Player Spotlight: Keith Brooking

Number/ Position: #51, Inside Linebacker
Birthday:  10/30/75
College: Georgia Tech
Height: 6-2
Weight: 242
Acquired by Dallas: free agent signing 2/28/09
Seasons in the NFL: 12 (1st round pick by Falcons in 1998)
Pro Bowl selections:  5 (’01, ’02, ’03, ’04,’05)

Keith Brooking is a five-time Pro Bowl inside linebacker who played his first 11 seasons with the Atlanta Falcons before signing a 3-year contract with the Dallas Cowboys in February, 2009.  He brings a wealth of knowledge of Wade Phillips’ 3-4 defensive scheme having played for Phillips in Atlanta from 2002-2003 when Phillips was the Falcons defensive coordinator and, later, interim head coach.

“I feel very comfortable,” Brooking says of adapting to his new team.  “I was with Wade for 2 years in Atlanta, with the same scheme and same terminology. He’s doing the same thing he did back then. So I had a pretty quick recall of everything once we started installing the defense.  We have very talented football players.  We have a great coaching staff.  One of Wade's bigger assets as a defensive coach is knowing his players' strengths and putting them in the right positions to play at their strengths.  So we have a bunch of guys out there that are playing in the right positions to play to their strengths.

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