What we learned from Cowboys-Rams joint practice: Good thing they weren’t keeping score

Published 12:12 am Wednesday, August 6, 2025

OXNARD, Calif. — Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer said Tuesday that the team didn’t do any game-planning prior to Tuesday’s joint practice against the Los Angeles Rams. Schottenheimer even went out of his way to say that he couldn’t tell you the name of No. 47 on the Rams.

That’s understandable, considering the Rams don’t have a No. 47 on their roster.

Ah. Point taken.

“Those present problems for you,” Schottenheimer said of the lack of game planning. “We’ll certainly have a better idea of who we’re going up against on game day, but today was more about us. It was just, ‘Hey, throw the ball out there and let’s see what happens.’”

The translation from Schottenheimer: Don’t read too much into what the on-field product looked like from the Cowboys. The reality: Tuesday was the first chance to see what this team would look like against another opponent, and there were some elements that should at least be noted.

No score was counted, but if it were, the Rams would’ve likely won comfortably. The offense didn’t have Mathew Stafford, but that proved to be no problem. Backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo diced up the Cowboys’ secondary by finding Davante Adams, Puka Nacua and Jordan Whittington often. Rams running back Kyren Williams, fresh off a new contract extension, looked good, too. He went untouched on a long touchdown run and even drove blitzing linebacker Damone Clark to the ground in a redzone period.

The Cowboys’ offense started slow against the Rams’ defense, especially in the running game. Schottenheimer has talked often about being a team that will run the ball, even when opponents know it’s coming. That didn’t work well against the Rams’ stout defensive line and quick-reading linebackers. There was one notable run: a sweep from Javonte Williams that resulted in a big gain.

There were some other positives. CeeDee Lamb and Dak Prescott have both talked about the impact a full offseason together would have heading into this season. They missed it last year when Lamb missed training camp while he held out for a new contract extension. That chemistry has looked good throughout camp. It looked good on Tuesday against the Rams, too.

All of those elements are fodder for Schottenheimer and the Cowboys’ coaching staff to evaluate. Tuesday marked the first chance for an experiment. The constant was how the Cowboys would handle it. Schottenheimer indicated that a lack of exotic play-calling would probably be the standard until the Cowboys open up against the Eagles in a month.

“I’m going to say it again: We’re playing pretty vanilla,” Schottenheimer said. “We’re just focusing on execution. Can we run block? Can we get open? Can we pass block? And that’s the way the preseason is going to go.”

After that, the real external evaluation of Schottenheimer’s team can begin.

Here are some other notes from Tuesday’s joint practice:

Out but not down?

Cowboys backup quarterback Joe Milton was one of the bright spots during Tuesday’s scrimmage. Early on, he looked in command. He didn’t hesitate in the pocket as he had in some cases during training camp. He even had the Cowboys’ play of the day: a long touchdown pass to Jalen Brooks where he got to show off his big arm.

Then, we didn’t see much of him. That’s because he hit his throwing hand on a helmet.

Schottenheimer didn’t seem too concerned, adding that the decision to remove Milton was mostly precautionary.

Former first-round pick Mazi Smith suited up, but didn’t practice in team drills against the Rams. Smith is dealing with knee soreness. Schottenheimer said they weren’t too concerned about his status moving forward.

Cowboys left guard Tyler Smith is also dealing with some knee soreness. He missed last practice, but returned on Tuesday. He rotated in with backup Brock Hoffman with the first team.

Challenge met

Cowboys left tackle Nate Thomas hadn’t gone up against an opponent since November 2023 when he and Louisiana faced UL-Monroe. His first opponent back was a tough one: Rams star defender Jared Verse.

“Verse is a great player, No. 1,” Schottenheimer said when asked about Thomas’ performance. “He’s a terrific player and he’s certainly going to make plays. He made a few plays. A couple of the plays were made on [stunts] and things, but I thought Nate battled. I thought there were some good things he did, and again — those reps are priceless.”

Other notes

Tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford was walking and out of the boot for the first time … left tackle Tyler Guyton was seen watching practice with his teammates … George Pickens had a couple plays that stood out, including a contested catch where they couldn’t tell whether he caught it or the opponent did … Will Grier played a bunch at quarterback. He found KaVontae Turpin for a couple big plays. He also threw an interception on the final play of the Cowboys’ offense versus the defense.

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