Don't miss any of the action with our daily updates: news, notes and more throughout the Cowboys' regular season. Presented by Blockchain.com
June 8 Updates
3:13 p.m. - The Cowboys are done with offseason practices after Thursday's light workout at Ford Center. In fact, they didn't even wear jerseys, but sported customized “Allen Str8ng” T-shirts to pay tribute to the families affected by the May 6 shooting in nearby Allen, Texas.
But the conclusion of offseason practice also puts the Cowboys in a good spot with training camp coming up on July 24.
Head coach Mike McCarthy said the team made it through the summer practices without serious injuries.
"I have no major injury concerns," McCarthy said on Thursday. "The state of our practice structure is part of that. There's nobody we're worried about right now."
And that includes wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, who banged his knee in Wednesday's practice and was held out Thursday. There are some other players still rehabbing injuries but for the most part, the Cowboys should have the majority of their roster ready to go when camp starts.
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After CeeDee Lamb walked off the field gingerly on Wednesday, the Cowboys staff elected to keep him out of activities on Thursday for precautionary reasons.
During Mike McCarthy's press conference on Thursday morning ahead of the final day of minicamp, the Cowboys head coach said that wide receiver CeeDee Lamb will be held out of activities on Thursday after he limped off on Wednesday following a knee bang that kept him out of the rest of Wednesday's team drills.
"No concern," McCarthy said. "We're only gonna go for 45 minutes or so. He's in the meetings and so forth, but it's a walk-through, jog-through type."
With a shortened practice ahead, the Cowboys will remain precautionary with WR1 ahead of a six-week break before training camp in July.
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June 7 Updates
11:20 a.m. — When the 2023 regular season gets underway, it's likely you'll see cornerback Kelvin Joseph taking reps in a new role.
The former second-round pick got a shot at starting outside cornerback opposite Trevon Diggs in 2022, following the season-ending injury to Anthony Brown, but he's now seeing practice reps as nickel corner in OTAs and now mandatory minicamp.
"I think this is the best stretch for Kelvin since he's been here," McCarthy said. "It's the opportunity at nickel. You can see his hype and awareness. There's nothing he can't do physically, but I think the understanding of going in and playing nickel and what I like is I think it has made him better outside.
"He's seeing how it fits together. …I think he's had a good offseason and it's the best stretch of football since he's been here."
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June 6 Updates
12:21 p.m. - The removal of Tony Pollard from mini-camp as he recovers from a leg injury suffered in the final game of the season has created a window of opportunity for just about any ball-carrier on the roster with the first-team.
Rico Dowdle, Malik Davis and Ronald Jones were featured the most, and while Deuce Vaughn was mainly featured with the second-team, he did get some first-team reps out of the backfield and lined up out wide.
Pollard is expected to be fully recovered and ready for the start of camp but after suffering a broken leg and a high-ankle sprain against the 49ers back in January, the Cowboys are going to be overly cautious with any rehabbing player during the offseason.
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11:41 a.m. - During Tuesday morning's press conference ahead of the start of rookie minicamp, Mike McCarthy said that the offensive line will feature Tyron Smith at left tackle and Tyler Smith to start off this week.
"We'll move Tyron to left tackle and Tyler Smith to left guard to start this week," McCarthy said. "We'll work on these different combinations throughout the spring. [Tyron] has had an excellent spring."
Tyron Smith started training camp at left tackle in 2022 with Tyler Smith at left guard before an injury to the prior forced some movement up front including the rookie Smith being moved outside to left tackle. With both healthy, the plan going forward in minicamp will be to return each to their natural positioning.
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11:31 a.m. – The Cowboys likely won't get to see much of rookie Luke Schoonmaker for the rest of the offseason practices, but he should be available for training camp.
Head coach Mike McCarthy said Schoonmaker will be held out of this week's mini-camp because of a foot injury that has been reported as plantar fasciitis. However, the coach said his second-round tight end is expected to be ready for the start of camp in Oxnard, which begins on July 24.
Schoonmaker will likely compete for a starting job with second-year vets Jake Ferguson and Peyton Hendershot.
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June 5 Updates
3:01 p.m. - The Cowboys currently have just one kicker on the roster. But from the sound of things, that could change by the time the team gets to training camp later next month.
The Cowboys will report to camp on July 24 in Oxnard, and that's where we could see Tristan Vizcaino have some competition.
On Monday, owner/GM Jerry Jones addressed several topics to the media, including kicker, where he said it "is likely" the team will add a veteran to the mix. Currently, players such as Robbie Gould, Mason Crosby, Randy Bullock, Ryan Succop and last year's kicker Brett Maher, are the the most experienced vets on the open market.
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2:21 p.m. - The start of training camp likely won't have Jourdan Lewis on the field - at least ready to practice. Cowboys chief operating officer Stephen Jones said on Monday that he expects the veteran corner to begin camp on PUP (Physically Unable to Perform).
The Cowboys have to wait until the first day of camp (July 24) before placing Lewis, or any injured player they wish to put on PUP. The players can come off the list at any time before the start of the regular season. If Lewis remains on PUP before Week 1, he would stay on the list for at least four games.
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11:05 a.m. — Apparently, the Cowboys not only play in the NFC East, but they also play in the Big Ten. All jokes aside, there's an obvious connection to that conference from inside of the front office in Dallas, particularly as it relates to the tight end position.
