July 25, 2019 at 09:16PM
'Twas the night before Oxnard, and all through the Star… there was an awful lot of stirring, to be sure. One playmaker is still expected to be on the plane, while another may be landing a new deal after they touch down. All eyes will be on Jason Garrett as he embarks on a critical camp, and one outlet thinks the 2019 team is a longshot that might just pay off. There's one less wide receiver than anticipated who will be making the trip, and one extra quarterback.
All of that, plus DeMarcus Lawrence's shoe suitcase is packed, the team's cheerleading squad rocks out, and the Cowboys prove to be the investment that got away for none other than Donald Trump. Buckle up; it's a busy edition of News & Notes.
Team staff writer Rob Phillips has the latest on the Ezekiel Elliott Watch. For all the rampant speculation over the past week about Elliott possibly staging a holdout, head coach Jason Garrett says he expects the defending rushing champ to be present and accounted for when the team travels to Oxnard on Thursday.
The Cowboys' first practice is scheduled for Saturday.
One of the club's major outstanding items may get crossed off the to-do list in Oxnard. According to NFL Network's Jane Slater, quarterback Dak Prescott and the front office may come to terms on a contract extension while in the Golden State.
As Adithya Prabakaran points out on Cowboys Wire, Prescott has won the most games of any quarterback since entering the league in 2016 and has yet to miss a game due to injury.
The Cowboys may be the winningest team in NFL history, but they haven't reached the NFC Championship Game since 1995. (Only the Lions and Redskins have a longer drought.) Their roster is now loaded with stars; the expectations are sky-high for Dallas to make a serious run at the title game. So there may not be a hotter seat in the NFL in 2019 than the one Jason Garrett is currently perched on. Todd Archer takes a look at how far the team will likely have to go this year in order for Garrett- unsigned beyond this season- to get a third contract from the club.
Archer also weighs in on a few other key storylines for the upcoming season: what kind of spark offensive coordinator Kellen Moore might bring, how much Jason Witten has left in the tank, what Dak Prescott needs to do for the team to be successful, and how motivated DeMarcus Lawrence might be to prove he's worth the payday he got back in April.
VegasInsider.com gives them just 20-to-1 odds, but Robert Mays of The Ringer says the Cowboys may just be hoisting the Lombardi Trophy come February. He touts the team's defense and the midseason arrival of Amari Cooper as big plusses from 2018, but digs a little deeper to suggest that in reality, Dallas was more like an 8-8 squad than a 10-6 division winner.
But Travis Frederick's return bodes well for every component of the offense, Mays writes. And he suggests that Kellen Moore may have actually inherited an offense that's sneakily better than they were given credit for being last season.
There's still cause for concern in a few key areas, but overall, the Cowboys are one of four teams considered to be Super Bowl contenders that not enough people are talking about.
Staff writers David Helman and Rob Phillips tackle fan mail on the team's official site. In this edition, they examine a question about Dak Prescott's vision- namely, his ability to spot trouble in the pocket and then escape. Tony Romo had a rare and uncanny knack for it; where is Prescott in his development of this critical quarterbacking skill?
Also, the two weigh in on Jason Witten's return and how it affects the other tight ends on the roster, most notably Blake Jarwin, who came on strong at the end of the 2018 season. Witten's presence will cut Jarwin's snap count, to be sure, but having the Hall of Famer around may have long-term benefits for Jarwin's future.
With the team's top three wide receiver slots all but locked in, 2019's training camp looks to be a cage match free-for-all among the other talented pass-catchers on the roster. The release of Allen Hurns thins the herd a bit as youngsters like Jon'Vea Johnson and Jalen Guyton try to impress the coaching staff. But lesser-known players like Reggie Davis, Cedrick Wilson, Devin Smith, and Lance Lenoir will be looking to land a roster spot as well, competing alongside Noah Brown and Tavon Austin.
Sean Martin looks at each of the wide receivers, explores what each brings to the table, and takes a stab at which one might become a Twitter-highlight-reel darling by the time camp ends.
