Cowboys Holding Off On Veteran QB With Backup Moore Injured
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OXNARD, Calif. (AP) - The Cowboys are in no rush to get a veteran quarterback behind Tony Romo, even though executive vice president of personnel Stephen Jones has said they want to add one after Kellen Moore broke his right ankle in training camp.
Dallas was in on the pursuit of free agent Nick Foles a day after Moore's injury in practice Tuesday, but the former NFC East rival in Philadelphia agreed to a deal with Kansas City.
For now, the Cowboys will give longer looks to a pair of young players with no NFL experience: rookie fourth-round pick Dak Prescott and second-year player Jameill Showers, who spent most of last season on the practice squad.
Prescott ran the first team in practice Thursday while Romo took the day off.
Owner and general manager Jerry Jones said the Cowboys might even wait until the end of the month to make a move on a backup.
"We don't have to be and shouldn't be as urgent as it might look like," Jones said. "We don't know that we are void on campus with our backup quarterback at all."
Cleveland quarterback Josh McCown addressed rumors of a possible Dallas trade Thursday. He said at Browns camp that he grew up a Cowboys fan, but was keeping his focus on his current team.
And the Cowboys are curious to see what they have in Prescott, their first drafted quarterback in seven years.
"We haven't even played a preseason game yet," offensive coordinator Scott Linehan said. "You get really impatient and say, got to get him in, got to get him in. Well, we've got to get the right guy in. We're going to let Dak and Jameill get some really quality reps while we're still evaluating what we would do."
The backup quarterback is a hot topic in Dallas after Romo missed 12 games last season with a twice-broken collarbone and the Cowboys went 1-11 without him.
The Cowboys said they trusted then-backup Brandon Weeden, but when Romo got hurt, they grabbed Matt Cassel in a trade with Buffalo. Weeden started three games while Cassel learned the offense, and was benched after three losses. Cassel was eventually benched for Moore.
But the experience of last season isn't rushing the Cowboys into a move nearly six weeks from the start of the regular season.
"You evaluate the landscape of quarterbacks who are not on teams, you evaluate the quarterbacks who are on teams and the options you have," coach Jason Garrett said. "But our focus really is on getting these younger guys prepared and ready to go."
Prescott's approach hasn't changed. The former Mississippi State standout wants someday to be the starter for the Cowboys.
"That's my mindset going in to each and every practice," Prescott said. "Nothing's changed because of circumstances."
But he was willing to admit there will be a difference, particular with Romo sitting out the first practice since Moore's injury.
"I definitely know I'm going to be in the huddle with those ones, getting those reps against a great defense," Prescott said. "I just got to make sure that I'm ready."
NOTES: RB Ezekiel Elliott, the fourth overall pick in this year's draft, didn't practice Thursday because of a sore hamstring. But he was on the field for the morning walkthrough and in pads for the afternoon practice, a sign that the injury isn't serious. Dallas has three backs sidelined. The others are Darren McFadden (elbow) and Lance Dunbar (knee). ... Along with Romo, TE Jason Witten and WR Dez Bryant were given a day of rest.
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