Dallas Cowboys finally put on pads: Tyler Smith shows strength, CeeDee Lamb shines
The Dallas Cowboys practiced in pads Monday for the first time since the 2021 season.
Per NFL rules, all teams have a four-day ramp up in training camp before full speed work in pads.
And the team and coaching staff treated it like kids at Christmas.
It was the start of real football.
“Absolutely. I think for all of us, this is the work that is the priority,” coach Mike McCarthy said. “I think clearly for the offensive line, if I would say there is one position that has been at a disadvantage in the training up to this point it’s clearly the offensive line. This is the day we’ve been looking forward to. This is as close as we can get to playing games. This is what we’re here for. I want it cranked up, I want the juice, I want the fur flying, all of that.
“When I think of Oxnard, I think of padded practices in this weather, let’s crank it up. Let’s get going. Today is that day.”
Said defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence: ”You always look forward to it. It’s been a long year without any hitting so I feel like everybody, the anticipation is up for the first day of pads and glad we got it over with. Now we can calm down and actually start to get our fundamentals down.”
Observations from practice on Monday:
1. The Cowboys suffered a huge blow when receiver James Washington suffered a possible fractured foot on the first day in pads. But they escaped a double dose of pain when safety Jayron Kearse returned to practiced after leaving the field with the trainers with an apparent right leg injury.
Kearse went down after a play and then was helped to the sideline before leaving the field. A few minutes later, he ran back on the field and returned to practice.
“Nothing is bothering me,” Kearse said. “I tried to plant, my foot was too wide and I just tweaked (knee) a little bit. I’m doing great. Nothing is bothering me.”
The Cowboys officially termed Kearse’s injury as a hyperextended knee.
Kearse led the Cowboys in tackles last year and is the play caller on defense.
2. Jerry Jones predicted that first-round pick Tyler Smith’s power would show up when the team donned pads for the first time. And right on cue, Smith, who is battling Connor McGovern for the starting job at left guard, started throwing his weight around. He more than held his own in pass rush drills, but the highlight was in team drills when Smith had a pancake block on defensive tackle Trysten Hill on a running play.
McCarthy said Smith just needs more reps at guard and more reps with first-team tackle Tyron Smith. The team had him split time at tackle in OTAs and minicamp. But that has ended.
“He’s got to play it,” McCarthy said. “He’s just like the rest of them he needs to play in pads, he needs to do combination blocks with Tyron. A combination block just ain’t a combination block, it’s your footwork paired with a guy next to him. It’s timing the anticipation all those things. I guess the biggest part of it, he just needs reps.”
“We really had that talk after the spring. We probably played him too much at tackle than guard. So that can equate some football where he’s a tad late, a half step off, hands might not be where (he needs to be). It’s just like anything that can keep him in one spot and let him get comfortable there.”
3. Depending on your point of view, the kicking situation is starting to be a concern for the Cowboys.Texas Tech rookie Jonathan Garibay, who has struggled since the start of camp.
Garibay admits he is behind veteran Lirim Harjullahu, who was signed right before camp to give the rookie some competition.
Garibay went 6-of-8 on kicks Monday while Hajrullahu was 7-of-8. During late-game situations with the offense, Garibay went 0-for-2, while Hajrullahu made both his kicks.
This is coming off a weekend practice when Garibay made just 4-of-8 kicks.
4. Fifth-round pick Matt Waletzko, who the Cowboys took with the selection the team received from the Cleveland Browns for receiver Amari Cooper, is sidelined from practice with a shoulder injury.
Coach Mike McCarthy said surgery is an likely for the rookie offensive tackle, who has a history of shoulder injuries dating back to his days at North Dakota.
Waletzko’s injury is another setback for the Cowboys, who were expecting him to compete with Josh Ball for the third tackle spot. It’s also another example of what little the Cowboys got for Cooper in the trade.
5. Receiver CeeDee Lamb returned to practice Monday after taking Saturday off for work load management. And he returned with a flourish. He caught a number of passes from Dak Prescott while offering glimpse what the offense might look like with him as the No. 1 receiver.
The Cowboys featured Lamb on the outside and in the slot position. After practice, he said that it was an example of how they were going to move him around to get the ball in his hands. Amari Cooper complained that the Cowboys didn’t feature him as the No. 1 receiver.
Lamb said Monday’s practice was just of taste of things to come.
