Cowboys joint practice observations: Dak Prescott crisp, Ezekiel Elliott has juice, rookie CB flashes and more

OXNARD, Calif. --  Many NFL teams don't play good chunks of their starting lineups in the preseason anymore to avoid injury. The Dallas Cowboys are among those teams.

That's why Thursday's joint practice that involved the Cowboys hosting the Los Angeles Rams was so critical: it was the first and last action against another team that many of Dallas' starters will face this offseason before kicking off the 2024 NFL season at the Cleveland Browns in a month. Given the joint practice's importance, here are nine observations with thoughts from both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. Enjoy.

Offense

Dak Prescott looks ready for Week 1

Dak Prescott

DAL • QB • #4

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Dak Prescott has never played in a preseason with Mike McCarthy as his head coach, which has been since 2020. The last time he did suit up in an exhibition game was in 2019, the last year of Jason Garrett's tenure. That meant Thursday's joint practice against the Rams was Prescott's last time facing competition outside of his teammates in practice for the next month's opener.

Prescott routinely zipped balls past the ear holes of Los Angeles defenders and into the arms of his intended targets all afternoon long, indicating he is ready to play ball for real. The 2023 NFL MVP runner-up said as much after practice. 

"I'm going into Year 9 and I've had a lot of experience," Prescott said. "I think that carries into my confidence to say I could play a game right now. A part of me wishes that (scrimmage against the Rams) was a game, I wish it was, that those third and fourth downs were real. To see the defense come on and to see the whole chess match, I'm looking forward to feeling that and getting into that rhythm, but the team will get to that and everything we need in the preseason to make sure that we're ready to roll when it's time to roll. Me, personally, I'm ready to play and get out there."

The month off for Prescott doesn't provide cause for concern for Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones, who, obviously, wants to keep his quarterback upright for the months ahead. Some teams play their starters for a few drives in the preseason. Not Dallas. 

"I didn't think about him not having competition to work against for the next four or five weeks. I don't think he needs that for the price you pay for exposure (to a potential injury)," Jones said Thursday. "I'm really proud that our other quarterbacks (Trey Lance and Cooper Rush) are going to get that exposure. So that's a plus. Dak has been just outstanding in my eyes, so far in this camp."

McCarthy concurred.

"I think Dak is having an excellent camp," McCarthy said before the joint practice.

Prescott believes he is playing better now than he did in 2023 when he led the NFL in passing touchdowns (36), which helped him earn NFL MVP runner-up and second-Team All-Pro honors. The reason why is because he is in his second season of the Cowboys offense with McCarthy calling the plays. 

"Everywhere," Prescott said when asked where he has improved as a quarterback from last year to now. "I think for one experience helps. So just seeing things, recognizing things a whole lot faster. It's just a credit to the experience and then my footwork, accuracy, all of that's just the time that I put into it in the offseason. I take pride in how hard I work, and how diligent I am in my work. I expect to make those plays, I expect to get better. ... I think that's a credit to McCarthy and this offense as well. ... Being tied to my footwork, and those guys (younger receivers and tight ends) accepting the challenge and saying, 'Hey, I don't care if I'm young or not, I can make a play, and watch this.' They've been doing that, and it's been very, very impressive."

Ezekiel Elliott still has some juice left

Ezekiel Elliott

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Cowboys three-time Pro Bowl running back Ezekiel Elliott said he takes the most pride in still being in the NFL entering his ninth season in 2024, but Thursday against the Rams, he looked more than just happy to be here. 

"I've seen juice in his legs," Jones said Thursday when talking about Elliott's joint practice production. "When one of y'all figure out how to determine whether or not he's still got it or not with what we're doing out here at practice, tell me about it. Ok. That's hard to ascertain. I liked what I've seen from Zeke. By the way, no surprise at all, Zeke is an outstanding practice player, and he's outstanding. Prepared when he does get into competition. I don't think there's anybody in the sports world that doesn't know that he'll compete when the kickoff of the first real games happen."

Dallas believes that despite Elliott's rushing yards per carry and rushing yards per game figures declining over the years, he brings an element to its ground game that it missed without him in 2023 when it had Tony Pollard and Rico Dowdle as its top two running backs. Dowdle once again will be one of Dallas' top two backs along with Zeke in 2024. 

"I thought we were missing physicalness in our run game," Jones said. "Now, Rico is a physical runner, but we didn't have his availability all the time. Zeke gives us a punishing runner, that does take its toll. We've had a lot of success with him as our running back. That gives you a pretty good base of being happy he's back here."

WR Brandin Cooks is WR1 in CeeDee Lamb's absence

Brandin Cooks

DAL • WR • #3

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A lot of ink gets spilled about wide receiver Brandin Cooks, who is entering his 11th NFL season in 2024 and turning 31 years old on Sept. 25, being a mentor to younger receivers. However, he was quick to remind everyone Thursday, including one of his former teams in the Rams, why he is angling to become the first player in NFL history to record a 1,000-yard receiving season for five different teams in 2024. Prescott trusts him thoroughly. 

"He's a professional, probably the most professional teammate I've ever been around and one of the best men I've ever been around," Prescott said Thursday. "That carries over into how he prepares, how he communicates and how he practices, which obviously helps with our connection. I knew that he wanted to come out here and have a great day obviously against a team that he was once on, and he did exactly that.

"So he is still a big-time receiver, can be a No. 1 receiver, whatever you wanna call it. He's very valuable to me," Prescott continued. "He's very valuable to this offense and I think today was just another glimpse of it. For our connection, he'll only get better. He's a guy that I spent time with on and off the field, and that connection will just continue to grow."