On First Take, Booger McFarland and Marcus Spears get into a spirited debate about the Cowboys' signal-caller as he compares to the Eagles' Carson Wentz. All of the salient points about both throwers are brought up: Wentz's propensity for getting hurt, Prescott's perceived accuracy issues, the help Prescott gets from playing behind a dominant offensive line, the MVP-esque stats Wentz was putting up before his 2017 knee injury… even 49ers QB Jimmy Garroppolo makes a cameo in the argument as the former players take opposing sides in stating Prescott's worth.
In the end, one calls Prescott "the most disrespected quarterback in the National Football League," while the other says, "You done lost your damn mind."
The team will be bringing extra depth at the quarterback position with them to California. K.D Drummond digs into the small-school resume of South Dakota State's Taryn Christion, and brings the game film, too.
Is Christion just a camp arm, or does his addition signal some greater uncertainty about the development of Cooper Rush and/or Mike White? Time (and reps) will tell, but watch the clips and see if Christion's playing style doesn't bear at least a passing resemblance to a certain No. 4's.
The Cowboys' fifth-round selection in April, Michael Jackson Sr. was given a spotlight on the team website by staff writer Rob Phillips. Jackson discusses his feelings on his draft position, his style of play, and who he believes he has the potential to become under second-year defensive backs coach Kris Richard.
Defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence is not expected to play during the team's training camp stay in California. But he's packing like he is. The player nicknamed Tank has plenty of new treads ready to wear into battle.
Lawrence will be with the team as he continues his rehab from offseason shoulder surgery, and vows he's still on track to lace up one of those pairs of cleats Week 1 when the Cowboys open the season against the Giants.
Concertgoers and football fans alike were in for a bonus on Tuesday night when the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders accompanied Queen + Adam Lambert on stage at the American Airlines Center during the band's latest tour.
The world-renowned sideline squad joined the classic rock legends for a specially-rehearsed rendition of their 1978 hit "Fat Bottomed Girls."
'Twas the night before Oxnard, and all through the Star… there was an awful lot of stirring, to be sure. One playmaker is still expected to be on the plane, while another may be landing a new deal after they touch down. All eyes will be on Jason Garrett as he embarks on a critical camp, and one outlet thinks the 2019 team is a longshot that might just pay off. There's one less wide receiver than anticipated who will be making the trip, and one extra quarterback.
All of that, plus DeMarcus Lawrence's shoe suitcase is packed, the team's cheerleading squad rocks out, and the Cowboys prove to be the investment that got away for none other than Donald Trump. Buckle up; it's a busy edition of News & Notes.
Team staff writer Rob Phillips has the latest on the Ezekiel Elliott Watch. For all the rampant speculation over the past week about Elliott possibly staging a holdout, head coach Jason Garrett says he expects the defending rushing champ to be present and accounted for when the team travels to Oxnard on Thursday.
The Cowboys' first practice is scheduled for Saturday.
One of the club's major outstanding items may get crossed off the to-do list in Oxnard. According to NFL Network's Jane Slater, quarterback Dak Prescott and the front office may come to terms on a contract extension while in the Golden State.
As Adithya Prabakaran points out on Cowboys Wire, Prescott has won the most games of any quarterback since entering the league in 2016 and has yet to miss a game due to injury.
The Cowboys may be the winningest team in NFL history, but they haven't reached the NFC Championship Game since 1995. (Only the Lions and Redskins have a longer drought.) Their roster is now loaded with stars; the expectations are sky-high for Dallas to make a serious run at the title game. So there may not be a hotter seat in the NFL in 2019 than the one Jason Garrett is currently perched on. Todd Archer takes a look at how far the team will likely have to go this year in order for Garrett- unsigned beyond this season- to get a third contract from the club.
Archer also weighs in on a few other key storylines for the upcoming season: what kind of spark offensive coordinator Kellen Moore might bring, how much Jason Witten has left in the tank, what Dak Prescott needs to do for the team to be successful, and how motivated DeMarcus Lawrence might be to prove he's worth the payday he got back in April.
