OXNARD, Calif. -- On Tuesday afternoon, all three of the Cowboys' new coordinators met with the media following the team's first week of training camp.
Matt Eberflus is back in Dallas as defensive coordinator after serving as linebackers coach from 2011-17, while offensive coordinator Klayton Adams and special teams coordinator Nick Sorensen are the new faces.
Here's some of what stood out from what they had to say:
Finding Depth: The Cowboys have suffered a flurry of injuries at the cornerback position dating all the way back to last season, and unfortunately for the Cowboys they still have injuries there a week into camp, including new ones to Caelan Carson and Andrew Booth recently. What does that mean for the rest of the room to defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus?
"I always look at that as opportunity first, because you get a chance for the guys that are competing to step up and move into the ones or twos, which they wouldn't normally be if the starters are there." Eberflus said.
Depth has been added to give Dallas more options at corner, including the signing of Christian Matthew on Tuesday morning. (-Tommy Yarrish)
Smith on the move?: With Tyler Guyton sidelined with a knee injury for at least a month or two, the Cowboys have to decide what to do in the meantime at left tackle in case he can't return for Week 1. One option is one that the Cowboys have done in the past: Moving Tyler Smith from left guard to left tackle. Is that in the cards?
"I think it's way too early to tell on that," Offensive coordinator Klayton Adams said. "Obviously you love when players have good position flexibility, and he certainly has tons of flexibility, but that's not something that we've decided at this point."
It'll be an open competition for the job at left tackle until Guyton is able to return, with several other options on the table like Nate Thomas and Hakeem Adeniji amongst others battling for the spot. (- Tommy Yarrish)
Poetry in Motion: Klayton Adams and Brian Schottenheimer are showing they're not afraid to use presnap motion, and frequently, to try and confuse the defense — especially given the type of weaponry that exists on the offensive side of the ball.
In his own words, the Cowboys' offensive coordinator explained why he's such a fan of using motion, including the fact it often reveals the tell by the defense.
"When you have the ability to do something that gives you an advantage, you're going to do it more," said Adams. "One of the great things about doing that,when you're practicing, is that sometimes it can create a little bit of chaos for IDs and some of the interior pieces, the offensive line, the tight ends, and sometimes even the quarterback.
"And if it gives us information, then obviously, it's 100% worth it. The advantage of creating a little bit of chaos for those guys is that we need to manufacture some adversity and make the [defensive] jobs hard." - (Patrik Walker)
Be Special: On a roster of 90 players that must be hacked down to only 53 active players in a few weeks, many fringe players will have to earn their way onto the Cowboys' roster by way of impressing special teams coordinator Nick Sorensen.
He's already impressed with some, particularly the ones who show an actual love for the run-and-gun style that mostly comes with playing special teams.
"It's awesome," said Sorensen. "I mean, that's what you need. You need that, especially from the young guys that maybe you didn't do it very much or if they did, they did it, like, three or four years ago.
"... Yeah, we talk about it all the time. We've done some competitive drills where we keep score and, you know, that there's a winner and a loser. And obviously the games are gonna matter, and the joint practice is gonna matter. It's just something that we keep doing to keep it as competitive as possible, and, you know, there's some competitive groups, where I think it will be a deciding factor. - (Patrik Walker)
Sizing Up: Plenty of the early training camp conversation has centered around the weight loss of Mazi Smith and the collective lack of size on the interior defensive line.
When asked about the importance of size on the defensive line, Matt Eberflus mentioned that it matters. However, only in certain spots. Saying that the defensive tackles need to handle a double team, and when it's 600-pounds against 300-pounds, it's tough to hold a position.
But when it pertains to size off the edge, Eberflus believes that length and speed are important elements, sometimes more than size. This now begs the question, how does Eberflus plan to use Smith in those certain situations. - (Kyle Youmans)
If It Ain't Broke: One of the main elements of Nick Sorensen's position as special team coordinator is continuing the momentum in the unit from the last few seasons. It sounds like he is taking a conservative approach in doing so, especially when it comes to Brandon Aubrey. Sorensen mentioned he wants to allow Aubrey to complete his process in getting ready for the season, while establishing consistency by keeping it up to Aubrey himself.
It worked over the first two years of his NFL career, and Sorensen is hoping it'll click for him again. - (Kyle Youmans)
