Special Edition: Falling Into Place | Dallas Cowboys 2024

[Music] go [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] Cowboys special edition rolling on from the star in Frisco as the pre-season is now in the rear view mirror welcome in everybody with Isaiah standback Barry Church Nate Newton I'm Kyle yans the Dallas Cowboys have played their three preseason games and they are now working into the regular season with all sorts of intrigue around this 2024 football team and I mean with everything that's come together training camp joint practices pre-season games and then a whole lot more Barry Church what's your biggest takeaway when whenever it comes to the Cowboys preseason well my biggest takeway when it comes to this preseason is the speed of the defense you know believe it or not I feel like they're faster than they were last year in all three levels defensive line linebacker secondary they're hunting all over the place and Mike Zimmer has these guys flying I'm going have to go to the defensive side of of the ball as well but for me it's less about the guy's ability and more about this scheme this Mike Zimmer defense seemingly has been instilled guys are responding to it they feel like more less is being asked of guys in terms of what they're supposed to do uh athletically but they're just see seemly being in the right place and falling into plays left and right well what surprised me is the way guys came in offensively and they understood the offense especially the wide receivers you didn't see a lot of mistakes and early in Camp you didn't see a lot of offsides and that just says that the guys understand what the offense uh needs to run off efficiently and they did a great job I think I think there's a lot of confidence around this defense right now offense is building that confidence as we go along trying to get the Run game to catch up maybe with the uh the fire power of the passing game but while we're on the topic of confidence we've already had a one shot of it I just want to say the first time this season Nate Newton wears a sport coat wears an actual suit jacket and it's got the black college Hall of Fame logo right there on the right hand side I just want to show it off a little bit just want to show it off you look good Nate you look good let's go into some of the different adjustments that this team has made I mentioned building confidence they've done so in terms of the depth on the defensive side including a signing of Carl Lawson here what Lawson had to say about really the new challenges at hand and being the newest Dallas Cowboy um I'm just humbled and I'm excited to be here uh and get to work and I just like I said I I've been in the game for a long time but I do feel like a younger player cuz I I just never been able to put it all together I know how talented I am and I just know I just I want to keep working to be able to bring that to our organization to win and you know bring a Super Bowl back to Dallas so Carl Austin talking about the challenges at H Barry moving from Team to team is not not easy but this team needed some depth how much can he help it I think he can help out of a bunch when we talk about this defensive side of the football I think it was a solid depth pickup for the Dallas Cowboys when you look at it because the defensive line they rotate more than any position on the defensive side of the football so when you're talking about a Demarcus Lawrence who's in year 11 may need a breather Michael Parsons may need a breather they need somebody that can come in there that's familiar with Zimmer system and still be able to produce at a high level I think it's a great pickup just from the standpoint if you have somebody who actually has some reps and some understanding of the game of the NFL you talk about somebody who has over four years or four seasons where they've had over five sacks so there you got somebody who has some experience especially after losing Sam William somebody that you've invested so much time uh into and money and obviously with his injury you needed somebody to be able to come in and fill that void you're able to do so with a vet last year he got only he played only five games the year before he played all 17 he got seven sacks so he do have them reps to know how to sack a quarterback so that is a good thing and he's not the only addition that this team has made to push this defense EV forward as we take a look at some of the training camp additions they've been very busy the front office has put together this list of names that they can really go through one by one and say okay defensive VIN check linebacker check defensive tackle check and then they trade for a defensive tackle as well as well as Andrew booth at the cornerback position Isaiah when you look at the depth of the roster have they done enough to really ease your mind when it comes to that de they have eased my mind but I I won't my mind won't be all the way uh comfortable until I know that these guys are able to produce on the field when you look at the