OXNARD, Calif. – The biggest crowd of camp so far occurred Saturday, as the team held its official opening ceremony before practice that included the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders along with the annual Jerry Jones speech to the crowd, reminding them of the ultimate goal to make the Super Bowl.
Once practice got underway, here are some of the highlights from the staff writers:
· Dak Prescott celebrated his 30th birthday on Saturday, and his high spirits translated to high quality play on the field. Prescott was laser-accurate today, did not make many mistakes, and found Cooks and Lamb both for touchdowns on difficult throws. (Nick Harris)
· Running back Malik Davis got a healthy amount of run with the first-team on Saturday as he competes with a handful of weapons for the RB2 position. His burst and shiftiness makes him a quality talent, but can he separate himself from other guys in the room with similar traits? (Nick Harris)
· KaVontae Turpin returned to practice on Saturday following the birth of his daughter with a bang. He not only had a great catch, but also collected ankles on a gadget play before lining up in the slot and giving hell to Kelvin Joseph on a route. (Patrik Walker)
· With Donovan Wilson and Israel Mukuamu both sidelined, the young safeties are being asked to step in and show themselves. In the third practice, it was Juanyeh Thomas with an impact PBU and Tyler Coyle intercepting Cooper Rush to achieve that mission. (Patrik Walker)
· Nahshon Wright continues to make the most of his reps with Trevon Diggs (toe) being held out. The lengthy corner can battle with the bigger receivers because of his height, which was evident with pass deflections in the team drills. (Nick Eatman)
- Cooper Rush and Will Grier have been rotating with the second and third string units throughout camp. It appears that Rush remains the steady number two option, but Grier has had the cleaner camp so far. Both have had their ups and downs, but Grier has been taking more chances in practice, which is something Mike McCarthy had encouraged from the third-string QB. (Kyle Youmans)
- Without Luke Schoonmaker in the fold, the early indication is that Jake Ferguson and Peyton Hendershot will be the first two tight ends utilized. However, the battle for the third spot is ramping up with Sean McKeon and John Stephens each sharing reps. They’ve continued to use both in passing situations, but Stephens appears to be the more talented pass-catcher. (Kyle Youmans)
