OXNARD, Calif. – The Cowboys began their second week of training camp with the first practice with pads on Monday.
As expected, the intensity was much higher and we also got a chance to better evaluate some of the more physical positions, particularly in the offensive and defensive line.
Here are some quick observations from the Cowboys' staff writers.
- The Land Shark Cometh - Cobie Durant's momentum over the first three practices ramped up even more on Monday, when the pads came on. His coverage is some of the best on the Cowboys' defense and, on one play in particular, he showed Dak Prescott what he can do. Prescott dropped back in the red zone and threw a ball under duress to CeeDee Lamb, who was in good enough position to make the catch after he broke outside; but Durant peeled off of his original coverage, readjusted and jumped the route to make an acrobatic interception that had Christian Parker smiling. - (Patrik Walker)
- Bringin' the Wood - On the first day of pads, you wouldn't expect anything other than someone named "Julius Wood" to have a physical practice. Just an hour before, his head coach Brian Schottenheimer mentioned Wood as being active and making the safety position rather deep. And then in practice, he had several big pops, jarring the ball loose on a pass during the team drills and he also wasn't afraid to come up in run support. Also, Caleb Downs had a few run stops as well. But Wood is a guy trying to get noticed – and he did that Monday. - (Nick Eatman)
- Fant Exits With Injury – Cowboys tight end Princeton Fant was injured during Monday's practice, when a running back collided with his leg on a play where Fant was blocking to try and give the running back some room to work with. After needing assistance to get to the medical tent, Fant was taken to the locker room on a cart. Fant has spent the last three years with the Cowboys, where he's primarily served a role on special teams. He's played in 11 total career games for Dallas, playing 189 total snaps on special teams in that time span.- (Tommy Yarrish)
- Milton's playing flag football – While backup QB Joe Milton has had several nice throws with the football. But he showed his arm in another way, even if he did have to swipe the ref's flag. During a red-zone drill, rookie cornerback Devin Moore got very aggressive with CeeDee Lamb on a pass that fell incomplete. Lamb was waiting for the flag, as was every offensive player but Milton decided to take the matter into his own hands. He playfully grabbed the ref's flag out of his pocket and threw it about 20 yards. Again, that's another example how the rules are very different in practice. - (Nick Eatman)
- Revel In the Moment - What Shavon Revel is experiencing in his second NFL training camp is the definition of iron sharpens iron. Before today, CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens were narrowly inching him out to make big plays but, in the first padded practice, Revel had several PBUs and even wagged his finger at Pickens on one of them. Going against two of the best in the league combines with Revel being fully healthy to make for what might be a return to peak form once witnessed at ECU only two short seasons ago. (Patrik Walker)
- Downs to Business – Caleb Downs may not always make the flashy, highlight plays all the time for a defensive back, but he makes big plays that the offense feels well afterwards. That was the case today, as Downs had a teach-tape run fill against the first team offense, as he was waiting in the gap when Jaydon Blue was trying to get through it. Downs' work at the line of scrimmage is one that popped up a lot at Ohio State, and has done so in flashes during his first NFL training camp with the Cowboys too. He's also been active around the ball in coverage, as Downs had a near interception today off a pass that DaRon Bland deflected into the air. - (Tommy Yarrish)
