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We are now a whole week into the practice part of Dallas Cowboys training camp and a whole lot has happened over the course of the last seven days.
Friday marks another day of activity and it began with a Mike McCarthy press conference. The head coach has been quite informative and interesting to listen to, certainly more so than the previous regime.
Here is a recap of what Mike McCarthy had to say. In the name of full transparency, the stream of each press conference has been rocky to this point as all people continue to adapt to our new normal, so we have provided a collection of tweets from the local media instead.
Mental errors from Thursday are being corrected
Mike McCarthy noted that the Cowboys had some mental errors on Thursday during practice that they worked on in their study session. Learning never stops.
Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy: "We had a number of mental errors throughout yesterday's practice." Those miscues were addressed last night in team meeting, he added. Part of installation process. "This is all normal."
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) August 21, 2020
It’s good to see that the Cowboys are cleaning things up. Mistakes are going to happen.
La’el Collins and Tyron Smith are doing alright
It was reported on Thursday that La’el Collins was in a car accident and that Tyron Smith experienced hamstring tightness. According to McCarthy both are alright, thankfully.
Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy saw both LT Tyron Smith and RT La'el Collins this morning, "so they're both here." Smith exited Thursday's practice with tight hamstring. Collins involved in car crash on way to The Star. Both considered OK.
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) August 21, 2020
Obviously nobody expects car crashes around training camp. Thankfully everyone is healthy.
Sean Lee was injured in the strength and conditioning phase
To this point in camp all that has been noted about veteran linebacker Sean Lee has been that he’s been off to the side. Apparently he was injured in the strength and conditioning phase, but McCarthy isn’t too concerned.
Cowboys LB Sean Lee been on own program in training camp, working to the side. Mike McCarthy said that he was injured in strength and conditioning phase. No concern. "One thing about Sean, he's here every day, all day. ...He has a clear understanding of the defense."
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) August 21, 2020
Get well soon, General.
Super Bowl expectations are to be expected
There has been a lot of hype about the 2020 Dallas Cowboys, a lot of people believe that this team could do some serious damage when it’s all said and done. Mike McCarthy isn’t fazed by that pressure.
Mike McCarthy isn’t bothered by Super Bowl expectations: “I’ve always been very up front about it, we’re in this to win a championship. ... At the end of the day, we’re on install 6, so we have a long way to go.”
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) August 21, 2020
Team bonding these days isn’t easy
So much of training camp typically involves a football team getting closer to one another. Obviously social-distancing protocols have made that more difficult than usual, but the team is working on alternatives to create positive vibes.
Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy said it's difficult to do team-bonding activities during pandemic. "It's just not practical to take a football team outside the Star." So, team played a game of Jeopardy! on Tuesday evening inside the facility. ST coordinator John Fassel was maestro.
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) August 21, 2020
John Fassel as Alex Trebek would be interesting to see to say the least.
Things are still getting where they need to get
If things had played out the way that they were scheduled to then this would be the second week of the preseason (what would have been the third preseason game for the Cowboys). Needless to say, there is still a long way to go before we are caught up.
Friday is Day 6 of install for the Cowboys. Mike McCarthy says you typically play your first preseason games after nine days of install.
— David Helman (@HelmanDC) August 21, 2020
So, fun as this first week has been, I’d imagine next week will get even better as guys get a better grasp of what they’re doing.
We’re just taking things - wait for it - day by day.