Tag: Hall of Fame Game

McCarthy managing injuries already; Cowboys prep for ‘in-season mode’

With 2 weeks to go before returning to Dallas, the Cowboys are pacing themselves on the injury front as they transition to the season.

And just like that, the Cowboys suddenly have a game to get ready for. Sure, debate the merits of the Hall of Fame Game and just how closely it actually resembles regular-season action, but it’s a critical step nonetheless in the team’s 2021 training camp schedule. And it’s still “our guys versus their guys” as players prepare for enemy fire.

Just how much any of the Dallas starters will play remains to be seen, but several of the roster’s top talents are already on the shelf for Thursday night’s exhibition skirmish against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Among the Cowboys who will be watching only are quarterback Dak Prescott, wide receiver Amari Cooper, edge rusher DeMarcus Lawrence, and kicker Greg Zuerlein.

None were likely to take many snaps in Canton (if any), but if that were the inactive list for a real game, there would be borderline panic. As it is, head coach Mike McCarthy is already thinking about the injury status of his team.

“Our injury list is getting a little long,” McCarthy told the media during a pre-practice press conference in Oxnard on Sunday. “We play Thursday night, we get back here very late Friday, and then we have the competitive practice Saturday against the Rams. So I’m focusing on the balance of reps between the game and that Saturday practice, because that’s almost like a two-part focus for us… I’ve got to make sure I take care of the roster from a health standpoint.”

The Cowboys have two full preseason games- plus the aforementioned joint practice alongside the Rams in between- all in the next 13 days. It will be a punishing stretch for players already nursing dings from practice sessions.

Prescott hasn’t thrown since he left Wednesday’s practice- the team’s first with pads this camp- early. Tests revealed a muscle strain in his right shoulder. But McCarthy says the minor setback for Prescott didn’t alter his practices as backups Garrett Gilbert, Ben DiNucci, and Cooper Rush got more work with the offense.

“The script for these first eight practices really don’t change,” McCarty explained. “The target is about getting the installs in.”

Cooper, Lawrence, and Zuerlein have yet to participate in team-on-team drills. The club hasn’t expressed any worry about them being ready to go by Week 1, but McCarthy is cognizant of the need to keep his players from pushing things too hard during the offseason.

“There’s a sense, in talking to the staff: some of these guys we’ve got to protect from themselves,” McCarthy said. “Their training is so over the top.”

The good news is that training will start to fall away the closer the team gets to the established and repetitive rituals of the regular season. The coach admits that will become easier to do once the Cowboys return to their home at The Star in Frisco.

“Once we get into next week, we’re going to start trying to get into an in-season mode. We’re coming to the point in training camp where you’ve got to transition your team out of install-football into in-season football. You’ve got to get everybody regulated.”

The California trip has been a fun re-entry into gridiron normalcy, and still has nearly two weeks to go. But the intensity is about to get cranked up a little higher once the players square off against guys wearing different uniforms.

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Cowboys’ 4-game preseason schedule announced

Dallas will kick off the 2021 exhibition slate versus the rival Steelers and finish it by hosting Trevor Lawrence and Urban Meyer’s Jaguars.

Some call them meaningless games, but the Dallas Cowboys will soon line up and play football against teams wearing other uniforms. The NFL released the full schedule of 2021’s preseason games on Thursday.

The exhibition slate has been trimmed from the traditional four games to three for most teams, but the Cowboys will play one extra this year thanks to their inclusion in the annual Hall of Fame Game (a holdover from 2020, when the game was scrapped- along with the league’s entire preseason- due to COVID-19 concerns).

The Cowboys will square off against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Canton, Ohio on Thursday, August 5. That game will be the culmination of the combined 2020-2021 Hall of Fame Enshrinement Week festivities, in which Jimmy Johnson, Cliff Harris, and Drew Pearson will take their place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Next, the Cowboys will travel to the desert to take on Kyler Murray and the Arizona Cardinals for their second preseason contest. The rematch of last season’s 38-10 drubbing comes on Friday the 13th of August.

The team will come home to AT&T Stadium for their final two preseason games. On Saturday, August 21, they’ll host the Houston Texans for state bragging rights and the Texas Governor’s Cup. And on Sunday, August 29, Dallas will welcome top overall draft pick Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars to town under new head coach Urban Meyer.

The Cowboys will also kick off the NFL’s regular season when they meet the Super Bowl-champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers on September 9.

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News & Notes: Ezekiel Elliott, Mike McCarthy eyed for honors; a Tavon Austin return?

Dallas Cowboys news for June 25, 2020: a look at the Jimmy-vs-Jerry feud 25 years later, Hall of Fame fallout, and La’el Collins trade talk.

Just six weeks before it was set to be played, the NFL postponed the Hall of Fame Game between the Steelers and the Cowboys, as well as the Hall of Fame ceremony. This isn’t a great sign for the season starting on time, despite Roger Goodell announcing that training camps are still set for July 28.

Behind the best running back in the NFC East (according to Maurice Jones-Drew) and one of the best candidates for Coach of the Year, Mike McCarthy, the Cowboys were named favorites to win their division by Pro Football Focus. Tavon Austin reuniting with his former coach John Fassel could help spark the Cowboys special teams. And there’s still the looming threat of a Jamal Adams-to-Dallas trade. Latest reports say that the Jets want La’el Collins and extras; how should Dallas respond? All that and more make up the Dallas Cowboys News and Notes for June 25, 2020.

ESPN: Cowboys-Steelers Hall of Fame Game canceled :: Cowboys Wire

The 2020 NFL Hall of Fame Game and Enshrinement Week festivities have been postponed until 2021 amid the continuing COVID-19 pandemic.

Examining the Cowboys feud that still smolders: Jerry Jones vs. Jimmy Johnson :: The Athletic

The Jerry Jones vs. Jimmy Johnson feud has been going on for a quarter of a century at this point. Boys will be boys, but it seems high time that these two near-octogenarians bury the hatchet before it’s too late. Here’s an excellent recap of what’s kept the blood boiling for all these years.

PFF picks favorite to win NFC East in ’20 :: NFL Network

George Chahrouri details why PFF believes the Cowboys, and not the Eagles, will win the NFC East this year.

MJD’s Top 5 NFC East RBs of 2020 :: NFL Network

Maurice Jones-Drew ranks his top five NFC East running backs. Ezekiel Elliott beat out Saquan Barkley for the top spot. While Tony Pollard was nowhere to be found, he could easily be a top five back in the East in the upcoming season.

Is Mike McCarthy the Top NFL Coach of the Year Candidate? :: Sports Illustrated

Coach of the Year is an interesting accolade that doesn’t always go to the best coach or the best team. Check out why Sports Illustrated‘s Albert Breer believes 2020 could be the perfect storm for Mike McCarthy to win the honor.

Seven 1970s rivalries that made the NFL ‘super’: Roger Staubach’s Cowboys part of several epic matchups :: CBS Sports

The 1970s were the days that helped the Cowboys earn their nickname of “America’s Team,” and this list shows why. In a ranking of the top rivalries of the decade, the Cowboys are featured in four of the top seven matchups.

Brooks: Cowboys have ‘two-to-three-year window’ to win Super Bowl :: NFL Network

NFL Network’s Bucky Brooks shares why the Dallas Cowboys need to win a Super Bowl within the next few years.

Bringing back Tavon Austin could be a wise investment for the Cowboys :: Blogging The Boys

Tavon Austin didn’t necessarily live up to expectations in Dallas, but Matt Holleran of Blogging The Boys suggests the Cowboys bring back the veteran as a low-risk high-reward fourth receiving option.

Jets reportedly targeting La’el Collins; should Cowboys say no? :: Cowboys Wire

The Jets’ price tag on Jamal Adams could continue to shift as the season draws closer. Latest reports state that the Jets have their eyes on Cowboys right tackle La’el Collins. Would it be smart for the Cowboys to give up such a solid lineman on a team friendly deal?

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Cowboys’ Johnson, rest of Class of 2020 to wait for Hall of Fame induction

Dallas Cowboys greats Jimmy Johnson and Cliff Harris have their Hall of Fame enshrinement dreams pushed back even further.

It’s official: the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s 2020 class will have to wait even longer for enshrinement. The cancellation of the first exhibition game of the year between the Dallas Cowboys and the Pittsburgh Steelers was announced Thursday morning and is set to be made up next year; it was only a matter of time before this news followed.

The class that was to be the biggest in the NFL’s storied history, with 20 players, coaches, and contributors slated to receive the famed bronze bust split into two ceremonies, will have to wait even longer for their moment in the sun.

