IRVING, Texas - Barry Church may have seemed raw at safety with only one career start before this year, but his roster replacement is a player who's never started at all.
The Cowboys added depth to an ailing position Tuesday by signing Eric Frampton, one of five players who worked out for the Cowboys after Church was lost for the season with a torn Achilles' tendon.
Frampton played the last five seasons in Minnesota, mostly as a special teams contributor. He was a fifth-round pick by Oakland in 2007, but the Raiders cut the safety from Washington State in September of that year.
He went to the Detroit Lions for a month and a half before signing with the Vikings in Oct. 2007. Frampton didn't make Minnesota's final 53-man roster this year.
Frampton should be able to provide more depth at safety in the coming weeks. The injuries at safety caused the Cowboys to bring in a player who's had some experience in regular season games. Though he's never started a game at safety in the NFL, Frampton appeared in all but two games the last four seasons.
Safety Gerald Sensabaugh's status this weeke is still uncertain, after he injured his calf against the Seahawks. Hamstring and back injuries have held out safety Matt Johnson, a fourth-round pick from Eastern Washington, since the preseason.
The Cowboys elected to use cornerback Brandon Carr and Mana Silva in Church's spot alongside Danny McCray, after Church left Sunday's game against the Buccaneers.
Antwaun Molden, Tyrone Culver, Don Carey and Aaron Rouse, who has 18 career combined starts between the Packers and Giants, were among the other athletes to work out for the Cowboys.
