Cowboys CB Morris Claiborne during Friday’s rookie minicamp with his cast/AP

Before I get outta here at Valley Ranch and go wait in line at Mia’s, I wanted to mention one thing that hasn’t garnered much attention. It was said as an oh-by-the-way on draft night, and that’s been that. But it came to the forefront today because first-round draft pick CB Morris Claiborne didn’t participate in rookie minicamp.

What’s up with Claiborne’s wrist?

The former LSU star who was picked sixth overall was on the sidelines Friday, except for when he couldn’t help himself and jumped in one drill. But mostly, he watched.

“I was holding myself back,” Claiborne said. “The whole time I wanted to get there was. I was just itching.“

Claiborne is wearing a black cast (right), and he’ll do so because he tore ligaments in his wrist against Alabama in November. He played the final five games, including the national title game, with torn wrist ligaments. (This is my Path to the Draft hit on Claiborne.)

Crazy, right? He shrugged it off.

“I didn’t have surgery until after the season, but I hurt it in the first half of the first Alabama game,” he said. “I was gonna wait until after this season, but when I got to the Combine, scouts said I should go ahead and get it now. So, I went and got it out of the way.”

Claiborne can’t run or jump now, or really do anything to disrupt the setting. There are pins in it as we speak, but those come out in a week. Then, he’ll be in a soft cast for two weeks, then be on the way back to health.

“I’ll be ready,” Claiborne said. “I don’t want to be left behind. When it’s really time for camp, I don’t want to feel like I’ve lost a step. So, I was out there today taking mental reps.”

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