Who's hot, who's not at Cowboys training camp

Cowboys training camp is underway in Oxnard, Calif. While some players look ready to go, others have plenty of work to do. 

Here’s where things stand after recent practices:

Hot: WR Jalen Tolbert

Tolbert arrived in Dallas as a third-round pick in 2022, but had just two catches for 12 yards as a rookie. Again, he received plenty of hype coming out of last year’s camp to have only 22 catches for 268 yards and two scores in 2023. 

But with Michael Gallup off the team and CeeDee Lamb holding out for a new contract, Tolbert seems to be making the most of his opportunities. After working with quarterback Dak Prescott in the offseason, the chemistry between the two has been better than ever with Prescott telling NFL.com, “There's no telling how great he can be."

The longer Lamb is out, the better Tolbert looks.

Not: RB Royce Freeman

After impressing head coach Mike McCarthy with his skills as a pass-protector, Freeman limped off the field after suffering an apparent groin injury at Monday’s practice.

Freeman was surely looking forward to participating in the team’s first preseason game against his former team, the Los Angeles Rams. Unfortunately, even when healthy, the 28-year-old running back was never a lock to make the team and this latest injury certainly won’t help.

Hot: FB Hunter Luepke

One player that stands to benefit from Freeman’s absence is Luepke, not that he wasn’t having an excellent camp already. As an undrafted free agent, Luepke had six carries for 19 yards and a score last year, but he’s been all over the field this summer.

While still operating as the team’s lead blocker, he’s also working at halfback and tight end, something that caught the eye of team owner Jerry Jones. 

"Really like the work that our fullback is doing,'' Jones said to in-house reporter Nick Harris. "He's very instrumental, and of course, he's going to be a big part of this offense and he's earning it. Coach Mike [McCarthy] loves his versatility, we all do." 

A strong showing against the Rams on Sunday could earn him a spot on the team’s 53-man roster.

Not: Fan attendance

Jones may think the team is “all in” for the 2024 season, but if attendance for the team’s training camp practices is any indication, Cowboys fans are anything but. Attendance for this year’s practices is way down, something WFAA's Mike Leslie highlighted with this post from a recent session: