Truth learning of Trey Lance among 5 things Cowboys accomplished in 2024 camp

It took much longer than expected, but the wide receiver finally got his extension. Lamb’s massive deal came in right where everyone thought it would, just under Minnesota Vikings’ WR Justin Jefferson’s deal in terms of total money and average annual salary, although Dallas’ WR got more for his signing bonus.

The work on the field is important, but locking Lamb in was one of the biggest things the team needed to do before the season began. Without Lamb, the passing game would be anemic, and the offense would lack punch, so the extension had to get done.

Now the eyes of the football world are on quarterback Dak Prescott, but at least the Cowboys completed one of their goals, which was working out a new deal for their superstar WR. Mission accomplished.

Heading into camp, the Cowboys lacked quality depth at receiver, especially with Lamb not guaranteed to be in the fold. The expectation was that Lamb’s deal would get done, but without him, the team got a long look at some of the other options to fill out depth at the position. Those first team reps were now available to a host of WRs, and the Cowboys found a few to step up at the position.

The hope was that third-year WR Jalen Tolbert would improve, and he had a great camp to earn the WR3 role. Pint-sized WR and return man KaVontae Turpin was also expected to have a role, but beyond that, the Cowboys were searching for WRs to turn into quality options.

Jalen Brooks showed a second-year leap that saw him win a job convincingly and rookie Ryan Flournoy impressed after he returned from an early camp injury. Flournoy scored in each of the team’s final two preseason games and found his way comfortably onto the 53-man roster.

The size and athleticism for Flournoy showed up on tape and he’s picked up the nuances of the game to match his physical gifts. It remains to be seen how big of a role he’ll have as the fifth or sixth WR on the roster, but the Cowboys might have found something special.

Dallas came into camp with a bunch of guys at WR, but they go into the regular season with six quality options. The team found good depth at the position this summer.

One of the big goals for the Cowboys heading into training camp was about remaking their offensive line. The team had lost two starters, one of them an All-Pro and a 13-year starter, and needed to usher in a new group.

Early returns weren’t positive when first-round selection Tyler Guyton wasn’t starting at left tackle and third-round pick Cooper Beebe was the second-team center. Veterans Chuma Edoga and Brock Hoffman held down those jobs initially, which wasn’t a sign of an upgraded offensive line.

Things turned around quickly as Guyton showed rapid improvement and Beebe settled down to make progress with his biggest weakness, shotgun snaps. Both rookies didn’t take long to work their ways into the starting lineup.

The original starting five the Cowboys began camp with on the offensive line is not who they are heading into the regular with, and that’s a good thing. Guyton and Beebe showed they were worthy of their selections and the unit is a much better group now than they were when they arrived in Oxnard. Both rookies are ready to play large roles, which was the goal when they were drafted.

It was evident heading into training camp just how thin the defensive line was for the Cowboys. There were a few starters and a small group of veteran backups, but the team needed to find some depth at defensive tackle. The team let competition for the younger guys go on for almost the entirety of camp before eventually finding some quality help.

The Cowboys traded for veteran DT Jordan Phillips and signed Linval Joseph in late August to give the defense some more beef in the trenches. Neither are full-time players anymore, but they do give Dallas a better group at DT.

Depth wasn’t good for the defensive line when camp began, and the Cowboys set out to find some. It took looking into veteran options and swinging a trade with a division rival to find some help, but it eventually got done. The team accomplished their mission of finding depth on the interior of their defensive line.