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Cowboys Make a Statement in Joint Practice: Dallas’ Solid Performance and Top Performers during Their Practice Session with the Rams Demonstrate the Team’s Potential and Prowess

OXNARD, California — It is doubtful Dak Prescott will play in the preseason. It will be another month before the Dallas Cowboys play their first regular-season game. However, the franchise quarterback declared he would be prepared if they had to play today.

“I’m going into Year 9, I’ve had a lot of experience,” he said Thursday afternoon. “I think all of that carries into my confidence to say I could play a game right now. Part of me wishes that (practice) was a game. … I’m ready to play and get after it.”

On Thursday, the Cowboys and the Los Angeles Rams had a combined practice. It was their first time going against an opponent since their wild-card loss to the Green Bay Packers in January.

Prescott looked crisp in his team-drill work against the Rams’ first-team defense, delivering multiple throws to wide receiver Jalen Tolbert and tight end Jake Ferguson. But his best target was veteran WR Brandin Cooks.

“It’s valuable, valuable reps for me,” Prescott said. “It was great work. First time seeing another team. Some good, some great things. And then obviously a lot of things to clean up. But it’s the first time we’re seeing a different defense, a different scheme. It’s valuable reps, not only for me but the whole offense, for our pace of operation, for what we’re trying to get accomplished as a team. I think that was very worthy of it.”

Here are some other observations from the two hours of work between the Cowboys and Rams.

No fights

Following numerous fights during their joint practices earlier in the week, the New York Giants and Detroit Lions were each fined $200,000. Nothing akin is anticipated for the Rams or Cowboys. Players shoved each other three times, all between the Dallas offensive and the Los Angeles defense, but none of them were as violent as the punches that were thrown by the Lions and Giants.

“It’s a waste of time,” Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy said. “I don’t want guys fighting. That’s not toughness. It’s lack of discipline. We want the work to get to that emotional edge to push each other, but you’ve got to handle those spots. That’s all part of the emotional challenge in the game of football. I’m not looking for that. I know (Rams coach Sean McVay) is not looking for it, either.”

General vibe

The Cowboys’ defense was comparatively soft against the attack of Matthew Stafford. Both big plays that went either way and post-play activity were scarce. The Cowboys allowed a few of intermediate completions, but nothing excessive or shocking. There were a lot of run plays by the Rams, especially inside the tackles. Although it did not result in many visually appealing video highlights, it was the perfect solution for the Cowboys.

Mazi Smith impressed in several breakout drills as he had to battle through the Rams’ interior line. It is important to note that Los Angeles was without several of its best offensive lineman, such as Rob Havenstein, Alaric Jackson, and starting left guard Jonah Jackson. However, Smith displayed good agility and strength—two attributes that have hindered him in his brief NFL tenure. Albert Huggins, a newly signed defensive tackle, and youngster Marshawn Kneeland both had excellent reps during these drills.

Overall, Thursday was a win for the defense. They didn’t have any blown assignments — against the run or in pass coverage — and moved fast.

Run defense

The Cowboys’ run defense was a big issue last season, especially toward the end. The usual disclaimers about training camp apply, but practice went more quickly and the Cowboys’ rush defense performed admirably.

The headline of the summer has been the lack of improvements at defensive tackle, but Thursday served as a reminder that Osa Odighizuwa is still a good player inside, even though that could yet come back to haunt the team. Odighizuwa moved his man exactly where he wanted to in order to create space for a linebacker to fill on several occasions.

When it comes to covering gaps, practically every first-team linebacker made a noteworthy play. Though Damone Clark filled in admirably throughout the red zone versus Boston Scott and DeMarvion Overshown moved well, Eric Kendricks was the most consistent player. Although Smith performed well in the team reps, he was not as noticeable when DeMarcus Lawrence, Micah Parsons, and Odighizuwa were up front.

Pass defense

For various reasons, two secondary players stood out when it came to pass coverage. Caelen Carson, a rookie selected in the fifth round, is still riding high on the hype train. Carson demonstrated his physical and mental strength on practically every play during team activities. Carson recognized a fast pass against the Rams’ second squad, raced down, and made the tackle at the line of scrimmage.

