IRVING -- Facing his former team on Thursday, Cowboys defensive end Greg Hardy was a popular topic of discussion at Valley Ranch Tuesday.
Cam Newton was teammates with Hardy for four seasons in Carolina. The Panthers quarterback spoke highly of the controversial pass rusher during a conference call with reporters covering the Cowboys.
"Greg is a great teammate, contrary to popular belief," Newton said. "He is a person that came in and worked hard, gave everybody everything that he had and a person that you love to watch on Sundays. Any time you've got a person like that, it's always great to watch. I'm wishing him the best."
The Cowboys have been heavily criticized since signing Hardy in March. As a member of the Cowboys, Hardy has met with head coach Jason Garrett on at least four separate occasions to address poor decisions the Pro Bowler has made.
But during a conference call with reporters covering the Panthers, Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo said Hardy has been "a good teammate."
"He's done a real good job in our locker room of presenting himself as a good teammate," Romo said. "He comes in with a good attitude and a good work ethic here in the building. So the teammates obviously root for him."
Romo was also asked about the possibility of Hardy being too pumped about playing his former team.
"I haven't seen that from him," Romo said. "He always works hard. He's going to compete. He's going to play hard. And we need him to play a good football game for us to win. So we're excited about the way he's approached it."