Cowboys training camp 2021: Blake Jarwin, Dalton Schultz headline intense competition in fraternity fashion

With Kyle Pitts speculating in the rearview mirror for the Dallas Cowboys (as CBS Sports often reports, they’ll never go up to catch him in the 2021 NFL Draft), all eyes rightfully turn to the incumbent fight at the tight end between Blake Jarwin and Dalton Schultz – – one of the more interesting as the training camp increases. With Schultz coming off a career-best season fueled by Jarwin’s absence, and Jarwin returning from a torn ACL at the end of the season with a view to regaining his role as TE1, it has been a must-watch game in Oxnard, California, and one that only will become more competitive as camp and pre-season rolls around.

Things are almost as spicy behind the top two tight ends on the depth chart as well with the addition of free agent Jeremy Sprinkle – replacing Blake Bell’s tight end blocking – battling Sean McKeon and unsigned rookies Nick Eubanks (Michigan) and Artayvious Lynn ( TCU). Lynn has the edge as a local DFW prospect, but Eubanks has more college experience, more production, and comes from a larger program (for those who put a lot of stock in the latter program), and the Sprinkle is Jerry Jones’ favorite product. alma mater in Fayetteville, Arkansas, (Jones is deeply in love with his fellow Razorbacks).

As for McKeon, a free agent yet to be recruited for 2020, offensive coordinator Kellen Moore and head coach Mike McCarthy love what they have in him, which is why they chose to take the tough position of last season’s roster reduction to avoid risking him getting waivers.

He was mostly relegated to a special team as a rookie, but wanted to compete for a less stressful TE3 role this time around, compared to the TE4 tab and narrowly avoiding the roster bubbles that popped up. Of course, it goes without saying that TE3’s spot is exactly where Sprinkle hopes to stay, but his deal with the team is a one-year variation, and if he’s beaten by McKeon, Eubanks or Lynn, the Cowboys will only lose $137,500 in signing bonuses by letting him go.

This kind of pressure — in all of the above — will result in diamonds, broken pipes, or a combination of both.

The leading horse in the race for TE1 is Jarwin, but by a much narrower margin than before his injury. He signed a very team-friendly four-year contract, $22 million in March 2020 and guaranteed through to the 2023 season, but the Cowboys get hat savings if they rethink keeping the deal in 2022 ($4.25 million as pre-June 1 cut). and $5.25 million as post June 1 designation). That makes this another important year for Jarwin, the first of which was his contract year in 2019, and the sooner he regains his form, the better. Now completely fit for 2021, he’s locked and loaded to reaffirm the Cowboys’ belief in his playmaking abilities.

The only person who could be happier than Jarwin is Dak Prescott, who is also back from a season-ending injury.

“That’s good [to have him back],” Prescott told the media on Sunday. “Blake is one of the many men I’ve rehabilitated with over the past few months. It’s special just knowing that he’s back there too. My first pitch in practice yesterday, of course, was a guide, but I made sure I threw it at Blake.

“Obviously, I know everything he’s been through: fighting his adversity, fighting his injury and getting back on the pitch. Special not only for me but for him and for this offense. He is someone we will count on and someone we need. He is a big player.

“He’s going up.”

Jarwin is literally a record-setting playmaker, having broken franchise records when Prescott linked up with him for three touchdowns in a single game against the New York Giants in a thrilling 36-35 win at MetLife Stadium in 2018. The two have formed a chemistry phenomenal that saw them take right on. where they left off, at least for the most part, as Jarwin still has the rust to work after missing all but one game last season.

“It was always like the plan to be at 100%, body-wise,” Jarwin said after his first round of training, via the team’s website. “Now we are going to work hard to get the reps we need. Today was a great first step. I had a lot to clean up due to being out for so long, but it feels great to be back with the guys. … …

“I defended from the start of the OTA. I hit it pretty hard, and all summer when people left I was up there working on it with [trainer Britt Brown]. That’s kind of the plan — to make sure I’m ready for [Day 1 of camp].”

And the cult of reuniting with Prescott was reciprocal.

“I think we can be one of the best [offenses in the league],” Jarwin added. “I know that our quarterback, our team leader, have high hopes. He’s set a pretty high standard for us, and we’re going to chase him. It is our duty to maintain that standard every day.

“We’re excited for it, we’re up for the challenge.”

