Ellis says his departure from Dallas stems from Phillips' decision

IRVING - Greg Ellis notched 20½ sacks for the Dallas Cowboys the last two seasons. So why will he line up at defensive end Thursday in the Oakland Raiders' 4-3 alignment instead of outside linebacker in the Cowboys' 3-4 scheme? Dallas saved $4.15 million in salary cap space when they cut Ellis in the offseason, but he suggested this week in a conference call that the decision mainly boiled down to coach Wade Phillips wanting to go with his guy. That would be third-year player Anthony Spencer, who has yet to record a sack this season. "(Phillips) thought, 'OK, this was the first-round pick I was involved in drafting,' and coaches take some pride...in those first-round picks," said Ellis, who spent 11 seasons with Dallas. "Forever and ever I'm going to be labeled as Chan Gailey's first-round pick and the same thing with Anthony Spencer (and Phillips). "So, I'm pretty sure Wade wanted to get Anthony out there because he's the one...