OXNARD, Calif. – One minute he's dunking the ball over the crossbar after a catch in the end zone, and then next he's on the ground wincing about his left leg.
In a situation that doesn't appear to be too problematic, Dez Bryant did leave practice with a left hamstring pull that either occurred during or right after his leaping celebration.
Bryant sat on the ground in the corner of the end zone for a minute, before gingerly walking around to see the Cowboys' head trainer. Bryant never got back in for a practice rep, although both Dez, and the Cowboys later said it was for precautionary reasons.
"My hamstring felt a little tight. Nothing major," Bryant said he was jogging off the field.
Cowboys VP Stephen Jones said he believes his star receiver will be fine, but admits it's never fun to see a player like Dez go to the ground.
"Yeah, anytime one of your players is in a situation … of course (it's scary)," Jones said. "We think he's going to be fine."
Quick Hits:
|
|
- RB Lance Dunbar missed practice Thursday after an ankle injury late in Wednesday's practice. He was in a walking boot earlier in the day but went out to practice Thursday without it. "I just rolled it a little bit. We're just it day by day, seeing how it feels. It's a little sore but it felt better than it did yesterday."
- Running back Darren McFadden said "it's killing me" to sit out of practice this first week of camp, especially after Dunbar's ankle injury that sidelined him for Thursday. McFadden said he feels ready to return but is awaiting the go-ahead from the training staff. "They just want me to stack good practices together. I think it's going to be soon, but I don't know."
- Wide receiver Devin Street (ankle) and tackle Doug Free (rest) sat out of practice on Thursday. With Street out and Bryant missing the last part of the team period, receivers Lucky Whitehead and Deontay Greenberry got extended reps with the first-team unit.
Notable Standouts
- Joseph Randle –Maybe it's because he's not facing much competition for reps while McFadden and Dunbar are injured, but Randle is a standout for a second-straight day. He showed soft hands in 7-on-7 drills with the first-team offense, as Romo looked for him on three separate occasions as a receiver. He also broke off several nice runs. Perhaps most importantly, he showed some acumen for pass blocking, as he picked up multiple blitzes in full-team.
- Anthony Hitchens –The second-year linebacker is making the most of his added reps while Sean Lee works his way back to full-team practice. Hitchens was all over the field during red-zone and full-team reps, and he put nice contact on several ball carriers despite not being able to make real tackles.
- Orlando Scandrick –By his lofty standard, Scandrick hasn't been too great to start this camp. He regained some of his normal form on Thursday, as he was able to make several plays from the slot. The most notable of those was in the team compete period. Dez Bryant beat Brandon Carr and Jason Witten beat J.J. Wilcox to give the offense two wins in one-on-one drills, but Scandrick bullied Terrance Williams off the line and broke up a slant pass to give the defense a win
- Play Of The Day
Cole Beasley dropped two balls during the course of Thursday's practice, which is uncharacteristic compared to how solid he's been through the first week of practice. He made up for it, though, late in the afternoon during full-team period. Beasley lined up in the slot to Tony Romo's left, and he tore upfield on a 10-yard in. Romo delivered the ball right as Beasley came out of his break, and he stayed focused to make the catch despite tight coverage between Orlando Scandrick and J.J. Wilcox. The two defensive backs converged and put enough contact on Beasley to put him on the ground, but he held on for the catch.
Transactions:
Aug. 4 – Signed TE Brandon Barden.
Aug. 4 – Released TE Ray Hamilton.
Aug. 3 – Signed LB Ka'Lial Glaud, LB Jonathan Brown
Aug. 3 – Placed LB Justin Anderson (ankle) and G Reshod Fortenberry (knee) on Waived/Injured.
Injury Report:
Left Practice:
WR Dez Bryant (ankle)
DE Kenneth Boatright (neck)
Missed Practice:
WR Devin Street (ankle)
OT Doug Free (rest)
RB Lance Dunbar (ankle)
DT Terrell McClain (bone bruise/hamstring)
RB Darren McFadden (hamstring)
OL Chaz Green (hip)
LB Mark Nzeocha (knee)
LB Rolando McClain (knee)
Returned to Practice:
TE Jason Witten (veteran day off)
QB Tony Romo (veteran day off)
DE Chris Whaley (knee)
Upcoming Schedule:
*Friday, August 7 *Player's day off (no access)
Saturday, August 8
12:00 p.m. (PDT) Coach Garrett press conference
3:45 p.m. (PDT) Practice
Sunday, August 9
TBD Coach Garrett press conference
2:30 p.m. (PDT) Dallas Cowboys Blue/White Scrimmage
