Cowboys Training Camp, Take 2: Micah Parsons Dominating Practice, Even at Nose Tackle

The all-everything defender is making it hard on the offense to get good work in. Plus, two former first-rounders are making an impact, while 2023 No. 1 pick Mazi Smith has impressed.

We’re over 2,000 miles on the road on this training camp tour, and I’m at stop No. 11 in Oxnard, Calif., with the Cowboys, following my colleague Gilberto Manzano, who was here Thursday. Here’s what I learned Friday …

• Is it possible Micah Parsons is taking another step? Cowboys coaches told me it’s gotten to the point where the third-year pro is so disruptive that it makes it hard on the offense to get good work in during practice, and it’s clear the focus of his offseason has really paid off. Parsons focused on getting stronger, and also rounding out the finer points of his game from a football standpoint—drilling down on his hand work and his ability to run games. The result is a guy who’s looked unblockable and versatile as ever (he’s even lined up at nose tackle and won in one-on-ones), and now he’s starting to lead with his words and mindset, rather than just his play. It’d be hard for anyone to put together an encore to what he did his first two years, but he’s working toward that.

Parsons has looked unblockable in training camp practices :: Jason Parkhurst/USA TODAY Sports

• Two former first-round picks are having nice summers. And the first name I’ll offer up here is one every Cowboys person I spoke with raised—Malik Hooker. The former Colts safety is leaner, and playing faster and with more confidence. Quietly, Dallas believes he could be rolling toward a Pro Bowl year, and his new contract reflects that. Then, there’s Leighton Vander Esch, who, like Hooker, battled a lot of injuries earlier in his career. Vander Esch has flashed a bunch as a pass rusher, and I’d look for defensive coordinator Dan Quinn to use him a little more as a chess piece this year. Having another one to go with Parsons, of course, could be pretty daunting for offenses.

• Dak Prescott’s having a better camp than a lot of people realize, and one area where the 29-year-old’s made strides is with his work in the scramble game, making off-schedule plays. It’s a place where he’s put in a lot of work. And having a deeper crew of receivers this year should help him, too—if you’re looking for a young darkhorse in that area, 2022 third-round pick Jalen Tolbert has turned heads in camp after being used sparingly as a rookie, as a guy who can play all four receiver positions in Mike McCarthy’s offense.

• First-round pick Mazi Smith has impressed with his playing strength, and the staff feels like he might have some unrealized potential. At Michigan, he was used primarily as a rundown player, and the Dallas coaches really feel like he might have more third-down value than others believed, in that he could command double-teams and generate one-on-ones for others. Veteran Jonathan Hankins has been a pleasant surprise next to Smith, too, which has given Dallas a really deep group up front. That sort of depth exists in the secondary, too, so it stands to reason that the Cowboys could use guys in those areas as trade chips at the end of the month.

• The running back group behind Tony Pollard has been really competitive. Rookie Deuce Vaughn has gotten attention on the outside, but the team really likes what it’s seen from young vets Rico Dowdle and Malik Davis. So figuring out the rotation there is one of the big things (along with figuring out the tight end position) on Dallas’s docket between now and the end of camp.