he was hired. Hes also the offensive line coach. He called plays for Oakland, and was the head coach there as well. "We hired him because we think hes a great football coach and has been for a long time," said Garrett, who still plans on having a role in the offensive game plan. "He can really coach it from A to Z. He knows the details of things. He knows the big picture of things." Notes: Romo was among six starters to miss part of all of the first mandatory workout. DE Anthony Spencer hyperextended his left knee during off-season workouts last week and says he hopes to do more Wednesday. DE DeMarcus Ware and OG Mackenzy Bernadeau (shoulder) were limited to individual drills. OG Nate Livings (knee) and CB Morris Claiborne (migraine) were out. ... The Cowboys released CB Malik James and signed DT Jeris Pendleton, a seventh-round pick by Jacksonville last year. NMD Human Race Sverige . On Tuesday, Ottawa placed forward Cory Conacher and defenceman Joe Corvo on waivers as trade rumours swirl around the Senators. Stan Smith Adidas Dam Sverige . Pirlo limped out of Sundays 1-0 win over Udinese after just 13 minutes. Juventus says Pirlo underwent tests on Monday which revealed he has "a second-degree lesion to the collateral medial ligament in his right knee. http://www.nmdsverige.com/nmd-r2-adidas-skor.html . -- Lou Brocks shoulder-to-shoulder collision with Bill Freehan during the 1968 World Series and Pete Roses bruising hit on Ray Fosse in the 1970 All-Star game could become relics of baseball history, like the dead-ball era. Adidas NMD R2 Rea . Soukalova missed only one target and completed the 15-kilometre course in 40 minutes, 32.6 seconds for both victories in this seasons individual discipline. Darya Domracheva of Belarus was second, 34. Adidas Superstar Dam Rea . -- PGA TOUR Canada member Steve Saunders took a three-stroke lead Saturday in the Web. BELO HORIZONTE, Brazil -- A new era opens for the U.S. womens soccer team at the Olympic Games when a generation of younger players seeks to continue the global domination established at last years World Cup.Bidding to add Olympic gold to World Cup success, the U.S. will have 11 Olympic newcomers on its roster when it opens against New Zealand on Wednesday at the Mineirao Stadium.It will be the teams first major competition since the retirement of players such as Abby Wambach and Lauren Holiday following lats years triumph in Canada.Of course we had some gigantic losses, some players that have been around the game for quite some time, and they are irreplaceable, really, veteran goalkeeper Hope Solo said. But we have something different and I dont think anybody has seen the U.S. team as we are right now. Nobody knows what to expect, with our younger players, with our new talent, with our formation. So I think its going to be exciting.Seeking a fourth straight Olympic gold, the Americans are also without Christine Rampone because of injury, while Sydney Leroux and Amy Rodriguez are pregnant. Two other key players, captain Carli Lloyd and midfielder Megan Rapinoe are coming to Brazil recovering from health problems. Rapinoe is not expected to play in the early games.Theres been a little bit of a change in the roster, but its good, Lloyd said. I think we have about 11 players who are competing in their first Olympics, which is a huge turnaround, but I also think that those players bring experience, theyve been around this team, theyve earned quite a few a caps with the team and are doing very well. So I think that, mixed in with us old folks, we will be all right.Among the Olympic newcomers are a few players who also made it to the World Cup last year, including Meghan Klingenberg, Ali Krieger, Morgan Brian and Whitney Engen. The youngest player in the current roster is 18-year-old Mallory Pugh. The U.S. is tryiing to become the first team to win the Olympics after succeeding at the World Cup.ddddddddddddLloyd, the teams captain in Rio, said the U.S. remains favored to win the title despite the revamped team.I think the toughest (opponents) are going to be ourselves, said Lloyd, who scored a hat trick in the World Cup final against Japan. No other team should intimidate our team. Of course, there are going to be tough contenders, but honestly, not a single team intimidates me.The U.S. is trying to win its fifth gold medal since womens soccer became an Olympic sport in 1996. It won its third World Cup title in Canada, the first since 1999.I think we are always feeling the pressure of coming back with gold. Its just in our DNA, Lloyd said. Even if we hadnt won the World Cup wed still be under tremendous pressure to win. It comes with being the No. 1 team in the world and going for a fourth consecutive gold medal. We are super excited to get started. I know this team has a lot of talent and depth and we have the opportunity to really create history.After playing New Zealand, the U.S. faces powerhouse France and then Colombia in Group G of the 12-team Olympic tournament. Second-ranked Germany, fifth-ranked Australia, sixth-ranked Sweden and host Brazil loom as potential quarterfinal opponents.We as a team acknowledge the pressure, Solo said. We know that the target is on our backs. We are ranked No. 1 for quite some time, we won last years World Cup, we won the last Olympics. It doesnt make it easy. We dont come into any tournament with an extreme amount of confidence or arrogance. We know that the job is going to be extremely difficult to repeat winning a gold medal.---Tales Azzoni on Twitter: http://twitter.com/tazzoni. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/tales-azzoni ' ' '