Scout’s Eye: Kerry Hyder Won Big In Hawaii 

Rod Marinelli told me to keep an eye on Kerry Hyder and the push that he's making to be on this roster. He's practiced and played in every opportunity he's had. Where Hyder has shown his versatility is lining up at both tackle and end. The Rams had a hard time blocking him at both spots. There were several snaps where he was able to affect the quarterback in the pocket, making him have to get rid the ball quicker than he wanted to. His redirection tackle of Darrell Henderson in the flat on a screen was outstanding recognition and finish on his part. It's never easy to bring down a running back in space. Kerry Hyder is not going away.

Give Natrez Patrick credit for the move he made on Jason Witten and then on Tony Pollard to get the sack of Dak Prescott. From my broadcast position on Saturday, I thought they were trying to set up a screen but they weren't. It was just a good football play. Witten set quick enough to Patrick, but the linebacker made a quicker move to get around him. With more experience Pollard could have managed to clean things up, but after the play action fake, Patrick was right on top of him. La'el Collins also lost Bryce Hager on a stunt, which didn't help the situation at all. Overall, it was a great call by Wade Phillips and a well-executed play by his guys.

It happened just like I initially thought on the big wheel route from Darrell Henderson. The defense was in man coverage. Leighton Vander Esch and Jaylon Smith collided with each other, which allowed Henderson a free run up the sideline. That's a route we've seen Smith carry before without any issues. It was a great call by Shane Waldron for the third down situation the Rams were in. They guessed right and made the defense pay.

The Michael Gallup of last season would not have been able to fight through the press coverage of Darious Williams to make that big reception down the right sideline. At the time his strength levels would not have allowed him to keep Williams from driving him into the sidelines and off the field. But Gallup was able to maintain his position and even separate from Williams at the top of the route. If there is an area where you can always count on Gallup to perform well, it's tracking the ball. He was once again able to do just that for the adjusting catch.

It was the right call on Connor Williams for the legal man downfield on the screen to Tony Pollard. What hurt the play was Prescott was forced to hold the ball for a count longer than he wanted to. John Franklin-Myers was between Prescott and Pollard, so it affected the timing of the play. Williams and Travis Frederick were in great shape to throw blocks, but the longer the play extended, the more Williams drifted down the field. The play was well-executed until the defender got in the way.

The Dallas defense gave up a big run to JoJo Natson on the reverse, but they had a chance to keep it to a loss or no gain if a couple had happened. Jourdan Lewis was blitzing off the backside, but he had to avoid the block of John Kelly or he would have been in position to tackle Natson for a loss. On the front side, Taco Charlton was square to the line but he took two hard steps to the inside and that carried him out of position. Charlton generally plays that read well and did his best to get back to the outside, but Natson was flying and Charlton couldn't trip him up.

What tremendous front side blocks by Travis Frederick and Xavier Su'a-Filo on the Tony Pollard touchdown run. Frederick and Su'a-Filo were able to push Morgan Fox right into Taylor Rapp's lap to create the crease for Pollard to run through. Pollard also got a nice block from Jason Witten at the point of attack. Pollard saw the crease, kept his balance and was able to finish the run. The play was run exactly how it was drawn up with a powerful finish from Pollard.

 I was waiting for Joe Jackson to get some snaps as the under tackle in the scheme. Jackson had primarily been used playing both end positions. From what I have seen he had been playing the right side a little better than he had the left. In talking to coaches, they wanted him to play both but also acknowledged that he had been a little more natural on that right side. With the power and quickness that he's shown during camp, it only made sense to try him some at tackle, which they did with Trysten Hill during nickel situations. He attempted a twist stunt with Taco Charlton off the right side and it wasn't as clean as it needed to be. Charlton didn't get the penetration they needed and Jackson gave up trying to get to the outside and worked back to the inside without any success.

Call it indecision or a lack of anticipation, but it is hurting Mike White at this time. Kellen Moore dialed up a third and long call that would have likely picked up the first down if White had anticipated the route of Reggie Davis. Moore got what he wanted from the Rams defense by crossing Alfred Morris and Jon'Vea Johnson underneath, which left a hole to the inside for Davis at the sticks. White clearly saw the window but didn't pull the trigger. Later in the game, White had a chance to hit Devin Smith along the sideline rolling in his direction, but he was too late with his pass giving Smith no chance to get his feet in bounds.

You don't have to worry about Donovan Olumba playing aggressively. This kid is a fighter. He does everything in his power to keep the receiver from the ball. He's not always perfect technique-wise when it comes to tackling, but he made a nice play on a quick screen to Austin Proehl by beating a block from Jonathan Lloyd and wrapping up Proehl. If Olumba hadn't make that tackle, the play had a chance to be a big one. There was a crease up the field inside that Prohel could have shot through had Olumba not defeated the block the way he did.

Good for Marc Colombo teaching these young linemen how to stick up for their quarterback. When Cooper Rush scrambled and took an unnecessary hit from Troy Reeder, Adam Redmond and Jake Campos were the first ones to get over to Reeder and give him shot back for what he had done. Neither was too happy about what Reeder had done and they wanted him to know it. Referee John Hussey wasn't too thrilled with it either and correctly tossed Reeder from the game.

It was unfortunate that Reggie Davis fumbled that punt during the game. It appeared that the wind affected his positioning. Davis thought he was in good shape after he signaled for the fair catch, but then the wind knocked the ball down and he had to lunge to make the catch. He still had a chance to make the play, but the ball went right through the pocket of his arms. Davis was in a tough spot because if he would have let the ball hit, it would have still likely bounced off him due to how close he was to it. It's a tough chance to have to take but they put you back there to make those decisions and plays.