Dallas City News

Kneeland embraces added pressure heading into ‘24 – Patrik Walker, DallasCowboys.com

With Sam Williams out of the lineup, the Dallas Cowboys second-round pick is committed to stepping up.

Sam Williams going down in practice with a torn ACL and MCL was a devastating blow for both the young pass rusher and the Dallas Cowboys, and it also thrusts rookie second-round pick Marshawn Kneeland onto center stage as the lead horse in the race to try and replace Williams.

Kneeland is not naive to that reality.

“It’s a tough loss that we have with him — great player and a great person,” Kneeland said of Williams. “I’ve got to step up. I’ve gotta be ready, that much more, and take all of it seriously. … I’ve got to step it up a notch.

“… It’s still the same mindset, helping the team out as much as possible, but now I know there’s more on my back.”

Off to a solid start to his first-ever NFL training camp, Kneeland has now seen reps both on the edge and on the interior at 3-tech (right of center) in certain sets. Mike Zimmer, newly-returned defensive coordinator, is testing Kneeland’s versatility in the scheme but, make no mistake about it, the loss of Williams will pencil Kneeland on the edge far more than on the inside.

Already a stout run defender, Kneeland wants to use this as an opportunity to demonstrate to the Cowboys, and everyone, that he’s not simply a run defender.

“I wanna show them that I can pass rush, too,” he said. “I’m not just doing that in the MAC, but I can do that here, too.”

Doing so will allow the Cowboys and Zimmer to continue with their plans of deploying Micah Parsons as a weapon with no true position, one opposing teams “gotta find”, per Parsons, on a rep-to-rep basis.

Marshawn Kneeland will get more opportunities after Sam Williams’ injury – Charean Williams, PFT

The Cowboys are expecting a lot from Kneeland.

Even before Williams’ injury, second-round pick Marshawn Kneeland was taking some first-team snaps.

“The biggest thing is he’ll get more opportunities,” McCarthy said of Kneeland, “and all of our young guys need this training camp, need this atmosphere, but definitely he’ll get more opportunities to take advantage of what’s in front of him.”

Kneeland, who had 13 sacks in 23 games at Western Michigan, has played the part thus far in camp.

“I haven’t had what you see from some rookies, when you see them get thrown around,” Kneeland said. “Hopefully I won’t have that.”

Practice Points: Go-to Guyton; Play for Juanyeh – Nick Harris & Patrik Walker, DallasCowboys.com

Here’s what happened during the Cowboys first padded practice.

– On the first day in pads, rookie first-round pick Tyler Guyton shined at left tackle with every unit. He is being slowly worked into the first-team unit, but when he had opportunities to line up against Micah Parsons, he provided a stone wall against the Defensive Player of the Year contender. Lined up against the more powerful Marshawn Kneeland when with the second-team unit, he was able to do the same against his rookie classmate. On a day where the pads show who is ready for the physicality, Guyton passed every test. – (Nick Harris)

– This is a big camp for Nahshon Wright, who enters his fourth camp and especially right now with Trevon Diggs still working back into practice, he’s getting a lot of first-team reps on the outside. On Tuesday, Wright was all around the ball, especially in 1-on-1 drills. He had two pass deflections on consecutive reps and nearly had an interception in team drills but was ruled out of bounds. – (Nick Eatman)

– Juanyeh Thomas made another big play here in Oxnard as he picked off a Cooper Rush pass intended for Deuce Vaughn on an out route from the slot and would have probably returned it for a touchdown with nobody in front of him. It’s been a solid camp so far for a player who stamped his roster spot a year ago. – (Nick Harris)

– Brock Hoffman took a solid first step forward in the center competition with strong play in the middle. Cooper Beebe hasn’t been rotating in with the first-team as much as Guyton, which I think says more about where the confidence is with Hoffman here in the second week of training camp. – (Nick Harris)

Trevon Diggs off PUP list, Cowboys to work CB back slowly – Todd Archer, ESPN.com

The Cowboys All-Pro corner was finally cleared to practice and is starting to work his way back in.

Diggs was activated off the physically unable to perform list, but the Cowboys will work him in slowly as he returns from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee that he suffered before the third game of last season.

“We’ll get him into the jog-throughs and the teaching drills [as] the first step,” coach Mike McCarthy said, “and then we’ll see how we progress into individual [drills].”

Diggs signed a five-year, $97 million extension last July but played in only the first two games before getting injured in practice. He still managed to intercept a pass and force a fumble that led to a touchdown.

In 2021, Diggs led the NFL in interceptions, becoming the first Cowboy to do so since Everson Walls in 1981. He also picked off a pass in the first seven games of that season and was named a first team All Pro. He was named to the Pro Bowl in 2022 as well.

With Diggs out, DaRon Bland led the NFL with nine interceptions and set a league record by returning five for touchdowns.

Dallas Cowboys still waiting to unravel the mystery of QB Trey Lance – Tim Cowlishaw, Dallas Morning News

Cowboys Trey Lance had a rough start to camp. Hopefully he can change things around to give Dallas more clarity at the quarterback position entering the season.

The third-team quarterback is guiding his unit down the field in team drills Sunday, closing in on the goal line but running out of time according to the end zone clock. A fan shouts, “Let’s go Trey, shake the rust off …’’

Rust, indeed. Trey Lance, the mystery acquisition the Dallas Cowboys made 11 months ago, is perhaps the mystery man of the entire NFL. The quarterback selected with the third pick of the 2021 draft by the San Francisco 49ers — does he still possess the potential that made Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch trade three first-round picks to move up to get him?

The Cowboys think so, or at least management does. Otherwise, they would not have sent a fourth-round pick to the 49ers a year ago for a guy who has barely dipped his toe into the NFL waters. But trading for him when they did (right at the end of preseason), the Cowboys never got to use him in an August game and Lance did nothing more than direct the scout team in practice and dress as the No. 3 quarterback for every game last season.

So now he is here, throwing passes and … getting stopped at the 1-yard line as the clock ran out Sunday. Who is he? What is he? Everyone wants to know, not just because of the curiosity that comes with having been such a high pick. The Cowboys have a little decision to make on Rayne Dakota Prescott, 31 years young as of Monday, and while logic says the Cowboys will extend him at some point, at that level of money (at least $60 million per season), there are no givens.

So who is Trey Lance? He’s not a bust because he hasn’t played enough to be declared anything of the type, not like Denver’s Zach Wilson who was almost reviled by Jets’ fans for his play and occasionally his attitude. Wilson was picked one spot ahead of Lance. Trevor Lawrence went with the first pick and already has been rewarded with a second deal averaging $55 million per year, so at least the Jaguars have decided Lawrence is the real deal even if others are less certain.

With Lance, as a rookie with the 49ers he mostly watched Jimmy Garoppolo but he came off the bench a few times and made two starts. Twice his first pass of the game went for a touchdown. But early in the second game of 2022, after earning the starting job, Lance suffered a season-ending ankle injury. The rest is Brock Purdy history. A seventh-round rookie, in fact the final pick of that seventh round, took over and led the 49ers to an NFC Championship Game appearance in Philadelphia. That rendered Lance expendable. Hence, the star on his helmet.

Lance looks the part at 6-4, 222, a Dak-sized quarterback with younger running legs. Says the right things, too, about Dak’s leadership and guidance, about his desire to fulfill all that potential.

”I feel like I’m getting better out here every day, just getting as ready as I can for the preseason games, try to go out and have a good showing,” Lance said.