The Dallas Cowboys opened their preseason slate with a rematch of their joint practice with the Los Angeles Rams. The setting was different—and this time they were keeping score—but everything else looked pretty much the same.
The Rams were the more physical team, easily marching down the field for easy touchdowns on their first two drives. Dallas was also soft against the run, echoing the struggles they showed in joint practice, though this time the lack of full contact wasn’t an excuse.
Not everything was bad. Second-year linebacker Marist Liufau was all over the field, and seventh-round running back Phil Mafah was a lone bright spot for an offense that looked sloppy and undisciplined.
Yes, it’s only Week 1 of the preseason, and a lot of starters sat (more on that later). But for a team that’s spent all training camp and offseason preaching toughness and physicality, the early returns looked a lot like 2024. And that’s not a good thing.
Cowboys Vs. Rams Rematch: Key Takeaways
Too Many Healthy Players Were Spectators
All offseason, head coach Brian Schottenheimer has been telling everyone this Cowboys team would be different. “We’re going to build the greatest culture in professional sports,” he said. A culture built upon physicality, toughness, and competition.
Then why did so many healthy players sit out on Saturday?
Resting your franchise quarterback is one thing, but this wasn’t just Dak Prescott in street clothes. The list of players who sat might be longer than the list of guys who actually suited up.
“We had a specific plan going into this game of who we wanted to play,” Schottenheimer said at his postgame presser. “There’ll be some more guys that play next week… It was more about this was the rotation we wanted to get this week.”
The reality? Far too many players were absent.
Brian Schottenheimer: You’re a first-year head coach. You don’t have head-coaching or playcalling experience with these starters. They need reps with you just as much as you need reps with them.
You know who did suit up this week? Patrick Mahomes. Heard of him? How about Joe Burrow or Ja’Marr Chase? They’re pretty good, too.
Each team has its own preseason philosophy, but the idea that the Cowboys have somehow earned the right to rest this many players like they’ve won something is asinine. Nobody but a select few players on this roster has earned the right to sit out a preseason game if they’re healthy. They don’t need to play a full game—or even a full quarter—but they need to take the field for a series or two.
If you’re worried about injuries, that’s just part of the game. If a guy’s going to go down in the preseason, he’s just as likely to go down in Week 1.
You can’t coach from a place of fear.
The Rams Still Looked Tougher
Different day, same story. Just like in last Tuesday’s joint practice, the Rams were the more physically imposing team.
Los Angeles marched down the field on its first two drives, punctuating both with goal-line touchdown runs. They dominated the line of scrimmage and easily overpowered Dallas’ defensive front. The Rams ran the ball at will—181 yards on 31 carries—and there was little the Cowboys could do to slow them down.
The secondary didn’t fare much better. Rams’ third-string quarterback Stetson Bennett sat comfortably in the pocket and had no problem finding open receivers. Yes, the Cowboys were without their top two corners (three if you count rookie Shavon Revel Jr. in that group), but that’s part of the concern. Depth is supposed to cover for nights like this, and that depth didn’t inspire much confidence.
When both teams are running vanilla preseason game plans, it’s not about X’s and O’s. It’s about beating the guy across from you. And for the second time this week, the Rams’ guys consistently beat up on the guys across from them.
Bottom line: the perceived lack of fight is concerning. Starters sitting is not an excuse for getting outworked—in fact, the opposite should be true. Many of these preseason participants are fighting for a spot on the final 53-man roster. Every single one of them should be playing like it’s the last time they see an NFL field.
Bright Spots In A Rough Night
It wasn’t all bad for Dallas. Second-year linebacker Marist Liufau looked like one of the few defenders to match the Rams’ intensity. He flew to the football and played with an urgency many of his teammates lacked. That’s a promising sign for a young player who needs to take a leap this year, especially with newcomers Jack Sanborn and Kenneth Murray (DNPs) in the mix, and DeMarvion Overshown still recovering from knee surgery.
On offense, seventh-round pick Phil Mafah made a strong case for more touches. At nearly 240 pounds, he ran with intent every time he touched the ball, showing patience and a willingness to finish runs. Dallas doesn’t have another back that fits that profile. Mafah averaged just 3.6 yards per carry, but he had a 14-yard run wiped out by a procedural penalty. He looked like he belonged.
Defensive tackle Perrion Winfrey also flashed, stuffing a couple of runs at the line and generating push on a few Stetson Bennett dropbacks. For a defensive line that might be the Cowboys’ biggest concern heading into 2025, depth contributions from Winfrey will be a welcome boost.
Performances like theirs don’t erase the bigger issues from Saturday. Dallas has to get tougher and clean up sloppy mistakes—back-to-back flags for an offensive lineman not lining up correctly is a no-no.
Let’s hope Week 2 brings more bright spots.
Dallas Cowboys Preseason: Exhibition Or Not, This Wasn’t Good Enough
The preseason is all about evaluation and process, not results. But what you put on the field will still be scrutinized if you’re not showing the most basic football principles. On Saturday, the Cowboys looked a lot like the team they’ve been trying to convince us they’re not: soft, undisciplined, and too comfortable.
Yes, it’s only Week 1 of the preseason. But toughness, effort, and discipline aren’t things you flip the switch on. They’re ingrained habits you build. The Rams brought them. Dallas didn’t.
Brian Schottenheimer: Can you be different from the other Jerry Jones coach hires? If your vision for 2025 is really about culture, competition, and physicality, then next week needs to look a heck of a lot different.
There’s a long way to go before being ready for Week 1.
Because after two meetings in a week, the Rams didn’t just win on the scoreboard. They owned the fight.
Main Image: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images