For the Cowboys, two greats are affected. The first is former head coach Jimmy Johnson, the architect of the ’90s dynasty that resulted in three world championships. Johnson, of course, ended up with just two of those rings before his relationship with owner Jerry Jones soured and became untenable. The other is safety Cliff Harris, who played in five Super Bowls throughout the 1970s, won two of them, and was a member of the All-Decade team.

Harris was one of two positional players of the All-Decade team that had yet to receive the call from Canton. The other, of course, is wide receiver and the original 88, Drew Pearson.

Johnson’s pro coaching career lacked the length that many Hall of Fame coaches enjoyed. He lasted just nine years and won only 80 games.

The wait for a gold jacket has been long overdue for both Dallas legends. Now the wait will be just a little longer.

NFL to cancel Hall of Fame Game, postpone HOF induction ceremony

The NFL will cancel this year’s Hall of Fame Game, and will also postpone this year’s induction ceremony.

As first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the NFL has decided to cancel the 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame Game, and also to postpone the Hall of Fame induction ceremonies. The game was supposed to take place on August 6, and the ceremony on August 8. The cancellation and the postponement come as the NFL tries to wrestle with the logistics of putting on a season in the wake of a coronoavirus pandemic that doesn’t appear to be going away anytime soon.

The league had not had to cancel or postpone any events until now. Free agency went on through the pandemic, and the league’s first virtual draft went off with relatively few hitches. But when it comes to playing actual games, and putting thousands of people in an indoor or outdoor event, that becomes a different story. At this time, per Schefter, the plan is for the Cowboys and Steelers, the two teams that were to play in this year’s Hall of Fame Game, to play it in 2021.

Per league policy and tradition, the Cowboys and Steelers would have reported to training camp a week early to prepare, but now, the plan is for both teams to report on July 28, along with most other NFL teams.

ESPN: Cowboys-Steelers Hall of Fame game canceled

The network’s Adam Schefter is reporting that the NFL has canceled the Hall of Fame Game, scheduled for August 6 in Ohio, due to COVID-19.

Football fans have watched cautiously as the COVID-19 pandemic directly impacted all of the major sports other than their own. Apart from forcing the draft to go virtual, closing down team facilities for most of the offseason, and eating into the window for things like unofficial workouts and rookie minicamps, the global health crisis had not permanently claimed anything of substance from the NFL as it prepared for the 2020 season.

But now the first game has been taken off the schedule.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that the league has scrapped the annual Hall of Fame Game, which had been set to take place August 6 in Canton, Ohio between the Cowboys and the Steelers.

Ohio’s governor had already gone on record as saying that playing the game in an empty stadium was a distinct possibility. As recently as June 16, he said of the scheduled game, “It would be very dangerous to do it today.”

Steelers defensive end Cam Heyward told the Tribune-Review that he felt playing the game under current conditions was a bad idea, saying, “We talk so much about safety. Why would we want to expose two teams to an extra game a week early?”

The NFL has agreed with that assessment, given that the country saw a new single-day record for new coronavirus cases just this week.

The Cowboys and Steelers will apparently now kick off the 2021 preseason in next year’s Hall of Fame Game, according to Shcefter’s sources.

The accompanying enshrinement ceremony, which was to include the induction of Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson and Steelers coach Bill Cowher, will also move to next summer.

Teams are scheduled to report to their facilities on July 28, but, according to Schefter, “there has been no definitive word from the NFL about whether that will happen.” Whether the Hall of Fame Game’s cancellation affects when the Cowboys players report to training camp is unknown. There was some speculation that the Cowboys and Steelers might be allowed to report earlier to allow coaches time to prepare their rosters for the game.

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Report: NFL players ‘will arrive on time’ on July 28; Cowboys, too?

NFL insider Ian Rapoport says the start date likely means a shortened preseason and no early pre-camp work, which may affect the Cowboys.

A 2020 NFL season is still not a certainty. But it appears set to take a sizable step toward becoming more likely. According to league insiders Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport, players will report to their team facilities on Tuesday, July 28.

This date would technically be an on-time start for most clubs’ training camps, but would eliminate the possibility of any early pre-camp work for rookies and others. Rapoport points out that, given the lack of access players have had to their facilities throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, there will be a “ramp-up period” required after the start date and will likely necessitate an abbreviated preseason.

