3 keys for LA Rams Saturday’s joint practice with Dallas Cowboys

Football Fracas

Of course, joint practices with the Dallas Cowboys in the past have been fraught with fracases.  The joint practice in 2015 ended with a huge team on team brawl. Reports from that practice cited the non-stop trash talking from then wide receiver Dez Bryant as the catalyst for the fisticuffs. Due to that blemish, the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys has already addressed the potential of fights as not happening:

"“I think you have to be on the same page. “We have no interest in fights — that’s a waste of everybody’s time. Those days, to me, are over. That’s not what I’m looking for. It definitely will penalize your team if it happens in a game, so why the hell would you do it in practice? I think Sean feels the same way. We just want the quality work. It’s a safer environment to practice this way, you’ve got relationships with the coordinators, so there’s a lot of communication that goes on between the staffs. I’m looking forward to an excellent practice.” – Coach McCarthy said Friday per Michael Gehiken of the Dallas News"

Quality work indeed. Joint training camp practices are instrumental for head coaches to test their own team’s ability to handle real game strategy without the penalty of a win-loss outcome. It’s the equivalent of a practice test, a structured event to see where both teams might have generated strengths, and where both teams need to focus additional time and energy in future practices.

The event begins at 3:00 pm PT and will be a scripted 60 plays of 11 on 11 practice. Since there are only three preseason games scheduled for NFL teams this year, the LA Rams and Dallas Cowboys will use this late-afternoon session to tune up their starters.  In that regard, the Cowboys have the jump on the Rams, as they have already played in the 2021 season opener Hall of Fams Game in a 16-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.