OXNARD, Calif. – Standouts and observations from Thursday's training camp practice here in Oxnard:
- Micah Parsons has continued where he left off as he found himself in the backfield on multiple occasions in team drills. He returns to the scene where he took the headlines by storm as a rookie last season. Thursday he would've stacked up at least two sacks during a dominant practice.
- Things continued on Day 2 without rookie fifth-round pick Matt Waletzko, with the offensive lineman leaving practice early on to be evaluated by the team's athletic training staff. His status is currently unknown, as trainers continue working to determine if there is any news to report on his future availability. Waletzko is set to battle for playing time on an offensive line that is desperately seeking to improve.
- It was another crisp day for Dak Prescott, who looks confident in his mobility and is decisive with his targeting. From individual drills to team reps, including two-minute drills, Prescott is moving around very well — including with traffic in the pocket — and making accurate throws both underneath and down the field.
- It was a better day for wide receiver James Washington, who was present and accounted for in the second practice of training camp after having dinged his shoulder the day prior on a deep throw from Prescott. And the veteran receiver didn't waste any reps on Day 2, making a couple of impressive catches from Prescott in team drills.
- One player to keep an eye on is wide receiver Dennis Houston, an undrafted rookie out of Western Illinois who had a very good day in the second practice. Houston's routes were crisp, quick and without wasted movement, and he put a lot of pressure on opposing cornerbacks to keep up with him.
- Jalen Tolbert continues to impress as training camp gets underway, carrying over his positive momentum from minicamp. The rookie third-round pick stole the show in team drills, when he high-pointed a throw to make a catch over former second-round pick Kelvin Joseph — who was draped over him like a blanket.
- Joseph had an up-and-down practice on Thursday. He took some scattered snaps with other first-team members of the defense. However, his most memorable play came when Houston elevated over the top of Joseph for an impressive grab.
- Nice job by the first-team defense of stopping the offense from scoring in a two-minute, end-of-half situation. Prescott got the offense into scoring position with four straight completions, but a fourth-and-4 pass to tight end Sean McKeon got batted down.
- Malik Jefferson, a former star linebacker for the Longhorns, was able to get heavily into the mix with others at the position, and looked physically ready for the task at-hand. That assignment is to show the Cowboys he deserves a final roster spot at a position of need on his hometown team.
- DeMarcus Lawrence says rookie second-round pick Sam Williams "doesn't know" just how many tools he already has in his toolbox, and "absolutely" believes Williams has what it takes to make an impact for the Cowboys on Day 1 and beyond. Lawrence believes Williams has a very high upside.
- Michael Gallup stated his recovery from a torn ACL suffered in January has gone well with no setbacks, and while there's still "a ways to go" in his recovery, he's able to currently to "a whole lot more" than a few weeks ago. The veteran wideout did note it's "not reasonable" to pencil him in for Week 1, but reiterates things are progressing well.