The Cowboys, by virtue of having a first-year head coach, would typically be allowed a one-week head start at camp under normal circumstances. As Rapoport notes, though, some teams are moving forward under the assumption that there will be no early reporting for anyone this offseason.

Even with a July 28 start for all 32 NFL organizations, the Cowboys and Steelers may ultimately feel the impact of a shortened preseason before the other clubs. Dallas and Pittsburgh are scheduled to meet in the annual Hall of Fame Game, the traditional kickoff to the preseason’s slate of games. The game is slated to be played in Canton, Ohio on August 6, just nine days after players will have reported.

Ohio’s governor has already cast considerable doubt on the game being open to fans. Other options for the exhibition may include hosting the game and coinciding Hall of Fame induction ceremonies at a later date, or even canceling the game outright.

The league’s 32 teams were informed by the league earlier this week that they must formulate and submit response plans complete with detailed protocols and personnel “tiers” that will dictate who can go where at team facilities, including places like the locker room, training room, sidelines, and practice fields. Those plans are to be turned into the league “seven days before the first mandatory reporting date for players for the 2020 NFL season.”

It now appears that the first mandatory reporting date is July 28.

The NFL will host a video conference meeting with team owners on Thursday to address a number of topics. Training camp and 2020 season planning are among the items on the agenda.

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Cowboys, NFL teams must divide personnel into tiers for COVID access

ESPN reports that a league memo directs team facilities to be closely regulated, with only some team personnel allowed in certain areas.

As society gradually re-opens during the COVID-19 pandemic despite soaring infection and positive rates in many states, new rules have been imposed at most places of business in order to limit interpersonal contact, minimize high numbers of people in confined spaces, and restrict individuals from being in places deemed unnecessary to them. One-way aisles at the grocery store, rolling headcounts, additional ID checks, and designated zones for certain people or activities have become the new normal.

With the NFL continuing to move toward an on-time start to the 2020 season, look for many similar procedures to be put into place at the 32 team facilities across the league, including The Star in Frisco, home of the Cowboys.

According to a memo sent to all teams and obtained by ESPN, the league is mandating each club develop its own response plan- complete with detailed protocols and personnel “tiers” that will dictate who can go where in places that include the locker room, training room, sidelines, and practice fields. Even for team employees, there are apparently no all-access passes inside the facility.

“Teams must assign tiers to all their employees, who wear a tiered photograph credential to spell out their access,” reports NFL insider Adam Schefter. “NFL teams must designate their Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 employees and turn the plans into the league office seven days before the first mandatory reporting date for players for the 2020 NFL season.”

That exact reporting date remains unknown, but Schefter notes that 26 teams are scheduled to begin their training camps on July 28.

As per ESPN’s summary of the memo:

“Tier 1 will consist of players, coaches, trainers, physicians and necessary personnel who must have direct access to the players.

“Tier 2 will consist of general managers, football operations employees, other assistant coaches, video personnel, security and other essential personnel who may need to be in close proximity to the players and other Tier 1 individuals who may need to access restricted areas. Only individuals assigned to Tiers 1 and 2 will be permitted access to restricted areas, and there will be limits on the number of individuals from each team that can be assigned Tier 1 and Tier 2 access at any given time.

“Tier 3 will consist of certain operational personnel, in-house media and broadcast personnel, field manager, transportation providers and individuals who perform essential facility, stadium or event services but do not require close contact with Tier 1 individuals. Team and other personnel who work exclusively in areas of team facilities that are or will be completely cordoned off from the rest of the facility do not need to be credentialed in one of the three access tiers.”

Schefter, citing sources, explains that “there already have been heated discussions within teams as to who ends up in which tier as the teams’ personnel try to cement their positions in the protocol.”

This latest tier system is the latest step in players and support staffs returning to their facilities, as coaches have already been allowed back in the buildings. Guidelines for social distancing, cleaning, and the use of personal masks have already been spelled out for teams.

The ESPN report points out that each team’s Infectious Disease Emergency Response (IDER) “will be subject to review and approval by the NFL, NFLPA, and the Infection Control for Sports, formerly known as the Duke Infection Control Outreach Network.” Also, the network states, “The NFL and NFLPA say they may perform surprise inspections of sites to ensure compliance with the protocols.”

Of course, the creation of 32 IDER plans may be little more than a massive exercise in futility, as many health professionals continue to cast serious doubt on the likelihood (and certainly the wisdom) of even having a football season.

