The first Cowboys practice of training camp is in the books, as the team got in some light work for around 90 minutes on Wednesday.
Here are some takeaways from the initial look at the team:
*Head coach Mike McCarthy said Michael Gallup “hasn’t missed a target yet” and is in the “fourth quarter” of his rehab from a torn ACL. Gallup was put on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list to begin camp on Wednesday, but was on the field working with Cowboys Director of Rehabilitation Britt Brown.
*Defensive coordinator Dan Quinn spent the early part of practice going over hand usage with DeMarcus Lawrence, Dorance Armstrong, and Micah Parsons. The three were working on individual drills, but Quinn had the group run drills where they would rush together, with Lawrence and Armstrong in a three-point stance, and Parsons standing up.
*Safety Tyler Coyle stood out in the final practices of OTA’s and minicamp, and continued to look impressive during drills today. Coyle’s elite athleticism jumps out during drills with the safety group, and he very well may earn the backup free safety role behind Malik Hooker. During one drill where Coyle beat Hooker to the sideline, Hooker exclaimed, “damn 4.4,” a reference to Coyle’s 4.41 timed speed.
*Connor McGovern and Tyler Smith split first-team reps at left guard on the first day of camp, which is a departure from what we saw during offseason practices, with McGovern getting the majority of reps. Smith did a solid job for most of the day, and did a good job on one snap recognizing and picking up a blitzing Jayron Kearse.
*Speaking of Smith, when he wasn’t on the field getting reps, the Cowboys' first-round pick was often seen isolated to the side with offensive line coach Joe Philbin and assistant offensive line coach Jeff Blasko getting in some extra coaching.
*Good day of practice for Osa Odighizuwa, who proved to be a handful for Tyler Smith on a few reps. Odighizuwa looks in great shape, and the Cowboys are expecting him to have a big sophomore season.
*Jalen Tolbert had a nice first day of practice and stood out among Dallas’ wide receivers. Tolbert high-pointed a ball and made a nice contested catch on the right sideline on one rep, and put Anthony Brown on skates while running a comeback during a two-minute drill.
*While Tolbert got in a few good reps against Anthony Brown, it was Brown with the play of the day when he jumped Tolbert’s stop route and picked off Dak Prescott.
*Micah Parsons got the better of Terence Steele and Tyron Smith on a few reps today, one in particular where he left Steele dizzy with a euro-step. But while Parsons had his expected victories during practice on Wednesday, Steele had a very good series against Parsons during two-minute drills. Steele won the majority of the reps on the drive, displaying quick footwork to keep Parsons from winning to the outside.
*While Steele had some nice reps against Parsons, he ended up on the ground during a rep against Trysten Hill. Steele is a good athlete who at times has struggles with power, which explains why he was able to keep in front of Parsons’ quickness, but struggled a few snaps later against Hill’s power.
*In the competition at swing tackle, it was Josh Ball who had a better day over rookie Matt Waletzko. Waletzko seemed to have some issues with his hand usage at times. He also had his right knee lightly wrapped, and appeared to favor it at times. Wednesday was one of the better practices we’ve seen from Ball in 2022.
*Don’t forget about Rico Dowdle! Injuries have limited him his first two seasons with the Cowboys, but Dallas likes what he brings to the table as a back and a returner. He got his fair share of first-team reps today, as the Cowboys featured a heavy rotation in the backfield for much of practice.
