Cowboys OTA observations: TDs galore; Hill and Quinn disruptive; where’s Iloka?
The Cowboys started work on red-zone offense during OTA practice Wednesday.
It is a huge area of focus heading into the 2019 season after their well-chronicled woes in that area last season.
Dallas scored touchdowns on just 51.7 trips inside the red zone in 2018, ranking 26th in the league.
It’s a big reason the Cowboys scored a mediocre 21.1 points per game in what has become a scoring league.
“It’s definitely a bigger focus,” quarterback Dak Prescott said. “But we’ve changed some things up, for one, so we’re not going to sit here and beat our heads against the wall worried about what we did last year.”
“We know we are going to be better. We are going to have bigger plays from outside the red zone and score in the red zone. It was a good start today.”
Prescott believes that because they believe they will be more explosive on offense with the additions receiver Randall Cobb and speedy rookie running back Tony Pollard, to go with receivers Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup and running back Ezekiel Elliott.
The return of veteran tight end Jason Witten and his knack for getting open should also help.
And then there was the change in offensive coordinator with Kellen Moore replacing Scott Linehan.
Moore plans to be creative by using more packages and pre-snap movement.
But Wednesday was the first day for him to put it all together, calling plays in the red zone and two-minute situations for the first time.
“It gives you an opportunity to put some stuff out there that maybe you haven’t done before — see what you like, see what you don’t like and tweak things,” Moore said. “We’ve got to get better, we’ve go to execute, we’ve got to run the football. Take advantage of 21 and 4 and we’ll have some opportunities outside, as well.”
Here are some other observations from Wednesday OTA practice open to the media:
* Moore said he will call plays from the sideline with quarterbacks coach Jon Kitna manning the booth. “I like the sideline, just being able to interact with the players and talk to Dak,” Moore said. “I think it will be perfect. It’ll be good.”
* I asked Dak Prescott if he and the players understand that coach Jason Garrett is in the final year of his contract and coaching for his job in 2019.
“So am I. So is Amari Cooper,” Prescott said. “There’s no difference. We’re both in our last year. It’s not talked about. It’s not discussed.”
* Touchdowns in practice. A huge storyline in training camp last year was the lack of touchdowns in practice, which spoke to the lack of explosion at receiver. The Cowboys traded for Cooper during the season and have made a point to add speed at receiver this off-season. And what do you know, they scoring touchdowns on deep balls in practice. Reggie Davis, Cedrick Wilson and Jon’vea Johnson all scored on Wednesday.
* Tackle Cam Fleming returned to practice after missing last week. He played left tackle for the resting Tyron Smith. Connor Williams moved inside to left guard. Defensive Robert Quinn had his way with Fleming just as he did Williams the week before, even drawing a holding penalty. Quinn can get around the edge.
* It was Mike White’s day to take reps at backup quarterback behind Prescott. He is alternating with Cooper Rush in what is an open competition for the No. 2 spot. White’s day started badly as he took a tongue-lashing from Garrett for not leading the team and having them ready.
* Defensive tackle Trysten Hill, the rookie second-round pick, flashed his disruptive ability by blowing up a running play with quick penetration in the backfield.
* Darius Jackson is running second at running back behind Elliott and he had a good day. He caught a wide open swing pass for a touchdown in the red zone. Mike Weber ran third and seems to be handling the knee injury that bothered him in rookie camp just fine. There was nothing big from Pollard but the excitement from the coaches is palpable. Running back coach Gary Brown said Pollard is going to be special.
* Prescott looked sharp and comfortable if not Warren Moon-like. He and Cooper continue to make magic on comebacks, outs, and crosses. Cooper’s footwork left more than one defensive back in the dust. Prescott is continuing to grow with Cobb, who is doing more stuff down the field out of the slot than Cole Beasley did last year.
* Undrafted rookie receiver Jon’Vea Johnson continues to flash and impress. He used his speed to make a nice catch in the back of the end zone against cornerback Treston DeCloud but he also made a tough catch in traffic. The Cowboys are going to give him a chance to make the team.
* Stop if you have heard this before: Jeff Heath remains with the first team at strong safety opposite Xavier Woods. What was the purpose of signing George Iloka if he can’t unseat Heath? You don’t need a veteran safety to play special teams. That is what rookie Donovan Wilson is for. This bears watching in training camp.
This story was originally published May 29, 2019 at 7:47 PM.
