Wednesday proved to be a busy day at Cowboys minicamp. CeeDee Lamb appeared to avoid injury (though he gave everyone a good scare), and Dak Prescott hooked up with Brandin Cooks for a preview of what fans hope to see often in 2023. We also got updates on Luke Schoonmaker’s walking boot and why Zack Martin hasn’t been practicing. And the Cowboys passers have given the new Mike McCarthy offense a name, saying it’s unlike anything anybody else is running.
Meanwhile, the defensive line gets a new member, Micah Parsons finds himself atop an impressive list, Kelvin Joseph is hoping a new position is his key to finally making it click, and a former O-lineman admits the other side of the ball is more fun. All that, plus why more scrambles would be a good thing for Prescott & Co., and a 2023 opponent will bring their retro uniforms to AT&T Stadium for a big primetime showcase. Here’s the News and Notes.
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The West Coast offense is out; the Cowboys quarterbacks are putting their own spin on it by adding in “a little bit of what we’ve done in the past and just obviously marrying them together with a lot of detail,” Prescott said. It’s a system he believes isn’t out there yet, so the passers christened it “The Texas Coast Offense.”
The 10-year veteran says he’s been held out of spring work due to an unspecified soft tissue injury, but notes that the team is “just being smart, making sure I get to training camp feeling ready to rock.”
The rookie tight end was in a boot last week due to a plantar fascia injury. This week, he’s out of the boot but still limited during practice. Coaches expect him to be fine by the time the team hits Oxnard. “I don’t anticipate anybody having an issue come training camp,” McCarthy said.
CeeDee Lamb was limping around after he and Israel Mukuamu bumped during 7-on-7 drill. Lamb was still able make a spinning, one-handed grab of Dak Prescott’s throw on the run. Lamb was briefly examined, took a couple of plays off but then returned for a couple of plays.
— Todd Archer (@toddarcher) June 7, 2023
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Cowboys fans understandably get nervous now when Prescott takes off running. But holding him back isn’t the answer; he’s undoubtedly more dangerous than his last-place negative finish in scramble EPA showed in 2022. If scrambles can be designed and coached correctly, they can elevate the Cowboys offense to new heights in 2023. It’s time to use Dak’s legs again.
Fans know the Cowboys air attack had its troubles last season, but the black-and-white numbers paint an even bleaker picture. One hundred and four pass-catchers were ranked in a variety of metrics for this study- Noah Brown, Michael Gallup, and Dalton Schultz finished 94th, 96th, and 100th respectively in EPA per target.
Highlight of Day 2 from #Cowboys OTAs belongs to:
Brandin Cooks.
Cooks turned on the jets, got behind double coverage on a go route and Dak Prescott dropped in an absolute dime to hit him in stride for 60-yard TD.
It begins. 👀
— Patrik [No C] Walker (@VoiceOfTheStar) June 7, 2023
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The Colts never seemed to know what to do with Ben Banogu, a big defensive end who showed linebacker-esque athletic ability. The Cowboys, however, love multi-tooled defenders. Banogu was signed Wednesday, bringing the roster to just one spot shy of the 90-man limit.
Micah Parsons takes top billing on this list of the league’s biggest havoc-wreakers. He ranked third in total QB pressures but first in pressure rate. He ended the season third in hurries, second in turnovers caused by QB pressures, and with a higher sack total than the one that got him named Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2021.
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“There’s nothing that he can’t do physically,” McCarthy said of the former second-round pick, “but now, having an understanding of going in and playing nickel, what’s clear to me is he’s better outside.” Joseph looks to convince Dallas coaches they were right to stick by him through off-the-field trouble and poor play on it.
“It’s definitely more fun chasing the quarterback,” the ex-offensive lineman said about his new role on the other side of the ball. “I understand what this looks like [from the other side]. I just have to make the [transition] to making these [new] looks, and to be more athletic — to bend myself more and learn the [new] moves while getting up to the right speed is the challenge.”
Seattle’s ’90s uniforms- the ones with the royal blue jerseys, silver pants, green striping, and totem-style helmet logo- are making a comeback this season. The Seahawks will resurrect the popular vintage look when they host Cleveland in Week 8 and again the Thursday after Thanksgiving when they visit Dallas. Since the Cowboys traditionally wear white at home, it will allow Seattle to bust out their alternate dark-jersey threads for a nationally-televised away game.
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