Dallas Cowboys: 3 takeaways from the third episode of Hard Knocks

With this week’s episode of HBO’s Hard Knocks in the books-or, on your screens to be more precise- we are now officially more than halfway through this season featuring the Dallas Cowboys.

So far Hard Knocks has been pretty entertaining and the show has given us no shortage of great Cowboys moments. We’ve seen the truly odd, like in the first episode when cameras caught Jerry Jones dumping salt onto his McGriddle (a series of words I never believed I’d type). Other moments, like the second episode’s focus on edge rusher Azur Kamara, have been far more inspirational.

The third episode delivered a ton of great content, even if it admittedly feels like this season of Hard Knocks as a whole is lacking a central focus. Now, just as I’ve done during the show’s first and second installments, here are three takeaways from this episode of Hard Knocks:

1. Amari Cooper is still the Dallas Cowboys’ WR1…and a great mentor

Second-year receiver CeeDee Lamb has been getting so much preseason hype that it’s easy to forget the Dallas Cowboys still have a four-time Pro Bowler sitting right at the top of their depth chart.

That isn’t to say that Lamb’s hype hasn’t been earned or warranted, it absolutely has been. However, fans simply shouldn’t forget about Amari Cooper quite yet. At the very least, CeeDee Lamb certainly hasn’t.

The video above was released prior to this week’s episode and it tells viewers a lot about both receivers. In the clip, Lamb pulls Cooper aside to ask him about his approach to releases. Cooper is more than happy to talk with Lamb and drop some veteran knowledge on him.

As a fan, you have to love seeing that after a terrific rookie season, CeeDee Lamb is still this open to improving his game. Sure it seems like a relatively little thing, but not every receiver does this and it speaks volumes about his dedication and desire to get better.

Likewise, Cooper taking him aside and walking him through his release is fantastic and showcases some great leadership on his part. If these two are learning from each other and working together to improve on any gaps in their game, then the sky is the limit for Dallas’ wide receiver room.

Between his reserved presence and the abundance of talent this team has at receiver, it’s easy to sleep on Cooper. There will likely come a day when CeeDee Lamb becomes the undisputed WR1 on the Dallas Cowboys, it might even be relatively soon. For now, though? Amari Cooper can still proudly wear that crown.

2. The Jerry Jones highlight reel was weird…but also inevitable

Look, I am not under any delusions. I get it, Jerry Jones is the owner of the Dallas Cowboys and if he wants something, he is going to get it. To his credit, few people on earth have been better at self-promotion and few owners have positioned themselves as prominently as Jerry has.

However, after a quick cold open that focused on guard Isaac Alarcón, followed by a truly spectacular drone shot throughout the Star in Frisco, parts of this episode essentially felt like one big closeup for Jerry Jones.

Early on the episode featured a full-on highlight reel for the team’s owner, complete with fans chanting his name and clamoring for autographs-including one person passing him a twenty-dollar bill to sign. Later, Jerry was featured prominently in his helicopter arriving at AT&T Stadium.

The drone shot was pretty incredible to see, especially for fans who haven’t been able to make the trip out to Frisco. The Jones sizzle reel on the other hand was just bizarre, pretty unnecessary, and if we are being totally honest inevitable.

Are you surprised? I am not. I am a lifelong Dallas Cowboys fan and at this stage, I am a Jerry Jones realist. Like it or not, he’s the owner of the team and he can (and will) do whatever he wants to do. If anything, I guess I am just more surprised that it took this long.

This was going to happen at some point, so my biggest confusion was why now and why not earlier when there was even less to cover? The Cowboys are deep into the preseason, there shouldn’t be any shortage of captivating storylines that the Hard Knocks team could be illuminating. Did we really need all this?

3. Dak Prescott is terrified of mascots, and honestly who can blame him?

Some people look at mascots and think they’re fun, energizing, and exciting. Others look at them and just see a costume that feels pretty childish and a little weird. Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott‘s take? Well, let’s just say that the only trip he’s going to take to the Mascot Hall of Fame in Whiting, Indiana is in his nightmares.

It all started with running back Ezekiel Elliott confessing that he doesn’t particularly like mascots. From there Prescott chimed in with his own admission that when he was younger he found people in costumes downright scary.

The franchise signal-caller even went on to voice that as a kid he thought dressing up as a mascot or in a costume could be the best way to hurt someone. Those fears even led him to say he’d never go into a haunted house.

Evil mascots and haunted houses? Has Dak considered writing a horror movie when his football career wraps up? If there is one thing Hollywood loves its low-budget slasher flicks that they can churn out quickly, and with the quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys’ name attached the studio would surely be printing money.

This season of Hard Knocks has definitely felt like it’s been lacking a specific focus compared to the show’s previous years. But, it’s nice to see everyone can agree on at least one thing. Mascots are terrifying.