TE Jake Ferguson could have another breakout in 2024

Jake Ferguson

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Tight end Jake Ferguson, a 2022 fourth-round pick out of Wisconsin, earned his first Pro Bowl nod in 2023 after hauling in 71 catches for 761 receiving yards and five touchdowns. Those numbers could double in 2024 with how much Prescott loves throwing to him over the middle. Prescott targeted him over a handful of times in 11-on-11 drill work against the Rams on Thursday. 

"Honestly, there's not a ceiling for that guy," Prescott said on Aug. 2. "I feel like I keep saying it, and it's good that I keep saying it because that's the type of people we have: another guy that loves the game, that takes this job very serious, has a passion for it. His intensity, you saw it last year in plenty of games. Just his aggressiveness and the mindset that he has to have, especially at that position. You're asked to block some of the best athletes in our game, and then go run routes on safeties, linebackers and cornerbacks, and you're expected to win."

Seeing the way he attacks off the line of scrimmage as a blocker in the run game the same way he does as a receiver in the passing game fires Prescott up. 

"That's a guy that has that mindset to do exactly that. Whether it's blocking Micah Parsons, D-Law or another great end on another time," Prescott said. Or it's running a route against (DaRon) Bland, Donovan Wilson or a DB from somebody in the division. He expects to win every single time. As long as he has that mindset and continues to grow and communicate, there is no ceiling for that guy. Blessed to have him. I know he's already been a great tight end for us, but he is going to continue to get better and better, and I'm excited about that."  

Left guard Tyler Smith could be an All-Pro in 2024

Tyler Smith

DAL • OG • #73

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Dallas left guard Tyler Smith, the team's first-round pick in 2022, shined in his second season en route to his first Pro Bowl selection. His 74.5 offensive grade ranked as Pro Football Focus' ninth-best figure among guards who played a minimum of 600 snaps. Smith dominated as a run-blocker last season, earning a 79.7 PFF run-blocking grade, the sixth-highest among NFL guards to accumulate 600 or more snaps.

Now that he has positional stability at left guard with 2024 first-round pick Tyler Guyton slotted in as the left tackle of the future, Smith is ready to shine as a full-time left guard, something he indicated by mauling Rams defensive tackle Kobie Turner in the run game. 

"It felt great," Smith said post-practice. "That's what we're here to do. We're here to open up lanes for them [running backs], to go out and show their athleticism and who they are as running backs. That's something that we can be better on. I don't think I could have dominated every run. I want to dominate every single run block and I know that that might be an unrealistic expectation, but that's what I want to do every run. .... So it felt good to just be able to have them getting those open lanes and run."

Center Brock Hoffman holding off third-round rookie Cooper Beebe for starting job

Brock Hoffman

DAL • C • #67

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When the Cowboys selected back-to-back Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year Cooper Beebe out of Kansas State in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft, it was assumed he would be in line to succeed Pro Bowler Tyler Biadasz as Dallas' starting center. 

Early on in camp, 25-year-old undrafted center Brock Hoffman has predominantly lined up with the starting offense, and more than held his own at that spot.

"I think he's holding [Cooper Beebe] off in a very impressive way," Jones said Thursday. "Brock Hoffman was, when we were discussing our offensive line during the spring and looking for the draft and looking at free agency, his name came up and [we] said, 'Boy, don't discount him.' He's really impressive and he is evolving. He's getting better and better and better. You're seeing that, and I think he is a starting center in the NFL." 

Despite Hoffman being a backup last season, his voice held some weight in the locker room because of his unyielding passion for the game of football, something Prescott highlighted post-practice. 

"A lot of the reason I'm sure he's here is because of his passion for the game," Prescott said of Hoffman. "His intensity. It was great. It's exactly what it's been at practice. A guy that gets up there, is confident in his calls. Then from there, setting the tempo, allowing me to push the tempo. Just our whole operation was great. Just looking to continue to build off of that."

Defense

Fifth-round rookie CB Caelen Carson flashes

Caelen Carson

DAL • DB • #21

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Dallas opted for youth over experience along its cornerback depth chart, allowing 33-year-old, five-time Pro Bowl cornerback Stephon Gilmore to remain in free agency and opting to draft 22-year-old cornerback Caelen Carson in the fifth round of the 2024 NFL Draft out of Wake Forest. 

Carson has been impressing in camp, and on Thursday, he hauled in an aggressive red zone interception off Los Angeles backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo -- someone whom the Cowboys struggled to beat when he was the starter for the San Francisco 49ers. 

"I've been impressed," Prescott said of Carson. "He's a guy that's aggressive. Obviously, he's being coached the right way. We've got some older guys (Trevon Diggs, DaRon Bland) to learn from in that room who do it exactly that way: who are aggressive, who make plays, who know when to take those shots and get those big time plays. I'm not surprised, I'm looking forward to watching that tape and watching Carson and some of those other guys who have been doing well against us, seeing how that transitions into these guys (against the Rams Thursday) and even come the (preseason) game on Sunday."

2023 first-round DT Mazi Smith shows off strength

Mazi Smith

DAL • DT • #58

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Getting back to his ideal playing weight and role up front has 2023 first-round pick Mazi Smith looking like someone who can contribute in 2024 based off some of his work in drills against the Rams.

Here he opened up a rush lane for fellow defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa.

Micah Parsons is still Micah Parsons

Micah Parsons

DAL • LB • #11

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Breaking news: Micah Parsons, the 2023 NFL leader in quarterback pressures (103), quarterback pressure rate (21.8%) and pass-rush win rate (35.3%), is still excellent at flustering opposing quarterbacks.

Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford was quickly reminded of that fact Thursday.