FRISCO, Texas — Head coach Mike McCarthy spoke to the media prior to Thursday's OTA practice. It had been a week since he had spoken publicly and there was a lot of ground to cover. Below are four topics that McCarthy touched on including his coaching staff, plans to practice with another team, and some interesting positional flexibility.
Ben McAdoo's Role
Earlier this week, the Cowboys announced that Ben McAdoo would join Mike McCarthy's staff in a consulting role. McAdoo served as head coach of the New York Giants for two seasons and spent years working with Mike McCarthy in various roles.
"He's a great resource for us," McCarthy said Thursday. "I have a long history with Ben. He's going to work primarily with both offensive and defensive coordinators. I think he's a great asset in that role."
McCarthy stated that McAdoo's exact role would be designed on the job, but that his presence with the staff will be common and that a crucial part of his job will be preparing for opponents earlier in the week or even over a week out from facing a team.
"We're working through the details of that," McCarthy said. "He'll be here throughout the offseason program and he'll be at training camp. We're kind of designing the role. I haven't personally had this kind of role on my staff. Ben has great flexibility. I know Dan particularly was excited about it because it gives him someone from the opposite side of the ball's perspective doing some pre-game planning"
Practicing with the Rams?
McCarthy also told the media that he had spoken to Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVey about potentially holding a joint practice between the Rams and Cowboys in Oxnard during training camp. He stated that he was "hesitant to talk about it" because it is not yet an official decision and technically it's not even officially established that the Cowboys will go to Oxnard for training camp quite yet.
"That's what we're preparing to do," McCarthy said. "If we did practice against another team it would be one day in Oxnard against the LA Rams."
McCarthy didn't conduct joint practices for most of his time in Green Bay for geographical reasons, but he sees the option as a helpful way to prepare for the season.
"You can get really good situational work," McCarthy said. "It's really good for your evaluating process. I think there's a lot to gain. I'm looking forward to working against the Rams. This will be good for our players."
Parsons off the edge?
The media got a little preview of what to expect from Thursday's practice regarding first-round draft pick Micah Parson. McCarthy said to "pay attention" to the linebacker's role.
"He's going to play a little outside," McCarthy said. "We'll see him rush today and come off the edge. We're just going through our installs."
The head coach added that Parsons has fit in nicely to everything that the Cowboys are trying to do and looked great in practice. "He understands football," he said. "There was an RPO in practice last week that he almost picked off so you can see the ability and the instincts with the way he can react."
Pollard at receiver?
Last week in OTAs, Tony Pollard lined up at receiver in a few specific snaps. It won't be a permanent switch, but it was likely an enticing nugget for fans who want to see the young running back more involved in the team's offense.
"We had a few guys under the weather," McCarthy said, justifying switching things up. But he also noted that it was a great opportunity to put Pollard in reps that "he wasn't able to see last year."
Pollard played receiver in college at Memphis. How did he fare at the position in OTAs? McCarthy said that he looked "natural in space and alignment" and that it was no surprise because Pollard is an "exceptional athlete."
Apparently, Pollard's receiving skills also earned the respect of the Cowboys' new defensive coordinator. "Dan Quinn is looking at him as a receiver. That should tell you how he looks."
