Dallas Cowboys: 5 takeaways from the first practice at The Star in Frisco

Here are my top five takeaways following the Dallas Cowboys first training camp practice at the Star in Frisco on Monday.

The Dallas Cowboys held their first practice session of training camp at the Star in Frisco on Monday. That after returning from Oxnard, California late last week and playing in their second preseason contest of the year on Saturday night, facing off against the Cincinnati Bengals at AT&T Stadium.

Following their first training camp practice back home in Texas, here are my five top takeaways on some of the action I saw take place on Monday.

#1. Dak looks solid

While working seven on seven and some team drills, Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott looked sharp. There are a lot of question marks surrounding this wide receiver group, but they seemed to be on the same page as Prescott during this practice session. That timing and chemistry looks to be in sync as we get closer to the start of the regular season. Dak was precise and looked accurate, hitting his receivers in stride.

#2. The starting cornerbacks

The two starting cornerbacks, Chidobe Awuzie and Byron Jones, look like they’re in midseason form. These two both play physical and excel at jamming receivers at the line of scrimmage, throwing off the timing of the route.

It appears as if Jones was playing out of position the last few seasons at safety as he now looks much more comfortable at corner. Awuzie sticks to receivers like glue and challenges every throw that comes his way. Everything I saw at practice confirmed what I have heard about these two in Oxnard. They look like they are both going to post good performances this upcoming season.

#3. Michael Gallups’ route running

Rookie receiver Michael Gallup runs great routes and is super quick. Gallup gets in and out of his breaks in a flash and seemed to always have a step on the defensive back to create separation. He looks every bit the part and I didn’t see him drop a single ball on Monday. The Cowboys might have got a steal in the third round of the draft, as I came away believing Gallup will contribute right away in his first year.

#4. Defensive line depth

The defensive line has a lot of good football players. Watching the defensive line drills, it looks like there will be plenty of pass rushers to rotate in and keep everybody fresh. Randy Gregory has a gear that is obviously noticeable and his speed is going to be tough to deal with. It was fun to watch and listen while defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli worked with this group. I believe they have a chance to be special in 2018.

#5. Jaylon Smith

Finally, just watching Jaylon Smith in drills you can see his speed is back. Although the former 2016 second rounder played last year, he wasn’t himself as he still wore a restrictive brace to combat his drop foot following the devasting knee injury he suffered while at Notre Dame. On Monday, Smith looked like his lateral agility has returned and he might be a big boost to this defense.

Even in just shorts and helmets, this was a solid practice. The Boys have had their share of injuries starting to pile up and they looked to give a few players some rest during the first session at The Star. The main thing I took away was how good Prescott looked throwing to his receivers.

The Dallas Cowboys only has a few practices left before they have to cut down their roster to just 53 men, that dreaded date being by September 1st. The Cowboys will finish out training camp at the Star in Frisco and are scheduled to play their next preseason game on Sunday, August 26th against the Arizona Cardinals at AT&T Stadium.