That said, and as mentioned earlier, don’t push Schultz back into the TE2 role just yet. In reality, this battle can end up being such a deadly heat that when the Cowboys go down to 11 men, you’ll see one or the other on the field — between Jarwin and Schultz — to varying degrees on a week-to-week basis. – basic week. The biggest plus for Dallas is how it can now fully release 12 men in 2021, which will see Jarwin and Schultz on the court at the same time in two TE sets.

“I think you definitely have to take advantage of your players,” McCarthy said when asked about the 12-man revival this coming season. “And of course with Dalton, with his contribution last year, it has been recognized. [Whether it’s] 11, 12, 21, 22 [sets] — you look at the main personnel group and down and distance normal, which is what we’re going to emphasize, down and distance normal and second-and-8 plus, you have to have all of that because unfortunately injuries happen.”

It was something McCarthy knew very well, from his days with the Green Bay Packers and in his freshman year with the Cowboys.

“I have an example in 2010 where [the Packers] had Jermichael Finley,” recalls McCarthy. “In 2009 he came in and it was a great fight for us. We spent the whole offseason with every draft and formation you could possibly do from 21 men, and we lost Jermichael I think in Week 4. We have to adjust and flow.

“Ironically, it ended up being a great year. But those are lessons learned in offensive installations. It’s been a long year. What I mean is, I understand what 11 is like, I understand the fantasy football numbers here, how they work. But we should be able to play, 11, 12, 21 and 22 normally [down and distance], and I’m not saying that we’re headed there.

“But you have to have that flexibility and that’s why we put up with the concept. The formation and personnel are secondary. Because you have to be able to use all your players.”

And, admittedly, the Cowboys were blinded by a rash of injuries that included missing out on their best end.

“I think last year 11 was definitely our best group of personnel, if you talk about how we want to play,” added McCarthy. “I think when the investment we had, especially the first year as staff, didn’t have the offseason to really work together in person. Then by way of improvement, when we lost Blake, then obviously all those reps. that we have. We have strict goals that we don’t really know much about.

“So obviously the three wide receivers were the main focus for us. But that wasn’t the case this year.”

In other words, given that the Cowboys also have Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb (who will get more exposure in 2021) and Michael Gallup (who is into his contract year and looks to find his best gear on offense), the opposing defense will have no clue as to which foul is going on Dallas will bring to the table every week. With so many weapons and potentially dominant personnel combinations at their disposal, if the Cowboys can stay healthy, offense No. Their 1st (with Prescott) actually has a chance to go even bigger in 2021.

And that’s saying a mouthful, considering Prescott is just 2 yards from surpassing Tony Romo for the Cowboys franchise’s record single-season pass in 2019 — without Lamb and with Schultz coming in as a stag-eyed second-year talent behind Jason Witten and Jarwin on the depth chart. But as Schultz enters his contract year (insert more pressure here to level up for a second straight season), the needle for the Cowboys offense is pointing north. What’s even more helpful is the relationship between Jarwin and Schultz, considering it’s more akin to siblings wanting to see each other excel than a relationship that sees two people trying to push each other to save their jobs or status on the list.

“I’m really excited for Blake,” said Schultz of the Cowboys OTAs. “I love working with a man I can really trust. Obviously we have worked together for several years. He is one of the hardest working people in the dressing room, and we are proud of that in ours. grinders who will step in day in and day out and do our part. And I’m so happy to see him back on the field.

“The ACL is brutal, especially to go down like that in Game 1. You put in so much hard work and time. … Dude, I can’t wait to see him finally come out and prove to everyone he’s great. Tight he thinks he is. I It’s nice to have a two-headed monster in the room, and hopefully we can take advantage of the defense this year.

“That’s what he is and who I am. Given the circumstances, we have a great friendship and it will only continue to grow. When he got his third touchdown in that Giants game. [on Dec. 30, 2018], I was the first person on the touchline to excite him, and I was like, ‘Now, take another one.’ He scored the second goal and then I was like, ‘One more. Three times in a row.’

“Boom, he got the third. We improve each other whether it’s competing with the Peloton bike at the end of the season or scoring three goals against the Giants. Our relationship hasn’t changed at all.”

And there’s nothing to suggest that’s going to happen, either, as both headlines a tight end bunch that has a lot to adjust to before September. It may not be “The Pitts”, but thanks to an upgraded Schultz and a healthy Jarwin, it’s a long way from the pits.