Dallas Cowboys Camp: Nahshon shines, Gregory pops, fitness prevails

The Dallas Cowboys opened up their training camp yesterday and showed the public something we’ve longed to see for nearly two years – a real Cowboys camp practice. With no shortage of cameras in Oxnard, details and highlights spread like (is it too soon for a pandemic joke? fine….)…wildfire.

Today we discuss the players that shined and note other observations from the first day of practice. Some of it is surprising, some not so much. But almost all of it is, thankfully, good news.

In the Dallas Cowboys first practice of training camp these items stood out the most…

Before we get started here’s a mild disclaimer: This is the first practice. It’s not a sign of things to come and it’s not even indicative of what to expect tomorrow. They are drills designed to stress different players and not necessarily designed for even competition. Plus there is no contact and contact has a way of changing everything.

Nahshon Wright, CB

The rookie cornerback picked up right where he left off in minicamp. The 6-foot-4 rookie CB was making play after play on Thursday.

The moment was clearly not too big for the rookie from Oregon State, and while he wasn’t pressured to do a ton of different looks and movements, he again looked surprisingly fluid for a man of his build.

We don’t want to say he’s the favorite for CB2 this year but we feel confident saying he’s not the bust many were tabbing him to be when Dallas drafted him 99th overall this year

Ezekiel Elliott, Tyron Smith, La’el Collins

Here’s one to the fitness gods. Zeke, Tyron, and La’el all showed up to camp looking (stop me if you heard this before) like they were in the best shape of their careers. But really, they did.

This doesn’t mean they will have the best season but it showed a recommitment to the game and getting the most out of their bodies after all had disappointing seasons last year.

Randy Gregory, DE

Gregory looked explosive in the limited drills we saw. Granted, they were designed to highlight his explosiveness but even still, there’s no reason to think this year won’t be a career season for the explosive edge rusher.

Injuries/PUP list

There was nothing too concerning here. Sure, we have some star power on the list, but this is pretty normal for opening day of camp and everyone seems to be on track. Most importantly, Damontae Kazee, Blake Jarwin, and the entire offensive line are full participants.

Final Thoughts

Overall the secondary looked great. From the rookies, to Trevon Diggs, to Donovan Wilson, to Reggie Robinson – everyone looked good. And that’s not exactly common for the first practice. Linebackers moved around a lot, as expected. This will probably be experiment after experiment while Cowboys coaches try to figure out who is the best player and where.

Dak Prescott looked 100% free from injury. There was no hesitation and no indication he’d been previously injured.

Once again, we need to keep everything in perspective: there was no contact and this is just one practice. But overall this was a great practice and something to build on.

• Published on 07/23/2021 at 12:44 PM
• Last updated at 07/23/2021 at 12:44 PM