Many Dallas Cowboys rookies made their NFL debut in the 2017 Hall of Fame Game, but how did they perform in their first outing?
The rookies of the Dallas Cowboys got their first taste of in-game action for the franchise Thursday night when they faced the Arizona Cardinals in the 2017 Hall of Fame Game. The extra preseason game for the Cowboys might have been a plus this season, especially with the defense trying to sort some things out. Additionally it gave some of the rookies an extra change to get on film in their quest to make the roster.
Not all of the Cowboys rookies made an appearance at the Hall of Fame Game, but for some who did, they stood out for positives. Others — not so much. It appears the most important rookie of them all for the Cowboys, Taco Charlton, was one who didn’t play well enough in his NFL preseason debut.
The first-round selection got to wear the star on the helmet for the Cowboys for the very first time. But according to a postgame interview, defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli wasn’t happy overall with the performance of the rookie pass rusher. He said this, per Clarence E. Hill Jr. of Star-Telegram.com:
"“Wasn’t good enough … “I need to look at the tape. But wasn’t good enough.”"
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To the point, Marinelli in as few words as possible easily explained his thoughts on his top draft pick, but it is most likely all part of the plan to make Charlton an even better player than he is. There is a lot of pressure for Charlton to succeed this season. For that to happen, I highly doubt there will be any sugarcoating from the Cowboys coaching staff when it comes to motivating the rookie.
On the offensive side of the ball, third-string quarterback Cooper Rush played in the second half. In his first set of action, the undrafted rookie free agent signing completed 50 percent of his passes, going 9-of-18 for 87 yards with one touchdown and one interception. His touchdown pass came in the third quarter when he found Uzoma Nwachukwu for a 14-yard score, completing a nine-play, 75-yard drive.
Rush, who also ran the ball twice for 23 yards (including a 12-yard run), has work to do, but his progression is very important for this roster as last year showed just how important a third-string quarterback can be. Rush is a project for sure at quarterback, and he could be a great underdog story for the Cowboys if he battles his way onto the 53-man roster or practice squad.
Here are how other rookies fared in the Hall of Fame Game for the Cowboys:
• Kicker Sam-Irwin Hill was 2-for-2 in his field goal attempts, including a 43-yard conversion in the fourth quarter. He also had five punts (one for 45 yards) and one inside the 20-yard line.
• Lance Lenoir had one kickoff return for 14 yards as the Cowboys look to replace Lucky Whitehead in that role. He also had two punt returns for a total of seven yards.
• Defensively, leading the rookies was Joseph Jones with eight tackles and Kennan Gilchrist with three tackles. Second-round selection, cornerback Chidobe Awuzie totaled two tackles in his NFL debut.
• Others on the stat sheet included Woody Baron, Darnell Leslie, Marquez White all with one tackle. Jordan Carrell and Joey Ivie each had one assist, as did Baron.
• A total of 13 Cowboys rookies either didn’t see action or didn’t have any stats on the stat sheet.
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All in all, this should have been a good experience for the rookies to get into some game action and to see just how the NFL works on a game day. There are still many training camp practices and four preseason games for the rookies to continue their growth and potential to become valuable players for the franchise.