NewsBot
New Member
- Messages
- 111,281
- Reaction score
- 2,947
Thoughts on day two of Cowboys training camp.
The Cowboys continued to work fundamentals and drills on Day 2 of training camp. It’s hard to pick standouts from drills and plays run against air, but it’s still good, from a fan perspective, to see these guys up and doing something. It appears to be good for them, too, as words of encouragement from other players and coaches alike peppered the vines that came out of today’s practice sessions.
Tony Romo had a light workload today, perhaps foreshadowing a return of 2014’s "Romo Wednesdays" wherein the now-closer-to-40-than-30 quarterback takes some light workout days. The plan for Romo in training camp is apparently going to be two days on, one day off. Romo’s absence today sets up his ability to participate in tomorrow’s practice, which will be the first one in pads.
Jason Garrett said that "10-14 players" would have modified practice schedules for training camp, a group that includes Romo and Dez Bryant. It also appeared to include Tyrone Crawford, who is recovering from a shoulder surgery. Crawford looked fully capable in his first practice yesterday and it’s presumed his rest today is purely precautionary.
First-round pick Ezekiel Elliott took the field early to get extra work in with running back coach Gary Brown. He and fellow rookie Darius Jackson showed some real quickness in drills and both reportedly look fluid and smooth catching the football. Hall of Fame defensive end Charles Haley made sure Elliott’s head didn’t get too big, though. As Haley got pictures of his daughter with various marquee players entering the field, he took time to throw some shade Elliott’s way: "how many yards you gained? NONE!"
Coach Brown also stayed on Elliott’s tail, urging him to go faster in drills and not letting up on the running back even as his fluidity and burst were impressing onlookers. Elliott also lined up in a stacked wide out formation for a quick pass, getting pointers and positioning aid from the wide receiver corps.
Dak Prescott also hit the field early to get extra work in. He and Jameil Showers are hopefuls in the backup quarterback race where Kellen Moore currently leads. Landon McCool reported, however, that Moore’s velocity was visibly less than that of his compatriots and that can cause problems, especially on the mid-range sideline routes that are a staple of this offense with Romo at the helm. Darius Jackson was also out early, working with new assistant coach Tashard Choice, whom many of you will remember from his time here as a back up running back.
At defensive end, DeMarcus Lawrence continues to attack blocking dummies with visible fire and determination. Lawrence reported to camp at 275 but says his goal is to drop 5-10 pounds and be "lean and mean". Lawrence addressed the media today regarding his suspension, saying "My disappointment is it's on me. I messed up. I learn from my mistakes and I just have to move on and get everything right."
He went on to add "you have to learn how to stand up and be a man about your mistakes. So I did that, you know, stood up as a man, talked to my teammates, and they understand how sorry I am" and finished by saying he needed to "come out hard" knowing he had let the team down.
Today also saw the return of Mike Pope’s creative tight end drills as Pope had the tight ends lie down flat on the ground before springing up to catch a football thrown from one of four directions, then lying down again to repeat until the points of the compass were covered.
A final note is that newly-signed linebacker Darius Eubanks wasn’t fully recovered from an injury and was released today, continuing the bottom roster churn.
Continue reading...