Jason Garrett: Xavier Woods, Tavon Austin expected to be limited in practice today

After a soft schedule to start the season, the Cowboys face a stiffer test this week with a trip to New Orleans. The Cowboys are prepping for that contest, and Jason Garrett met with the press to discuss the state of the team. (All answers are paraphrased and not actual quotes.)

Differences in New Orleans offense without Drew Brees

Jason Garrett said there isn’t a whole lot of tape to look at with their new QB but they aren’t doing anything dramatically different. He noted that Teddy Bridgewater has been a good player for some time and that the Saints can do anything that they want to do with him in the game.

How much can you use last year’s tape

One of the biggest wins of the season for the Cowboys last year came against New Orleans. Jason Garrett discussed how you can always take tape from the past to help you prepare for an upcoming game.

Atmosphere in the Superdome

New Orleans is one of the tougher venues for NFL teams to visit and Jason Garrett acknowledged this. He discussed how Saints fans are some of the loudest in the NFL, especially when there are reasons to cheer, and that the way you quiet teams down is to execute well.

Alvin Kamara

Garrett gave him the standard compliment - great football player. Noted all the different ways he can feature in the Saints offense.

Tony Pollard is a good football player

The Cowboys have been sprinkling Tony Pollard in throughout the season so far and Jason Garrett mentioned this is about keeping the team moving as best as they can. He noted that Pollard has earned the trust of his teammates.

Injury updates

Tavon Austin will practice in a limited fashion, so will Xavier Woods. Tyrone Crawford won’t practice, Antwaun Woods won’t either.

Jaylon Smith as a rusher

The Cowboys utilized Smith as a rusher a bit more than usual last week and Jason Garrett noted that this is just them always trying to improve the team. He talked about Smith’s ability to rush the passer and the fact that he can challenge the big blockers with strength and explosion on the pass rush.

Christian Covington is anticipated practice

Jason Garrett added that Covington was really active, crisp and clean, throughout Sunday’s win against the Dolphins. Noted that he was around the ball a lot.

Trysten Hill needs to continue to grow

The head coach added that he was very impressed with Trysten Hill’s spirit and that they want to see him continue to grow. He added that Hill “played the game the right way” against Miami but that he also has a lot of room to grow. He did say that he put some good things on tape and that he was around the ball in the game.

Robert Quinn

Garrett talked about Quinn handling his workload very well against Miami. He cited Quinn’s effectiveness in the run game and getting after the quarterback and the way he chased down plays. They thought they may have to limit him in the game but he never seemed to get tired so they just let him play.

Amari Cooper’s route-running is very impressive

Jason Garrett didn’t want to talk about who is the “best” at route running in terms of players he’s been around, but he did acknowledge that Cooper is very good both inside and outside. He said not a lot of players are so good playing inside and outside.

Luke Gifford’s status

The team expects Gifford to practice in a limited fashion today. Coach noted he is a very smart player who picks things up quickly and that he has stayed engaged while injured.

Competing against Sean Payton

Sean Payton actually coached Jason Garrett so the two have a strong relationship. The Cowboys head coach noted that there have been a lot of great games between the two franchise’s over the years and that he’s excited for the challenge this week.