OXNARD, Calif. – Amid a historical weekend to remember, the Cowboys found a place to practice in Ohio.
Saturday afternoon, the day after Jerry Jones' private Hall of Fame party, the team practiced at Case Western Reserve University just up the road from Hall of Fame headquarters in Canton where Jones was formally enshrined that evening.
The coaches were pleased with the team's work during a busy, celebratory 72 hours. Now they're back in Oxnard restarting a familiar routine – the first of four practices this week leading into Saturday's second preseason game against the L.A. Rams.
"The message has been pretty clear that we're going back to work," tight end Jason Witten said. "I think that's what good teams do. You've got to be mature; you've got to be professionals."
The Cowboys have been on three time zones since leaving Dallas for camp on July 22. They practiced eight times in nine days before the trip to Ohio – "an unbelievable experience that we'll all remember for the rest of our lives," Witten said.
But there are four preseason games left. There are jobs to win. And there are things that need improvement over the final two weeks on the West Coast.
"I think our team handled the last few days really, really well," head coach Jason Garrett said. "I think the biggest thing we try to emphasize to our players and really everybody connected with our team is you focus on each day and you get locked in on what you need to do to be prepared to be your best."
Said Witten: "It's the best organization in ball and it's been that way for a long time. But we need to add to it and go back to work."
