Ignorance is at the heart of most broken plays. That thing about how a team is only as strong as its weakest link? Believe that. If you don't know what's going on, always ask.

It's better to ask and take the consequences (which will actually make you work hard to not have to ask again) than to guess and blow a play. Your coaches would rather catch you up on the sideline, at training camp, than waste a time-out in the second half of a game that matters.

But don't stop there. If you find yourself asking questions, it's because you have gaps in your knowledge. You fill those with film study and absorbing - not memorizing, but absorbing - your playbook. A question that just gets you an offhand remark from a veteran in training camp is a heartbreaker for your coaches if you ask it during the playoffs. But even - hell, especially - if it really is the playoffs and you really don't know, ask. I never heard of any coach who wouldn't trade a timeout for a touchdown.

Whether you see yourself as a future Hall of Famer or you're Just Another Guy hoping to see the light of an NFL locker room (and you can be both), it's crucial to get off to a good start. This League is full of stories of guys who missed all or part of training camp and literally just never caught up. Playing catch-up with veterans who are just as fast as you, if not faster, and just as good as you, if not better — that can affect your confidence. A bad start can easily lead to an early exit.

Most NFL careers last a short three years. But when you're playing every down like it's a privilege just being there, you've already won half the battle of avoiding the Turk.

Clayton Holmes is a 3-time Super Bowl winner with the 1990s Dallas Cowboys. The sixth and final installment of his advice to NFL rookies will run next week. The topic: What I Wish I Had Known Then.