interior defensive line position obviously uh they went out and got Jordan phet because they're not comfortable or confident with what they have in Mazy Smith at this point in time in his career so they needed to address that and then at the quarterback position I think they did a good job swap swapping out Nan W and obviously bringing in uh Booth we know we need depth in the middle Mazi has been very inconsistent during this training camp so they have brought in guys they brought in the Jordan Phillips they brought in Albert Higgins to try to give some competition there from ma to to kind of push him but we won't know what this team really needs until the season start that's the big thing is it always can shift and turn we've still got a long way to go until the season does Come Around September 8th against the Cleveland Browns but when we come back who will be on the roster for that September 8th opener can Duce Von do enough to secure a spot in the running back room special edition presented by AT&T is brought to you by your North Texas Ford dealers Ford is the best in Texas Reliant official energy provider of the Dallas Cowboys blockchain.com make your crypto play today and by AT&T official sponsor of the Dallas [Music] Cowboys this segment is brought to you by your North Texas Ford dealers Ford is the best in Texas just like the roster is ever evolving so are some roster battles that continue now that training camp is over with and the team returns to the star in Frisco welcome back in this special edition let's go through some of these roster battles starting with wide receiver the thought process here is that you're already taking five wide receivers CD lamb then you've got Jaylen Tolbert Brandon Cooks kavante Turpin because of his turn ability and then Jaylen Brooks on that side as well but there are three names fighting for that six spot Brooks is one of them along with Tyron Billy Johnson and Jaylen Cropper so with that being said Isaiah how do you see this wide receiver room playing out it's very convoluted Kyle it is really tricky I think that Tyron Billy Johnson had a really good training camp but it hasn't showed up in the preseason so I'm not really sure he's going to be the guy there Jaylen Brooks obviously had a good uh preseason last year as well as a good camp so it's really going to come down to who is the most valuable in the Eyes of Mr Bones fossil that's what it comes down to what can you do on special teams because you're not going to be on the field a lot offensively you're exactly right when it comes to this wide receiver battle Isaiah they're going to be who's can who can contribute most on that special teams and to me you got Jaylen Brooks the most experienc within this system he's made plays in in training camp and he's made plays in his preseason games as well but I think he brings an added Dimension to that special teams unit he can go down and be a gunner on punt he can cover kicks offs as well we understand who's going to be the returner and Turpin so to me you got to go with Brooks on this one cuz he brings more value when when when you talk about the Special Teams you know jayen crappy is the guy that had I'm think the most consistent camp but a week ago he had a boo boo and he missed a couple of passes so I hope that don't continue to hunt him because I think Jaylen Cropper has had the better Camp yeah two drops against the Raiders and a Muth punt against the Raiders as well so not a great day for Jaylen Cropper Ryan fenoy the only reason we didn't even put him in the segment is because he was a draft pick and Cowboys have shown traditionally they don't move on from draft picks before the season gets going so we anticipate flenoy is probably already in that conversation now Nate outside of offensive line you've had some close eyes on these running backs duvon is a big name to keep an eye on but also Royce Freeman the veteran you've got a duon undersized second-year player Royce Freeman bringing the veteran ability which one has the edge Whoever has the best uh special team play but I'm telling you last week du Von showed out so uh right now I'm giving the edge to dece vine yeah to me it comes down to to what flavor you like I mean Roy fman he's kind of in between the tackle power back short yardage type of situation but you kind of already have that with Ezekiel Elliott when you talk about um duvon he could be that change of pace back he could be a receiver out of the backfield if something were to ever happened to Turin he could return kicks as well so it comes down to what your flavor is and I think duvon brings a little bit more versatility than a royce Freeman my boy BC just hit on it Royce Freeman is tried and true but he also resembles a lot of the same characteristics as Ezekiel Elliot and Rico Doo uh the change of pace back obviously is Duce vau but has he shown enough in the in the in the time that he's had in the games and is he versatile enough in the actual special teams play to add you give you that value you can't just be a change of