Cowboys at Cardinals: Dallas Free-Agent Get Jalen Thompson Reflects On Camp

The Dallas Cowboys' second joint practice of the offseason is in the books, and after the number of fights and skirmishes we saw against the New Orleans Saints, that is for the better.

With tempers flaring so many times that we lost count, head coach Brian Schottenheimer made it known post-practice that he wasn't happy.

Often preaching going to the edge by not over it, several players did, including Donovan Ezeiruaku, who was thrown out of practice for the second time this offseason for throwing a punch.

Some of the fights were due to the Cowboys players standing up for each other; other times, it was just the fiery nature of camp.

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And safety Jalen Thompson gave his thoughts on the "chippy" practice, as Schottenheimer called it.

"I think just the biggest part is competing without getting anybody injured," he said. "So, the biggest thing is just competing, we came out here, and we did that. I think both sides did that, and it was a good day."

Thompson, one of Dallas' top offseason free-agent gets (three years, $33 million) managed to snag an interception off of Tyler Shough, with the defense confusing the young quarterback, but plays like that get lost in the wash because of the fights.

Schottenheimer stated he was playing referee too much, and that isn't what you want your head coach to be doing.

As for Thompson - who will be on the sideline tonight at the Cowboys visit his old Arizona Cardinals team in preseason Game 2 - he felt like everyone got close to crossing the line in Oxnard.

 “We came kind of close to crossing [the line], I think both sides did," he added. "But that's just the competitiveness of the sport, just guys working hard.”

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With the signing of Von Miller making the headlines, the Cowboys now have another veteran on Parker's side of the ball.

"Oh, it's big time," Thompson said of the signing. "Anything to make our job a little bit easier, and another vet in the room that's a leader. He's going to make our jobs a lot easier in the back end. So, yeah, I'm happy about it."

Summer is winding down, which means the real on-field work for Thompson and Williams and their ilk is about to start. ... soon enough putting an end to practice fights and preseason jousts.