The NFLPA’s medical director has already advised that players refrain from gathering for private workouts with teammates or voluntary joint practices before the start of training camp.

Even some players are now publicly expressing skepticism about the NFL’s optimistic timeline.

“I think everybody’s nervous, because the norm is that we just go to work,” Devin McCourty of the New England Patriots told ESPN’s Mike Reiss. “We put in a lot of work, we bond together, we lift, we’re in close quarters. It feels like that’s all being taken away from us, so I don’t know how to react. I don’t know what’s it’s going to be.”

“When you think about the future, if it’s hard for 10 guys just to get together to do little passing drills or anything of that nature, to think about somewhere between 53 and 90 guys in a training camp, it’s going to be insane. So I don’t know how that’s going to turn out,” his brother (and teammate) Jason McCourty added.

Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end Cam Heyward feels that the first game of the 2020 preseason, set to be played August 6 between the Steelers and Cowboys, is a bad idea.

“It’s just my point of view,” Heyward told the Tribune-Review. “But I think the Hall of Fame Game is probably out. We talk so much about safety. Why would we want to expose two teams to an extra game a week early?”

On June 15, it was revealed that Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott has tested positive for the coronavirus, along with at least one other Dallas player.

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Ohio governor: ‘Highly unlikely’ fans will be in stands for Hall of Fame game

Ohio governor Mike DeWine says it’s ‘highly unlikely’ fans will be in the stands for the Hall of Fame game to kick off the NFL preseason.

The Hall of Fame Game, which kicks off the NFL preseason, could feature an empty stadium this year. The matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Dallas Cowboys is currently scheduled for Aug. 6 at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio. But with the coronavirus pandemic still sweeping the nation, the annual event could now be held without fans in the stands, according to Ohio governor, Mike DeWine.

“As much as I hate to say this, because we’ve all been looking forward to that and I know how much it means to the Canton area and the Stark County area and, really, across the country, it’s a great, great event that we’ve been looking forward to, [but] having a crowd that size is highly unlikely,” DeWine said Tuesday via WKYC-TV. “Certainly, it could not occur today. It would be very dangerous to do it today.”

The NFL is currently doing everything in its power to reopen team facilities, and while some staff and coaches have been welcomed back, players are not yet able to return. The league and the NFLPA are still working to provide protocols to ensure safety measures and in-person minicamps have been canceled throughout June. Reports also indicate there are discussions to shorten the preseason all together.

“Again, we have to see where we are at that point, but that’s a large crowd, a lot of people together,” DeWine continued. “These are the things that we’ve talked about all the way through this as we open Ohio up and we get back to work and we get back to doing the things that we like, probably the last things that are going to be able to be open are the big crowds, particularly when you have big crowds that are close together. So we have to continue to look at it and make decisions as we move forward, but if the question was, ‘could that even occur today?’ the answer would be, ‘no.’”

This story is continuing to develop.

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Ohio governor Mike DeWine: ‘highly unlikely’ fans will be in the stands for the Hall of Fame game

Ohio governor Mike DeWine: ‘highly unlikely’ fans will be in the stands for the Hall of Fame game in Canton in August

One week after the Pro Football Hall of Fame indicated optimism for having fans in the stands in Fawcett Stadium in Canton for the annual preseason kickoff contest, Ohio governor Mike DeWine all but squashed the idea.

DeWine addressed the idea of having fans attending the game between the Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers, and his response was not a good sign. His worries over the global coronavirus pandemic remain strong and cautious.

“As much as I hate to say this, because we’ve all been looking forward to that and I know how much it means to the Canton area and the Stark County area and really across the country, it’s a great great event that we’ve been looking forward to, [but ] having a crowd that size is highly unlikely,” DeWine said. “Certainly, it could not occur today. It would be very dangerous to do it today.”

DeWine continued,

“Again, we have to see where we are at that point, but that’s a large crowd, a lot of people together. These are the things that we’ve talked about all the way through this as we open Ohio up and we get back to work and we get back to doing the things that we like, probably the last things that are going to be able to be open are the big crowds, particularly when you have big crowds that are close together. So we have to continue to look at it and make decisions as we move forward, but if the question was, ‘could that even occur today?’ the answer would be, ‘no.’

This casts more of a cloud over the potential to have fans at Browns training camp in Berea, as well as for any preseason games at FirstEnergy Stadium.