The red zone session was the high point, though. Jimmy Garoppolo, the backup quarterback for the Rams, was searching for Tutu Atwell near the goal line. Following closely after, Carson produced a spectacular play with the ball before swiftly turning to run it the other way. Going up to grab the ball out of the air and trying to return it the other way was reminiscent of a play made by Trevon Diggs.

Conversely, Nahshon Wright, the other first-team outside cornerback, kept getting reps opposite DaRon Bland. In the team sessions, the Rams did not put a lot of pressure on the secondary, but Wright missed a number of plays, including one in which Stafford found Tyler Johnson on the sideline.

Lastly, as was to be expected considering Parsons’ presence and the Rams’ injured players, the Cowboys’ pass rush caused havoc. Of course, the quarterback cannot be touched, but Parsons would have had several sacks of Stafford.

“He’s one of the guys in this league where you’ve got to be accountable to where he is on every single play,” Stafford said. “I had a lot of practice for a couple of years with No. 99 (Aaron Donald) that I practiced against all the time so I kind of understand that. All things being equal, yeah, we were trying to help out over there, if we could, send the line that way.”

Three stars on defense

Carson: It seems sense that the Cowboys want to take their time developing Carson, but throughout camp, he has been making plays against the Rams and Cowboys’ second teams. The first-team secondary might soon return with Diggs nearing his return, but as Diggs gains momentum, it would be intriguing to watch Carson split time opposite Bland. Despite having played outside much of his career, Carson stated following practice that he believes he is versatile enough to play both inside and outside.

Kendricks: The story surrounding Kendricks has been how valuable he is as an experienced player who is familiar with Mike Zimmer’s defense. Practice on Thursday served as a reminder that Kendricks is more than just the defense’s quarterback and leader. He still has a lot of energy, moves quickly, and can make plays. He should help the run defense.

Parsons: After a day like Thursday, it might seem easy to leave him out, but it is impossible to ignore him. The Rams had to continuously start chipping Parsons with a tight end because of how quickly he was working around the edge of their offensive line. Parsons’ influence is evident in his play and demeanor, particularly in light of Zimmer’s use of him.

“We were saying, wherever he is, you find him and you slide to him,” Rams head coach Sean McVay said. “We didn’t game plan, we didn’t know. I thought they did a really good job of having him in a variety of spots. It’s a good test.”

Wacky play of the day

During the red zone session, Parsons got through for a play that would be whistled dead as a sack. The Rams played it out and it resulted in Matthew Stafford throwing the ball, it getting deflected a few times, and then Stafford catching the ball and running it into the end zone.

Brandin Cooks

At this point in the year, Cooks’ relationship with Prescott is unquestionably better than it was. During camp, Cooks has been Dallas’ best wide receiver, and on Thursday, he maintained that position. As long as all four can maintain their health, Prescott should have enough weapons in the passing game with CeeDee Lamb, Cooks, Ferguson, and Tolbert.

“He’s a professional,” Prescott said about Cooks. “Probably the most professional teammate I’ve ever been around. And one of the best men I’ve ever been around. That carries over into how he prepares, how he communicates, and how he practices, which obviously helps with our connection. He’s still a big-time receiver, can be a No. 1 receiver, whatever you want to call it. He’s very valuable to me. He’s very valuable to this offense. I think today was just another glimpse of it. Our connection, it will only get better.”

I did not plan on uploading a lot of recordings of Stephens arriving at practice on Thursday, but as he worked with the first and second teams, he was frequently the target of attention. There is an intriguing tight end room with the Cowboys. Ferguson is undoubtedly the best player, but there could be a number of contenders at No. 2, including Stephens, who is still recovering from a season-ending knee injury from last August.

Running game

The running game for the Cowboys had an up and down day. Rico Dowdle and Ezekiel Elliott each had some excellent carries. Elliott’s error was likely the worst mistake. Although it is still too early to tell how effectively the Cowboys will play on the ground without Tony Pollard, Thursday was at least a decent chance to watch the offensive line and running backs receive some playing time against a different squad.

“I like where we are,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said of the team’s running game. “I like the numbers that we’re working with. I can flat go to war with this bunch.”

(Photo of Dak Prescott: Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images)

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