VegasInsider.com gives them just 20-to-1 odds, but Robert Mays of The Ringer says the Cowboys may just be hoisting the Lombardi Trophy come February. He touts the team's defense and the midseason arrival of Amari Cooper as big plusses from 2018, but digs a little deeper to suggest that in reality, Dallas was more like an 8-8 squad than a 10-6 division winner.
But Travis Frederick's return bodes well for every component of the offense, Mays writes. And he suggests that Kellen Moore may have actually inherited an offense that's sneakily better than they were given credit for being last season.
There's still cause for concern in a few key areas, but overall, the Cowboys are one of four teams considered to be Super Bowl contenders that not enough people are talking about.
Staff writers David Helman and Rob Phillips tackle fan mail on the team's official site. In this edition, they examine a question about Dak Prescott's vision- namely, his ability to spot trouble in the pocket and then escape. Tony Romo had a rare and uncanny knack for it; where is Prescott in his development of this critical quarterbacking skill?
Also, the two weigh in on Jason Witten's return and how it affects the other tight ends on the roster, most notably Blake Jarwin, who came on strong at the end of the 2018 season. Witten's presence will cut Jarwin's snap count, to be sure, but having the Hall of Famer around may have long-term benefits for Jarwin's future.
With the team's top three wide receiver slots all but locked in, 2019's training camp looks to be a cage match free-for-all among the other talented pass-catchers on the roster. The release of Allen Hurns thins the herd a bit as youngsters like Jon'Vea Johnson and Jalen Guyton try to impress the coaching staff. But lesser-known players like Reggie Davis, Cedrick Wilson, Devin Smith, and Lance Lenoir will be looking to land a roster spot as well, competing alongside Noah Brown and Tavon Austin.
Sean Martin looks at each of the wide receivers, explores what each brings to the table, and takes a stab at which one might become a Twitter-highlight-reel darling by the time camp ends.
On First Take, Booger McFarland and Marcus Spears get into a spirited debate about the Cowboys' signal-caller as he compares to the Eagles' Carson Wentz. All of the salient points about both throwers are brought up: Wentz's propensity for getting hurt, Prescott's perceived accuracy issues, the help Prescott gets from playing behind a dominant offensive line, the MVP-esque stats Wentz was putting up before his 2017 knee injury… even 49ers QB Jimmy Garroppolo makes a cameo in the argument as the former players take opposing sides in stating Prescott's worth.
In the end, one calls Prescott "the most disrespected quarterback in the National Football League," while the other says, "You done lost your damn mind."
The team will be bringing extra depth at the quarterback position with them to California. K.D Drummond digs into the small-school resume of South Dakota State's Taryn Christion, and brings the game film, too.
Is Christion just a camp arm, or does his addition signal some greater uncertainty about the development of Cooper Rush and/or Mike White? Time (and reps) will tell, but watch the clips and see if Christion's playing style doesn't bear at least a passing resemblance to a certain No. 4's.
The Cowboys' fifth-round selection in April, Michael Jackson Sr. was given a spotlight on the team website by staff writer Rob Phillips. Jackson discusses his feelings on his draft position, his style of play, and who he believes he has the potential to become under second-year defensive backs coach Kris Richard.
Defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence is not expected to play during the team's training camp stay in California. But he's packing like he is. The player nicknamed Tank has plenty of new treads ready to wear into battle.
Lawrence will be with the team as he continues his rehab from offseason shoulder surgery, and vows he's still on track to lace up one of those pairs of cleats Week 1 when the Cowboys open the season against the Giants.
Concertgoers and football fans alike were in for a bonus on Tuesday night when the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders accompanied Queen + Adam Lambert on stage at the American Airlines Center during the band's latest tour.
The world-renowned sideline squad joined the classic rock legends for a specially-rehearsed rendition of their 1978 hit "Fat Bottomed Girls."