Now that Adam "Pacman" Jones is really back in the NFL, he insists he will try to do everything he can to stay there. The cornerback-kick returner was fully reinstated Thursday from his 17-month NFL suspension, which followed an accumulation of arrests and legal problems, and is clear to play for the Dallas Cowboys during the regular season. "I am fully a Dallas Cowboy," Jones proclaimed before the last preseason game. "I don't have it lingering over my head, will he get reinstated, will he not get reinstated. I just have to keep myself out of bad situations like I have been doing the last six or seven months."

Since being cleared almost three months ago by commissioner Roger Goodell to practice with the Cowboys, Jones had repeatedly expressed confidence that he would be reinstated for the season and said he was doing everything expected of him.

Still, there was a sense of relief when he finally received the official news - in a phone call while walking in a parking lot.

"I did scream," Jones said. "Immediately I called my mom, because I've been beating myself up, but my mom has been through this roller-coaster with me."

Jones, acquired by Dallas from Tennessee, has been arrested six times and involved in a dozen incidents requiring police intervention since the Titans drafted him in the first round in 2005. That includes his connection to a shooting at a Las Vegas strip club. His last NFL game was Dec. 31, 2006.

Jones was suspended in April 2007 and missed all last season with the Titans. He was traded to Dallas in April, then allowed in June by Goodell to join the team in training camp and preseason games.

Goodell, however, was still waiting to decide whether to let Jones play in the regular season. That news came hours before Dallas' final preseason game against Minnesota, when Jones and the expected Cowboys starters didn't even play. Jones wore his No. 21 jersey and shorts on the sideline.

"Adam has worked hard to get to this point, but he also knows that there is still a lot of work ahead of him," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. "He is fully aware of the opportunity that he has been given, and he knows that this is an ongoing process."

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello wrote in an e-mail that Goodell wouldn't have a comment Thursday regarding the reinstatement.

Jones said he spoke to Aiello, but not the commissioner. The cornerback said he got congratulatory text messages from most of his teammates once word of his reinstatement spread.

There are past mistakes that Jones knows he can't repeat, especially off the field.

"I have to conduct myself like an NFL player to make sure none of these actions come again," Jones said. "I work hard every day to make sure I don't make the same mistakes. Can I say I would never ever make the same mistakes? No, I can't say that. I'll make sure I put myself in way better situations than I have put myself in the past."

Jones said that includes "surrounding myself around the right people and staying out of gentlemen's clubs, having a great relationship with God and spending more time with my family."

Two weeks ago, Jones sent a letter to Goodell asking to be cleared for the regular season, and saying he would stay out of trouble.

"I think from the beginning there were a lot of critics saying that this couldn't be done, that he couldn't turn his life around," said Manny Arora, Jones' agent and attorney. "I'm very happy for Adam. He's proven everyone wrong. He's got a very bright personal and professional future."

Jones played in the first three preseason games, making his first start for the Cowboys last Friday. He was at left corner in place of injured Pro Bowler Terence Newman after rookie Mike Jenkins started the first two games. Jones had eight tackles and a pass deflection in those three games.

Newman (groin) is expected to be back for the Sept. 7 opener at Cleveland, but Jones will still be a prominent player on passing downs and special teams. Jones had punt returns of 18 and 24 yards during the preseason, and coach Wade Phillips said this week that he was considering Jones for kickoff returns because of injuries in that spot.

The Cowboys had been operating under the assumption that Jones would indeed be reinstated for the season. Jones' involvement in different schemes increased throughout camp as he got comfortable in the system.

After Jones first joined the team for practice in June, he said he had owned up to his bad decisions and was focused on the future and getting back into the game and more than a year off the field.

Jones doesn't want to mess up now.

"I've been waiting for this time for a long time, but it's not like we won a Super Bowl," he said. "I know my responsibilities to the NFL and I'm going to hold my own and do what I need to do to make sure I stay where I am right now, which is reinstated."

Written By STEPHEN HAWKINS

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