The departure of Dalton Schultz in free agency led to the selection of Luke Schoonmaker with the second-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, an impact player from Michigan who is being reunited with Sean McKeon; but wait, there's more.
Schoonmaker and McKeon aren't the only ones who played in the Big Ten, obviously, because so did Jake Ferguson and Peyton Hendershot, the two star TEs entering their second year out of Wisconsin and Indiana, respectively, and the connection is leading to fast chemistry.
"Our tight end room right now is so close knit," said Ferguson at the conclusion of OTAs. "We go in there and laugh and joke, if we have time, and once it's time to get down to business — it's something that goes back to the Big Ten. You know when to let go and be yourself but, at the same time, you know when you've gotta lock it in. … Big, big expectations from the [Four Horsemen] this year. I can't give too much insight, but [we're] coming.
"We're letting 'em out of the stable this year."
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June 1 Updates
2:42 p.m. - One of the 10 most interesting points of Thursday's OTA practice, involved a setback for one of the 2023 draft picks.
Luke Schoonmaker was seen this week in a walking boot as he deals with minor inflammation in his foot, but the Cowboys are not concerned and the rookie second-round pick did participate off to the side of OTAs doing catch drills with the coaching staff.
He'll have plenty of time to heal before the Cowboys take their charter flight to Southern California for training camp in late July, and his absence means more reps in OTAs and mandatory minicamp for Jake Ferguson, Peyton Hendershot, Sean McKeon and Seth Green.
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May 31 Updates
9:20 a.m. - For all the good work done by the Cowboys in both free agency and the 2023 NFL Draft, there's still one glaring position of need they have yet to truly address this offseason: kicker.
They parted ways with Brett Maher and re-signed Tristan Vizcaino for another stint, but the latter entered OTAs with no competition for the role.
According to the team's front office, that will likely change in the near future.
"We're looking at the other leagues. We're looking at guys that are out on the streets, guys that potentially come in a trade," said vice president of player personnel Will McClay to start the second week of OTAs. "It's a big mix of all that stuff and when the time is that we find the right kicker to add to the competition."
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May 25 Updates
2:11 p.m. - True to what his defensive coordinator Dan Quinn said about his position a couple weeks ago, Micah Parsons indeed was a "pass-rushing linebacker" during the OTA session open for the media on Thursday.
Parsons lined up at linebacker, both in the middle and outside during team drills. He also rushed the passer in both individual and team drills. So while the third-year pro has mentioned adding some weight to help him against opposing offensive tackles, it does appear that he'll continue to line up in various spots.
However, during one of the breaks at Thursday's practice, Parsons was working with recently-inducted Hall of Famer DeMarcus Ware, who is one of the best pass-rushers in league history. Ware was at The Star on Thursday working on an upcoming piece for NFL Films, but was on the sideline chatting with the players. Ware was seen working on some pass-rushing moves with Parsons.
Ware is the Cowboys' all-time leader in sacks with 117. Parsons broke his rookie records in 2021 with 13 sacks and has 26.5 in his first two seasons.
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12:03 p.m. - If there's any major concern regarding Tony Pollard's health this year, especially after suffering the two injuries in the playoff loss to the 49ers, the running back looks to be on his way to a full recovery.
If not, he wouldn't have been out on the field Thursday in the OTA practice, running with the first-team offense in team drills. Pollard will likely be limited at times this offseason as he manages the broken fibula and high-ankle sprain that ended his season in mid-January in the playoffs.
Pollard, who is playing on the franchise tag for 2023, is expected to be the featured running back this year after the Cowboys have moved on from Ezekiel Elliott. Other running backs on the field include Malik Davis, Rico Dowdle and recently-drafted Deuce Vaughn.
Pollard is coming off his best season of his career, rushing for 1,007 yards and his first Pro Bowl selection.
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11:21 a.m. - Mike McCarthy was back in the building in a public capacity on Thursday morning as he addressed the media ahead of OTA availability for the first time since his back procedure earlier this month that kept him out of rookie mini-camp.
"I'm fine," McCarthy said. "I'm good, I'm back. I'm 100-percent."
McCarthy will be fully active throughout OTAs and doesn't have any lingering issues after his mid-May procedure.
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May 24 Updates
2:15 p.m. - The Cowboys are in the middle of their first OTA practices this week, but Thursday marks the first time the media will get the chance to watch the entire team on the field together at once. With these sessions still on a voluntary-basis, not all of the 90 players on the roster are expected to be present.
One of the players to keep an eye on is veteran lineman Tyron Smith, who once again enters the season as the longest-tenured player on the roster. A first-round pick in 2011, Smith is entering his 13th NFL season, the most of any player on the team, although at the age of 32, there are four other players older in age.
But the biggest question mark with Smith might not be his health as it is his position. Smith has been the long-time left tackle for the Cowboys but moved to the right side at the end of last season when Terence Steele went down. Steele is still recovering from ACL surgery and won't be practicing this week.
Smith could still get some reps at both the right side and left, but the Cowboys will have some tough decisions to make if/when Steele come back and what to do with both Tyron Smith and Tyler Smith, who played mostly left tackle last year as a rookie.
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