What we learned at Cowboys training camp on Sunday: Tyler Booker’s mentality and more

Published 2:14 am Monday, July 28, 2025

OXNARD, Calif. — Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer believes he’s an elite communicator. And as any quality communicator knows, there’s value to showing, rather than simply telling.

Take, for example, Schottenheimer’s aspirations for his team to “compete every day.” He’s pulled it out of his players through a series of constant games. He’s literally showed it by putting the phrase on the front of a Cowboys sweatshirt that he showed off earlier this week.

This weekend, Schottenheimer showed the mantra’s legitimacy in perhaps the best way possible.

On Saturday, for the first time since he was drafted, Cowboys rookie first-round pick Tyler Booker didn’t line up with the starters. Schottenheimer said after the draft that they viewed the 12th overall pick as an immediate starter. That had been the case until the Cowboys rolled out veteran Rob Jones at right guard instead of Booker, who lined up with the second-team offense.

The thought process, Schottenheimer said, was simple.

“It was really compete every day. That’s the central theme of the program.” Schottenheimer said. “Rob Jones has been doing some really, really good things. Tyler [Booker] is kind of hitting that mark where it was a little bit like, ‘Whoa, OK,’ doing some good things, but doing some things that weren’t to the standard. So what do you do? You make a change. Is it permanent? I don’t know.”

It wasn’t. Booker returned to the starting offense on Sunday for the team’s first practice with full pads.

While Schottenheimer looked at the starting right guard swap as an affirmation of his competitive culture, Booker — seemingly as he’s done with every thing since he was drafted — took the news in stride.

“It was just another opportunity for me to play football and another opportunity for me to get better,” Booker said. “Just competition brings excellence. Rob has been playing really well.”

As for any potential setbacks through the first week of training camp practice, Booker said he expected them to hit at some point. He reminded reporters on Sunday that Rome wasn’t built in a day.

“I’m prepared to handle any adversity that comes my way.” Booker said.

While Booker and Jones have been competing, they’ve also been bonding. Booker has spent time with multiple veterans after practice, asking questions and working on specific tips. Booker spent significant time after Sunday’s practice working with Jones — the person he’s competing against for a starting job.

While he competes with Jones, Booker is also showing a competitiveness against complacency.

“You have to approach every day, every level, with a white-belt mentality,” Booker said. “That means you’re at the lowest level and you have to understand that there’s so much more for you to learn. And I feel like no matter what, if I’m in Year 1 or, Lord willing, Year 10, that I’m always going to have that mentality.”

So far he’s showing it, not just talking about it.

Here are four other observations from Sunday’s practice:

Opportunity seized?

The Cowboys have been thin at corner for the first week of practice. Trevon Diggs and Josh Butler are on the physically unable to perform list. Rookie third-round pick Shavon Revel Jr. is on the non-football injury list and still doing rehabilitation work from his torn ACL last year. DaRon Bland has been out since the first practice as he and his wife welcome a child.

That means that others have had the chance to play with the starters, including Andrew Booth.

Booth has played well the last two practices as a starting outside corner. The former second-round pick had two pass breakups on Sunday. He also had tight coverage on another pass intended for George Pickens, which ended up incomplete.

Booth said his confidence has been growing so far in training camp.

“It’s just [about] seeing it. It’s the feel. It’s the feel,” Booth said about his confidence growing. “Once you start feeling it, and you get those reps in, you make those plays, and stuff starts to slow down a little bit.”

Booth was acquired last season in a trade with the Minnesota Vikings for former Cowboys corner Nahshon Wright, who is no longer with the Vikings. Booth appeared in seven games last season and started in two. He struggled, allowing 13 catches and 232 yards on 17 targets.

Booth doesn’t focus on last year. He called that thinking unnecessary. He said, instead, that he focuses on the future and building on the success of the last two practices.

“Brick by brick,” he said. “I’ll be ready at game time.”

TE Tandem

Cowboys tight end Jake Ferguson thanked a lot of people after he signed his first big NFL extension. One person in particular was Lunda Wells, the only tight end coach he’s had since entering the NFL. Ferguson said Wells not only coaches him on the field, but off the field, as well — as a football player and as a person. Wells will be honest with him; so much so, that he told Ferguson not to blow his new $52 million extension all in one place.

“I’m not going to do that anyway,” Ferguson said.

Ferguson says Wells has a high standard for his tight ends. That showed in practice on Sunday. Before warmups, the tight ends grabbed footballs and ran through a gauntlet. Wells saw a coaching chance with Ferguson right away.

“All that money and you’re going to drop the ball?” Wells said. “Come on, now.”

New DT on the way?

The Cowboys added multiple veteran defensive linemen in training camp last year. Could they add a prominent free agent during this year’s camp?

Cowboys co-owner Stephen Jones was asked about former first-round defensive tackle Christian Wilkins, who was cut by the Las Vegas Raiders earlier this week. The Raiders are also attempting to void roughly $35 million in guarantees after a dispute over surgery on an injured foot, according to reports.

“We look at anything and anybody who becomes available,” Jones said. “[Vice president] Will [McClay] and his [player personnel] staff do a great job, our scouting staff, bringing it to a point where if we want to go further, we have the coaches look at it, and Jerry and I look at it if it gets to that point. They’re always looking at any player that’s available.”

Injuries increased

Cowboys second-year tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford, a standout so far in camp, was knocked out of training camp practice on Sunday. A pileup during a run play caused Spann-Ford to fall backward. He received attention from trainers on the field and inside the white injury tent on the field before he left.

The Cowboys were also without safety Juanyeh Thomas, who was seen limping, and running back Deuce Vaughn, who is dealing with a hamstring injury. Thomas was in pain late during Saturday’s practice. Vaughn told The Dallas Morning News his hamstring wasn’t as serious as the one he dealt with during last year’s training camp.

Cowboys right tackle Terence Steele was in pads and did individual work and team walk-throughs on Sunday as he deals with an ankle sprain, but he did not participate in full team drills.

Schottenheimer said he didn’t know the severity of the leg injury wide receiver Parris Campbell suffered on Saturday, but he indicated it wasn’t serious.

Other notes

Schottenheimer said he heard literal barking from DE Sam Williams when the countdown clock to the first padded practice reached zero because he was so excited. It was Williams’ first padded practice in roughly a year. … Micah Parsons and McClay were seen talking with each other for an extended period of time during practice. … The first-team drill play was a play-action pass to TE John Stephens Jr., who his attempting to come back from his second torn ACL in as many seasons … WR Jalen Tolbert and TE Luke Schoonmaker both had noticeable dropped receptions

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