pace back that doesn't get to touch the field and can't help on special teams you also got to think about who might have the best possibility of staying on the practice squad too right now I I don't know if either one of these guys would be in that mix but you never really know when those roster Cuts come moving to the defensive side of the football how about the linebacker position the Cowboys have upgraded linebacker we just talked about some of the additions they made Willie Harvey Jr's had a great camp but then you've got some veterans like Nick vigil Buddy Johnson who was on the roster last year Barry when you look at linebacker who do you feel like has the edge at this point well I got to go with Isaiah on this one he talked he talked about this guy a couple weeks ago but Willie Harvey I mean this guy has been pretty much a stable at that linebacker spot he can come down he'll thump with the best of him and he's shown some ability and the coverage so if anything were to happen to the quarterback of the defense which is Kendricks I believe Willie Harvey can step in there and do a solid uh role my name is Willie Willie Harvey that's what I'm going with I like Willie Harvey following him I like Buddy Johnson he's just a a younger version of him and then you have Nick vigil who's the veteran who obviously you know what he can do um but he is the older version of those other two linebackers well and he hasn't been in the room nearly as long as those other guys as well and Nick vigil specifically he does bring some special teams elements so you're talking about these roster battles if you are going to make the roster you have to contribute on special teams so Nick vigil not out of the conversation by any means the conversation has shifted though on Ezekiel Elliott wearing a new number is this a new era for Zeke and what are his expectations going into another year with the Dallas Cowboys this segment was brought to you by your North Texas Ford dealers Ford is the best in [Music] Texas this segment is brought to you by the NFL fan of the Year presented by Captain Morgan welcome back into special edition with Isaiah Stan back Barry church and Nate Newton I'm Kyle yans now we talked a little bit about roster building about some of the new additions for this Cowboys team how about some of these guys that are returners for the team or maybe a veteran returner in the NFL let's start with Ezekiel Elliott who makes his return to the Dallas Cowboys what are the expectations realistically for Ezekiel Elliott Nate as he goes into this year I just think Z have a good year I think around six or seven maybe 800 yards of 150 carries and you know and plus he can catch out of the back field and he is your third down blocker I think zeka have a great year not nothing super but just a nice year yeah I'm with you on this one I don't think he'll have you know over a thousand yards or anything like that but I think he'll be that short yardage back we saw the Cowboys struggle last year when go to go situation short yard situations this is right up zek's alley he'll be able to move the chains for this team and that's what I kind of expect coming from Zeki o at this season I honestly just think that he's comfort food right now for the Dallas Cowboys I think that he's there to be a Supporting Cast to Dak Prescott to be obviously somebody who's consistent in the running game being able to fall forward who's not going to make any mistakes he's not going to have turnovers and he's going to be able to be able to block in the back field on passing down so I'm not really sure the expectations outside of that but that's why there's a a running back by committee and is that enough to Warrant a a roster spot without another addition for Zeke I think it does I mean I think they brought him back for a reason I mean you got to remember you know the politics of football he is Dak Prescott's best friend so I mean he's there because of what can do but he's also there because of who he's really tight with yeah you've got a couple guys trying to get to that point in their relationship with Dak and you've also got Jaylen Tolbert who's going into year number three Barry when you looked at Tolbert throughout the preseason has he shown enough to become that number three offensive weapon I believe so I mean ever since he's gotten into the league had a rough rookie season but he's gotten better and better throughout these training camps each year and I really believe that going into the season and towards the end of the season he'll become wide receiver number two for this team you know I think you know CD l of course is going to get his touches he's going to be that guy but when you talk about consistency and winning the one-on-one battles I believe Jaylen Tolbert will be able to do that this season this guy's leaped every year from like Barry said he didn't did much of nothing his rookie year then the next year he got 18 catches but every year mean but during the training camp he he really shined and during this training camp he's