(Editor's Note: Who doesn't love lists? Throughout training camp, 'High 5' will provide a top five list for many of the critical topics surrounding the Dallas Cowboys 2025 season.)
Now that two weeks of training camp are in the books, the stakes are even higher for certain players trying to make the roster or capitalize on close position battles. This week provides multiple chances to bring light to some of the tough decisions looming for the Cowboys coaching staff.
System installs are nearly complete and should wrap up after Monday's traditional practice in Oxnard. All before the Rams come to Oxnard for the only scheduled joint practice this season. Then, it's a busy week of practices that conclude Thursday and Friday before the Cowboys see the Rams again Saturday for their first preseason matchup.
That tallies five chances to make every rep count, with two of them scheduled against an outside opponent. These are the five players who have the biggest opportunity ahead of a big week on the west coast:
5. Kemon Hall - Multiple injuries in the secondary, consistent rotation with the ones, and solid play throughout the first two weeks of training camp have Kemon Hall contending for a spot on the roster. In fact, depending on how long it takes for other players like Trevon Diggs and Shavon Revel to return, he could be contending for a starting spot. Hall spent the first two years of his career fighting for a spot on an active roster, finally found that in Los Angeles in 16 games with the Chargers. But this may be his best opportunity to lock up a starting spot and make it stick for an entire season.
4. Jalen Tolbert - It hasn't been the best camp for Tolbert so far. With other wide receivers like Ceedee Lamb and George Pickens leading the way, followed closely by consistent production from Kavontae Turpin and Jonathan Mingo, Tolbert's presumed spot on the depth chart is no longer a confirmation. Along with his expectations being elevated after his career-best year, it's also a contract year. Meaning that anything he can do to prove he deserves targets, or even a spot on the roster, is an added plus. He'll get that this week in practice and possibly for limited snaps in the preseason game.
3. Shemar James - Can't make this list without a standout rookie who is aiming to be the steal of the draft. Everything the scouting staff and front office said about James, and why they traded up in the fifth round to draft him, has shown up on the field in Oxnard. The athleticism, the quick first step, the ability to read and react. The question now becomes, how can he take it to the next level in the preseason? His recent snaps with the first team defense have been a biproduct of his early success picking up the playbook and how he's taken advantage of Kenneth Murray's time away from the team.
2. Jaydon Blue - Another rookie who has been impressive throughout padded practices, but one plays a position where it's tough to tell just how ready they are without going to the ground. In a few weeks, Blue may be the talk of the Cowboys fanbase after a few solid outings and one or two long runs. It has happened before, it can happen again. A young, electrifying ball carrier takes extra reps as the veterans rest in the preseason. This time, Blue is in the middle of a wide-open position battle that could be won by anyone in the room. And he happens to have more speed than anyone in it.
1. Nate Thomas - Having taken most of the first team reps since Tyler Guyton's injury last week, Nate Thomas has looked the part. After he was taken in the seventh round of the 2023 draft, he has waited his turn in the shadows of the left tackle depth chart and spent all last season on injured reserve. There's a real need for offensive tackle depth on the Cowboys roster, as shown by the signings of La'el Collins and Geron Chrisitan Saturday. However, as those two get acclimated and Guyton continues to recover from a bone fracture in his knee, many of the preseason reps and first team reps in the joint practice against the Rams will belong to Thomas. Giving him the biggest window of opportunity this week.
