OXNARD, Calif. – Cowboys owner/GM Jerry Jones always has plenty of things to say, especially after a few days of practice here at training camp.
He stopped by briefly after Sunday's afternoon practice to catch up with the media for the first time since his opening press conference back on Tuesday.
With a couple of padded practices now completed, Jones pointed out a few things that has caught his eye.
- All eyes have been fixated on linebacker Jaylon Smith for obvious reasons as he enters his second season on the field. Jones said he's been really impressed with his ability to get up the field in a pass-rushing role, something that hasn't always been the norm for linebackers in this scheme. But that could be changing.
"Speaking of middle linebacker, 54 (Smith) really made his rush or blitz, bull-rush, showed us what he's capable of doing there."
- Asked about the maturity and leadership improvement of Ezekiel Elliott, Jones came up with his own word to describe his third-year running back.
"I just think he looks veteranish. I think he looks confident," Jones said. "I think he's getting good, hard work in. Fundamental work in. He looks sound to me. We were commenting him today on that very aspect. He looks like a veteran out here. So, I'm glad to see him get some solid work in. that's an impressive bunch of backs out there that we've got physically. Just the whole group. It's a good-looking group."
- Jones was also asked to address Cole Beasley and his ability to move around from the slot to the outside more. While he said many of the receivers will be on the move, he couldn't help but reference Tavon Austin, who could be just as dangerous without the ball.
"10 (Austin), watch him out there and see he's got to be out there a lot," Jones said of the former first-round pick of the Rams that was traded to Dallas this offseason. "Defenses have to account for him. My point he's got to show that we're using him and he'll give defenses a lot to worry about as a decoy, too."