shining again what about on the defensive side with Eric Kendricks I mentioned returning veterans first year is a cowboy but this is not his first year playing linebacker Isaiah what can he bring to this defense leadership right off the bat leadership energy confidence in this new uh Mike Zimmer defense um he is he's he's a vocal leader he's a physical leader and he has more tackles in that entire room put together so you talk about somebody what you you know what you're going to get out of him that is exactly it that's Eric Hendricks yeah he's got to be the quarterback of this defense I mean he he's familiar with the Zimmer um defense going forward he can get this defensive line orchestrated as well as a secondary but he's got to be durable if we lose Eric Kendrick at some point at this year it could be disastrous for the season but I'm expecting him to be the qub back of this defense and that's been a linebacker room that's been riddled with injuries throughout the year so having somebody durable in the middle is imperative for Mike Zimmer in year number one but Isaiah you mentioned some of that leadership that energy that confidence whenever it comes to Eric Kendricks when we come back we're going to get a slight taste of that as Eric Kendrick goes miked up during his practice with the LA Rams this segment was brought to you by the NFL fan of the Year presented by Captain Morgan [Music] one of Mike Zimmer's top priorities this offseason was to find a vocal leader that can help Implement a new system and a new way on defense and he did so by going and finding an old friend linebacker Eric Kendricks who has become a vocal leader in practice for the Cowboys and he's looking to take that into the regular season let's go boy let's go hey I'm I'm I'm miked up so we got to talk about doing our nails later I know you wanted to do your nails you know get them painted I miked up though just letting you know nail I totally forgot too I had RAR people I noticed when I seen the camera right here I was like what the oh M up you do bro happy you're not out [Music] here put St on this game one play at a time flush it go to the next all right and let's play fast and go make some play all right our group right here leave day you guys hear me sir all right all go play football today you guys with me all right let's get it here we go let's go lb's on three 2 lb let's go man come on bro I don't know oh no hey Trio Tri Trio flash flash oh my God he made another one he made another play oh my [Music] God our way run our way oh balls out [Music] I want play do you think that you'd be just an elite you think you'd be as effective yes like you think you'd be able to the game as much as no question hey flash flash flash oh man hey you like 10 yard shorter nice though I got Cur cream too check me out check my Instagram out yeah I'll send you some Eric Kendricks miked up during the joint practice between the Cowboys and the LA Rams there's many more of those moments to come for Eric Kendricks in his first season as a Dallas Cowboy but there were some memorable moments for Brandon Aubrey going into year number two but what could be even better than drilling a 66 yd field goal we'll tell you when we come back closed captioning is brought to you by the Texas Lottery Cowboys scratch tickets from the Texas Lottery are here play [Music] today special edition presented by a TNT was brought to you by your North Texas Ford dealers Ford is the best in Texas Miller Light the only beer of the Dallas Cowboys and by AT&T official sponsor of the Dallas Cowboys and that ball has the distance and it is good 66 yards for Brandon Aubrey how about that to close out the first half absolutely amazing an unbelievable kick to round out the first half of preseason game number two Brandon Aubrey 66 yards it would have tied Justin Tucker's NFL record if it were a regular season kick hopefully we'll see more of that as we go along Isaiah stanback Perry Church Nate Newton I'm Kyle yans but what could be better than drilling one from 66 yards away how about welcoming a brand new baby into the world baby butter is is what we're going to call him as Brandon and his wife they welcome in a son to the world in unbelievable moment on the field and off the field this past week congratulations sincerely from all of us to the Aubrey Family Guys how much of a weapon can Brandon Aubrey be going into the year it's a huge weapon especially when you factor in the new kickoff rules and if the ball comes out to the 30 now all you got to do is get to the 20 to get to to the 50 yard line so only 20 yard gain two first downs and all of a sudden bring your kicker out he's a serious weapon if you can get past the 50 yard line and you're guaranteed three points that's a huge weapon for the Dallas Cowboys this is Nate's favorite segment because we're talking kickers here he loves talking about right I know your first name Brandon make me earn that second name already done that's that's going to do it for us on special edition we're going to see you guys next week