There’s no doubt CeeDee Lamb is the Dallas Cowboys’ No. 1 wide receiver, but when it comes to veteran leadership, Brandin Cooks is the top guy.
Cooks is entering his 11th season in the NFL and his second season with the Cowboys. Nine receivers on the Cowboys’ current roster have four years or less of NFL experience, so Cooks’ leadership is key to their growth and improvement.
“I mean, you can’t put a price tag on it,” said Head Coach Mike McCarthy. “It’s definitely something that you want throughout your whole locker room. And Brandon is a tremendous example of that and really has been since day one. I don’t know if I’ve seen too many guys that walk in here, you know, from another team do that, that really had the respect, you know, of the locker room. I mean, both him and Stephon (Gilmore) last year were exceptional in that area. So yeah, you can’t have enough of it. And it’s really cool to see him give back and, and really helped his younger receivers.”
Another veteran McCarthy will count on this season is offensive guard Zack Martin. The future Pro Hall of Famer is set to embark on his 12th NFL season and quite possibly his last. McCarthy relies on Martin a lot to teach the younger offensive lineman the tricks of the trade.
“He’s awesome, at number one. And, yeah, I can’t promote it enough,” McCarthy said. “I mean, I’m a huge believer in that, just, you know, as long as I’ve been in this league that, your best players have always been your smartest, most instinctive players. You can’t play at that level in this league without it. So, I mean, they’re all extremely talented. They’re all special, they’re gifted, and so forth. But the instincts, awareness, the intelligence, the professionalism, and he’s (Martin) definitely an outstanding role model.”
The players will take Monday off before resuming training camp on Tuesday, July 30, their first day in pads since reporting to Oxnard.
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