IRVING, Texas – It might be considered an imposing venue by most, but Corey White should feel right at home inside the Mercedes-Benz Superdome – he played there for three years, after all.
"It'll be loud. I'll be on the other sideline this time, but I'm looking forward to it," White said. "Just remembering the 'Who Dat' chant before the games gives me the chills – it still will, probably, this Sunday. I'm looking forward to it."
Sunday marks a homecoming for White, as he was originally selected as a fifth-round pick by the Saints in 2012. He played 44 games, starting 19, for New Orleans before he was released this past spring.
It was a bit of an unceremonious departure, considering White had a year remaining on his rookie contract when the Saints let him go. Despite that, he said he's trying not to view this week as different than any other.
"I try not to let my emotions get involved. I try to prepare like I usually do each week and just go out and get it done," he said.
White enjoyed a strong training camp and preseason with the Cowboys, but he hasn't featured prominently on defense to this point in the season – focusing more in kick coverage on special teams.
Despite that, the veteran corner had some fantastic perspective when asked about his last two defensive coordinators as a pro: Rod Marinelli and Rob Ryan. Marinelli joined the Cowboys' coaching staff in 2013 after Ryan left Dallas for New Orleans, where he coached White for two seasons.
"Marinelli is old school. He's going to have three or four coverages up, and we're going to do it each week, every week, the same thing over and over again," he said. "Rob – you never know with him. He'll have all kinds of stuff going on depending on who we play. So Rob is a little more multiple then Marinelli."
That coincides well with what others have said about the two opposing defensive coordinators – who, from their personalities to the size of their playbooks, couldn't appear to be more different.
"It's very small, it's very small," White said of Marinelli's playbook. "Like I said – we're going to play three coverages, and we're going to play it the best way we can each week. We're not going to change much. He likes to keep it simple so we can go out there and play fast."
It should make for quite an evening for White, who added that the likes of Sean Payton, Drew Brees and Marques Colston taught him plenty about life in the league. As it turns out, part of that life is facing off against former employers.
"It'll be fun, I'm looking forward to it," he said. "I know the offense well, I know all those guys well – I won't be nervous at all. It's just football."
