With the rookies on the offensive line getting all of the attention, not much has been said about Terence Steele. How has he been playing in practice? And since he struggled some last year, should we be concerned going forward? – Jackson Ray/Fairview, NC
Nick Eatman: To take one of your lines - Not much has been said about Terence Steele. Let's start there, that's a good thing. Actually what has been said is from Mike McCarthy, who said Steele by far is having his best camp of his career. Steele was asked to comment about that and completely agreed with his coach. The "struggles" from last year probably came down to him returning from an ACL injury and surgery just six months earlier. Find me a 300-pounder in the NFL, or life, that can come back and play that quickly. Steele didn't miss a practice or game. But if you remember, he got better and better as the. year went on. He'll be fine this year. The Cowboys have enough to worry about with two rookies expected to start on the line. I don't think Steele will be an All-Pro but he's definitely good enough at right tackle for this team.
Patrik: The fact that not much has been said about Steele is a good thing, yes? That's rhetorical, my friend. Fact is, the reason you didn't hear much about the starting right tackle is because he was doing his job at a high level, and so that allowed everyone to focus on the rookies and how they were progressing. There was no semblance in training camp of Steele taking a step back or even struggling at all in Oxnard, and he did indeed look better than ever — now long removed from his torn ACL. You have to remember that, last season, he was thrown right into the fire and that caused him to deal with knee soreness as well as the mental aspect of trying to trust his body/knee again. All of that is gone now, and he's moving like the injury never happened; and his confidence is through the roof. So, as a veteran, no, you shouldn't hear his name called. Did you hear anyone saying much about Zack Martin? Exactly.
