As we get ready for the second week of the Dallas Cowboys training camp, the first week was filled with a lot more good things than bad, and that is ideal.
A handful of things jumped out at me as I watched each day and all the videos from the media that were there and had open access.
One of the biggest for me was that, yes, the defense looks better. They are clearly still many, many steps behind the offense with Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens.
A Lot Going On
Early on, a lot happened. DeMarvion Overshown seems to be the leader in terms of being the MIKE linebacker, and the communication you can hear from the entire defense in the clips found below is good to hear.
Keep an eye on Caleb Downs and Shemar James as guys who could have a chance to be the signal caller if needed also though.
Still, one thing that was a common theme was the secondary continuing to have trouble covering both Lamb and Pickens, and I get it, they are probably the best duo in football, but this is what I was worried about all summer long.
The defense showed in the first week that they were indeed better, but this secondary outside of Downs looks like they are still a ways away.
Just take a look on twitter for more videos and you will see a bunch of offensive highlights and very little defensive ones.
CB: Cobie Durant
NCB: Caleb Downs
FS: Malik Hooker
SS: Jalen Thompson
CB: DaRon Bland
A lot of this is small stuff compared to what we saw last year when Matt Eberflus was running the defense, and last week was all work without pads, so things could change, but you do notice better communication, guys finding their gaps, and at least making things harder on the offense this summer.
The best bit of news is that Bland is moving well, showing no lingering effects of his foot injury. On one rep specifically, he read the play well, planted his foot in the dirt, closed quickly, and cleanly got around Breyvan Spann-Ford for a nice pass breakup.
Good to see Bland. He has to be the guy on the best WR of whatever team they are playing this year. Glad he is moving well.
One other thing to note is that Jerry Jones finally talked to the media last week and did not rule out making another move for a defender to help them this year.
Last week when he spoke to the media, he admitted that he’d be willing to “get a splash player” to make the Cowboys a bona fide Super Bowl contender (per ESPN’s Lindsay Thiry). ESPN’s Todd Archer provides a bit more context, passing along Jones’ comments that he’d be willing to “give up the future” in a trade.
Now, maybe that was his way of finally getting back into the news, but credit to him for not saying this for the last three months and just letting his football team put in the work and focus on that.
I hope he does give up the future to get another defender. You are only going to have this offense one more time this season would be my guess. Go make it happen, Jerry.
I am looking forward to more work this week, and guess what, we finally have football every week from now on until the Super Bowl.
The Cowboys’ first preseason game takes place next weekend, August 15th, against the Seahawks, and I am sure once those start, and it gets closer to September, we will have a better understanding of which guys on the bubble will make the roster and who won’t.
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